Baltika 6 Porter

Brewed by Baltika Brewery (Baltic Beverages Holding - Carlsberg)
Style: Baltic Porter
St. Petersburg, Russia

She pours a deep rich black, gliding into my glass with soft velveteen precision. Dark clouds rumble up above while amber strokes of lightning crackle along the sides and bottom of her tumultuous depths. Her stormy clouds fade into a thick ominous layer which sticks with beautiful precision. Oozing rich moist dark fruits and dark fruit juices, I’m surrounded by a veritable whirlwind of prunes, dates, raisins, licorice root, black grapes and, surprisingly, red apples for a snappy crunch at the end. A touch of char and bakers chocolate weaves in and out of her dark fruits, earthen roots, and crisp finish. Delving deeper, cinnamon graham crackers and burnt marshmallows flit and float through her nose, leading me into my first creamy quaff of many. Yes, my fellow geeks and geekettes, we have here a genuine Baltic Porter. Smooth and creamy, a solid grounding of char and burnt marshmallow carries upon it a river of burnt cream with vanilla bean and licorice root. Mouthcoating and definitely sporting a sweet side, her burnt lactic nature bespeaks cream and whole milk along with faint chocolate esters. Swimming in her river of lactic sweetness are prunes, dates, raisins, and figs. Graham crackers meld perfectly with her dark fruit nature, bringing to mind instantly the classic cookie treat, fig newton. Burnt marshmallows and char linger long into the finish which is equally smooth and creamy. There is no dryness to her palate whatsoever, and yet the Baltika Porter never steps over that line into cloying. While the Baltic Porter is not my preferred style of porter, I must say that she is one of the best ones I have supped to date. One last sweet creamy embrace and I am left reminiscing about fig newtons, prunes, dates, and raisins while vanilla and licorice root pepper my breath.

Vodka will still be my favorite Russian spirit, but seeing as I am a complete novice in regards to Russian beer, I must correct this terrible imbalance in my life. I can name a dozen vodkas, maybe more, but beer…the Baltika 6 Porter comes to mind... That being said, note the freshness date, pour, smell, sup, and enjoy yet another fine brewing tradition.

A pretty boring porter. Not as sweet as one might expect. Rather light body too. This beer was really talked up to me and it didn’t really deliver. Not a bad beer, but not a great on either.

Another pick-up from the eastern european grocery. Pours black with a real nice thick tan head.This is a very easy to drink, simple porter, lots of chocolate malt flavors, and a tad bit sweet, all while having a rather moderate body.

Pours black with off-white head. Arouma of dark malts and some prune. Very smooth and creamy body with nice fizzy carbonation (palate is probably the best part of this beer). Roasty malts, licorice and hint of bitter at the end. Surprisingly good and sweet.

Dark pour, almost black, with a thick tan head. Roasted chocolate malt and syrup aroma, reminds me a little of chocolate chip pancakes. Sweet malty flavor. Medium but somewhat chewy body, I’m impressed, I bought this on a whim for $1.99 to rate a Russian beer, far surpassed my expectations.

From a 16 ounce pint bottle given to me as a Hannukah/Xmas/Winter Solstice present from my girlfriend - This one poured a very dark brew with a small, tight bubbled tan tan head of foam and weighty liquid. Tastewise, it has definite raisin and alcohol flavorings over a passing malty coffee base.

Bottle- Deep cola brown with a frothy mocha cap that laces well. Nose of coffee beans, vanilla, dark rum, dark chocolate, a bit of molasses. Tastes pretty sweet, of roasty malts, burnt toast, bittering hops, a bit woody. Has a bit of a metallic edge that detracts from the flavour a bit but thankfully it is only minor. Sweet malty finish, with roasty bitter aftertaste. Overall very good.

(br-btl bu-lbl, nice steel-blue lbl color, Baltika Brewery in Saint Petersburg Russia, 7.0%, ¢12/oz)

lct-mhgy, creamy tan head, wavy lace, med-co2, rich full body.

fresh-hop §malty muffin aroma.

malty bready T1 malty floral-hop warm-alchl T2 toasted-malt bready T3 §chcl §mtlc Tf.
well-balanced, sweet & creamy, ^drinkable, session.