Look! Liquid Crepes!


Brewery and Country of Origin: Sea Dog Brewing Company of 1 Main Street, Topsham, ME 04086, USA

Date Reviewed: 5-13-12

Before we start this, let's get things straight. If you don't like sweet, malty brews, click back, because you will find none of the following to be interesting at all. Now that we got that covered, this is an American Porter by the Sea Dog Brewing Company which instantly got our attention. Well deserved, too, because this beer, as the brewer's website states, is genuinely "one of a kind." Perhaps what makes this porter special is that it has used an untraditional ingredient to define the flavor of this beer. Porters have been around for quite some time and the English take them quite seriously. Fortunately, we Americans tend not to follow strict guidelines when it comes to brewing... or most things for that matter. Sorry Germany. And as a result of all of that "rule breaking," Sea Dog has essentially made an excellent dessert beer which tastes like a dessert. A French dessert known as very very thin pancakes called crepes. But not just any crepes. Nutella Crepes. Nutella, the chocolately hazelnut spread that goes great with literally everything. Yes, that dessert.
Date Sampled: 5-12-12 At: Seadog Brewing Company Restaurant, 125 South Portland, ME 04106, USA
Beer Style: American Porter
Alcohol by Volume: 5.60%
Serving Type: Keg, 16 oz Tumbler Glass
Rating: 4.05

Look

This is a beer which pours a little choppy with moderate levels of carbonation action. An atypical thin foam head (weird for the style) forms about a quarter to a half inch tall. The clear brew features a deep, dark ruby red color which appears almost opaque in dark rooms. This beer laces absolutely beautifully around a normal tumbler glass.

Aroma

The aroma is perhaps the beer's best quality. Like opening up a new jar of Nutella, or indulging in a warm, freshly prepared Nutella and whipped cream crepe, this beer's arousing aroma bursts with hazelnut and coffee aromas. Very strong, very pronounced, and very sweet.

Feel

This full bodied beer has a medium high viscosity, which is normal for porters, and a high level of carbonation, which is not. Choppy pouring, yet smooth and somewhat creamy textures help to bring out the flavors of this brew.

Taste

As expected, this brew features very strong hazelnut flavors, accompanied by some coffee, toffee, and toasted notes, a result from the choices of four different kinds of malts used to craft this porter. This is a sweet beer which finishes somewhat bitter with a slightly hoppy aftertaste.

Our Take

If you're a fan of sweet, coffee, toasty, and nutty beers, you might have just found heaven here. Enjoyable as a complement to a very sweet dessert or as a "dessert" by itself, this beer is certainly not easily forgotten. And its accolades have made it the most awarded and decorated brew of Sea Dog's product line. Among others, it has won the "Best of Show" award at the Chicago World Beer Championships as the "World Championship Porter"; the Gold Award at the World Beer Championships; and 1st Place Porter at the West Coast Brewers Festival in California. Certain peculiarities about this beer separate it from traditional porters, including the distractingly high amount of carbonation, a relatively thin foam head, and the lack of any hops or traditional malt substance in the body. Malts were present and definitely detectable, but heavily overpowered by the hazelnut flavors, which both helped and hurt this beer's overall rating. In the end however, this is a beer that delivers a truely unique flavor experience that should be enjoyed by all who seek a malty brew. Have fun.