Baltic Porter

Tier B · BJCP 9C · Lager, fermented cold, strong. A porter in name and a lager in fact

ABV

6.5-9.5%

IBU

20-40

SRM

17-30

Serve

50-55F

Glass

Snifter

Identify

Very dark reddish brown to almost opaque, under a thick tan head that lasts. Tilt it hard against a strong light and a red or copper edge shows, which a stout will not give you. The smell is caramel, toffee, dried fruit and molasses, with coffee or chocolate behind it and nothing burnt. Full, smooth and rounded, with more fizz than you expect from a beer this size. Sweet at the front, then the dark malt takes over and it finishes drier than it started. The alcohol is present and it does not sting.

Place

The countries around the Baltic Sea: Poland, the Baltic states, Finland, Sweden and Denmark. Local copies of English porter, made with the yeast they had

Cause

Ale yeast works warm and throws off fruity flavours as it goes, which is why English ales taste of pear, apple or banana. Lager yeast works cold and makes almost none of that. Nothing stands between you and the malt. Then the beer is stored cold for months, which is what lagering means.

Confused with

Imperial Stout, which is an ale, black, and far more bitter and roasted. English Porter, which is half the strength. Doppelbock, which matches it for strength and smoothness with no roast at all.

Numbers

A Baltic Porter is a strong dark beer from the countries around the Baltic Sea, and almost every one of them is fermented with lager yeast. The word porter on the label describes where the recipe came from. It does not describe how the beer was made. Tilt the glass hard against a strong light and look at the thin edge.

Will you like it, Order and Try

Prunes, figs, raisins and dates. Dried fruit is right at the front of this beer. Treacle, molasses or dark muscovado sugar. Deep sweetness without a burnt edge. Dark chocolate, and liquorice if you are one of the people who likes it. A drink you sip slowly over an hour, the way people treat a glass of port.

Pair, Judge, Myth and Remember

What does not work: fresh salad, delicate white fish and very hot chilli. The first two disappear underneath it. Chilli heat and alcohol together make the burn worse, and this is the strongest beer in the module. Very dark reddish brown with a red edge against a light, under a thick tan head.