Craggie Burning Barrel Bourbon Chipotle Porter

Brewed by Craggie Brewing Company
Style: Porter
Asheville, North Carolina USA

Serve in English pint, Stem glass

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Thanks to octo for the share. Pours a medium brown with a white head. Nose is smoke, band-aid, some chocolate, and earthy peppers. Flavor is similar with some smoke and peppers leading the forward march, a small wood presence, and hints of sweetness behind the peppers. Interesting offering.

Growler from Casual Pint. Hazy chocolate-copper with a small ring of bubbles. Nose is charred popcorn with lightly spiced butter, caramel, and a hint of oak and berry. Taste is char, caramel, chocolate, and light berry. Long finish of charred oak, vanilla, light smoke and pepper is very nice. Light-medium body is watery and sessionable, with low carbonation. Very nice use of the pepper, but the beer needs to stand up a wee bit more against the barrel.

Had on draft at Mellow Mushroom in Johnson City, TN. Slightly hazy dark brown with a smallish off-white head. Smells of caramel and some roasted malt along with a light hint of chili powder. The taste is full of caramel and vanilla presumably from the bourbon barrel. A light touch of wood along with some roasted malt. Chilies are there but in the background with a low warming in the back of the throat after the finish. Overall this was a pretty tasty beer. I really enjoyed the bourbon characteristics and the warming from the chillies.

From Beerlicious iPhone app: Growler, I really enjoyed this. Brown hazy color with a frothy tan head. Some mild bittery notes with a short duration. Light body, sticky but thin texture and an abrupt finish.

Draft sampler pours black with a tan head. Aroma of spicy chocolate. Taste of coffee and chocolate with a hint of spice. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Draft. Pours amber red with an off white head. Toasted bready aroma, with pepper and some light woody notes. The flavor is well balanced, with toasted malts, some woody barrel hints, a hint of chipotle, and just a touch of heat. Comes together pretty well.

Growler from Bestway in greensboro. Smooth milk chocolate porter. The touch of chili pepper spice working in the back is nice and entertaining. A little later in the drink it gets a little more pronounced. Still like a mexican hot chocolate. A little thin on the porter side. Oak chips mellow and smooth things out a little and add a touch of vanilla. Was excited by the description but a little let down by the overall presence of the beer. Has some entertaining points but overall, could be so much better.

Date: September 17, 2011
Mode: Draft
Source: Brewfest, Brewgrass
Appearance: cloudy amber, frothy beige head, drippy lace
Aroma: dry chili chocolate aroma
Flavor: dry chocolate flavor, touch of bourbon sweetness, chilis come in the finish to add a touch of heat and complexity, lingering but constrained hot chili finish
Aroma: 6/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 7/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 13/20
Rating: 3.3/5.0
Drinkability: 6/10
Score: **+ /4

Lightly hazed brown pour with foamy tan head and lace. Aroma of light sour malt and bourbon. Vanilla, BB, and a kinda sulfur finish, good medium malt bitter. Good body but kinda fizzy.

Draft at the brewery. A dark reddish-brown beer, this delivers a caged, slow chili burn intermingled with a nice porter character. All in a neat little package. Another display of incredible finesse from Craggie -- this ain’t easy to do! (#4303, 10/5/2011)

On tap at brewery. Poured black with tan head. Smoky chocolate aroma. Roasted malt flavors with chocolate and oak flavors. Spicy at end with a little burn. Kind of sour finish. I think I would have enjoyed more earlier in the day.