MacTarnahan's Blackwatch Cream Porter
Once again MacTarnahan's redefines "smooth". Striking a perfect balance between the classic Northwest and Celtic styles, Blackwatch is a remarkably distintive new style of porter. With expert use of malted barley, unmalted grains and oatmeal, Blackwatch Cream Porter delivers unforgettable rich taste and smooth texture.
3.4
458 reviews
Portland, United States
Community reviews
(22oz bomber 2003 vintage thanks to Walt) clear dark brown pour with a ring of light tan bubbles. Nose of cream, vanilla, cocoa and bourbon. Taste of cream, vanilla, barrel. Light creamy body.
Portland Brewing Company, Inc.--BlackWatch MacTarnahan’s Scottish Style Cream Porter--2001 A 12 oz. Bottle. 5.50% ABV. (3.5 / 5.0) Clear deep dark black color built on red. Creamy tan head. Mild light chocolate porter front. No Scottish hints. Creamy light chocolate body with minimal sweet fruit flavor. Easy slightly citrus creamy end. Sampled 4/21/2001.
Portland Brewing Company, Inc.--MacTarnahan’s Brewing Company--MacTarnahan’s BlackWatch Scottish Style Cream Porter--2001 B 12 oz. Bottle. 5.50% ABV. (3.0 / 5.0) Clear obsidian black red color. Mild head. Light creamy tan lace. Mild toasted front. Dry toasted Porter body with light fruit sweetness. Easy bland drinkability. Crisp mild end hints of crustiness. Weak. Sampled 9/18/2001.
MacTarnahan’s Brewing Company--Portland Brewing Company--Black Watch Cream Porter--2002 Stubby 12 oz. Bottle. 5.30% ABV--28 IBU’s. (4.0 / 5.0 ) Malt of the Earth Beer of the Month Club Selection August, 2002. Creamy espresso head. Clear dark obsidian color. Toasted roasted mild fruit floral hop front. Creamy rich roasted caramel fruit body. Smooth sweet crusty flavor. Lingering mild hop end. Sampled 8/2/2002.
MacTarnahan’s Brewing Company--Portland Brewing Company MacTarnahan’s BlackWatch Cream Porter--2002-B Longneck 12 oz. Bottle. 5.30% ABV. (3.25 / 5.0) Clear dark black red color. Light espresso head. Fruity toasted malt mild hop front. Thin not creamy body. Sweet fruit flavors dominate. Chocolate notes appear in mild hop lingering roasted end. Sampled 8/6/2002.
MacTarnahan’s Brewing Company--Portland Brewing Company MacTarnahan’s BlackWatch Cream Porter--2004 Longneck 12 oz. Bottle. 5.30% ABV--20 IBU’s.? (3.75 / 5.0) Mild lacy espresso head. Clear dark opaque black red color. CO2 mild tangy toasted coffee hop fruit front. Tingly CO2 thin mild creamy sweet roasted cherry body. Dry astringent citrus mild hop end. Sampled 4/14/2004.
MacTarnahan’s Brewing Company--Pyramid Brewing Company MacTarnahan’s Blackwatch Cream Porter--2007 Stubby 12 oz. Bottle. 5.50% ABV?--30 IBU’s? (3.5 / 5.0) Mild head. Clear opaque dark black red color. Mild roasted chocolate hop front. Dry sweet thin mild creamy roasted caramel mild biscuit body. Dry mild hop spice citrus ester end. Bland. Easy to drink. Sampled 4/29/2007.
We liked this one a lot . . .
Poured from 12 oz. bottle an almost black color with a medium brown head. The head was short lived, but lacing was OK. Aroma is strong featuring chocolate predominately and overall dark malts. Flavor is well-balanced between bitter elements of coffee and roasted malts, and the chocolate and somewhat molasses-like tones. Hops provide adequate bitterness, but do not overpower. The oatmeal is not actually noticeable in the flavor, but clearly helps to smooth this brew overall. This is not really a great example of a "Porter" (nor would we guess it is meant to be), but taken on its own terms it is a very enjoyable brew. (BTW, here in St. Louis, the MacTarnahan products are no longer available as the only distributor locally has dropped them. Hopefully that will change . . . )
Poured a nearly opaque black, no head to speak of. The nose is smokey with rich strong chocolate on the back end. The taste starts the same with a little of that same smokiness with chocolate and a hint of coffee. The end is malty and a little creamy. It’s a little thin for a porter,
slightly fizzy as well. It’s an okay porter. Won’t go out of my way for it though.
