Brewed By: FX Matt Brewing
Brewed In: Utica, NY
ABV: 5.3%
Type: Porter

What They Say: Saranac Maple Porter is a robust, flavorful porter reminiscent of a by-gone era. True to brewing tradition, we’ve used dark caramel and chocolate malt as well as Fuggles and East Kent Goldings hops for a smooth, yet slightly bitter, roasted flavor. Look for hints of maple syrup flavoring used in this deliciously different brew. Enjoy!

Website: The Saranac website is unchanged from last year’s 12 Beers series. They have, however, added Club Saranac. The fact Saranac has a club, a nice brewery, and a Summer Band Schedule is the one thing that would make life in Utica tolerable. I say this after having spent a week in Utica once. It was……. unpleasant.

Why I Picked It: Weirdly, the Saranac posts do pretty well on Google and, since Saranac invited me to a preview of this back in October (which I sadly couldn’t attend because it was in Utica… on a Thursday) I’ll be running this concurrently with the Samuel Adams Winter Classics review. This is beer one of six in this year’s 12 Beers Of Winter.

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Presentation (5): As we discussed last year, Saranac’s thing is double colored labels with a watercolor of some sort which may or may not have anything to do with the beer. With the rating system I used last year, I generally gave 4s if the painting had something to do with the beer and 3 if it didn’t. 4

Originality (5): I spent some trying to remember if I’ve ever seen another Maple Porter from a craft brewer. On Google, the only results ahead of Saranac’s are a homebrew recipe and a Site That Shall Not Be Named’s posting of a limited edition brew no longer in production out of Michigan. On top of that, the Saranac website calls this a “returning favorite.” I don’t recall this from a previous 12 Beers which means it probably dates back some time. Minor suggestion to Saranac — take a page from Sam and list the year a beer was first brewed and, if possible, list what collections these beers appeared in. You can’t expect us to remember it when you’re in the business of killing brain cells. 5

Body (10): Pours the color of actual maple syrup with a fairly decent head. Lacing is much more distinct then I expected. It’s thin for a porter which, given the source ingredient, is something of a surprise. If it was as thick as the bold flavor and strong ingredients would suggest, though, it would be a brick in the stomach after two. The carbonation is much higher than I originally expected but, again, given the strong flavor, the carbonation is necessary to lighten the mood. 8

Taste (10): It is… fantastic. Much like Saranac did with their Caramel Porter, they took a flavor not usually associated with beer, made it the superstar ingredient of a porter, and went with it. It smells like maple, starts with maple, sits on your tongue as maple, and finishes with same specific sweetness of real maple syrup. If there is ANY knock it’s that the taste is so strong and so distinct it would blow the doors off anything else in this sampler. However, that’s not a strike in the flavor department. 10

Efficiency (10): As per usual, Saranac’s beers come in between 5.2% and 5.5% with the reasonable cost of a beer brewed in Upstate New York. Unfortunately, this beer is the antithesis of “poundable” with a hugely-heavy flavor. Even though this really can’t be consumed quickly, the body and carbonation is a great balance to the heavy flavor. Combine with a reasonable price and it’s of serviceable efficiency. 7

Versatility (10): Many of the beers exclusive to sampler packs take a solid versatility hit due to the limited availability. This beer is packaged well in a sampler. It’s heavy and, while I don’t think I’d like a case of them, two are perfect. On the other hand, the distinct, bold maple flavor is going to turn off anyone who doesn’t like maple syrup… or doesn’t want a beer that tastes like it. 7

The Snob Sez: This is quite possibly my favorite Saranac brew outside their Caramel Porter which had graduated out of the 12 Beers to its own sixpack for a while. Great thing to try if you love maple. Terrible thing to try if you don’t.

Final Score: 41 (of 50) – Great beer

Brewed By: Wagner Valley Brewing
Brewed In: Lodi, NY
Type: Porter
ABV: 5.8%

What They Say: Only handcrafted once a year when the maple sap runs, this true, incredibly smooth dark robust porter is brewed with fresh East Kent Golding hops & has wonderful dry roasted & chocolate malt tones. Subtle molasses and vanilla notes are balanced by pure NY “Sugar House” maple syrup. This small seasonal batch is released annually near the first day of spring.

Website: Addressed in Part One (Sled Dog Doppelbock).

Why I Picked It: This is the fourth and final beer that I put in my sampler pack. Also, I was sadly disappointed by Tommyknocker Maple Ale so I wanted to give a porter a shot. I don’t usually drink porters at this time of year (and this seems like an odd choice for a spring seasonal) but the taste I got from sampling was way too good to pass up.

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Presentation: This another beer in which the website image in not the same as the current bottle. I like the new label much better than the one on the website. It took until the fourth beer, but it’s the cheesy, low-rent image on the label that I don’t like. The version on this bottle is blinged up. It’s got a rustic wooden theme to go with the “Sugar House” name, plus a non-symmetrical silhouette of the Finger Lakes across the bottom. This is a much cooler label. Love it. 5

Originality: Maple Porter is a little more of an explored territory than maple ale. 2

Taste: The flavors of even a generic porter support the sweetness of maple syrup much better than does an ale. In this beer, the bitter chocolate malts play a delicate balance with the sweet maple syrup. Surprisingly, the hint of vanilla in this is much more obvious than in Saranac’s Vanilla Stout. As a porter, it would be unfair of me to take points for it being too dry. Oddly, this beer’s flavors get more distinct as it comes to room temperature. The maple gets bolder as the beer gets warmer. 9

Body: It pours a thick, stouty black with a relatively thick, tan head. Minimal lacing and the lack of head led me to believe the carbonation would be nil. Surprisingly, though, the carbonation was much more distinct then I was expecting. It’s a pleasantly thin body to balance with the huge, heavy flavors. If the body here was too thick, combined with the heavy flavors would make this beer nigh-undrinkable. 8

Efficiency: Unlike with the maple ale, I didn’t find the maple flavor in the porter to be so sweet to regulate consumption speed. But, the distinctive drymouth of the porter combined with heavy flavors were. This beer is a heavyweight, filling me up after just two. The big ABV makes up for some of those limitations but it’s just too heavy to make up for all of them. As was mentioned earlier, the flavors actually get heavier as the beer warms up. I’m not sure exactly what that should do to an efficiency rating. 7

Versatility: This is a heavy, high ABV beer that isn’t really for beginners. However, if you’re a fan of porters and are looking for something that packs a punch before dinner, go for it. 7

Final Score: 38 of 50 – Great beer.