Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter

Brewed by Flying Dog Brewery
Style: Imperial/Strong Porter
Frederick, Maryland USA

Serve in Shaker, Snifter

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What does this have to do with a Baltic Porter?!? What a great beer! The cascade hops just slap you in the face. Grapefruit, Resin, Pine, Floral, Orange...The roasted malts are sweet, and rich...Chocolate, Mocha, Coffee, espresso, etc...Complex dried fruitiness and toffee as well. What a great beer! The alcohol was exceptionally well hidden, until I had to drive home. May I have another?

Nice thick pour and obsidian black in appearance, complimented by an admirable dark tan and foamy head. Hello hefty black licorice aroma, meet some funky fudge, rubber tires, Hershey syrup, turning black currant and bold ass espresso. Flavor has character - unsweetened dark chocolate, mocha cocoa, burnt rubber and several days old espresso. A very unique rendition is upon us. Charcoal and burnt vibrancies echo throughout. Black licorice can’t be shaken. Thick, assertive and flavor-socked at every palate turn, and balanced right where it should be. Some alcohol warming at the throat. Finishes with smoky undertones and a pervasive characteristic of burr grinded espresso soot. Bravo.

UPDATED: AUG 5, 2007 Pour is solid black with a beautiful creamy brown flowing head. Nice lacing. Aroma is a mix of coffee, chocolate and alcohol. Smooth mouth feel. The finish has some alcohol to it, but plenty of chocolate. 7/5/8/4/17

RERATE: 12oz bottle aged approx 1 year. Pour is very black with a huge dark tan pillow top. Aroma is big chocolate and some liquorish. Flavor is a very smooth blend of chocolate and just a touch of roast. The body is silky smooth and just a bit sticky. Overall very tasty and obviously quality. 7/5/7/5/17

pours black with a perfect milky brown head. Good aroma but too hoppy for a porter. flavor is a good chocolate and roast barley, I didn’t taste too much coffee. lighter palate than a porter should have due to the hops (I’m not complaining tho) hops like a stout with the creaminess of a good porter, very enjoyable

I bought a 12 oz bottle of this and shared it with Dave and Jason for a taste. It pours to a thin rocky tan head atop a dark brown body. Excellent lacing. The aroma is coffee and citrus hops like limes and lemons with a light smoke and charcoal. The flavor is a robust dark coffee. Then the citrus hops hit. The charcoal fills in on the finish. Licking the lips gets a lemony characteristic. I also get a tea flavor before the dark malts take over. Quite nice for this brewery.

’05 12oz bottle shared by Blake. Black body under a small dark tan head. Rather hoppy aroma: ragweed leafy hops over charcoaly chocolate malt. The flavor takes a 180 and puts the chocolate/toasted flavors first with the leafy hops in back. Full-flavored and interesting! I dig the dry malt and big hops combo.

Standing 200 yards from the Gonzo Fist Cannon amidst 50 or so of my fellow uninvited riffraff (90% of us journalists), I answered one young man’s query as to the taste of the Imperial Porter in my hand, saying "It’s 85 percent Owl Farm soil, 10 percent gunpowder, and 5 percent of Hunter’s ashes. Oh, and some hopped-up water." -Rick McKinney, Jigglebox.com

Bottled. Very black, small beige head. Aroma of licorice and blueberries. Sweet with near full body. Feels young and berryish, with notes of orange, anise and molasses. Salty, tarry finish. Bears no connection to Baltic porters, but I really like the concentrated flavours.

Bottle 12 oz. Black color with a large light brown head that diminished slowly. Full complex aroma of roasted malt, smoky with alcohol . Full body with a creamy texture. Full malt, toffee and coffee with a long finish with a hoppy bitter bite. Clearly a Flying Dog version of a porter.

A first...a decent beer from Flying Dog. Lacks the normal odd aftertaste of the others, probably because this is strong and dark as hell. Smoky, chocolate, sweet, and coffee. I too notice a large presence of hops and bitterness for a porter...especially in the belch.