The Kernel Export India Porter

Brewed by The Kernel
Style: Porter
London, England

Serve in English pint, Shaker

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UPDATED: JUL 27, 2011 1) Oh dear. A gusher, and I’ve not had many English ones- bonus point. Pours itself black with a climbing beige foam. Strong black coffee at the front softening into cinder toffee, blueberry, After Eight mint, heavy cocoa black chocolate turned to ash. Charred nut, burnt toast aroma with an undercurrent of jam like you spead the bread before you put it in the toaster. The usual balance, excellence and big bold flavours from The Kernel. 2) 6.5%. No gushing this time, but plenty more US hop, pithy grapefruit, liquorice and Neopolitan ice cream notes. Top stuff.

330ml bottle shared with blankboy and garthicus. Deep reddish-brown, average frothy beige head. Incredibly dry aroma - roast nutshell malt, tons of dry resin bitterness. Taste follows, more acidic, not as roasty or bitter, mild alcohol. Slick, astringent mouthfeel, mild carbonation, very long bitter, coffee ground sourness. Interesting take.

33cl from DeMolen biershop. Brune, col fin beige. Arôme de houblon léger qui se mélange bien avec le bouquet de malt grillé/caramel. En bouche, malt léger grillé sur la limite du torréfié, le tout sur un houblon qui se marie parfaitement au malt, laissant une très fine note amer le tout présentant un beau profile citronné. Le tout est sec et grillé avec un aspect choco/caramel et café des plus agréable.

Explosive gusher. Medium beige head, at least after we’ve been cleaning for half an hour. Muddy deep dull brown body with floaties. Strong resiny wooden lacquer aroma with spicy orange notes, as well as some earth. Dry-sweet roasty oranges and earth taste. Mid-bodied. Flat, dull mouthfeel, unsurprisingly. Dry-sweet roasty burnt popcorn aftertaste with fruity notes. Probably quite good when not so damned flat. (0.33l bottle, beermerchants.com.)

(Bottle) Dark brown colour with lasting, dense, beige head. Roasted, malty nose with notes of coffee, dark chocolate, caramel, dark bread and toasty malt. Malty, roasted taste with dark bread, coffee, chocolate, dark fruit and a generous roasty coffee bitterness in the finish. Medium body, with just a touch of sweetness. Solid and classic porter. Very nice.

Bottle from the brewery. Dark brown with a hint of red and slight, off-white head. Rich, chocolate and coffee aroma with a hint of truffle and fruity hop. Black coffee flavour, with a hint of sweetness and prickly, dry, hoppy finish. Very good.

Bottle bought at the brewery. Very dark brown. Smoke, nice bitterness, pepper. Light body. Coffee, burned toast.

Bottle [330ml] shared with HogTownHarry & garthicus -- c/o HogTownHarry. Pours a very dark brown, almost black, quite bubbly and with an average size semi-lasting frothy beige head. Aroma of coffee first followed by some smoke, cigarette butts, dark chocolate and dark fruit. Flavour of roasted malt, ash, smoke, dark chocolate and hops. Medium bodied. Pretty different, not great, just good.

Tap at La Tape, Madrid. Black, golden brown creamy lace. Dark roast coffee. Dry sparkly roasted body. Nice toast and coffee notes, well balanced to the herbal licorice and genever-like notes. Chocolate retronasal. Easygoing, flavorfull and drinkable Porter.

On tap at Whippet Holborn. Pours black with a grayish brown head that dissipates slowly to the edges. Aroma is mainly dark grains and roast with a bit of underlying pine. Flavor has nice combination of roasted malts and pine with a smooth dark grain underlying.