The Swill: Sierra Nevada Porter
The Still: Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Chico, California
http://www.sierranevada.com
The Drill: American porter, 12oz bottle, 5.6% ABV
The Spill: The folks at Sierra Nevada may have a love affair with hops, but they take the crafting of the malty stuff just as seriously. This porter is a paragon of what to expect when trying a beer of this style. Not too dark, but certainly not too light, the aroma and taste are rich with mildly roasty malts and easy caramel and coffee overtones. The hops stay out of the way, letting the malts go to work, but balancing them nicely so the beer's not oversweet. The result is a highly drinkable dark beer that's not too thick, but not too thin.
Says Bill: There's something to be said about a company that doesn't go overboard in giving their beers fancy or obnoxious names. Either they're operating on a shoe-string budget, or they're completely lacking in creativity, or they just know how to make good beer. While I can name examples of the first two, thankfully, the last is the case with this brew. One of the better porters I've had, it comes off as a no-frills beer that speaks for itself. A great introduction to beginners who want to learn what the dark side of beer has to offer.
Refill?: Insert ridiculously obvious Darth Vader joke here: 3.5 taps out of 5.