Captain Lawrence Smoked Porter

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

I had this beer in New York City at Smith's Pub on 44th and 8th. The beer smelled smoky and of roasted malt. The color was dark and there it had a medium sized head with moderate retention. The beer was a tad thin for a porter. The flavor closely tracked the aroma - smoke, roasted malts, and chocolate. I enjoyed it and would have again.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Tried this one at Mile Square, Hoboken. Poured a very dark (might as well call it black) with a medium tannish head. Not too much lacing that I noticed. Aroma was definitely characterized by smokiness and malts, and some sweetness. This beer was smooth and heavy. The flavor was smokey/roasted, coffee, possibly a hint of chocolate, and some mild sweetness that contrasted nicely. It had a burnt, somewhat bitter finish. I really enjoyed ths brew.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

Immediately I noticed the dark chocolate colored ale that had a very smoky aroma. The smokiness of the beer did not dominate the chocolate, coffee, licorice and bitter flavors of this complex, medium to full-bodied porter. A deliciously unique beer that is worth trying.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

My growler of this beer, with a little bit of rousing, pours with an initially fat-two-finger thick, dusty chocolate cream color that leaves some nice lacing on the sides of my glass. The beer is quite dark, definitely opaque and so close to black I am having a hard time saying it is not. The aroma is most noticeably smoky; in fact it seems characteristic of malt smoked over beech wood (rauch malz). Underneath the smoke is an interesting sweet, fruitiness; this is not always noticeable, but at times is distinctly noticed as sweetened raisins. That last is actually quite fleeting and now that I am looking for it I am having a hard time picking it out of the other aromatic components. Lots of rich malt aromatics linger around in the nose too; Aromas of toasted malt, touches of black coffee, roasted grain dust and perhaps a touch of liquorice.

Lightly sweet tasting, which accentuates notes of burnt prunes and roasted raisins. This fruit character plays second fiddle to the dark & smoke malt character though. The roasted malt flavors play a much bigger role, in comparison to the smoke flavors, than the aroma would have suggested. In fact the roasted character of this beer is the dominant flavor contributor; flavors of espresso, darkly toasted malt flower, toasted bread crust and a significant, though not overwhelming burnt acidity. This acidity from the roasted grain lingers on in the finish a bit (like the slightly acrid, sharp bit found in a dark roasted pull of espresso), it is tempered a bit by some malt sweetness, notes of chocolate and some sweet smoke flavors. The smoke for the most part plays a secondary supporting role here in the flavor. It is noticeable at all flavor points during a draught of this ale and serves as a nice foil for the roast grain flavors. Somehow it does meld and even accentuate the residual malt sweetness found in the beer. I nice mouthfeel to this beer and the body has a certain heft to it that allows the malt to cling to the palate. Medium full feeling, especially up front and through the middle; the roast acidity serves to lighten the fullness of this beer a bit starting in the middle through to the finish.

I like the heft of this beer, it could perhaps use a touch more body to offset the heavily roasted flavors, but it is almost where it needs to be. As someone who loves smoked beers, I could wish for a touch more smoke character to, but it certainly plays a significant role here (especially in the aroma). While I find that it is generally so, the contribution of the smoke to the perception of sweetness in this brew is definitely notable (this is certainly not an overly sweet beer though, it is just interesting that I am specifically noticing the interaction between smoke & perceived sweetness). I definitely can’t wait to try the barrel aged versions of this beer; I am almost quite curious to see how a beer of this heft will stand up to and not be overwhelmed by the various barrel types. This is quite a nice beer & I am certainly enjoying the ability to quaff a couple pints of this brew.