Viking Brewing Whole Stein

Brewed by Viking Brewing Company
Style: Porter
Dallas, Wisconsin USA

Pours with a fine tight dark head, tiny bit of lace. Almost opaque dark brown. Light aroma. Creamy mouth, roasty nutty, coffee, toffee, yummy decent brew. Drinkable. Good finish. Not a summer beer. Had this bottle at Bodega Brew Pub downtown La Crosse, Wis.

12 ounce bottle. Pours a dingy, muddy black with a giant frothy/bubbly brown head that dissipates slowly (and completely) but does not leave any lacing. Aroma is like sweet chocolate milk on the pour (nice) with some cola notes later (not as nice). Later, the cola aroma dissipates and some more complex chocolate, licorice, and tobacco notes emerge. Flavor is a bit like an ice cream soda made with chocolate ice cream and cola. I’m only getting a little coffee in the dry, roasty finish. Its highly and coarsely carbonated like soda, with a pricklyness that detracts from the mouthfeel. Repeated swirling helps mitigate the overcarb and allows an otherwise decent mouthfeel to emerge: medium-light bodied, with the oatmeal providing a bit of substance. This one was disappointing on the pour but improved with time in the glass. For a beer trying to pack in a lot of flavors, it falls short, coming across as a bit weak and thin. Still, its nice to see a brewery making such an effort with a low-ABV beer.

Bottle care of Arg0: Dark brown, tan head, nice lacing. Nose of dusty book, plum spread and very stale coffee. The flavor is dry but a medium body and a molasses sweetness. Light creamy husky oatmeal and a bit of thick lactic finish. Finishes balanced. Nice.

12 ounce bottle. Shaker glass. Pitch black with a deep brown head. Aroma - faint malt and cocoa. Taste was of roast malt, oatmeal and a hint of chocolate. Creamy mouthfeel. Not bad, but nothing stood out.

12 oz bottle. Poured an opaque black color. Head was light tan and dissipated quickly to nothingness. Pretty lame head. Aroma was of milk chocolate, roasted nuts, and a hint of coffee. Not bad. Slightly sweet on the tongue with fleeting flavors of coffee and chocolate. Thin mouth feel. Very thin. Disappointing overall.

Pours dark with a small tan head that disappears to just a thin ring. Aroma of dark chocolate, a grape-like smell, and some coffee. Taste is very strong on coffee, with a little chocolate thrown in, with a nice roasty finish. Mouthfeel is pretty good on this one, and it finishes quite smooth.

Black/brown, garnet edges, small tan head. Light dose of roast coffee, dark and milk chocolate, oatmeal, stale grain. Smooth, medium body. Decent, drinkable.

Bottle. Deep brown with a small head. Milky chocolate and coffee taste. Creamy and chalky texture. Strange metallic aftertaste.