The Duck-Rabbit Baltic Porter

Brewed by The Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery
Style: Baltic Porter
Farmville, North Carolina USA

Black in colour with a big old brown head on top of it. The head disappeared after about 10 minutes. Sure smells like a baltic porter, chocolate and fruit with some vanilla and roast. Nice thick mouthfeel with good soft carbonation. The flavour is of dried fruits and pure dark chocolate lending itself a bit of a sweetness and some roasted flavour in the end.

Thanks to emacgee. Rich deep malt dark chocolate,some roastedness and a touch or fruit in this very pleasing aroma, smooth as silk, cocoa liquer malt with a touch of anise vanilla and carmel and roastedness, a tad bitter and alcoholy in finish,not a baltic by any means but an extremely pleasant surprise

Duane shared a bottle of this with me. Dark pour. Smells like some roasted barley, caramel and dried fruit. Taste is also very sweet and has a velvety mouthfeel. Lots of roasted character, more than most porters I’ve had. Very sweet beer, I didn’t really pick up any hop flavor in the finish, but it was just so smooth and easy drinking that it really didn’t matter.

bottles courtesy of rooftoprogue and styles, shared w/illini08. delightful porter! aroma of chocolates, dried dark fruit and a hint of coffee. flavors are well balanced and smooth with that slight baltic acidity on the finish. mouth-feel is soft and almost creamy. thanks guys, a very enjoyable experience.

1/5/07. Poured out of 12 oz. bottle, obtained in SecretSanta exchange on RateBeer 12/6/06. Dark black-brown in color, utterly opaque with a mostly-dense, medium-sized, brown-tan head. Peppered with tiny black bits of small-but-persistent bubbles and blotches of sudsier, rocky bubbles, the head seems to grow lighter in color a bit after the initial pour. Finely-beaded lacing undergoes a similar shift to more mundane activity after its early displays of elegance. Aroma climbs out of the bottle when I first open it; dense layers of baker’s chocolate, dry roast, some sort of lighter-chocolate toffee/nougat candies, hints of cherry and a distinct (and not entirely welcome) grapey lactic acidity. That last component is not entirely bad, but it’s a bit scary in its nearly-overwhelming prominence for me. Flavor is big and similarly complex, with a lot of wine-soaked chocolate cakey affectation (key word here being "affectation"). There’s some roasted char and dry chocolate to accompany the vinous elements, but I specifically DON’T get any cherry cordial. More distinctly reminiscent of that earlier grapeyness. Detectable-but-not-overwhelming alcohol presence. No suggestion of higher alcohols at all, but there’s a bit of a kick there that glides along with some woody-roasty vinous notes. Finish is alarmingly complex with bold flavors emerging and then shrinking back into the shadows-- cocoa powder, milky-woody crispness, even something like earthy/earthenware toasted nuts. (Earthenware-- what a pretentious term to use when describing a beer, but I couldn’t shake it as I wrote this, so hopefully someone will know what the hell I’m picking out by virtue of my leaving that here.) There’s a separate kind of earthy, almost mushroomy flavor that wraps around the whole array. Gently scrubby mouthfeel that feels at times fluffy and smooth, other times almost fizzy and tingling. There’s a drying, wood-like acidity at work too, almost like the ashy bite of a swig of water with a cigarette butt in it (sad to say, I actually know what this is like). But this swig is pleasant. Some beautiful tobacco notes that are pretty deep in the background, but they’re unmistakable to me. I bet this would be great with a cigar. A substantial problem I have is that the gas appears to be escaping from this beer quite quickly; this makes for an experience in constant flux (which can certainly be seen as a good thing, for the most part)-- in aroma, flavor, everything. But the mouthfeel is simply devolving. I can’t say I’m in love, but the sheer density and breadth of flavors going on here is something that must be commended. Too bad I didn’t entirely enjoy all of them. One of those great beers that reminds me of how subjective a lot of the experience is-- for another palate I’m sure this is a mind-blowingly perfect creation.

Bottle from Santey Clause: Pours a very nice black, with a nice, slightly tan head that dissipates quickly. The smell is very interesting. I am noting some chocolate, coffee and some dark fruit as well. Wow, the taste is very very nice too. I notice some nice roastiness, chocolate and just a hint of that dark fruit. The taste is very much amazing, I don’t know how else to describe it. I want to thank Santa for this one. Sadly though, I now need more. Oh, and thanks again Santa!

Pours a deep brown hue with a light =brown head with decent lacing. Aromas of chocolate, a little sourness/cherry, and a little vinuous. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with flavors of cherries, dates, prunes, a light roastiness, chocolate, Perfect corbation for the style, which is lighter than most brews.

1/04/2007: I received a few bottles of The Duck-Rabbit Baltic Porter through a trade from kenb. Thanks Ken! -- Let me start by saying that this is a truly great beer and is rich and complex in flavor. The flavor is wonderful and almost diffucult to even describe. All of that being said, here is my attempt to record some of my thoughts and observations of this beer... Color is black with a large, creamy brown head. The aroma reminds me of a well-aged port. The flavor is also has many port-like flavors as well as some creamy vanilla, chocolate, lightly roasted coffee, and a hint of candied anise. There is just the right amount of dark chocolate bitterness in the finish to balance everything out nicely. The alcohol is barely detectable until the beer warms up some. This beer is full bodied and rich creamy, and smooth on the palate. Overall this is one of the best porters I have had. Worth seeking out and savoring very slowly! 12 of bottle (Enjoy by 7/07). Rating: 7/4/9/5/18=4.3
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2007 Vintage

8/29/2009: The Duck-Rabbit Baltic Porter... Aroma: Dark chocolate; hints of char, smoke, and licorice; very deep red wine/dark fruit notes. Appearance: Dark chocolate color/near black with a dense and lasting brown-colored head. Flavor: Very much like the aroma; more red wine and port than I remember from before; lots of chocolate; vanilla; espresso; cocoa. Palate: Medium to medium-full body; smooth and creamy; milky. Overall: Many say that this beer does not age well, but I completely disagree. I think that only the mouthfeel has suffered very slightly. The flavor may not be quite as rich or complex, but it is still extremely tasty and worthy of slow enjoyment!

Twelve fluid ounce bottle ( 9% alcohol by volume; Enjoy by 7/07) from kenb via trade in October 2006. Thanks again Ken. Rating: 8/4/8/4/17=4.1