 MartinT (4373), Montreal, Quebec, Canada
May 9, 2007 Updated: Feb 24, 2008
My Bottom Line:
This luxurious Smoked Porter sports an affable wooden and peaty smokiness atop a most huggable roasted caramel. Serene and ample, its prominent residual sugars are intelligently offset by the roasted malt’s dryness, the leveled salty smoke and a subtle leafy hop touch. A world-class specimen from Bièropholie!
Further Personal Perceptions:
-A ring of foam surveils the nearly opaque ebony.
-Subtle raisiny, blueberry fruitiness adds to the complexity, seemingly seeping out of the dark chocolate.
-The smoke is never too intense, and offers earthy and peaty notes on top of its wooden character.
-There is no sign of the abv; this is absurdly drinkable.
-Vanilla and coffee appear once in a while.
-This is richer than the original Calumet, and perhaps a little less drinkable because of it, but if you’ve ever wondered how the first Calumet would translate into a sipper, your wishes have been granted.
Fresh bottles and on tap at various places.
The_Epeeist (976), Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, USA
Oct 6, 2008 341 ml bottle. Ebony with a pocked tan head. Smells like kippers. Dang, wish i had some. Mild cocoa in the back. Creamy, but quickly thinning, with a tang. Taste is dark chocolate, licorice and ash smoothing to a sweet smoke. Dry, bitter finish; a little oily. Good smoked with a nice bite.
Mike_B (12), Canada
Oct 3, 2008 D’un noir intense, on sent le fumé et on goûte le fumé,
Très bonne bière bu en fût (dommage qu’elle soit difficile à trouver en bouteille).
NachlamSie (1383), Tennessee, USA
Sep 8, 2008 bottle big thanks to Hopdog. Pours very dark, near blcak with a nice looking tan head. Lacing is firm. The aroma is certainly meaty, but not out of control like Schlenkerla. Bacon, cigars, with a chocolatey background. The flavor is where this sutff really excels. Big time smoke comes out now. Beef jerky, cigars, smoked wood, meat. Hell yeah. Now we’re talking. I love the mouthfeel and sweeter chocolate balance. I hate to keep comparing all somked beer to Schlenkerla, but how can I help it. . .this has the benefits of an ale over those lagers with fairly robust smoked character (comparatively anyway). Calumet Grand Chef truly excels in the use of meaty, hearty, smoked quality. I’d like to see more brewers flex their cajones like this.
piscator34 (937), Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Sep 6, 2008 Bottled sample via radiomgb, shared with oakbluff. Dark brown in colour with medium carbonation. Aromas are of smoke, dark chocolate, caramel, and a bit of plum. More smoke in the mouth, along with roasted grains, more caramel and chocolate, and a bit of earthy hop character. Medium bodied... but we drank it a bit on the cold side, so it probably would have presented a bit thicker at the proper temperature. Excellent stuff, with great flavor concentration.
The_Jester (497), Peterborough, Ontario, Canada
Sep 1, 2008 341 mL bottle. Deep chestnut brown with a nice, sticky light brown head. Aroma is smoky, with some burnt caramel. The smoke aroma changes as it warms!? Flavour is smoke, toffee, burnt chocolate, roast, and dark fruit. But mostly smoke. Some bitterness, some sweetness. Relatively dry finish. Not my thing, but not bad either.
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