Blackstone Porter

As winter descends over the prairies and the mercury plummets to temperatures below freezing, I begin to hunger for darker, maltier beers. In particular, I find myself yearning for a good porter whether it be English, robust, Baltic, or otherwise. Somehow that lush mouthfeel combined with intense flavors of malt, chocolate, and roasted grain combine to become an almost perfect winter elixir. I only wish I had a fireplace to sit beside and a smoking jacket to wear while enjoying such a brew.

Driftwood opened for business back in 2008 offering a pale ale and two Belgian beers. Since then, Driftwood has steadily expanded its lineup to include almost a dozen year round beers and a couple of seasonals. For extra points, Driftwood produces a variety of styles instead of making repeated variations on the IPA. Blackstone Porter pours into my glass thick, and jet black in color. It supports a rocky, coffee-and-cream colored head with good retention.

          The first thing I smell is rich, chocolate sweetness, reminding me of something like a chocolate mousse. Blackstone’s nose has an overall creaminess to it that is very enticing. Somewhere beneath that creaminess is a subtle aroma that I can only describe as ashy. Ashiness is low key enough to add to the overall aroma rather than detract. Blackstone’s finish is gently roasted, just enough to keep that initial sweetness in check.

          On the tongue, Blackstone Porter is thick, rich, and luscious, just as a porter should be. Chocolate flavors up front are more bitter sweet, balanced by a pronounced roasted grain quality. Moving towards the center, Blackstone’s flavor becomes briefly creamy again, giving momentary relief from flavors of roasted grain. Flavors of roasted coffee come in towards the finish, blending nicely with roasted grain helping give this porter a pleasantly dry, roasted finish.

                   Overall, I’m giving Blackstone Porter an 8 out of 10. This is a very well executed porter. It’s smooth and robust, and robust. And yet, Blackstone Porter is very drinkable. I appreciate the overall profile this beer offers because it would be so easy for a porter to be one extreme or the other. So many porters are either simple, one note beers or are so complex they have to be sipped at over the course of an evening.