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Porter > Stouts

narlus

Eastcoast Softcore
Staff member
Nov 7, 2001
24,658
65
behind the viewfinder
what's the difference between the two? i should know this, after having been to at least two different Redbones-sponsored brewer's events where they showcased solely porters and stouts, but i don't.

anyway, seems like stouts are made more often than porters, and to my palate tend to be a bit more roasted. and w/ imperial style, definitely higher in alcohol.
 

Meat Foot

Monkey
Mar 24, 2004
269
0
On the asthenosphere
narlus said:
what's the difference between the two? i should know this, after having been to at least two different Redbones-sponsored brewer's events where they showcased solely porters and stouts, but i don't.

anyway, seems like stouts are made more often than porters, and to my palate tend to be a bit more roasted. and w/ imperial style, definitely higher in alcohol.
Good question:

"What does make a stout a stout? "It's a fine line between stout and porter," Dunson-Todd told me. "The mash bill is different, 10 to 15% has to be roasted barley, and the bulk is pale malt, with some flaked barley or oats to add body. Porters tend to have other dark malts involved. The roasted barley gives a sharper edge to the beer."

excerpt from here http://www.beveragebusiness.com/bbcontent/art-arch/mmbryson0012.html

Back to the original ? (I think it was a ?) I have been enjoying the heartier stouts this time of year. My current fav is Obsidian Stout.
Cheers!
 

BikeGeek

BrewMonkey
Jul 2, 2001
4,577
277
Hershey, PA
Meat Foot said:
Good question:

"What does make a stout a stout? "It's a fine line between stout and porter," Dunson-Todd told me. "The mash bill is different, 10 to 15% has to be roasted barley, and the bulk is pale malt, with some flaked barley or oats to add body. Porters tend to have other dark malts involved. The roasted barley gives a sharper edge to the beer."
:thumb: The only part I disagree with is the "has to be." I've discovered through homebrewing that there are no absolutes in recipes, just generally accepted rules of thumb.

Other good info on both styles:
Porter
Stout
 

Tenchiro

Attention K Mart Shoppers
Jul 19, 2002
5,407
0
New England
Generally speaking I prefer a Porter over a Stout. The Deschutes Black Butte Porter and Mctarahan's Black Watch Cream Porter being my all time favorites. Unfortunately the latter is extremely hard to find in this neck of the woods.

Porters just seem to have more of a sweet quality to them that I like.
 

kidwoo

Artisanal Tweet Curator
I used to make an oatmeal porter. I'd buy the roasted barley and go about 1/3 in the mash. Maybe that was more of a stout based on ratios? I usually let it go in the malt for longer than normal to get really sweet. I'd also go really light with cascade hops and it stayed pretty smoove.


Best part was making muffins out of the leftover oats.:drool:


But generally speaking.....yes......porter>stout. Not like samuel smith does either poorly.:)