I haven’t written much on HornyGoat beers, because like some of you, I was less than impressed with the first
Horny Goat beer that I had shortly after the brewery opened. It was alright, but there are so many
excellent craft beers on the market that my limited cash always went towards
something else. That said, I was
impressed with the Brownie Porter that I wrote up a little while back and
although I did not pick up the strong chocolate character that I was hoping for
it was still a very good brown porter.
Having not tasted the chocolate
in the Brownie Porter, the next logical step was to try some Chocolate Peanut
Butter Porter, surely the chocolate flavor would be featured in such a brew
right? I mean come on, it’s in the
name. In all fairness, I had previously
had Chocolate PB Porter on tap at the Horny Goat Hideaway and was not a fan
then. Looking back I don’t know if my
dislike of the beer had more to do with the beer, or the fact that I was there
for the 2013 Monday Night Packers-Bears game in Chicago. You all remember that
one, right? The on that Rodgers left
with what turned out to be a fractured collar bone…
The injury that kept him out for the remainder of the regular season…
Yeah, that could have colored my
impression of the beer, it was a rough night…
With that in mind I decided to give Chocolate Peanut Butter Porter another go…
With that in mind I decided to give Chocolate Peanut Butter Porter another go…
They Say:
A full bodied porter that gets its dark luscious color from the generous
use of roasted malts. You’ll get just the right amount of chocolate and
peanut butter to question whether you’re drinking a glass of delicious suds or
popping a peanut butter cup in your mouth.
6.5% ABV
55 IBUs
The
Brewmaster Brian Sauer adds:
Chocolate Peanut Butter, best put, is illusive. One day you see at
the store, the next it’s gone. So reminiscent of a dark chocolate peanut
butter cup that most people are drawn directly to the nose on this beer.
To me, the true winner is the malt bill. We use 2 different types of
chocolate, dark caramel malts, and a touch of roasted barley to capture a rich,
dark chocolate profile.
I Say:
Chocolate Peanut Butter Porter
pours an opaque black with a thick, creamy light tan head that holds good
retention (3 min) before fading to a thick collar around the edges and leaving
behind nice, thick lacing in the glass.
Strong notes of graham cracker and toasted marshmallows waft out of the
glass during the pour. Peanut brittle
and milk chocolate become increasingly apparent in the glass as the beer warms
and are supported a soothing vanilla note.
The aroma finishes on a great chocolate and peanut butter not that is
reminiscent of a Butterfinger candy bar.
Honestly, Chocolate Peanut
Butter Porter was better than I remember.
The nice complex
chocolate character brought to the beer from the dark
malts is really the star of this beer as Brian noted when I reached out to him
for additional info (after I took my own notes of course). The excellent blending of dark malts to
create this complex Porter highlights his brewing knowledge and is a good sign
for any future new porter releases. This
is much more in the Robust Porter category, which most people expect when
drinking a Porter in America.
I was not a fan of the chemically peanut flavor that came out as the beer
warmed however. The flavor played more
like an extract rather than actual peanuts, which was disappointing. Having homebrewed with P2B
Powdered Peanut Butter I have
experience what a mess brewing with peanut butter can be even on my small five
gallon setup, so it is understandable that Horny Goat might not want to use
real peanut butter in the recipe.
However, it seems like they did an excellent Robust Porter a disservice
by adding peanut flavored extract.
Fortunately a cold bottle of Chocolate Peanut Butter Porter out of the
fridge tastes pretty good, but it is a good idea to drink this fast, rather
than giving it time to warm.
Well, that’s all for today. Check back soon for another Review
Happy
Drinking, and remember to always Drink Wisconsinbly
It can be obtained from where in WI?
ReplyDeleteYou should be able to find it at most WI beer/liquor stores in the Milwaukee area, and I believe in the Madison area. Where in the state are you?
DeleteIt can be obtained from where in WI?
ReplyDelete