Black, no head. Syrup nose, woody, chocolate. Lots of cocoa in the flavor, more wood, grainy malt. Way too watery, short finish in cocoa and malt. Finish is reminiscent of chocolate milk. Pretty forgettable overall, except way too syrupy and sweet.
I had this a long time ago and all I wrote down was: A little sweet for my taste, but with a wonderful mouthfeel.
Just finished this one, my first ever cream porter. Colour was a VERY dark brown accompanied by a brown, small head plus ample carbonation. Aroma was a meld of coffee and roasted malt, as was the taste. A nice, unique beer.
Bottle. Pours black with a one finger tan head. Roasty aroma with chocolate and a hint of coffee. Flavor was roasted malts, bitter chocolate, light coffee and a touch of caramel with a semi thin body.
Bottle Pours a good black with a decent tan head. The head leaves quickly but seems to lace okay. Aroma is of rich chocolate. The chocolate overtakes all other aromas. Has a lighter carbonation. The flavor is okay hints of sourness with overpowering chocolate. The mouthfeel is light. Has a bubbly texture. The finish is decent and the aftertaste is not bad. Has a light body. This is okay but seems to missing something. Good for chocolate lovers.
From bottle. Thin head dissapears almost immediately. Pours a very dark brown.Thin to medium to body. Feels almost more like a heavy brown ale. Don’t rate this as very special. Not my favourite porter by along shot. Mouthfeel is way too light for me. No lasting bitterness or malt or anything, really.
Bit of dark chocolate on the nose. Tastes too carbonated and I get the flavor of over cooked coffee.
Nearly black dark brown nice tan head. Malt aroma and flavor, molasses and earthy. A beer you must have at Ragnarok to honor the host.
12oz bottle. Pours a very dark brown, almost black body with a finger-width, brown head that dissipates quickly and leaves a light lacing. Aroma is very rich. Lots of rich chocolates and deep brown malts. Sweet with some molasses, creamy roasts, fruit, and a mild earthy bitterness. Flavor is similar. Rich chocolates, oaty and nutty deep brown malts, bitter roasts, molasses, and a light earthy coffee hopped finish. Dry, medium bodied, and lingers with a roasty brown malt, chocolate, earthy fruit aftertaste and some coffee. Overall, not bad. Flavorful and balanced. Lots of creamy porter taste with a hint of deep brown ale characteristics. Good one.
12 oz. bottle. pours a thin mocha head of poor duration, over a clear dark brown (SRM 25) body........nose is coffee, chocolate.........taste is primarily of heavily roasted malts (coffee,chocolate), dry throughout, slight hoppy astringency towards the end......mouthfeel is very light, no creaminess from oatmeal, carbonation rather high. This is much too simple and light to be very highly rated.
This used to be one of my go to beers when I was just getting started on my beer drinking odyssey about 8 or 9 years ago. Revisiting it now, I’m not as high on it, but it’s still not a bad beer by any means. Dark brown pour with a solid tan head with heavy lacing. Hefty malty aroma and flavor with some solid chocolate and an extremely light amount of coffee. Medium mouthfeel.
surprisingly dark black/brown ruby tinted pour is capped by a gigantic creamy hot cocoa colored head... great retention as a ring is still there after the beer is gone.
the nose is initially sparkling mineral water?... metal, cream, roasty grain, dust, an almost smoky ashiness, flowers and a faint sourness. at times it smells a lot like graham crackers.
