Bottle web SB 2021-06-29 Göteborg AR: roasted malt, salt liqurice, wee tar AP: dark brown, wee transparent beige lid F: roasted malt, liqurice, semi sweet, wee grainy

Imperial rye porter by White Pony, operating in Belgium; this one was apparently brewed at Eutropius. Thick and dense, creamy, deep pale brown-tinged mocha-coloured, membrane-lacing head, very dark misty chocolate brown robe, as good as black. Aroma of espresso, coffee filters, burnt toast, black chocolate, leather, dried thyme, black peppercorns, lots of blood-like iron, whisky, cigars, bay leaf, dried blackberries, pipe tobacco ashes, bonfire even, vermouth, roasted apple peel, beef stock cubes, walnuts, dried porcini. Sweetish onset hinting at dried fig, dried blueberries and old raisins, light sourish edge and clear, dried porcini-like umami, medium carbonated with robust, full and oily body. Deep toasted brown bread- and toasted walnut-like maltiness, dryish and mouth-filling with a thick roasted bitter edge, becoming very coffeeish in the end, a tad ashy even; meanwhile peppery, leafy, rooty hops add further long-lasting bitterness, while spicy impressions linger (bay leaf, thyme), perhaps linked to the rye. Ends with considerable, heating, whisky-like alcohol, a bit astringent even, but the very thickness of the toasted malts absorb this well. Very fully roasted bitter, I would classify this as a (Belgian-influenced) imperial stout rather than an imperial porter, but that is a semantic discussion not worth going into here; in any case a boozy, robust, very bold sipper, I certainly enjoyed it a lot, even if there is still room for further finetuning.