Alaskan Smoked Porter

Brewed by Alaskan Brewing Co
Style: Smoked
Juneau, Alaska USA

650 ml bottle from Bevmo. 2007 vintage. Pours an opaque black color with a tan sudsy head that leaves some lacing. The aroma is strong and smoky with mesquite roasted meats. The flavor features more smokiness, malts, chocolate and some dry biter hops. The mouthfeel is full and creamy. The finish showcases more lingering smoke and a touch of biter walnuts. Overall: a quite enjoyable and drinkable smoked porter. Recommended

draft. didnt really know what to expect before trying this brew. was shocked at how smokey it was but after the first few sips my palate got more used to the flavor. i was looking for a bit more body, sweetness and maybe a higher ABV. not my favorite but a good example of a smokey beer.

Bottle. Moderate malt notes of dark bread and roasted, light pine for the hops, and earth for the yeast, with wood, smoke, maple syrup and dark dried fruits in the background. Head is small, bubbly, light brown and is fully diminishing with no lacing. Color is a sparkling black. Flavor starts lightly sweet and acidic and the long finish is moderately acidic and lightly bitter. Palate is medium, watery yet a touch syrupy and has a fizzy carbonation. This was much better as it warms. Very unique, I liked it a lot. A good choice for a winter night indoors by a fire.

2007 bottle had at Logan’s Oceanside beer tasting with AlohaC, and Hair, and Matt, and Ken, and Bill, and others. Have a 2006 bottle at home, and have been eager to try this, because of the numerous awards it receives. Very, very smokey aroma. A bit of acidity. Leans dry. Pitch black color small bubble head. Not my favorite style.

10/24/07 From 2007 bottle. Aroma is rauche-like smoked malt forward followed by a slight saltiness. The smoke is a bit overpowering of the porter character. Appearace is dark brown with a low light tan head. Flavor is a rich smoke/roast blend that is well balanced. Simple, with no hop character, but quite good. Mouthfeel is medium/high bodied with a medium carb feel and light creaminess. Overall, this is very good, but needs better aroma balance; fortunately the flavor preserves a lot of porter character. 9/23/08 From 2001 22oz bottle. Aroma is dark fruit with smoke forward and a light alcohol background. Appearance is dark brown with a low tan head. Flavor is rich and full of roast and a low sour fruit finish. Mouthfeel is full bodied, not creamy, with an almost crisp carb texture. Overall, not better than the 2007 release, just different and softer.

Thanks to jsquire for sharing this magnificant porter. This pours very black with a frothy dark beige head. Upon the pour the smokey aroma is instantly apparent. Reminded me of a campfire as a kid at grandma’s on the lake. The taste was huge with lots of roasted chocolate, a hint of an old time barbeque, and finishing with a mild coffee taste. The mouthfeel was lush but not too thick. Unlike many other smoked porters this was not overpowering. This is a GREAT beer. Oh to be in Alaska now that fall is here.

22 oz bomber. Poured a deep dark black with a small to average size light tan head. Big smokey aroma with hints of peat that made me long for some barbeque. Nicely balanced flavor of smoke and a chocolatey sweetness. This is one very very nicely done beer.

2006 label. Having really liked a certain smoked Porter recently, I wanted to see how this compares. It didn’t so well, but maybe it’s because this was bottled and that wasn’t. Maybe the most smoky I’ve had a Porter yet, but there wasn’t a lot in the way of sweetness to balance it out. And it had that rather filling sensation when putting it down that I don’t so care for. I’ve actually another bottle here for a re-try to see if impressions change. (The other smoked in question was the Issaquah Smoked Frog.)