Had on tap at Old Chicago. Aroma is a faint roasted scent. Color is black with low carbonation and a nice thick head. Taste is roasted and smoky. Its has a medium body that goes down crisp yet smooth. Finish comes in with a mellow roasted malt taste that turns to a faint smokiness and is backed by a mild bitterness. The smoke stands out a bit more in the after taste. This is a tasty Porter and the smoke is subtle.

[1711-20080917] 1pt6floz bottle. Mild bubblegum honeyed malt aroma. Clear, dark brown red-hued body with a medium-lasting creamy tan head. Smoky roasted malt flavour has heavy dark wood notes, not many mid-tones, and something like vanilla. Medium-full body, made lighter by bubbles. Not overly smoky, nice to drink, kind of a surprise. <br /><i>(c/o blankboy, w/ him, GregClow, HogTownHarry, jerc)</i>

Bottle. Head is initially average sized, frothy, light brown, mostly diminishing. Body is dark brown to black Aroma is moderately malty (chocolate, caramel, roasted grain), lightly hoppy (flowers), with a note of vanilla, light note of chalk, hint of ash. Flavor is moderately sweet, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly to moderately sweet, lightly to moderately bitter. Medium body, watery/velvety texture, lively carbonation. There’s certainly some roast here, but I really don’t get much if any smoke. Maybe a hint of ash, but don’t expect rich smoked malt here. A very pleasant porter nonetheless, if a tiny bit on the sweet side.

Bottle shared with blankboy, HogTownHarry, jerc & mabel - courtesy of blankboy. Dark brown with a small tan head. Aroma of sweet malt, slightly toasted, with a bit of smoke. Medium bodied. Nice flavour - mellow roasted malt, faint smoke, notes of coffee and cocoa. I wouldn’t complain if there was a bit more smokiness, but still, it’s a nice little porter.

A vigorous pour into my 25cl tulip glass produces three-fingers of a light brown colored head that recedes at a medium pace and leaves some light lacing. The beer is quite black, but does show a concentrated, brilliantly clear, dark ruby hue when held up to the light. The aroma has a nice smoked malt character to it that is noticeable as I pour this brew. The smoke almost adds a sweetness to the aroma and there is also a well toasted, slightly burnt roast malt character. Aromas of dark roast coffee, sweet beech wood smoke, a touch of burnt pine needles, lightly burnt caramel, a burnt nuttiness and even a touch of toffee.<br /><br /> This has a nice creamy mouthfeel to it, but is still pretty quaffable; actually this is quite smooth and easy to drink. Both some residual malt and the smoke character contribute to a clean sweetness that helps to offset the roast malt character. This finishes with a dark chocolate note and a nice, though light, sharp roast character, a faint, burnt grain bitterness and some light espresso like acidity. The smoked malt character is somewhat subtle (at least I could see people missing it entirely), though it certainly adds a lot of complexity to the flavor. The sweetness also brings out some concentrated fruit flavors reminiscent of moist prunes and raisins.<br /><br /> This is a nice porter, I really like the smoke addition, it is not a dominant note, but is significant and adds lots of interesting complexity to this Porter.