Victory Baltic Thunder

Crisp, smooth, and easy to drink. not much on the nose. Sleepy lopez described it as Mexican food. Chocolate malts. Alcohol well hidden. Pretty decent.

Very good although perhaps more of a rumble than a thunder. The ABV is well hidden and although higher than the hammer, I still prefer the boldness of the Heavyweight offering. Having said that, and the fact that the Hammer is no longer out there, thanks to Victory for paying homage and giving us something good. A little bolder would be nice.

22 oz bottle: Aroma is chocolate malts, some fresh milk, alcohol. Flavor is a little bit overboard on the buttery hops, and spices, and chocolate malts were secondary whereas they should have been more upfront. It was lacking in richness and boldness that I expect from a baltic porter.

From a 22oz Bottle. Mostly transparent, root beer brown tinted pour with some ruddy hues and a fluffy head of light tan. Lots of fruity malt characters up front in the nose; I get the distinct impression that I’m smelling some fresh Munich malt, as there are plenty of raisin, prune, and plum malts present. There’s also hints of chocolate, although the fruit characters are really up front. Clean, but the bouquet would be a bit nicer if the fruity malt notes supplemented a dark malt base than serve as the main focal point; it’s kind of bock-ish in this way. Medium bodied, softly carbonated mouthfeel with a smooth texture. Lots of raisiny malt up front on the palate, developing an increasing toasty sensation as the palate develops. The flavors get a bit roasty and ashy in the finish, which seems a bit odd since its so fruity up front. I’d actually enjoy it a bit more if it was roasty up front with the fruits coming out on the back end. Solid Baltic Porter overall, with a clean malt body and low hoppiness; a bit more roast (not ash) and less raisiny character would help round it out a bit more.

22 oz bottle from hopdog. Pour is black with ruby highlights and a half inch tan head. Aroma of slightly stale coffee with a little roastiness in the background. Really more of a straight Porter nose to me than a Baltic. Taste is more of the stale coffee, that’s the main feature. Thinnish palate, though didn’t really take away from it too much. This was a decent Porter, but I guess I was expecting a bit more for a Baltic Porter. I will say that the 8.5% ABV was well integrated, really not very noticeable at all. Thanks for this one Steve, I had been wanting to try it since I heard about Victory’s plan to brew it!

Bottle, courtesy someone...forgot who, BM me if it’s you! Pours a dark reddish brown, with a small head, and a thin ring of lacing. Dark candy aroma, Belgian chocolate, some spices and plenty of licorice. Unexpected esters there. Caramel in the flavor, brown sugar, dark candy, licorice, cinnamon, and just spicy overall. Doesn’t really make me think baltic porter. Tangy mouthfeel, and just a heavy beer.

22 oz. bottle. Pours very dark brown, nearly black, with a moderate tan head that lasted through the first third of the glass and left light lace. The aroma is light and pleasant with chocolate and roasted malt detected. The flavor is very similar with chocolate and roasted malt followed by a bit of alcohol. I’m not getting any of the fruit flavors I remember with Perkunos Hammer, and this beer is a bit lighter on the palate as well. A decent enough beer, but with all the hype and its Perkunos Hammer lineage, I was expecting more.

Bottle. Deep ruby-brown colour with a thin tan head. Takes a bit for the aroma to open up, but when it does, it reveals a lot - toffee, dark malt, dark fruit, some oily notes, and a slight herbal/medicinal edge. Medium bodied. A fair amount of coffee and roasted malt in the flavour, along with some dark sugar and oak, and a moderate amount of hops to finish. Some alcohol warmth as well, but not too much. Pretty solid.