Otter Creek Sea Otter

Brewed by Otter Creek Brewing
Style: Baltic Porter
Middlebury, Vermont USA

Bottle (22oz). Very deep ruby pour, clear, but dark enough to be hard to see through - large lasting foamy-creamy tan head (4-). Quite light aroma, not much alcohol on the nose, leafy and dry, with dry coffee roast and quite a dairy barn smell hovering around it. The taste follows, not as lactic, dry yeast still very roast caramel sweet, nice dry bitter aftertaste. Quite a light body, weakly carbonated, the malt body fades quickly and leaves a generic dry roast and only a hint of alcohol .... quite easy to drink, but a little vague.

This is a good Baltic porter for me because I don’t like the thick and chewy mouthfeel of most and this is a lot thinner. That may be bad for those who love the style, though. Aroma was nice. Strong chocolate, roasted malt and some nuts. Pour was a nice near black with a 2 finger tan head that left before I sat back down. Taste was a thin, chocolaty and strong on the roastiness. Bitter roasted malt in the aftertaste that as it warms actually gets a little sweeter.

Date: 05/03/2008
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting, Cellar Party

Appearance: dark brown, fine dirty white head, bits of drippy lace,
Aroma: dry chocolate aroma with just a hint of dark caramel sweetness,
Body: creamy body,
Flavor: rich chocolate flavor, nice caramel sweetness brings out the chocolate, hint of tartness, light bitterness,

Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 8/10; Palate: 8/10; Overall: 16/20
Rating: 3.9/5.0
Drinkability: 8/10
Score: **4

22oz bottle. Pours dark brown. Roast, toast, dry dog food aroma. Flavor is nutty, roasted malt. Very nice. Perfectly well balanced.

Appearance: Pours a clear, dark brown/near black body with no real head to speak of save a thin ring of beige bubbles. Smell: Licorice laden dark maltiness with a full scent of roasty, burnt grains. A handful of top soil blended with unsweetened chocolate. Overall, a pretty earthy aroma. Taste: Sweetish dark, roasty malts. A drop of caramel, a drop of chocolate sauce. Spicy anise. Light, earthy bitterness. A few scorched grains build up a roasty finish. Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied. Medium carbonation. Somewhat creamy texture. Drinkability: Good on Otter Creek for trying such a vast range of beer styles. Hopefully, now that Vermont has altered their laws governing allowed beer alcohol percentages they can really PUMP IT UP. As for the Sea Otter, it’s good, but seems like a dialed down baltic porter. Still good, though!

Pours a transparent dark mahogany with a thin, wispy-lacing light tan head. Aroma of lightly sweet milk chocolate and caramel with a touch of licorice. Starts with decent fullness and some sweet dark caramel malts before a drier, slightly roasted dark chocolate finish. A pretty good strong porter.

Pours a deep brown color and a light brown head. Aroma is malty, caramel, chocolate, some fruityness, and sweet brown sugar. Flavor is malty, caramel, roast, chocolate, and a bitter spicy finish.

Pours brown with a coca-cola like constituency. Slight head with average lacing. Slightly under carbonated with a sweet smells of roasted malts and smoke. Tastes weak for a Baltic Porter Malty with a light smoke flavor and a hint of tobacco. It finishes sweet and then bitter