Berkshire Coffeehouse Porter

Brewed by Berkshire Brewing Company
Style: Porter
South Deerfield, Massachusetts USA

Serve in English pint, Shaker

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Bottle. Pours black with a beige head. Coffee, chocolate, and lightly roasted malts and grains. Pretty good.

From the tap. Heavy nitro characters surprised me a bit; poured more like a stout with fine, thick head; lots of retention. Roasted coffee bean aroma, some vanilla. Sweet, dark malt taste with mild caramel to finish. Some lingering, but not heavy bitter coffee which is good.

Bottle. Pours a clear amber tinged brown with a thin white head. Soft roast on the nose, light chocolate, cocoa and toast. Medium bodied, soft cocoa and toasty malt. Smooth bitterness into the finish. Easy drinknig.

650 mL bottle purchased from Leary’s for $5. Pours a burnt ruby brandy brown with a smallish, lacy off-white head which rested nicely atop. Smells and tastes predominately of Starbucks beans (Blonde Roast), cherry tomatoes, wax, caramel and a tinge of yeast and vanilla by swallow.

Aroma is dominated by a nice coffee note. Behind the coffee is some nice milk chocolate and a bit of roast. A bit of dark fruit esters - cherry and fig but the coffee is really the highlight of the aroma. A touch of a vegetable note as it warms. Pours almost jet black with just a bit of brown on the edges. A moderately thick tan head that recedes fairly quickly leaving nice lacing on the edges of the glass. Flavor starts out sweet with chocolate and dark fruit. Once again the fruit is mostly cherries and figs but there is also a prune note. Mid palate you get some roast and then the coffee hits you as you swallow. Fairly mellow coffee flavor with some more chocolate notes. Low bitterness and medium low astringency. No hop flavor and no alcohol flavor. There is something in the flavor that bothers me though - I think it is the way the fruit from the esters is combining with the coffee. Mouthfeel is medium bodied and surprisingly creamy. Has medium carbonation and medium low astringency. Low alcohol warmth. Overall it's not a bad beer, but it's not amazing either. A bit sweet for me and the odd fruit and coffee mix in the end isn't great. The coffee aroma is quite nice though. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Bottle at James’ from parts unknown. Deep deep brown, reddish tinge. Deep tan head. No laing or very little. Aroma is sharp cocoa bean, not necessarily coffee. Some offputting quality to the smell that I can’t pinpoint. Thin-bodied beer with a chalky quality and subtle aftertaste. Notes of dark chocolate and dry roasty coffee, but not overwhelmingly java.

Bottle shared with Brendan. Pours a deep black body with off white lacing. Aroma is coffee grinds, wet dog and light cocoa. Mouthfeel is medium to light with notes of bitter roast, earthy coffee grounds, cocoa, chalky and light sweet chocolate notes.

Nitro Draught. I like the way they balanced the coffee flavors in the beer. Not too much so the flavors of the grain bill still cut through the bitterness.

Nitro pours hazy reddish black with dense tan head. The smell is thick roasted barley. The flavor is smooth dark grains and drying earthy bitter sweet with a light coffee flavor.

Nitro tap. Poured a dark brown with a thin caramel head. Coffee aroma up front with a hint of chocolate. Same flavors come through on the taste but also some good roasted malt and vanilla notes. Good finish.