Big River Grille Black Cherry Porter

Date: 02/19/2006
Mode: Draft
Source: Brewpub

Appearance: dark red, thin beige head,
Aroma: light sweet cherry aroma,
Flavor: nice cherry flavor on top of a rich chocolate base, well blended between the chocolate and cherry, no bitterness

Aroma: 5/10; Appearance: 6/10; Flavor: 7/10; Palate: 5/10; Overall: 12/20
Rating: 3/5.0
Drinkability: 8/10
Score: **+/4

Well I was really excited to try this Valentine’s Day treat they brewed up for the holiday. I was a little dissapointed though. Poured into a standard pint glass with a HUGE head, little lacing though. Dark ruby tint with a little black look to it. Smell was almost non existant. Very faint fruit smell with some sugar. Taste was just ok. Very light roasted character to it, some malts, a charred taste to it, and very very faint cherry or maybe even raisin character in the end. Mouthfeel was too thin, very watery, which I’ve come to expect of most of their beers. Almost like a light macro. Drinkability was alright, nothing special here. I expected quite a bit more, but I am glad to see a local brewery branching out and doing something different.

Pours a dark purple ruby with a good head, The aroma is mostly chocolate with some fruitiness that could be cherry. The flavor is light, slight chocolate, a bit of nuttiness, but the cherry is not strong. There’s a light bit of wood in the finish, but this isn’t wood aged. Something about the palate and flavor seems cola-like to me, but it’s not excessively fizzy. Just light-bodied and clean finishing.

Draught @ Brewpub: This one pours a very dark ruby color. There was a small off white head that drops away quickly. Tt left a bit of lacing. The aroma was a bit thin. I got some hints of the black cherry and a touch of roastiness. The taste is a bit on the light side also. The black cherry is evident in the taste, but not overly done. Some roastiness to the taste also. A decent beer.

I guess this one is brewed for VD day. The appearance is black with a reddish hue and almost no head. The aroma is mainly coffee and chocolate with little cherry detected. The flavor is somewhat bitter and sour with a lot of roasted malt and sour cherries coming through. The palate is a bit thin. This is basically the winter porter with some cherry syrup added. Its not a bad beer but nothing out of this world. Overall I’ll say its a pretty good porter.