Miasmatic Review

Edmund Fitzgerald Porter

Monday this week I stopped in a local grocery store on lunch just to look for a beer. They had greatly expanded their beer selection, I mean by almost double. I stood there in stunned awe for a good 10 minutes. As I looked at the 50 new beers I wanted to try, I’m not kidding, a brand stuck out, Great Lakes Brewing Company. Mainly because each of their beers are named for historical figures or events on the Great Lakes, such as Elliot Ness, the Voyagers, the burning river and the beer I choose, The Edmund Fitzgerald. The Fitz was a freighter that sank on Lake Superior November 10, 1975 with a loss of all 29 crew. It was later immortalized in Goron Lightfoot’s song “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”

She comes in a standard brown 12 oz bottle. The label is black with a picture of the Edmund Fitzgerald sailing in a storm. The name of the brewing company takes the top of the label, with the name of the beer underneath the picture. There is a story on the side, “Named after the ship that frequently docked in Cleveland and sunk in Lake Superior in 1975, this porter combines a complex, roasty aroma with a bittersweet, chocolate-coffee taste. In keeping with the Vavarion purity law of 1516, this beer is traditionally brewed from all natural ingredients: Barley, hops, yeast and water. “ It also advises that it’s 5.8% alcohol by volume. (oh yeah!)

When poured into a glass, it almost looks like a stout. The color is rich and dark like black coffee. There is a slight red hue to it. It poured a quarter inch tan head that faded into a nice film. There was some lacing on the glass even after it was finished.

This porter had a very distinct aroma to it. A strong scent of chocolate and coffee mixed with the roasted malts and nuts. There was a slight floral hop scent as an accent. When I say this smelled like chocolate and coffee, I mean actual chocolate and coffee and not chocolate and coffee malts. There is a difference. The flavor was of coffee with a good malt backbone and hops for a nice bitterness. It really did taste like coffee flavored beer. Real rich and flavorful, excellent!

It had a nice light and creamy mouth feel to it. It’s not thick like a stout, but slightly thicker then your average porter. It’s very easy to drink. Just remember, this is a porter and not a stout. If you are in the wrong mindset you’ll find yourself wanting a stout.

I really liked this beer. This is one I could see buying for a possible beer tasting coming up. Overall I give it 6.5 out of 10.

OH, btw, enjoy the song.