Alaskan Smoked Porter

Brewed by Alaskan Brewing Co
Style: Smoked
Juneau, Alaska USA

RBSG 2007 Grand Tasting. 2006 bottle. Dark brown body with a creamy light brown head. Smoke, salt and caramel aroma. Smoke salt and molassas flavor.

Courtesy the Solanator. Pours pitch black with almost no head. Very thick looking. The smell is like its namesake, very smoky, some bacon, dark malts, and roastiness. Taste is very similar to the nose, very smoky, get a pretty big campfire or bacon breakfast taste. I feel like I just walked out of Cracker Barrel. Very roasty, with just a touch of chocolate and big dark maltiness. Very rich tasting. Big and bold. Slightly bitter finish, but the smoke stays with you in the aftertaste. Damn tasty brew for # 300.

2003 bottle on 9/9/2005: Even after two weeks in the car, a plane ride home, a month on the kitchen floor, and a 350 mile ride up to school, this beer still held strong (not to mention that I found this 2003 vintage in some backwater town in AK). Robust, smoky flavors compliment a fine, elegant palete. Not creamy like stouts but still really full and pleasing. The taste was perfectly balanced, as was everything else in this brew. Only thing I could’ve done more with was some head. 8/4/9/5/17 -- 4.3

2005 bottle on 11/30/06: 55 degrees from cellar... actually a little warm, so second pour from the bomber spent the previous 20 minutes in the fridge. Pours a fabulous black with tan head. Perfect. Nose is much smokier than I remember... in fact, despite my rating, I don’t really remember any smoke at all. I hadn’t ever had a smoked beer at that point, and, truth to be told, I don’t think I’d ever really had any smoked foods at all. The aecht beers were a really eye-opener for me towards the beauty that is smoke. ANYway, the freshly popped bottle has wonderful smoke character, though it dies down as the bottle sits. Still some fresh wood, meat, ham, chocolate flavors, on closer inspection. Flavor is chocolatey and smooth, a touch of smoke, pine, bean, whiskey. Dry. A little thin on the palate. A lower rating than my first shot at this beer, though I surely love it just as much. Still waiting to try a super-fresh bottle! 8/5/8/4/16 -- 4.1

Bottle (650ml - 2004). Shared with blankboy, GregClow, jerc, tupalev - courtesy of yours truly. Poured almost black, oily, nice sized lasting creamy light brown head, very pancake batter. Aroma - smoke! - bacon, hickory, burning peat, almost salty - there’s hops and coffee and leafiness, but this is all about the smoke, although it gets a nice semi-sweet chocolate milk character as it warms. Lovely balanced smoke and hop flavour - yes, there’s hops here, but it’s a milder reality of the promise from the nose. Mouthfeel is pretty full bodied, finishes smoothly bitter. I really liked this one once the smoke started to behave itself.

Inky black with a thick foamy tan head. Aroma is smoky (of course) with some salted chocolate and caramel. The smoke seems to be a nice subtle alder, or maybe hickory. There is a slight mushroomy sourness to it as well, like walking through the woods after a summer rain. The flavor is subtle and pleasant as well. The smoke, chocolate and caramel all come through, along with a nice fruity sweetness. Plums perhaps. Very light and airy mouthfeel at first. As the beer settles in the glass, it becomes a nice velvety medium bodied delight. I could gush about this some more, but I think I’ll just drink it.

Pours deep blackish brown, with a thin head that dies out. A great smoke aroma and tast.

2005 bottle, a big thanks goes to acertain for this one. Pours an opaque dark brown/black with a medium-light tan head...pretty decent retention. Certainly getting smoke elements form the aroma as well as the expected coffee and chocolate...perhaps a bit of peat. The flavor is similar with more bitter chocolate coming through as well as the peat...the smoke is nice and suttle, creeping around until the coffee and smoke finish. The body is about what I would expect for a porter, full bodied but not overly heavy gving it a nice drinkability. Malty and roasty in the front working its way to a bittersweet and dry finsih. Everything to this beer works pretty well, nothing is too overpowering nor subdued.

Bomber. Good night, the price on these is up to $6.49 now. Used to be such a cheap treat. Best to confess up front that I’ve been completely thunderstruck by this beer for years and years now; I must be rating about my 75th bottle. Pours jet black with a huge sudsy, almost bread-like (looking) tan head. Lots of smoke and char on the nose. Big beef jerky, smoked, almost salty smoked, rich, brunt toast palate that’s tough to capture in words. Medium body, lightish carb, forceful, aggressive beer but not in a domineering way. Easily the most sessionable smoke beer around, and a thoroughly commendable porter’s in there somewhere (not that the porter would be a big deal without the smoke, just saying). Wonderful stuff--a perennial favorite that never disappoints.