Barley John's Old 8 Porter
My porter is a flavor party on your palate. Huge malt yum with chocolate mocha smoke dancing with hop spiciness and zest. For the gastrognome in all of us.
3.8
153 reviews
New Richmond, United States
Community reviews
Can pours a dark brown/black with a large dark brown head. Aroma of roasted malt, chocolate, molasses, and a hint of licorice. Taste of rich chocolate and molasses, nice earthy roast, chocolate coats palate to the end with bitter hop spice on the finish. Solid all the way around!
16 oz can. Deep brown with a big brown head. Big roasted malt aroma with notes of chocolate, light alcohol and graham cracker. Light sweetness with a dry roasty flavor. Body is heavier with a clingy feel.
Very good. Cocoa, roast, black malt, bit of cereal for flavor. Aroma is cocoa, malt, molasses.
16oz can from Casanova. Not too sweet. Espresso/caramel mix with light
chocolate. Solid in the not-sweet side of the house. 14.2
(can) Had this awhile back in growler form, but now trying it out of the new cans. Pours jet black with a large dark tan head that lingers. Aroma right away is a pleasant mixture of roasted peanuts and chocolate that yields an olfactory effect of peanut butter cups. Some dark roasted coffee as well (probably Sumatran considering the peanut scent). The case could be made for mocha as well. This smells solid, but there are a few little unwanted pops of smoked meat scents (bacon) that crop up which interrupt the sweet decadence going on the aroma. The flavor is a huge slap of chocolate covered espresso bean (definite mocha vibes here), dark fruit (thinking plum/prune), roasted malt, and salted peanut that leads to a finish of smoked meat that is immediately followed by a hit of nondeScript hops that add nothing flavorful to the mix and merely serve to break off the sweetness in the mid and fore palate. Overall this is just as good as I remember it being, and it’s certainly a plus to be able to purchase a growler-sized sample of this beer at what I assume to be a cheaper price than an actual growler, as nothing was lost during the manufacture and canning of this beverage. I will definitely buy this again.
Keg @ Barley Johns. Deep brown with a tight tan head. Chocolate, toast. Mellow coffee and cream. Taste is mildly bitter. Some char. Toast and cocoa. Chocolate syrup. Medium body, silky.
Draft at GTMW 2015. Deep brown color, tan to beige head with good retention and lacing. Aroma of toffee, chocolate, coffee, subtle smoke. Taste is creamy cocoa, coffee, dark fruit. Delicious.
Tap at brew pub; very dark brown pour with a tan head; sweet aroma of chocolate, roasted malt, and vanilla with some hints of coffee; bittersweet flavor with the chocolate, roast coffee and vanilla; has bitter coffee finish; very nice porter
Tap - small tan colored foamy head, pitch black color, strong roasty malt aroma and flavor, fair coffee notes, mildly chocolatey, pretty smooth finish - not bad for a porter (which isn't necessarily my favorite type of beer)
Had on tap at brewhouse. 8oz pour smells of chocolate, coffee, roasted malt and is dark black with tan head. Sweetness and bitterness are perfectly balanced and the beer coats your mouth with big rich flavors of coffee and chocolate.This is a beast of a porter weighing in at over 8% but the rich malt flavors keep everything balanced perfectly.
Sample from Barley Johns (backlog). Pour is black with tan head, lots of roasted malts, smooth palate. Very solid, 8% boost helps as well.
Sampled on tap at Barley Johns. Pours a black color with tan head. Roasty, creamy, burnt, malty flavors. My favorite of the seven I sampled at Barley Johns.
Great malt sweet nose. Chocolate and cocoa. Good mouth feel. The finish is so good. Just lingers with sweet chocolate
Gritty chocolate Porter. Rich and a slight bitter aftertaste. Can really tags the dark roasted quality.
Great to try this base for the bigger Dark Knight. Roasty malty goodness with a bit more earthly taste than comparables.
Sampled at the brewpub... Pours a deeper solid stouty hue, homogenous, and topped with a nice khaki tan head... Roasty chocolately nose accented by oats and grain... Semi-sweet roasted malt, chocolate, and cocoa. Smooth creamy mouthfeel with light carbonation. Fairly solid.
