Mocha Porter - Rogue Ales Brewery, Newport

First, you should know I'm not a coffee drinker. I don't like the temperature or the flavor of coffee. I find it too bland or too bitter, so I just don't drink it. I do like Stouts and Porter style beer, even when they are a little more bitter than I'd like. The dark flavors in these beers are often compared to coffees so I guess it only makes sense to brew a beer with real coffee flavors. I've had a number of Coffee Stouts and Espresso Porters but I've never taken much of a liking to them. Usually I'll just take a sip, say it tastes like coffee and move on. I have yet to find a coffee flavored beer I genuinely like.

It comes to no surprise to me that I had the same reaction to this bottle of Rogue Mocha Porter. It's a dark Porter with an aroma that really piqued my interest. This is by far the best smelling coffee beer I've had. The mocha didn't dominate the aroma like I was expecting, there was more chocolate and rich caramel. Unfortunately, the same wasn't true for the flavor. For a split second after taking a sip I can enjoy the sweet nuances of this beer before having my tongue coated in bitter, cold coffee flavored beer.

It wasn't all bad, it just wasn't for me... I can see why a coffee drinker would like this beer. It's sweeter than your regular dark roast. I'm not a coffee expert by any means but that's probably something you'd expect when you hear the mocha name. If the flavor were only a little more like the aroma, and there were more sweet flavors that made it to your palate, I think I would've liked this much more than I did.

Again, I'm not a coffee drinker and this beer wasn't geared toward my tastes. If you like coffee you'll mileage will certainly vary.