January 28, 2009: Bayhawk's Chocolate Porter

Ah, beautiful Orange County California! The promised land for plastic surgeons, golddiggers and Caucasian families with 2.5 kids alike. A place where an apartment crammed with three families lies in the shadow of the six bedroom mansion on the hill. Where some high school seniors drive to school in a new BMW, while others work two jobs after school to help pay the rent. What a weird, fantastic microcosm to call home. I've grown up in the rolling hills of southern Orange County for most of my life, and like most natives here, I've come to accept the realities of this strange place. It's nearly impossible to explain how a place could be so incredibly repulsive, and feel so much like home at the same time. It's such a strange place that if you think about the contradictions for too long, you could very well lose your mind, but such is life here in "The O.C.". I've been trying so many different kinds of beer from every part of the world that I've decided to switch it up and taste one from my own neck of the woods; Irvine, California.

Bayhawk Chocolate Porter. Say it over and over again in your mind and it still sounds just as fantastic as the first time you said it. The name of this beer has everything. Bayhawk; I don't exactly know what that is, but it sounds like the kind of bird who's ready to kick some ass and take some names. Chocolate; who doesn't like chocolate? One of my coworkers claims to hate chocolate and none of us have trusted him ever since. (just kidding Nick). Porter; If you've never tried a porter in your life, turn off your computer right now, head down to your local bar and order a pint of porter. If they don't have any porters on tap, head to the next closest bar and keep trying until you find one. Seriously, I can't think of a more tantilizing combination of words in the english language, except for maybe "Free Bayhawk Chocolate Porter". I had such high hopes for this beer, could this beer possibly live up the the incredible levels of hype that have been boiling over in my mind?

Like the place that it comes from, Bayhawk Chocolate Porter proved to be a complex mix of flavorful contradictions. There were definitely a variety of tastes floating around in this beer, and as the name would suggest, chocolate is the main aroma. It doesn't taste like you've just taken a bite out of a Hershey bar, but the dark chocolate notes make for a tasty and sophisticated flavor. Also, there was a bit of a coffee flavor to this beer which I quite liked. Would I drink Bayhawk Chocolate Porter again? Absolutely. If you like your porter dark, almost delving into stout territory, give this one a shot. It might be a bit hard to track this one down outside of the O.C. but it could be worth it.

Cheers,
Ian

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