Browns Whiskey Porter

Brewed by Troy Pub & Brewery (Browns Brewing)
Style: Porter
Troy, New York USA

Serve in English pint, Stem glass

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(Sample Date: 4/17/2010 Source:Other) Light roast and chocolate with some earthy wood notes and touch of whiskey in aroma. Clear deep brown with little head. Caramelized sugars and some earthy fruitiness to start with a earthy woody whiskey flavor coming up from the back quickly. Medium body with fairly high carbonation on the tongue. Finish is dry and the whiskey and wood really come forward. Interesting complexity.

Pours with the look of a cola. Oak, vanilla, a slight chocolate taste and a whiff of whiskey sort of gives an appearance of alcohol without standing out. I am not a porter fan, and I’d like to see a tad more mouthfeel which would be an upping of the grain bill or raising of the final gravity , but otherwise a nice clean, interesting beer.

Great beer! The bold coffee and chocolate flavors that are to be expected in a porter mix well with the oak and smoke from the barrel aging. There are fine notes of vanilla, some roasted malt, and some mild whiskey flavor. If I’m going to Brown’s for dinner, I’ll order this if I’m getting something with some substance, like a steak or the pork chops (which they’ve taken off of the menu--boo). I was amazed when I found out that this beer is only 5.75% ABV. The experience of drinking this is similar to that of an Imperial, without the whole ’getting tanked’ part.

On tap at brewery - very dark brown, almost black. Smells like raw beef. Slight whiskey flavor. I guess I expected some oak, too, but no hint of that. OK beer, but one is enough for me.

I got this from a friend in the US, this is the best porter i ever had ! (mayby until now ;-) Is a smoot drinker, full of flavore, hints (in the beginning) of the choffee, chocolate and then the whiskey barrel kicks in. It’s there but not overpowering, this drinks amazing. Certainly of you now haw bold the flavor is. I just hoped that i could get this always, here in Belgium.

Clear brown ruby pour light off white/beige head .... aroma of chocolate, caramel and oak and some vanilla .... taste is of vanilla, chocolate, caramel and oaky with light whiskey ... thin bodied but all the flavors are very balanced and tasty definitely a sessionable porter ... finish is dry and oaky with a bitter hop .... not a bad brew nothing to turn you off in this brew thanks shueyy for sharing

Pours dark brown ruby red with a large fluffy tan head. Smells of chocolate, roasted barley, and a touch of vanilla. Tastes of sweet vanilla and roastedness with hints of chocolate underneath. Medium-bodied with a smooth, velvety texture and soft, mild mouth-carbonation, Brown’s Whiskey Porter finishes smooth and sweet.

Barrel-aging is all the rage these days, so in a way they’re almost par-for-the-course these days instead of the rarities they should be. Many of the highest-ranked beers in the world are barrel-aged and for good reason. But most of those beers are extremely rare, difficult to acquire and expensive (i.e. Three Floyds Dark Lord; Founders KBS). What about an ordinary microbrewery in an ordinary town that was making a beer of the sort BEFORE it was cool? That’s exactly what Brown’s Whiskey Barrel-Aged Porter is - a delicous, robust porter with genuine whiskey flavor but without the density of those aforementioned imperial beasts.

NOTE: I have had this beer on tap and from the bottle MANY times, but for the purposes of this formal review I’m basing it on a bottled version.

I poured a 22oz bomber into a Brown’s tumbler.

Appearance: Opaque black body all around. Forms a large, dark brown, foamy head but it mostly dissipates and leaves minor lacing.

Smell: The whiskey notes are very prominent - creating for a strong potpourri of vanilla, smoke, wet oak and roasted malts.

Taste: The best way to describe this beer would be to think of any of those highly-acclaimed barrel-aged imperial stouts and simply reduce the energy level. What separates Brown’s WBA Porter from the rest is that it is at the core just a porter. It doesn’t have the intense roasted maltiness or bitterness of a stout, but rather the sweeter, sessionable qualities of a true porter. Vanilla is a very strong component throughout the palate, followed by a whiskey sweetness and a slightly smoky aftertaste. A syrup-like flavors of toffee and caramel are quite strong through the middle, but never become cloying. Overall, it’s a delicious palate that never grows old.

Mouthfeel: Surprisingly thin and tepid, with a finish that is actually a little more clean than it should be. Probably the only beer I’d ever subtract points for not being thick and sticky enough.

Drinkability: The sweet whiskey taste combined with the thin, fairly clean mouthfeel make Brown’s WBA Porter amazingly drinkable. It glides across the tongue and down the throat leaving a pleasing, albeit short, aftertaste. It’s astounding that so much flavor is available from a beer that only weighs in at 5.75% ABV. I have sat at the brewpub many times sipping (or chugging) glass after glass without becoming totally inebriated. When paired with a beef or pork dish the appreciation for this brew grows even stronger.

Overall, Brown’s Whiskey Barrel Aged Porter is an amazing beer for what it is. I take tremendous pride in knowing I can get this on tap whenever I want.

UPDATED: MAY 21, 2011 Bottle... Poured deep, burgundy, dark brown with a khaki head. Nose had some charred oak, vanilla, roasted malt, and mild whiskey tones. Flavors very similar to the aroma. Hints of cocoa, whiskey (but very mild with the heat). Quite sessionable for a beer to end up in whiskey barrels. Dark fruits, caramel, toasted sugars and malt sweetness. Charred, chalky, and a sweet, toffee, burnt sugar finish with an added yeast tanginess and slight sourness. Even notes that reminded me of acidic lactobacillus, and maybe even brett funk. Infection for sure, but not in a horrible way.

Bomber. Poured cola brown with a short-lived khaki head. The aroma picked up sweet, but subtle whiskey over semi-dry chocolate, nutty, and vanilla notes.. sweet, well-balanced, and desserty. The flavor found more chocolate and vanilla than anything else, again with subtle and complementary whiskey throughout (some sweetness and some oaky tartness on the sides).. slightly tangy on the finish, carrying through a fine blend of vanilla and chocolates. Light-medium bodied with prickly carbonation on the palate.. OK feel and flow.. this was tasty stuff!

22 oz. bottle. Pours black with a thin-moderate tan head that is gone after the first sip and leaves very little lace. The aroma is roasted malt, chocolate, light oak, and a bit of tartness. The flavor is a combination of roasted malt, chocolate, oak and a bit of a metallic iron twang, which I am not all that crazy about. I’m assuming that is the tartness I picked up in the aroma. Medium bodied, but leaning towards the fuller side. I like sour ales, but if that is where this one is going, it doesn’t pull it off. Disappointing.