Style: Porter
Brewery: Rinkuškiai
Origin: Lithuania
Size: 50cl
Alcohol: 6%
Price: 27kr (17kr)
Systembolaget: 51868
One thing that I have to keep a very strict control of when planning my tastings is my budget. I have a set amount of money I can spend on beers, so it can be a bit of a juggling act to find some cheaper beers to compensate the more expensive ones. When this was first released, it was 17kr for a 50cl bottle which is an excellent price. They have now increased it to 27kr, which I think is still quite reasonable for a bottle this size. The only trouble with his porter though is… it’s not really a porter.
This beer had hints of ruby with a light brown hue. The aroma was extremely pleasant, with syrup, raisins and rye bread all combining to give a sweet yet satisfying smell. The taste was more of the same, with the big dried fruit notes coming through strongly, slowly transitioning to a pleasant aftertaste of warming toffee. Carbonation levels were fine, but the body seemed a bit thin it must be said. The alcohol wasn’t noticeable in any way.
This beer confused me somewhat, as it’s simply not a porter. It has almost no chocolate or coffee notes, and lacks the body I would expect with the style. This is more akin to an ESB if I had to place it into a category. It did however taste lovely! I really enjoyed the lovely fruity sultana notes and it was very easy to drink. The carbonation was at a perfect level for an English ale too. I really liked this and could easily drink quite a few of these, but they just need to relabel this to the correct style! As long as you try this knowing it isn’t really a porter, I think you would be quite satisfied.