Neustadt Springs Big Dog Porter

Brewed by Neustadt Springs Brewery
Style: Porter
Neustadt, Canada

Échantillon, Mondial de la bière, 3 juin 2009; oeil : brune foncée, claire, pas d’effervescence, petit anneau de mousse fauve; nez : poussière, malt torréfié, cacao; bouche : poussière, malt torréfié, léger fruits confits, mélasse, finale sèche en malt torréfié, légère astringence, texture mousseuse, corps moyen, carbonatation moyenne, légère astringence ENGLISH Sample, Mondial de la bière, savoured on June 3 2009; eye: dark brown, clear, no effervescence, tiny ring of tan head; nose: dust, roasted malt, cocoa; mouth: dust, roasted malt, light candied fruits, molasses, dry finale in roasted malt, light astringency, foamy texture, medium body, average carbonation, light astringency

On tap at Volo. Creamy mouthfeel with prominent of hits of chocolate, and espresso beans. A touch too bitter, but not overly so to ruin the brew. Roasted malt outlined the drink very well. Pretty decent brew.

2008-08-23. Black body, modest tan head. Modest roasty-cocoa malt in the aroma is a touch dry. (7+) Flavour is similar, dry pleasantly roasty malt, chocolate undertones. (7+) Average plus palate is lightly carbonated. (3+) Not much wine character that I picked up on. Simple, but this hit the right buttons today and I really enjoyed this. Quite drinkable, nice. 7/4/7/4/15 - 3.7 On Tap as Pelee Island Big Dog Porter, Golden Tap Awards, Toronto
Earlier Rating: 12/21/2006 Total Score: 3.4
December 2007. Draft at Cest What. No notes. Found this one showed off the wine influence much more dramatically than previous samples. I still don’t love it, but this is more interesting than the past version in my opinion. 7/3/7/3/14 - 3.4

December 2006. Draft at Volo. Black body, with a small tan head Lightly woody, mild roast in aroma is initially muted by the chilly temperature but still struggles a bit to emerge after it warms. Chalky roast and cocoa notes up front, dilute malt and a light roasty bitterness in the finish. Dry not quite astringent roast bitterness increases as it warms, to its detriment for my tastes. Average palate. Interesting porter but doesn’t hit the right notes for me. 6/3/6/3/13

Draught @ Volo. Opaque black, tan head. Some butter/diacetyl on top of a borboun, coffee, and caramel aroma base. Soft carbonation, not so prickly. Good roasty finish and acidic entry: not unlike a smooth espresso. Solid, good, sessionable but not transcendent.

Very dark brown. Slightly chewy, soft toffee aroma with light diacetyl. Heavy toasty palate. Light toffee and some late sweetness. Decent brew, not totally cohesive but fills the belly with goodness.

Draught at Volo, July 2008. I did not get any sense of wine in this. Colour was dark brown; mouthfeel was very watery and weak. Tasted chocolate and dark fruit.

On tap at Volo, and again at the Toronto Beer Fest. This is a nice looking, nice bodied, complex and well-balanced porter. Lots of cacao and dark fruits, with a great balance between sweet / fruity and burnt / bitter. Very creamy to boot, and port-like, which I guess comes from the Beaujolais barrels. The wine flavor is definitely there, but subtle and unobtrusive. I really enjoyed this complex brew.

Deep dark porter with a thin moka head. Lactic porter with notes of olive brine. In mouth, a good bitter chocolate malt, with light vinous notes, not exactly what I expected but still good. Medium bodied. Tap at the Black Tomato, May 2007.