Try?
For some reason, Rogue ales could be easily obtained in Rome, and I would often buy six-packs of Mocha Porter there. After moving to Atlanta and vastly expanding my craft beer choices, though, I still found myself drinking Mocha Porter. Because it’s so darned good.
Rogue has very good distribution in Atlanta, and I see their beers all the time at Summits Wayside Tavern , including the occasional specialty like Smoke and Imperial Stout. They even brew up a specialty beer for Summits.
One of the wonderful things about Mocha Porter is the sinful chocolate character of the beer. That’s because they use chocolate to make it. Now, lots of dark beers have chocolate character without the actual use of chocolate. This is because the malts used are roasted just like cocoa beans are to make chocolate, and similar flavors are produced.
Rogue goes a step further and uses Beeston chocolate to make Mocha Porter, so you get even more chocolate flavor. Here are some notes I took on the bottled stuff a few years ago:
Rogue Mocha Porter is a murky dark brown in color with a slight tan head
and a heady coffee-molasses nose. The palate is wonderfully complex, strong
roasty notes of chocolate and chicory combine with a hint of molasses all
combine to give the beer a remarkable complexity that blends nicely in the
finish with a powerful roasty and hop bitterness to give the beer a powerful
lingering quality. There’s a lot of chocolate flavor here, as you might well expect, and chocolate lovers will really delight in this beer. Just the other night, I was enjoying a very special pint of Mocha Porter at Summit’s; specifically, a cask-conditioned pint. It was so wonderful (better even than the usually sublime bottled stuff) that I took notes, with the aim of affixing them to my Epinions review when I got home.
Except I discovered I hadn’t reviewed the beer yet, hence my ramblings this evening. But let me first explain what cask conditioning is. It’s a process whereby a beer is made into an entirely different beer by placing live yeast into the keg from which the beer will be dispensed.
With true cask ale, the beer is constantly evolving in the cellar. Most of this usually takes place before the keg is tapped, but the beer will continue to change once it begins to be served. The first pint poured may very well be somewhat unlike the last one.
Summits served my glass at the proper temperature, cool but not cold. My Cask Mocha Porter was jet black in color with a creamy tan head formation and a heady cocoa nose. The beer just oozed rich chocolate flavors in the palate, with powerful notes of licorice and espresso, too. A gentle hint of fruit was apparent as well from the cask conditioning.
In the finish, the licorice notes intensify, and a subtle hop bitterness emerges to provide a delightful bittersweet chocolate character. If you are ever in a pub where this is served on cask, beg, borrow, or steal to get a pint. It is a truly remarkable experience.
But it’s also a delight in the bottle, so don’t pass on Rogue Mocha Porter that way, either. It’s absolutely wonderful.
Update October 25th, 2015: History repeats itself! At least it does, after a fashion. Summits Wayside Tavern was the spot where I often went on a Sunday afternoon to watch the Patriots play when they weren't on TV. Quite often, a Rogue ale would be drunk on those days. I don't live in that area any longer, and Summits is no longer in business. Rather, for the past five years I've spent such Sundays at Taco Mac right around the corner, and today I'm enjoying a Rogue Mocha Porter and a Patriots game just as I did then. The beer is big and roasty with chocolate and licorice, and not all that different from what I describe above. A bit pricey these days at $7.00 for a draft mug; it will run you $11.99 a six-pack in stores. I've knocked it down a half star for the overpricing.
Still and all, a beer I love very much, and one I'm sure I'll enjoy again. Soon.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft
