Left Hand Black Jack Porter? Yeah, I’ve enjoyed that beer before. Never on draft, though, so when I saw it on tap at my local Taco Mac, I ordered up a mug posthaste. This is the first time I have ever had the beer on tap, but a quick search of Usenet shows I’ve been drinking at as far back as April 20th, 1999 when I posted:

I recently added a second DBR, and still have beer in the kitchen fridge, which my wife somehow thinks is supposed to be used to keep food in.

Anyway, here goes:

22's:

4  Smuttynose Barleywine

1  Eddie McStiff's Cisco Bend Stout

2  Bear Republic Extra Pale Ale

3  Wonderful Life BOP ale

1  Legend Porter

3  Smuttynose Maibock

1  Ommegang

2  North Coast Old No. 38 Stout

6  Smuttynose Imperial Stout

1  Stark Mill Porter

1  Left Hand Black Jack Porter

1  Snake River Alpine Fest

2  Smuttynose Ofest

1  Norwester OPA

1  Firestone Double Barrel

1  Gritty McDuff's Christmas Ale

1  Williamsville Studley brown

1  Lake Tahoe Hefeweizen

12oz. and 1/2 liters:

6  Victory Hop Dev

1  Old Nick Barleywine

4  Flying Fish Dubbel

2  Otter Creek Copper Ale

1  Otter Creek Mudbock

2  Geary's Pale Ale

1  1984 Anchor Our Special Ale

1  Dogfish Head Raison D'etre

2  Poor Henry's Stock Lager

2  Tsingtao

1  Weyerbacher Imperial Stout

1  Weyerbacher Raspberry Imperial Stout

4  Alaskan Smoked Porter

4  Anchor Porter

3  Red Hook Ballard Bitter IPA

2 Catamount Porter

5  Dominion Millenium 99

2  Dominion Millenium 98

2  New England Oatmeal Stout

1  Acme Brown Ale

1  Anchor OSA 1997

1  St. Arnold Brown

1  SN Celebration 1998

4  Einbecker Mai-Ur-bock

12 Wonderful life BOP Ale

1  Saxer Jack Frost

9  Victory Golden Monkey

1  Bell's Third Coast Old Ale

2  Victory Old Horizontal

2  Hammer & Nail Brown Ale

1  Hammer & Nail Vienna Lager

1  Bell's Home Grown Ale

2 Independence Thomas Blond Bock

1  Watney's Cream Stout

2 catamount Christmas Ale 1998

1  Samichlaus 1997

1  New Amsterdam IPA

1  Aventinus

2  Dock Street Illuminator

6  Reichelbrau Eisbock

1  Snowgoose 1997

2  Wachusett Irish Red

1  Brimstone Big

2  Long Trail Harvest Ale

1  Wolaver's Brown Ale

2  Augustiner maximator

1  Sea Dog cabin Fever Winter Stock Ale

1  North Coast Pranqster

1  Long Trail Brown Ale

1  Sam Adams White

2 Sam Adams Honey Porter

1  Paulaner Ofest

1  Anchor OSA 1998

1  Long Trail Tom O'Brien's Stout

1  O'Dell's 90 Shilling Ale

750's in the rack:

Unibroue Quelque Chose, Maudite, Fin du Monde

Chimay Red, White, Gold

Affligem Double

Corsendonk Pale

John Staradumsky (Sipping the Black Jack Porter, so I guess you can take that one out of the fridge)

There now, that was fun, wasn’t it? Some of those beers aren’t even made anymore, but luckily, Left Hand is still going strong. Here’s what they say about Black Jack Porter on their website:

Holding the cards to bring you down, Black Jack Porter delves deeply beneath the surface to embrace your Ace. Espresso and dark chocolate flavors envelop your senses, with herbaceous hop flavors pulling you from the light. You never know what treasures may be lurking in the darkness. Will you play the game? 

Ingredients, also from the website:

Malt: Pale 2-row, Crystal, Chocolate, Munich and Wheat

Hops: Magnum and US Goldings

Left Hand Black Jack Porter has an alcohol content of 6.8% by volume with 35 IBUs. It was a very reasonable $5 for a 20-ounce mug, and it runs $9.49 a six-pack here in Georgia should you want a six-pack (I would). 

My mug of Left Hand Black Jack Porter arrived a jet black color with a thick creamy tan head of foam and roast, cola and a hint of smoke in the nose. Taking a sip, I love the deep roasted maltiness in the palate laced with a hint of licorice and coffee grinds. It’s all wrapped up with an herbal hop and roasty bitter finish. 

Amazing! This is really a wonderful robust porter that’s got an extra kick of alcohol but, much more importantly, oodles and oodles of flavor.