Alaskan Smoked Porter

Here's one I've had the chance to drink since it arrived for the first time in our market, late last year, but chose not to use that occasion to post about it. After all, I had a keg in the cooler at work, and today was the day it finally went on tap, the celebrated Smoked Porter of Alaskan Brewing. When they first made this, it was one of a kind, and rare. I had my first bottle in November, 2003, bought through a mail-order service, which I only used once (shipping is prohibitive, I learned), and took these notes, though tonight, I'm drinking it on tap:


I can smell the smoke before popping the cap, somehow...and it pours black as the wintry night sky, with a thick, toasted tan head atop. 

Aroma hits it's mark immediately: SMOKE! Surprise, huh? With underlying...nah, I can't pick it up...I arch the old olfactory glands wider to perceive greater and clean the usual porteristic characterics and they're very well hidden underneath that smokeyness. Some of them are down there, somewhere, but they're totally dominated. 

Taste: ...yup, it's all in the flavor, too! Very smooth and mellow, malt is full and damnit, wouldn't you know, that smoke effect is actually pretty tasty! And, mmmm, I'm tasting the cocoa and the coffee, too, just underneath. 


Quite an interesting and enoyable beer, one that I'll make an effort to return to again and again, to see if I can pull out more from it. As for this big, beautiful bottling, I had quite a time.