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Out to the farm we go. To the California heartland and Farmers Brewing for the Winter Migration.
“Winter Migration is a Baltic porter in partnership with the California Waterfowl Association. We are really proud to brew this beer with grains from our fields that provide habitat and food for the many types of waterfowl that arrive every year.”
Bravery Brewing has teamed up with Corvo Coffee, not on a typical coffee stout but a Bourbon Barrel-Aged Baltic Porter with roasted coffee beans on draft and in single 16oz cans, named El Valiente.
First a tiny primer, a Baltic Porter is a Porter that’s fermented cold with lager yeast instead of ale yeast.
The collaborative version from Beer Co.’s Harland and Embolden is “fermented a Baltic Porter in our American Oak Foeder This version gives off notes of bakers chocolate, vanilla, oak tannins, and a bit of coffee.”
High Fives to Karl Strauss Brewing for reaching birthday # 33!
And then extra kudos for going with a Baltic Porter and then a few more slaps on the back for aging in Tawny Port barrels.
Figueroa Mountain is turning to an unusual style for their 11th Anniversary Ale…
“Our 11th Anniversary is a luscious Baltic-Style Porter lagered in both Four Roses Bourbon, and Pinhook Rye whiskey barrels. Rich and complex, our 11th Anniversary has notes of Chocolate, Coffee, Toasted Almond, Spiced Honey and Dates. We added Toasted Coconut and Bourbon Barrel-aged Vanilla for even more delicious complexity.”
That is a beer dressed to the nines, or elevens.
Beware that tasseled hat skull!
The Unjust Incarceration barrel-aged Baltic Porter is no in pre-order phase. Head HERE to order up a little Four Roses and Buffalo Trace bourbon barrel magic from MacLeod Ales before its release on September 30th.
Full disclosure:
A) I know the home brewer whose recipe this beer is based on
B) I had this beer at the Kick-Off Festival for L.A. Beer Week (at the end and my taste buds were shot) and I wasn’t blown away by it.
That being said, I wanted to go back and re-visit this beer with a fresh palate. So here is a second taste and first review on the blog of Longevity Baltic Porter from Eagle Rock Brewery & the Maltose Falcons home brew club.
The Porter pours a dark and inky black with streaks of brown to it. There are a mixture of roast, tobacco and chocolate notes on the nose that are quite nice. It did take a few sniffs to figure out exactly what was coming through to me even though the aroma is fairly potent.
The texture is quite light and very drinkable. The most dominant flavor to me is smoke with hints of a sweet cola underneath. This is no rauch bier by any means but that taste of smoke is certainly there.
This is one of those styles that may not be to my taste. It is well done but the smoke notes are a distraction to my palate.
If you are in the mood to try other Baltic Porters then check out Flying Dog’s Gonzo Porter, Victory’s Baltic Thunder or Baltika #6.
Thanks to the kindness of the people at Coronado Brewing and Coronado PR, I got to taste the second of the collaborations between San Diego and Tampa’s Cigar City Brewing.
Jurata is a Baltic-esque / Polish version of the mermaid. Akin to the one gracing the Coronado labels but in much colder waters than San Diego.
Now I have had a few Cigar City collaborative beers thanks to Congregation Ale House having a special night but this is probably the best of the bunch. I did not care for the Widmer Gentleman’s Club beers (especially at their price point) and the Tropical Tripel was a mess.
Jurata pours a dark brown with hints of black. There is tons of lacing as the head recedes. Smells almost like a milk stout. Notes of sweet chocolate are first on the scene. The taste adds a touch of smoke to the equation which tones down that milk chocolate domination and the carbonation really helps in that regard as well. Hint of cigar in there too. With a touch less sweetness would be rated even higher.
Later this year, I will be able to compare this against the Eagle Rock Brewing / Maltose Falcons version
For the 40th Anniversary of the Maltose Falcons Home Brew Club they will be conducting a Baltic Porter Tasteoff! Love that a semi-obscure style like that is getting love. According to their website, “We’ll be tasting everyone’s Baltic Porter creations to determine a recipe to take to Eagle Rock for brewing! If you have a Baltic Porter, bring it!”
I for one, am looking forward to tasting this at Eagle Rock later this year!
Each year on this very blog on this auspicious day, I make a note, so to speak, of the special beer that I decide to have to celebrate another year in the life.
Last year it was North Coast Old Stock Cellar Ale 2009 which was a great beer but super thick and huge ABV that almost made me wish the bottle was smaller.
This year, even though I am celebrating at Golden Road Brewery. My featured beer is a home brew from my brother in law. It is the enigmatic BP11.
It took my poor, enfeebled with age brain a while to figure out that BP more than likely stands for Baltic Porter. I will add the review to the bottom of this post later, so for now, cheers and may you all have as good a beer on your birthday too!
