McNeills Pullmans Porter

Brewed by McNeills Brewery
Style: Porter
Brattleboro, Vermont USA

Bottle (22oz). Shared with blankboy and garthicus, via trade with glouglouburp. Deep ruby-black with a diminishing tan head. Dry, lemony sour aroma, very weak roast. The taste - way too sour, pretty much just lemon juice for me. Thin and fizzy, an almost furniture polish aftertaste - not nice.

Bottle (22oz) shared with HogTownHarry & garthicus -- courtesy of HogTownHarry. Pours a very murky orange-brown with sediment and a huge frothy beige head. Aroma’s roasty with a some sourness, fruit and light hops. Flavour has that sourness again, too much so for my liking, along with some roasted malt and dark fruit. Average bodied. I found this just O.K. Me and Ughsmash seem to be going against the grain here, a bad batch perhaps?

Bomber, BB end of October. Poured deep, murky brown with a creamy cap of beige head.. some lacing stuck as it descenced. The aroma was uncharacteristically sour with vinegar-saturated dark fruit skins and toasty semi-sweet chocolate. The flavor confirmed my fears with an almost lambic-like sourness throughout.. darker fruit skins left an impression on the thankfully short finish.. chocolate was in there, but it was hard to find. Light-medium bodied and again sour on the palate with a dry, but not refreshing finish.. I’d like another shot at this one, as most reviews are solid.

(Bottle). Aroma of coffee and chocolate, and also some fruit. Its color is dark reddish brown, with a humongous fluffy tan head that lasts nicely. Flavor has the usual chocolate and roastiness, but also an unexpected tartness (cherry, red grape) that adds a distinctive difference from other porters. Finish is very mellow and smooth, with a touch of bitterness. Deliciously different.

Pours a dark brown with a medium/dark tan head. Aroma of chocolate, toffee, coffee, and hops. Taste is much the same. Pretty thick mouthfeel. I like the combination of flavors, but this doesn’t have big taste. This is a veryu good porter, but not especially memorable.

Tap at BT. Cherry, hops, dry finish. I had an IS before but it seemed fairly soda-like. Effervescent but enjoyable.

Tap at Blind Tiger. Pitch black beer, thin white head. Aroma is quite earthy and fairly chocolatey. Bitter chocolate, and loads of roasted barley. Fairly full-bodied with bitter chocolate and a bit of dark roasted coffee. Palate is a bit watery, but the beer really comes across more like a dry stout than like any sort of porter. It’s still pretty good.

I was quite exited to try this, as it was my first try at a Mcneills brew. Needless to say, I was quite disappointed. Aroma was predominantly hops, and not too much else. Flavour was overly hopped and astringent, with a massive imbalance. Just plain too astringently hoppy to be a good porter.