Do you love Porter as much as I do? It is with this slightly modified phrase that I want to start my article. Usually, when people ask me about my favorite beer, I say that I don’t have one. Because every beer needs its own setting, time, appetizer and mood. That’s all true, but deep down I’m lying, because it’s Porter that I love the most. That’s why I try to always have a bottle of Porter in my “library”.

Yesterday the stars aligned in a very bizarre way – I suddenly had three different porters in my fridge, and also very decent ones: Volfas Engelman Baltic Porter, Lvivske Porter, a regular in my “library”, and a rare guest on St. Earth – Porter Afanasy. Such a coincidence doesn’t happen often, so I invited my nephew, a fan of Baltic Porter, to the tasting as well.

I prepared some Roquefort and Camembert for an appetizer – we were going to drink, not eat! Apparently, my nephew’s wife thought otherwise and sent a huge platter of canapés, which came in very handy. Seeing such a seductive picture, my wife decided to join us.

The first was the Lithuanian Volfas Engelman Baltic Porter. The beer of this Kaunas brewery has become quite popular in Israel. I’ll tell you right away – their beers are different, both wonderful and sometimes not at all. You have to try and choose for yourself. The porter turned out to be very decent: a beautiful dark brown color with a slight reddish tint and a beautiful cap of foam. Aroma of caramel malt, lightly toasted bread crust, and hints of chocolate. All this does not leave, but gently continues in the flavor. It is quite smooth, without ups and downs. It is a good Baltic beer, calm, like the Baltics themselves, a porter for every day, but I lacked some crazy flavor.

After visiting their website, I found out that this porter, unlike its brothers, is fermented… with bottom fermentation yeast, which is quite original. I was also surprised that fructose was added to the beer. Usually, sugar is added to strong Belgian beers to get a higher alcohol, here there is no such need – the alcohol in this porter is standard, 6%. Maybe they just wanted to sweeten it a bit… Anyway, it turned out to be a good beer.

Next was Lvivske Porter. I buy it regularly in our Tiv Tam. I once read that its recipe hasn’t changed since 1956(!).  Perhaps that’s true. The porter is excellent but a bit unusual – it has a high density (20%), which sometimes makes it unacceptable to some people and just underwhelms. It’s a great, strong porter. The 8% alcohol and 20% density complement each other and accentuate the malt and chocolate flavors. Be sure to try this beer, maybe it will become your beer!

The last was Athanasius Porter. He just stood aside, or rather sat on his throne, and looked down at us with a kind smile, as a real king should. This beer, like the previous one, has 20% density and 8% alcohol, but it doesn’t push you, but charms you with its magic. Externally – nothing special, standard for porter’s dark brown color, beautiful dense foam. In the aftertaste, you can feel a slight hop bitterness. Maybe this is what smooths out the high density? There is no heaviness in the flavor, this beer charms you despite its solidity. There is a magic in this beer that is inexpressible in words, which is so difficult to achieve. It makes you want to exclaim, “Hallelujah! This is the beer we’ve all been waiting for!”.