A Pint Half Full

The opponent of the Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron in the Washington Post's 2011 Beer Madness tourney - Breckenridge Brewery's Vanilla Porter.  Two beers couldn't be any more different and still be from the same style - in this case porter.  Alcohol level: DFH - 12%, Breckenridge - 4.7%; flavors: DFH - wood, cherry, a little chocolate/vanilla, Breckenridge - all vanilla all the time; Drinkability: DFH - sip, barely finish one, Breckenridge - drink a six pack no problem; Location: DFH - East Coast (DE), Breckenridge - West Coast (kind of, CO).

This was my first Breckenridge Brewery offering so I didn't know what to expect.  But I stumbled across some of these commercials that they put together, making fun of the latest trends in beer advertising (vortex bottle generating more "flavor" from Miller Lite and "freaky freezy" bottle labels that change color when it's cold), so these guys have a sense of humor and have a love for good beer. See a couple of the commercials after the jump.

So how is the Vanilla Porter?  Very nice.  The super low alcohol content surprised me so I knew it'd be mild and being a porter, I expected a nice malty flavor with some chocolate/coffee notes.  Poured out, it's got a beautiful dark almost opaque color with a rich caramelly head.  One whiff and you knew they weren't kidding when they say they use real vanilla beans in the brew.  As I drank it, I was again caught by how easy it was to drink and how light it was, but at the same time, it felt "thin" and milk-like.  Really faint bitterness from hops and just an overabundance of vanilla puts the beer in some sort of inbalance to me.  I like that it's bold with its flavoring but when I was done, I couldn't help but be left a little unsatisfied.