Golden Valley Dundee Porter

Brewed by Golden Valley Brewery
Style: Porter
McMinnville, Oregon USA

Dark brown with a tan head. Aroma of sour milk and a little chocolate. Milky body. Flavor of malt, milk and a little roast. Finish tasted almost like colby cheese.

27-Sep-04(22 oz bottle: $3.50 at Liquid Solutions in Tigard, OR) I tried my best to pour this with a head, but no success, as the very small head quickly fades to a haphazard sheen. Hmm, this beer has an odd nose, moderately strong dark roasted aroma, with a slight sourness that detracts considerably. The color is nearly black, certainly opaque, and dark brown at the very edges. Pretty light flavor for a porter, it’s lightly dark roasted, mildly bitter and hoppy, a touch of sweetness, but hardly the "robust porter" they claim it to be. Unfortunately, that slight sourness in the nose makes its way into the flavor as well. And to round out a disappointing porter in all categories, the palate is a bit thin and watery for the style. A retry might be in order to see what this beer is like without the sourness hanging over it. Oh, and one final note: as this porter edges away from fridge temperature and gets closer to room temperature, the negatives are really accentuated, as the nose and flavor border on rancid. Ratings are for when it was cold, but man, this beer is really problematic.

17-Apr-05 (22 oz bottle: $3.50 at Liquid Solutions in Tigard, OR) I finally got brave enough to order another bottle of this beer, hoping that by waiting several months, the store would have a new batch of this beer in stock and I’d receive a beer that wasn’t infected. The aroma alone tells me I’m in luck. Strong chocolate, moderately sweet, very toasty maltiness is the story with this porter, both in the nose and flavor. Fairly mild bitterness, as the roast is actually pretty light in this beer. Mild coffee in the finish. The palate Very deep brown color is fully opaque except at the ruddy brown edges. Light brown head is tough to rouse, and even tougher to keep alive, as it quickly and completely disappears, leaving no lace on the glass. Wow, this beer is wonderful, especially when it doesn’t have that nasty sourness ruining it!

The beer after its release from the 22-ounce brown bottle takes up temporary residence in my glass a deep brown with ruby high lights, the head is tan in color, creamy in texture and modest in size, as it dissolves, the lace forms a tight skirt around the glass. Aroma of toasted grains, slight hint of bitter-sweet chocolate, grassy like tone also notice, with the start decently malted, sweet and the top light to moderate. Finish has a pertinent acidity, the hops mild but noticeable in their spicy bite, the aftertaste long lasting, dry and somewhat sweet, a decent porter, not the worst I have tasted but not the best either.

Deep garnet color with a weak tan head. Hints of coffee and molasses in the nose. Lightly carbonated and creamy but thin mouthfeel. Flavor has notes of coffee and some sugar and a tad malty and fruity. A mediocre beer.

dark black with a thin quickly discipating tan head. The nose is soyish and malts the taste is soy salty sodium and sharply sickening. Blah

Black color with a hint of red and a small beige head. Sour, bittersweet chocolate, coffee, and dark fruit aromas. Nice tangy plum, coffee, chocolate, malt and hops flavors. Soft carbonation with a fairly dry hops finish.

Black color with ruby highlights and a small light tan head. The aroma and flavor were not strong...some sourness up front, chocolate, and some coffee...slight hops bitterness in the aftertaste. The feel was pretty watery and soft...very wet finish.

OK bought in the 22 oz brown bomber. Never had much from this brewery even though they are near to me. When poured into the pint mug its an attractive enough porter, mahogany in colour with a large creamy , tan head. Now the smell is kinda odd..very very milky..and I detect some hops..unusual for a porter..but not really "bad". Tste again is creamy/milk chocolate..with some bitterness near the end. Very smooth on the palate. Odd porter..almost a cream ale and porter cross..its drinkable..but not really a good porter. Perhaps as an earlier reviewer alluded too this is meant to be best from the cask.