Porter season is upon us my friends. The days are getting shorter. The nights are getting cooler. And I find myself looking for a brew that skews a bit on the heartier side. Enter today's beer: Harviestoun's Old Engine Oil Engineer's Reserve from Alva, Scotland. This beer is the bigger brother of the standard Old Engine Oil. A beer that I had a couple of years ago and quite enjoyed. I expect nothing less from this one. To the beer!
Engineer's Reserve pours a silky, inky, completely opaque black. It certainly earns that 'Blackest Ale' moniker that it wears on the bottle. It's capped off by a sturdy layer of mocha colored head that laces beautifully.
Intense roast malt leads the way on the aromas. Big rich notes of roast coffee and a mix of sweet milk and bitter dark chocolate.
Engineer's Reserve is full bodied, rich, and delicious. Smooth and sweet with huge chocolatey roasty flavor. There are also some delicious iced coffee flavors going on there as well. This brew really coats the inside of your mouth. But not in an overly syrupy, cloying way. It just speaks more to the richness and body. A pretty strong hop bitterness balances everything out and makes for an eminently drinkable, decadently smooth beer. Also, there really aren't any hints at the 9% ABV either. There's also an interesting milk stout-like sweetness in there mingling with the big roasty notes.
There really isn't really anything crazy going on here. Nothing out there or super experimental. This is just an exceptional masterfully executed porter. If porters are your thing then you have no excuse not to check out this beer.
HD
No comments:
Post a Comment