Samuel Smith Old Brewery, The Famous Tadcaster Porter, about $3 per bottle
Certain beers are considered “classic.” Samuel Smith Old Brewery, The Famous Tadcaster Porter is one of them.
Porter is rapidly gaining popularity as a style – more robust than a lager, more approachable than a stout – but until recently it was virtually extinct. Samuel Smith, founded in Yorkshire, England, in 1758 and still independently owned, makes one of the best known, and best.
Jet-black in color, Taddy is a garden of chocolate flavor tones without being overpowering. Despite its appearance, it is light in body and only 5 percent alcohol (by volume).
The clear bottle is always an issue for me. Beer and light are not good pals, and the long journey from the British Isles doesn’t benefit the beer. This bottle was fine, however.
Taddy Porter is widely available in 12- and 18.7-ounce bottles.
Samuel Smith’s Old Brewery, Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England LS249SB; 011-44-193783225.|Dick Kreck
