Breckenridge Vanilla Porter

Very malty and fleeting, somewhat thin and definitely low ABV. It doesn’t go wrong at any point, and I really didn’t taste too much vanilla, but it’s a decent beer, although I wouldn’t pay more than $6 for a sixer.

Pours deep brownish black, no discernable head. Nose is vanilla, chocolate, tiny hints of lactic sourness. Flavor is lightly bitter, with mild bitterness and light astringency lingering in the finish. Palate is very full. Very nice consistency and balance.

A reasonably vigorous pour only produces a thin finger thickness, lightly browned, tan colored head. The beer is a deep brown color that is almost black, but it does show a clear, concentrated, ruby hue when held up to the light. Light aromas of vanilla mix in with roasty dark malt notes. The nose has a slight burnt acidity to it, some well toasted bread aromas, a touch of blackened espresso notes and perhaps a touch of malty chocolate. The vanilla is fairly restrained, though easily noticeable, but the base beers aroma does not seem to match the vanilla notes very well.

Not as thin as I was expecting, this has a soft creaminess to it and a certain fullness to it that helps to lightly coat the mouth. The vanilla is much more noticeable in the flavor than it was in the aroma. The vanilla definitely dominates the flavor profile, but there is still some roast grain character that pokes through especially towards the finish were bitter, burnt flavors kick in a bit along with a touch of roast acidity. The vanilla is accented by sweet malt flavors that are note really noticeable underneath the vanilla notes, but are definitely here. This has a very low hop presence, as expected, with perhaps a touch of bitterness being all I notice.

This is definitely a vanilla focused brew, this would not be such a bad thing if the base beer was a bit more noticeable underneath. Instead all I really get is an overly burnt malt character, that doesn’t really seem to contribute positively. Though I really like the texture and mouthfeel of this brew.

Purchased: <a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp?PlaceID=698>Plaza Liquors, Tucson AZ

12 ounce bottle. Poured a brown color with a very small tan head, The aroma consisted of a malty vanilla smell with a somewhat strange burnt smell in the background. The taste was very strange. I could pick out the vanilla, but there was also a slight nut and chocolate taste. It was a strange combination. Finished with a very bitter taste. This was an interesting porter to say the least... I would not seek this one out again though...

malty aroma .... creamy vanilla taste .... thick milky mouthfeel ... vanilla frappe without any porter qualities I expected ..... good kinda like a McDonalds milkshake, but not great

2-20-08 bottle.
Bubbly brown in color with nice foamy off-white head. Smells somewhat of burnt malt but mostly just generic vanilla and malt tones. Flavor is strange vanilla cocoa. Really becomes a hard beer to drink as the flavor is just unenjoyable and overly vanilla. Mouthfeel is average - a hint on the thin side.

Wife and I are split on this one: I like it a lot, she doesn’t care for it at all. Rating is based on my opinion -- if it were hers, it would be much lower (about a 2.3, or so.) We both agree that it’s a very attractive beer -- it pours from the bottle a rich, dark brown with a creamy tan head. The aroma is fair, although I think the vanilla helps more in the taste department than it does for aroma. It almost gives it a somewhat "off" scent. It is a pretty good Porter, although I think it would be a bit on the bitter side without the vanilla addition. Chocolate and coffee tastes are both definitely there, but the vanilla predominates. This is where my wife and I diverge: She finds the texture "syrupy" and the vanilla far too overpowering and sweet. I, too, would make it a bit less heavy on the vanilla, but find it a nice complement to the otherwise rather bitter Porter this would be. I’d describe it more as creamy (in the Guinness sense) than syrupy. We also both agree that the vanilla is too strong in the finish. But, to my taste, this is a quite tasty brew.

Brewed in the USA... Courtesy of the Capt, thanks mark !! Pours brown in color with a thin beige head. Aroma of vanilla beans, chocolate and malts. Taste is much of the same, but still pretty drinkable.