Black Butte Porter

Pros: Nicely balanced, great roasted notes and aggressive hopping.
Cons: Hard to find in most areas.

I kind of feel bad for Black Butte Porter. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a wonderful little brown porter, and I really love it. But I think it falls victim to the middle child syndrome, if you will. It gets overlooked and falls into the shadow ...

Pros: Makes me happy.
Cons: The bottle eventually goes dry.

If you think "ale" is just another word for beer, then you're not the kind of drinker who would appreciate porter. Porter is a dark ale, though way back in ye olde England of 1722, it was being invented as a blend of three different types of ale. Oh yes, ...

Pros: Bold flavors and great example of the style.
Cons: Not widely available

When my wife and I travel, we love to find beers that are not available in our area.  On a recent trip to Las Vegas, we stopped in at the Pour24 bar in the New York New York Casino.  Since we cannot obtain beers from the Deschutes brewery and I ...

Pros: Easy drinking, pleasant coffee, caramel, toasty, smoky balance
Cons: Distribution

For my second beer of the evening I thought it would be appropriate to stick with the Deschutes brewery, and this time try their porter. For those of you not familiar with the style, porter is the founder of stouts, and is a little lighter in body and...

Pros: smooth, not too malty, not too hoppy
Cons: none

Black Butte Porter is the best example of a porter that I have ever sampled. It also ranks as one of the three best beers in the world, along with Hale's Pale Ale and Aventinus, a German wheat dopplebock filling out the holy trinity.

For...

Pros: Rich flavor and bouquet, a hint of bitterness, pleasant aftertaste
Cons: It's not as cheap as Coors.

I've been drinking Black Butte Porter for a few years, and it's managed to hold the throne of "Favorite Brew" since I first drew a pint at the Horse Brass Pub, in Portland, OR.

It is, without question, a fine porter -- a robust, dark, earthy...

Pros: Smooth, wonderful aftertaste, full bodied
Cons: Very hard to just drink one!

I'm no beer expert, but I do enjoy a variety of beers. I especially like dark beers. Black Butte Porter is one of my all time favorites. Ten minutes from my house is a small pub that has Black Butte Porter on tap. If you can find such a locale...

Pros: Great flavor, no after taste.
Cons: A bit pricey compared to average beer.

I am quite a fan of our local micro-brews, but when it came to buying a grocery store beer, I was left flat! Most had such a bitter nasty after taste, that the initial enjoyment was ruined. A good dark micro-brew has a smooth full flavor, without any...

Pros: Fabulous, full, fulfilling.
Cons: This was my only one. Now I have to go out in the cold to buy more.

You could probably get a much more erudite, fact-laden, jargonistic review from someone else, because I'm no beer reviewer. I'm just a guy who likes a good beer once in awhile (very rarely do I drink more than one in a night). So here's what I know about...

Pros: A dark beer lovers fantasy
Cons: Very difficult to find. Really only available in Oregon.

Deschutes Black Butte Porter was, by far, my favorite Oregon beer when I lived there during grad school in 1996. For those who don't already know, Oregon is a beer fanatics heaven. There are so many wonderful beers available in Oregon that can't be...

Pros: Just a good beer
Cons: Not for the weak

This beer's got 'tude. It's direct, to the point, and all sissys should steer clear. A hearty, bitter nut taste makes this beer a necessity for after work gatherings at the pub, and pool games on Saturday night (or darts at the Green Lantern Tavern in...

Pros: Dark flavorful beer. Brewed 20 miles from home.
Cons: nothing!

Porters are one of my favorite beers especially Oregon Porters. They have a thick taste to them almost oily but that is not a bad thing. Black Butte is a fine example of what a porter should be and if you are lucky enough to live in the North West you...

Pros: A very outstanding Porter.
Cons: Sometimes a bit pricey, but Safeway frequently has a good price.

I've tried most Porters on the market, at least whatever I can get in Oregon. It's good to to try the others out there because you have to make comparisons. That's the goal of a true beer afficianado....making those comparisons. BBP still has the...

Pros: Everything a porter should be
Cons: limited distribution

It was a hot day. I was eating ribs off the main street of Sisters, Oregon on my way back from Bend. I thought, "what's the local beer like?". I ordered Black Butte Porter and the day got better.
The full body and rich taste make this beer...

Pros: Tastes really really good
Cons: Not available on East Coast

Exiled in the beer-poor East Coast, I'd forgotten how much I love Black Butte Porter until I went to visit in Oregon. Every other porter I've come across since Black Butte first touched my life has paled in comparison. Of course, it all comes down to the...