Tap @ Barley Johns. Pours a black appearance with a dark brown head. Nice dark chocolate, light anise, a bit burnt aroma. Roasty/burnt, s’more, charred chocolate, vanilla flavor. A little syrupy with lots of anise on the finish. A bit strong.
on tap at BJ, again with the solid beers, they have solid beers, none have been home runs all are very solid, very smooth very balanced this beer nails the porter.. needs some more sweetness to me to make it really fantastic
Has a really nice chocolate scent with a big coffee roast. Taste is big coffee flavors with a little booze kick. Has a super nice lasting head.
Draft at Barley John’s. Pours viscous black, medium thick dark tan head, great lacing. Nose is smoky chocolate and rich earth notes. Sweet vanilla a bit here too, along with something "woodsy". Flavours of soft tart black malt, some mocha, some graphite/mineral. Really solid Porter.
Date: November 26, 2011 Mode: Draft Source: Barley Johns Brew Pub Description: Opaque black pour, tan head with great lacing, smoky roasted and dark chocolate in the aroma and taste, slight bitter finish, medium to full bodied and smooth.
On tap at Barley Johns. Dark brown colour. Sweet, thin, chocolate and coffee.
Sampled this at ABR. A very dark beer with thick creamy head. Aroma is full of malty goodness! Taste is much the same... pick some up!
on tap at the brewery pours black with a medium tan head. Aroma is big roast and coffee. Flavor is rich burnt sugar, roast, coffee and a nice bitter cocoa finish. Really well done porter.
On tap at the brew pub into tasting glass...A dark brown, almost bordering black. Light tan head with good retention and lacing...A roasty aroma that is nice, but I really wish it was stronger...The taste is really sweet, didn’t see that coming at all, a little too sweet but smooth.
An average porter but worth trying as its one of the better regulars available.
Growler to snifter. Oily black brown pour with a awesome quick tan head that fades to a collar. Aroma is roasted malt and bitter bakers chocolate and day old coffee. Taste is more bitter chocolate and roasted malt and maybe alittle dark fruit. Palate is medium to full feel and is oily slick and finishes dry. Awesome strong porter!
finally got in on a growler of this; thanks skinnyguy!! pours dense brown and mostly flat on first pour; body is kind of flat and still; thin flavor of chocolate, mild roast, more body on the second pour as carbonation comes alive; roast, bakers chocolate, creamy milky coffee; damn good sweet nose of roast and sweet chocolate; what’s up with the gunk? Second and third samples are so much better; chocolate, light roast, yummy texture; damn good impy porter
On tap at the brewpub. Poured black with a dark brown head that dissipated slowly to the edges with a slight lacing. Aroma was full of roasted malt with some dark grains and just a bit of light fruit. Flavor was similar with roasted malt and dark grain with some light fruit coming out in the finish.
Nose of dark roasted malts, coffee, soft dark fruity sweetness, a good dose of floral and lightly fruity citrus hops. Pours black with a beige ring, some drippy lace, decent looking. Flavors of dark roast, dark chocolate, coffee, earth, nicely bitter hops. Dry, bitter, earthy. A little oddly yeasty in the finish at times becomes oddly mossy or something and it detracts lightly, most likely due to the 1inch cake of yeast in the growler, but still a nice beer.
Appearance: fairly deep black; plum and grape skin hues. Clear along bottom and sides of glass. Khaki and cream head and equally tinged lace. Lingers with a thin film.
Nose: dry, roasted, and brittle char. Burnt toast and wood; ash. Caramel nougat slightly burnt and caramelized along the edges. Burnt chocolates. Black cacao.
Palate: smooth and creamy which was not hinted at by her nose. Long on the roasted finish with dry chocolates, cacao beans, and ash. Nice. Hint of burnt cream in the middle. Vanilla root is subtle and not always present. Gentle roasted bitterness throughout. Medium body.
Final Thoughts: a solid sessionable porter. The right amount of roast with complimentary flavors. Another straightforwardly good beer from the fine folks at Barley Johns.