Rickards Dark

Brewed by Molson Breweries (MolsonCoors)
Style: Porter
Montreal, Canada

Bottle. I actually had an advance taste of this beer at Mondial de la Bière in Montreal back in June, when Molson quietly offered it for tasting a few months before it’s official release. I was told that it was supposed to be Rickards Porter, but was served a light reddish-brown liquid that made me think they’d given me Rickards Honey Brown by mistake. No, they assured me it was the Porter. A few months later, it was officially launched as Rickards Dark, although the neck label still calls it a “porter brewed with maple syrup”. I suspect that there may have been some tweaking done to the recipe as well, as the colour now seems darker, although it’s still a translucent ruby hue, not the dark and opaque brown expected from a proper porter. Very nice creamy tan head, though. The aroma is light, with hints of sweet maple toffee and a slight nutty background. The flavour follows with tasty maple and toffee notes, and even a hint of cocoa, with a bit of balance given by a quick and lightly hopped finish. Setting style aside, Rickard’s Dark is a pleasant and nicely flavoured dark ale. But I think that Molson has exhibited bad judgment in marketing it even tangentially as a porter, as it quite clearly isn’t one.

Hmmmm... porter eh? More like a timidly flavoured dark lager with caramel sweetness and little else. Thin with a metallic note in the finish.

Pours a darkish brown, very little head. Aroma is light and typical Rickard’s. Flavour is sweet and nutty, with roasted malt. Light/medium body. Mouthfeel surprisingly nice. Overall, I enjoyed this beer. I would call it decent brown ale, but not a porter.

[bottle] Cardboard and cotton candy aroma with a touch of raisins. Clear dark red-brown with a bubbly, off-white ring and wisps. Slighty nutty flavour with vegetal base malt and a note of currant. Very weak flavour. Light body, moderate carbonation, slight tang to the finish.

En fût. Verre de 12 oz dégusté chez Boston Pizza (Laval, QC). Arôme: Légère odeur de caramel légèrement brûlé. Apparence: La couleur est ambrée foncée. Présence d’un moyen col mousseux et d’une fine dentelle sur le verre. Saveur: Goût de caramel avec une pointe d’érable. Durée moyenne de l’arrière goût. Palette: Le corps est moyen avec une texture légèrement crémeuse. Faible effervescence en bouche. Arrière goût légèrement fruité. (Rating #2760)

341ml brown bottle. Dark brown colour, red highlights. Head is tan, small but surprisingly creamy and long lasting. Malty aroma, sweet, caramel, cola and light fruit. Sweet start, caramel, some roasted malt, light metallic notes. Finishes with a bit of dry roasty character. Light to medium body, creamy in the mouth, soft carbonation.

A decent macro-attempt at producing a porter. has some taste of roasted malt and definite caramel. However, mouthfeel is very light and watery.

This is so far from a porter, very much a "safe" beer. Non offensive, but does have some very nice maply syrup tasting notes. Dark brown in colour and not a lot of aroma but aroma is sweet with maple. Taste is again maple syrup with some malt. Beer is an easy drinking macro with really nothing of note or notable characteristics.