Tröegs Scratch 2

Formerly brewed at Tröegs Brewing Company
Style: Porter
Hershey, Pennsylvania USA

Serve in English pint, Stem glass

Bottling No. 2-2007

2/12/2008: Tröegs Scratch 2 (Porter) has a chesnut brown color with a pillowy tan head. This beer smells like ground coffee beans with a large dose of earthy hops. It also has touches of chocolate and citrus hops. The flavor is quite roasty and a lot like black coffee with undertones of some chocolate. Some roasty bitterness creeps in toward the finish and really works well with the other flavors. Each sip seems to reveal new flavors and additional complexity. This is a nicely crafted robust porter that has a medium-light to medium body (I would have preferred more body). This is a pretty good porter, and reminds me of a beer I made last Winter!

12 fl. oz. bottle (5.9% ABV) from hopdog. Thanks again Steve! I appreciate it. Rating #38 for this beer...

Poured black with a creamy brown head. Aroma of chocolate and caramel. More chocolate flavors than anything.

Pours a dark brown with a ruby hue and a creamy head that dies quickly. Minimal lacing. Smells of roasted nuts, minimal caramel and coffee with a minor amount of hops. Tastes of floral hops, toasty malt and coffee. Everything is pretty mild. Full in the mouth with lively carbonation. Bitter finish. A good but not great porter offering from Troegs.

Bottle from Bendo and served in standard pint glass: Deep brown with lasting beige head and good lace. The aroma has notes of toasted and nutty malts, grassy and slight fruity hops, hint of chocolate and coffee, and some leathery yeast esters. The taste is a mild and nutty with chocolate and smoky undertones. There is a note of bitterness and lactic twang upon the finish. The mouth feel is smooth and refreshing. All in all this is a serviceable porter.

Transparent dark brown pour with lighter copper highlighting. A lightly lacing, frothy, mid-sized beige head is sustained for a short while. The aroma is very earthy and herbal, surprisingly so. Citric hops and light chocolate, roast and caramel notes intertwine. This is one-of-a-kind and puzzling, but I enjoy it thus far. Nuts are a well-rounded addition to the flavor, a taste dominated by this earthy character. Bitterness is low-mild, sweetness medium and the earthy twang lingers right into a finish of medium duration, touches of smoke fleeting. The mouthfeel is light-medium to medium bodied with a light airy feeling about it, carbonation appropriate for the style. Strange but definitely a drinkable beer.

Troegs 10 annivesary celebration: pours dark with a tan head that goes no where. aroma is hops, but not citrus grapefruit ones like the Dead Reakening. Rather a bit more floral and earthy. Not too bad of a porter, but could have fuller body. typical roasted flavor on top of the hops. My least favorite of the Scratch series.

12 oz bottle, via hopdog. Fairly light in color, just a nut brown like depth of color, small fizzy beige head faded to a clingy ring. The nose is a little grainy and nutty in addition to the light chocolate malt. Moderate leafy and earthy hoppiness. The flavor is on the thinner side as well with a slightly grainy toasted and chocolate maltiness. Pretty hoppy for a Porter, or is it just not as malty as the average? Mouthfeel is lighter bodied with a little too much fizzy carbonation. Pretty dry. Overall, this was a little weak, maybe I’m just getting spoiled with all these robust Porters out now.

Thanks to Justin from PA for this one. Pours out brown with a moderate off white head. Aroma is nutty with some roasted malt, slight earthy notes. Taste is complex, roasted malt, light coffee, nuts and earthy tobacco aftertaste. Interesting brew