A Tale of Two Cherry Porters

Today's craft beer scene has an amazing variety of selections available to the average consumer. Today, more than at any time in the history of beer, you can find pretty much anything you could ever want and a lot of things you didn't think you would ever want or even knew existed. The variation not only between various styles of lagers and ales, but between the sub-styles of beers is absolutely amazing. Case in point: cherry porters.

No, cherry porters are not a "style" of beer I drink often. Frankly, I don't see them too often and fruit-influenced beers don't really get me riled up, so it's nothing I've much considered in the past. I just happened to be at the store, though, and saw singles of both North Peak Darkangel and Short's Black Cherry Porter (both Michigan breweries). I decided that it would be a nifty comparison experiment and picked up a single of both to contrast.

The differences couldn't have been more stark, which I suppose is somewhat expected considering the method of imparting the cherry flavor and considering the breweries involved. Darkangel is made with cherry juice added, which contributes a clean, somewhat tart edge cherry quality to the roast and chocolate of the porter. It's more evident in the smell than the taste, which is somewhat disappointing. It seems to fit with the impression I get from other North Peak beers: solid, yet somewhat uninspired. I wouldn't turn down it someone offered me one and I might even buy one at the bar if there wasn't much of a selection, but it just doesn't have anything 'WOW' about it.

The Short's offering is a completely different animal. Rather than adding juice, Short's Black Cherry Porter employs a cherry puree. The differences between the effects of the different approach is striking. Where Darkangel is subtle, the Black Cherry Porter is in your face. Both the smell and taste is dominated by the earthy, deep black cherry flavor. I suppose this would be a drawback if you wanted a straight-to-the-style porter, but if you wanted that, why in the heck are you drinking a cherry porter? No, this Short's offering falls in line with the rest of their experimental, food-tasting beers (Key Lime Pie, PB&J, etc.) as a bold departure from the base beer that is knocked about my the later additions. If you want a cherry porter that tastes like cherries, this is your beer. If you want a traditional porter with a slight wisp of cherry, check out the Darkangel.

With all of that in mind, what is your favorite cherry (or other fruit-based) beer?

Day 48 (9/10/2011): Black Butte Porter by Deschutes Brewery

I had heard that Black Butte Porter is one of the best American porter out there; on the same level as Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald and Founders Porter. Obviously I'm wanting to get my hands on anything that people claim is the best or darn near it and I was lucky enough to receive a bottle of it recently. Knowing that it was brewed by Deschutes, one of America's best breweries, definitely raised my expectations.

Black Butte pours a dark, dark brown with a couple fingers of very light tan head. The smell is primarily roasty, with dark chocolate, coffee, and a slight hint of hops in the background.

The taste, like the smell, is dominated by the roast. It is almost tart from the roasted malts. There is some sweetness to counter it, but this is definitely roasty. I also get some coffee on the finish, along with some hops, but it all second to the roast. I don't care for this at all. The carbonation is medium and a body that is a tad too thin for a porter.

Overall, I'm not impressed. The taste and smell is one-dimensional with the roastiness overwhelming everything else. I'm not sure if this is an out of the ordinary bottle or what, but I have no idea how people rate this so highly. I just don't get it. I would like to try another bottle of this at some point to see what the deal is. Surely my palette can't be that different from pretty much everyone else's. At this point, however, after trying only one bottle of this, I give Black Butte Porter by Deschutes Brewery a B-.

Style: American Porter
ABV: 5.2%
IBU:
Beer Advocate: A-/A+
Ratebeer: 97/98

Day 30 (8/23/2011): CoCoNut Porter by Maui Brewing Co.

Definitely another one that I've been wanting to get my hands on for a while. I've never had a coconut porter (or any coconut beer), so I was intrigued when I first heard of it.

It pours a dark, dark brown with a mocha head. Definitely nice looking. The smell is largely chocolate, with roasted grains and a slight hoppiness also showing up. Sadly, I'm not getting any coconut from it at all.

The taste is a great balance between sweet milk chocolate and a little bitterness from the roast. I get a little hint of coffee and (sadly again) an even slighter hint of coconut. It is probably on the sweeter side on the sweet/roasty scale, which I actually prefer.

The mouthfeel is nothing to go wild about: smooth and creamy carbonation with a medium body. Good, but nothing notable.

This is a good tasting porter, and without the claim of being a coconut porter, I would probably rate it higher. Much like the issues I had with Stone's Japanese Green Tea IPA, if you're going to put an unsual addition in your beer, I want to be able to taste it. Otherwise, why wouldn't I just drink another porter such as Edmund Fitzgerald or Founders Porter? Oh well. I still enjoyed it; I just wanted an experience that was a little more out of the ordinary. I give CoCoNut Porter by Maui Brewing Co. a B+.

Style: American Porter
ABV: 5.7%
IBU: 30
Beer Advocate: A-
Ratebeer: 98/99

Acquired via a generous Beer Advocate in Oregon. Not entirely sure where this is distributed, but I've never seen it around.