Portsmouth Holidaze Porter

Brewed by Portsmouth Brewery
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Portsmouth, New Hampshire USA

Serve in Lager glass, Shaker, Tumbler

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Purchased from the Portsmouth Brewery gift shop for $5.95. 650 mL bottle which had been refrigerated already and was ready to drink. Honestly, I was expecting that it’d be darker, but it pours a darkish-red mahogany chocolate with a thin yet long-lasting sudsy off-white head. Aromas of pine needles, deep dish pizza dough, sharp aged cheddar, noble hops, Irish whiskey dregs, aloe vera, ginger rhizome, avocados, white chocolate, mint and faint yeastiness. Incredibly green. Wow, this is not what I was thinking it’d be, but it’s not half bad: starts off with tobacco smoke, sorghum, torrified wheat, fried peanuts; ends with ginger paste, chalk, yeast, and some booze which rises by every sip. I wanted more robust, darker flavors, but overall it was enjoyable.

Big thanks to Ben for this bottle. Pours deep mahogany with ruby hints around the edges. The head is really impressive and thick, showing excellent retention and sheets of lacing. Aroma is definitely spicy with lots of ginger and cinnamon. In addition to the spices, I get some chocolate and sweet malts, but it’s smells more spicy than sweet. The taste starts like the aroma with a strong ginger flavor, complimented by other spices. The backbone is chocolate malts and comes out stronger as it warms. The finish is smooth but spicy with cinnamon and nutmeg. The mouthfeel is medium bodied and smooth with a body that’s pretty solid for a porter with such low ABV. This is one my favorite holiday beers this year - a solid sweet porter base with more than enough ginger to make things interesting.

3.8 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 17/20 AirForceHops (297) - Epping, USA - DEC 24, 2010 On draft @ the brew pub and shared with a Ratebeer memeber!!! Pours a dark mahogany with a thin tan head. Aroma has a variety of winter spices, I get cinnamon in the forefront. Aromas include ginger, cinnamon, and sugar. Balanced throughout, a nice lighter porter. Carbonation keeps the earthy spices dancing on the palette. It reminds me of a pumpkin ale. A very drinkable brew, as soon as I finished it, I was wanting to order another one.

On draft @ the brew pub and shared with a new Ratebeer memeber!!! Pours a dark mahogany with a thin tan head. Aroma has a variety of winter spices, I get cinnamon in the forefront. Aromas include ginger, cinnamon, and sugar. Balanced throughout, a nice lighter porter. Carbonation keeps the earthy spices dancing on the palette. It reminds me of a pumpkin ale. A very drinkable brew, as soon as I finished it, I was wanting to order another one. Reminds me of Old Fezziwig from Sam Adams.

Draft at the brewpub...Pours dark reddish brown with one finger of tannish head that recedes a little but is well-retained. Aroma of ginger and spice. Nice light rings and sheets of lacing in the shaker. Texture is medium-full, fairly smooth and a little sticky. Taste is lots of ginger and spice, a bit candyish. They really piled the ginger on in this version. Glad to see this is classified as a spice beer here because it is hard to find anything porter-ish about it. Hardly a trace of the 6.75 ABV.

[draught @ the brewpub] Dark brown, reddish in color. Very minimal head. Sugary malt aroma, with some mixed spices. Flavors are somewhat sweet-- nice and malty. Brown sugar, some molasses.. nutmeg, cinnamon, plenty of ginger. Overall, a well made beer.. a nice porter, but a bit too heavily spiced for my tastes.

on tap at the brewpub. Dark brown in color with some ruby highlights at the bottom of the glass. Aroma of ginger, molasses, chocolate, burnt sugars. Taste is ginger up front, but subtle enough to not overpower the other flavors- caramel/molasses, chocolate, burnt brown sugar. Light to medium body. Finishes with some lingering chocolate and light roastyness.