Haandbryggeriet Porter

Brewed by Haandbryggeriet (Norway)
Style: Porter
Drammen, Norway

Bottled. Batch No. 78, May ’07. Beer is deep dark brown, nearly opaque. Head is initially large, frothy, light tan, creamily diminishes but mostly lasts. Stubborn arches of lacing struggle to hold their purchase.<P>The aroma is exciting—dark, fruity, unfolding. Invoking sexy, dark chocolate raspberry truffle. Malty with moderate notes of roasted grain, creamy dark chocolate, black coffee, light note of toasted nut, trace of savory molasses; Moderate herbal hop, trace black tea; Yeasty with a light note of damp basement; Moderate miscellaneous notes of raspberry jam, subtly vinous balsamic black fruit reduction, trace of vanilla/woodsy oak. <P>The flavor is moderately sweet, light/moderately acidic (juicy) lightly bitter with a long, lightly bittersweet finish.<P>The body is medium/full, the texture is watery/velvety and the carbonation is a little softer than average.<P>She’s beautiful! Complex, smoothly integrated, original and thoroughly engaging.

500 ml bottle, via TheCheeseMan & SoLan. Pours a black body under a one inch fizzy brown head that slowly faded. Light lacing remains. A fair amount of visible carbonation. Great nose of heavy roast and cocoa powder with coffee and a light burnt ashiness. Just a touch of hoppiness. The flavor is quite dry and with a heavy burnt coffee maltiness that’s more Stout than Porter to me. Long lingering chocolate and cocoa nibs on the finish with light to moderate bitterness. Mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with a slightly oily texture. The carbonation is a little over active and fizzy for me, and that really detracts from it I think. Overall, this was pretty good, but not one I’d drink with any regularity.

At first the nose was rather medicinal, but then it sparkles with roasted malt. Pitch black in color with a frothy off-white head. Lots of chocolate in the flavor, with caramel, some creaminess, but lots of carbonation. Lingering ash tray and molasses. Sadly this is not worth the money.

Dark brown, almost black with a high beige head. Roasty, woody, earthy old coffee nose. Flavor has notes of mocha, dirt, toffee, stale coffee, moderately sweet caramel. Bold flavor but a bit thin and somewhat burnt aftertaste. Medium/light bodied, a tad watery with light carbonation. The flavors don’t flow together smoothly on this one.

2008-02-01. Bottle, labeled Norse Porter. Black body with a big foamy tan head. Dry musty aroma, lightly acidic note to roasty character. Tangy acidity to the roasty malt character. Muted dry cocoa undertones. Average to medium effervescent palate. (3+) Decent well made porter but does not particularly excite me on this day.

Bottle shared with jerc, mabel, blankboy & mds - courtesy of mabel. Deep brown with a small and persistent tan head. Aroma is big and roasty, with notes of dark chocolate and espresso and a bit of smoke. Body is full and creamy. Flavour of dark roasted coffee, with some hints of sour cherry and mild lactic notes, and a long, slightly bitter finish. Very nice!

Bottle poured into a pint glass. Consumed at cellar temp. Poured a dark opaque brown with an off white angry head. Took awhile to calm down. Moderately carbonated with a substantial mouthfeel. Flavors were of unsweetened chocolate and roasted malts. Finish was dry and slightly bitter.

Bottle. Aromas of dark chocolate and toasted/smoked malt. Near opaque brown/black color with an impressive tan head that laces somewhat. Full bodied with creamy/chewy carbonation. The flavor is coffee, genuinely bitter toasted malt, and bakers chocolate. This is a truly impressive imperial stout. Oh, it’s a porter. Hmm! The finish is dry, and more cacao than coffee. Not quite so bitter as the start. Off and on there’s a floral hop note, but it’s all about dark stuff in a dry toasted way. Half way to Dark Lord?