Founders Porter

Brewed by Founders Brewing Company
Style: Porter
Grand Rapids, Michigan USA

12 oz bottle: Aroma is dark chocolate, a little coffee, just a bit of noticable hops on the back end, and cake. Appearance is pitch black with a medium sized dark tan head that diminishes into a creamy film. Taste is nicely complex, dark chocolate and malt overtones, some nice hops notes that are not too overpowering, but are still a nice attribute. Black Coffee, somewhat nutty, and vanilla notes. Overall, Founders has alway made really good beer and they don’t disappoint with this one. Cheers!

Pours black with a very thin tan head the disappears really quick. Aroma is coffee and vanilla with a little earthiness. Wow, the flavor is very intense and well balanced. Very enjoyable. I get coffee, a bit of chocolate, a touch of smoke, with a citrus and a little bitter in the finish. I agree with others that this is more like a top notch stout than most porters I’ve had, but definitely enjoyable in it’s own right.

12 oz. bottle. Pours pitch black with a small, creamy, brown head. Big roasted notes in the nose with aromas of earth, oak, chocolate, and a bit of vinousness too. Medium-low carbonation with a rich, slightly dry mouthfeel. This stuff is thick for a porter. Coffee and cocoa on the tongue. A little smoke, oak, and a nice bitter background. High IBUs for a porter, but still in balance with the malt. Medium-long finish with some chocolate and roasted notes lingering. Overall a great beer that stretches the limits of the porter style.

Wow! It’s amazing how after drinking a ton of porters how one can stand so far out in front as this! This is a delicious beer! Aroma was deep dark malt and chocolate with a hint of nuts. Pour was a rich dark brown/near black with a one finger tan head. Taste was near perfect. Strong roasted malt, dark chocolate and coffee in the front with an espresso bean bitter aftertaste. This is more like a stout due to the heavy flavors than a porter which is OK by me. Great beer!

Bottle pours dark and thick. Looks like a big stout. Small khaki head drops into sheets of lace. Bold aroma of chocolate, vanilla, coffee, and roasted nuts. Thick and rich, with a velvety carbonation. Taste is rich, roasty, and bitter. Kenyan coffee, cocoa, dark chocolate, roasted almonds, dark fruits,(figs)...Citrusy and earthy hops add even more depth. Finishes with a lingering dark roasty bitterness. Very impressive porter!

Bottle 12fl.oz. @ home.
[ Trade by toncatcher ]. Clear dark brown color with a average to large, frothy to creamy, good lacing, mostly lasting, light brown head. Aroma is moderate to heavy malty, roasted, caramel, chocolate, coffee, vanilla. Flavor is moderate to heavy sweet and bitter with a long duration, and dusty finish. Body is medium, texture is oily - creamy and smooth, carbonation is soft. [20090607]

Original review date 1/7/2009... 12 oz. into a Coronado Brewing Company pint glass... Pours with a dark maple, root beer float-colored head - about 2 fingers thick but slims to 1 quickly with decent lacing. Body color is espresso dark with sparse carbonation at bottom. Enticing. Slight bicarb and metallic tinge at first but it goes quickly and reveals a deep dark-roasted nuttiness - hazelnuts and peanuts mostly. Mild hoppiness of grass with a nuttier edge. Roasted malt really shines through. Wow - nice slate-ish BBQ char up along with some mild licorice - bitter French roasted coffee brings about some nice cinnamon/brown sugar sweetness. Finish is very slatish with big chicory bitterness and hop grass. There’s a fair amount of cleanliness to this even though it’s so damn robust. Smooth dark-roasted malt works well with the bitter coffee notes and quiet hop grass as well as the good slate an char. Slight alcohol sweetness - nice finish. Some Porter examples feel too thin and metallic compared to a session stout. Not this one - this one can pee in the tall weeds with the big dogs - it stands well on its own with great flavor and depth, and it sessions up nicely.

Really tasty stuff. Pours a deep black with a small but thick tan head. The aroma is smoky with coffee chocolate and vanilla with some fresh hops playing in the background. Flavor is strong with the chocolate and vanilla with some deep roasted coffee. Deliciously sweet, but not cloying!