there are a bunch of components in the flavor profile but they are are really muted... cocoa, blood/rust/metal, noticeable mild ash, caramel cream, toasted nuts, cheesey coffee and a nice sourness on the finish. the aftertaste is a mouth full of flowers.
medium bodied with a creamy mouth feel which is intensified when consumed directly from the bottle. there is a nice sharpness/acidity which helps keep it drinkable.6/4/6/4/13/3.3
12 ounce bottle from the Libation Station in Johnson City, Tennessee. Pours black with a large tan head. Good head retention and decent lacing. Big roasted malt notes in the aroma with faint minty hops. Taste is roasted malts, caramel, green apple, hops. Thin bodied with a creamy mouthfeel.
Bottle Pours dark brown/almost black with a 3 finger creamy tan head that results in thick lacing. The nose is milk chocolate, dark fruits and roast. The taste is roasted malt, cocoa, lactose and light coffee in the finish. Lighter mouthfeel than expected. Decent porter.
The aroma is very creamy with heavily toasted malt and coffee. There is also chocolate. The appearance is dark brown with a respectable head. The flavor is like the aroma with a bitter burnt finish. The palate is smooth but somewhat thin. Overall it has a lot of good qualities but just doesn’t taste as good as it could.
Bottle. Poured a black color with a creamy head. Aroma was roasted malts and chocolate. Flavor was roasted malts and some bitters in the aftertaste. Very rich and complex. Medium bodied. Better than expected and great beer.
Suprised by this cream porter. Not overly malty to creat a cream taste, nor too sweet. Hints of coffee and slighty bitter, but smooth all around. Smells weird though.
12 oz. bottle poured black, almost opaque, with a small head and little retention or lacing. Aroma of roasted, slightly smokey, malts with a hint of dried fruit. Flavors match the aromas, with the addition of oats. Creamy texture, minimal carbonation, and an oatmeal like aftertaste.
Pours a very deep brown almost black color with a loose brown head. Aroma is roasty with a nice coffee character and some weird skunkiness. Flavor is sort of like burnt coffee with some sweat notes, some nice fruitiness. This is very dry and mildly bitter. I really wanted it to be a pleasant surprise, but it’s really not. The mouth feel is wonderful silky with a nice creamy texture. eh.
Bottle at home ... black .. thin tan bubbles ... very sweet very blackcurrant malt ... bit over fizzy ... very blackcurrant ... deep malts ... little burnt ... some chocolate ... while not thin the palate isnt quite right and there definitly an oddness in the flavour.
Bottle from somewhere in Woodland, CA. Poured a black with a small tan head. Sweet taste with bitter finish. A little thin-bodied for a porter which knocks the score down a little. Overall a very drinkable beer.
Bottle, caramel malty smell. Deep dark brown with a tan head. Has a malty dark chocolate taste with small bitter hop finish.
thin black pour with tan head. roasted chocolate malt aroma. thin body with a sweet chocolate malt flavor and slightly bitter finish
12z bottle courtesy of Douglas88. Pours a dark mahogany color with a small receding tan head. Aroma was roasted malt and bakers chocolate. Smooth palate with a bit of body. Taste was oddly metallic at first, but I’ll take the blame for that. I started drinking the beer when it was to cold. As it warmed, the nice roasted malt and semi sweet chocolate flavors came thru. Somewhat bitter finish.
12 oz bottle purchased at the Beer Run in Chattanooga. Poured a dark brown color with a one finger brown head. The aroma was roasted malt with a note of bittersweet chocolate. The flavor was chocolate with only a hint of roasted malt. The palate was above average with a creamy mouthfeel, a medium body and soft carbonation. I enjoyed this more than some of the previous raters seemed to.
Small tan head didn’t hold long. Faint aroma of malt and slight coffee. Flavor is chocolaty and roasty. Somewhat lighter bodied than expected. Smooth and dry on the palate. Easily drinkable apposed to a sipping beer.
12oz bottle. 2007 bottle. Fading tan head and a dark brown with amber body. Smells like brown bread. Tastes like brown bread. Brown sugar and dark bread. Smooth, fading finish.