I want to love Saranac beers, but this one I just can’t. Don’t get me wrong… I happily finished the six pack, but I never came to really like it. On the unofficial Hop-Talk rating, I give it a 3 at best.

After just following up on my Pet Peeves on Porters, I found the Southern Tier Porter to be a very decent choice. I had bought the Saranac at the same time and was hoping for a bonus, but I guess I was pushing it.

I’ll start with what I did like about the Saranac Caramel Porter. The pour was very nice with a thick head and the aroma had very prominent caramel and chocolate notes. The mouth feel felt right for a porter, strong and lingered. The roasted malt flavor was not harsh.

But, it spoke of caramel and chocolate very loudly. So loud, I’d say they added real caramel to the brew. It also had that strong, sharp alcohol taste which was present in the aroma as well.

So this beer brings up my other pet peeve about any beer. I prefer these flavor characteristics to be subtle , almost imperceivable. I want to have to sip the entire beer before saying, “I think they may have put some real caramel in there…”

If I could only get my hands on a Bell’s Brewery Porter.

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