Stone Smoked Porter with Vanilla Beans

Brewed by Stone Brewing Co.
Style: Porter
Escondido, California USA

On tap at the Blue Palms brewhouse in Hollywood, Ca. Wonderful big dark pour with one finger of froth. Vanilla wafts in the nose and amazing creamy texture. The lightly french vanilla aftertaste is delicious. I’m not a big porter drinker, but this was one fantastic beer.

Draft Collins Pub. Pours deep black with thin light tan head that leaves some lacing on the way down. Nose is roasty chocolate malt with a ton of vanilla. Not picking up any smoke notes, but the standard smoked porter from stone doesn’t have much either so i guess I am not shocked. Body is a bit thin and carbonation is kind of sharp. Some mild chocolate roastiness up front and then just way over taken by vanilla. Not a good kind of vanilla, but like it has this abrasive and harsh extract vanilla taste. On paper this one sounded really good, but wasn’t worth the trip.

Draft at Collins Pub. Pours jet black with thin wisps of burnt tan foam on top. Weirdly dry nose of smoke, roast, and vanilla. Mouthfeel comes on like a lot of thick creamy goodness, and that works for a while. Smoke, chocolate, roast, and a hube wash of vanilla coat the mid palate, and that’s where things go south. Too much vanilla. It tastes like real vanilla, insomuch as it does not taste sugary like extract or fake stuff. What it does taste like, unfortunately, is aspartame. It’s quite acetic, slick, and odd. Disappointing.

Spot on--delicious dark brown-sugar malted porter with smokiness and vanilla, both in aroma and in flavor. Smokiness is not overpowering; the beer is very well balanced.

Lots of vanilla with a bit of oak in the aroma. Black with no head. Creamy vanilla and very light smoke flavor. Fantastic.

On tap at Collins. Dark inky black with little head. Aroma perfectly matches description. Loads of vanilla cream and smoke. Great balance and addition to the smoked porter line.

On tap at Brewery. Pours reddish brown in color with a full foamy brown head. Aroma vanilla, vanilla, sweet and chocolate. Taste vanilla, oak, dark chocolate and smoke with bitter finish.

Had on tap at Stone Brewery. Looked amazing in the glass, it actually looked like Smokey. You know, the main character from Friday. Yeah, it was about as dark as him. Taste, is somewhere between shoe leather and an old ash tray. Not sure where they were trying to go with this one, but it doesnt work for me. I taste the smoke, I taste what might be vanilla in the after taste, but somethign about it is just foul.