Captain Lawrence Smoke from the Oak (Bourbon Barrel)

Brewed by Captain Lawrence Brewing Company
Style: Porter
Pleasantville, New York USA

750 ml bottle. Batch #1. Pours nearly black with a moderate, creamy light tan head with a few large bubbles pushing through. The head almost looks like when I am proofing yeast to bake bread. The head lasted to the bottom of the glass and left nice lacing all the way down as well. Very nice aroma of light smoke, oak, bourbon, vanilla and caramel. The flavor really followed the aroma with lots of bourbon, caramel, oak, vanilla and just a bit of smoke. Absolutely delicious. Warming alcohol presence at the finish; I would have guessed the abv was a good bit higher than 6.4%, but it in no way interfered with the flavor or enjoyment of this beer. An absolute gem.

750ml. bottle. Very dark brown color with a medium sized creamy tan head. Aroma was very wine-like, with only a slight roasted malt presence. A bit of char, and no bourbon detectable whatsoever. Flavor was again quite vinous, with a bit of oak, very light roast, no bourbon again and a sour finish. I did not know what to make of this beer. If I didn’t know better I would have guessed this was a mislabel of the SFTO Wine Barrel, but it is definitely the bourbon barrel. I definitely enjoyed it, but it was not what I was expecting.

Bottle shared by goldtwins on 10/12/07: Pours a barely transparent slightly murky dark mahogany with a frothy, nicely-lacing dark tan head. Aroma of light oaky bourbon and mild vinous notes with a touch of dark caramel and faint smoke. Body starts with good caramel and chocolate malty sweetness and dries out slightly with some mild tartness and oak along with some lingering bourbon and dark chocolate. A pretty nice barrel-aged smoked porter.

Richmond "industry" gathering. Deep hazy borwn. Aroma smoke and surprisingly winey and vinuous. Flavor was layers of dark fruit, more wine notes, and faint smoke. Double checked, and this was the bourbon barrel, not wine, which was surprising with some of the notes detected. Really nice brew, and to me one of the highlights of the event.

Bottle, courtesy of Dickinsonbeer at one time and Eclectic at another (I think). Pours dark brown with ruby edges and a beige head. Sour brett and smokiness in the nose, interesting. Flavor has notes of wood, chocolate, smokiness, caramel, a tinge of light roastiness and sour brett character. Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Nice beer.

Bottle: Pours a very dark opaque brown with 1 finger tan head. Aroma of roasty malts and some smoke and bourbon. Flavor is roasty and nutty and acid. Bourbon and smoke flavors are both noticeable but moderate and well done. But this lactic sourness throughout is quite unappetizing. It is really distracting and i am trying to overlook it for this rating and judge it on its other good qualities but this is really hard to give a decent rating to.

Batch #1. Huge thick dense and creamy tan head of very fine bubbles. Recedes very slowly. Sweet caramel and lots of bourbon in the aroma. Little bit of oaky tartness. Some vanilla and cherry in there also. Color is a very dark brown with a hint of red along the edges. Medium bodied and quite refreshing. A great mix of oaky tartness, light bourbon, sweet caramel malts and some more vanilla. Light alcohol presence. Any smokiness is hidden pretty well behind the other flavors. Finishes sweet and alcoholic and with a slight lingering tartness. A great porter!

750 ml bottle. Pours a dark brown with a slightly larger then average very light beige foamy head. Aroma has a sour funkiness about it that is very reminiscent of a Jolly Pumpkin. Behind the sour nose are notes of vanilla, roasted malts, chocolate, cherries and a slight touch of bourbon booziness. I have found the palate on the 2 SFTO series beers that i have tried to be slightly thin for my taste. flavor once again has a nice touch of sour funkiness to it along with cherry, light wood, chocolate and vanilla.