Goat Scrotum Ale - Tasting

A porter from The Complete Joy of Homebrewing
ABV: Unknown
IBU: Unknown

At long last, a review of the Primal Porter!

The beer has a rich, dark brown color with a tan head and a light aroma that reflects the dark malts and spruce essence that shaped it. After tasting, the spruce and black patent are immediately detected, though their profile is complicated and intertwined enough that several of my friends have only detected one or the other. The Primal finishes with a bit of toasted maltiness and sweetness that is much more distinct than the initial flavor profile. This is one of the more light-bodied porters that I've had, though it is very pleasing in this respect.

The Primal Porter on a
gloomy fall day

I have passed this around several groups of friends as I was interested at what their reactions would be to a brew that is so strangely unique - recall that I threw a bunch of essentially random ingredients into a boiling pot, let it sit for a while, then bottled it. The great consensus is that the Primal is much more drinkable than a typical porter - I can't tell you how many people were reluctant to try it due to their (misplaced) belief that it would be a very heavy beer or have a flavor profile that was too much like other dark beers (i.e., dominated by a dark or toasted malt). It seems that most people, including myself at one point, are under the impression that porters don't have any kind of sweetness or overall complexity to them. Upon tasting the Primal, most people expressed their genuine enjoyment of the beer, noting its lightness and drinkability. Of course, there were still a few individuals who did not enjoy it due to the fact that they either (1) don't enjoy darker beers - which Tegan sadly fits into - or (2) just don't enjoy beer as a whole. That said, I'm truly pleased that I was able to share this well respected, yet very misunderstood, style of beer.