Had to buy a whole 12 pack to get this one beer. In mid 2017 Sierra Nevada put out this special “Beer Camp – Across the World” 12 pack with 12 different kinds of beer in it, all collaborative efforts with 12 other breweries. I like the concept, and I was cool with drinking the 11 other beers that I didn’t really want to buy, And $22 was a bit steep, but whatev’. Malts smoked with Manuka wood by the New Zealanders at Garage Project deliver a beer with a fleeting sweetness (when I wanted to savor it), a vanilla that delivered a dry bitterness (when I wanted syrupy richness), and a honey that went undetected (probably for the best). It’s a delicate balance, smokebeer is. Rich smoked malts can easily get smoked too hot or for too long and can leave a roasted and burnt taste. Maybe that’s what happened? Maybe its the manuka wood (probably not). Surely this isn’t what they wanted a porter to taste like (less the smoke). The extra booze is a redeeming quality (7.7% abv)… Ahh, you know what? the sweetness does come back around later on down the road. But for now, we gotta bite the bullet. Overall smokestack metric = 3.1 smokestacks (out of 7, parenthesis.
| Brewer | Sierra Nevada / Garage Project |
| Beer Name | Campout Porter |
| Brewer’s Description | We’re playing off the camping theme of Beer Camp with a beer we’re calling Campout Porter that evokes the flavors of marshmallows toasted over an open fire. The beer features special ingredients such as malt smoked over manuka wood (a tree native to New Zealand) and manuka honey. Additionally it contains beechwood honey from California and Tahitian vanilla beans to reflect the sweet and roasted notes we were looking for in this collaboration. |
| Food Pairings | Smoked prawns, smoked sheep, smoked pork, smoked whatever else they eat in NZ… kiwi? |
| Brewer Location | California / New Zealand |
| Alcohol content by volume | 7.7% |
| IBU (International Bitterness Units) | 32 |
| Beer opacity rate 1 – 7 (light – dark) | 3.8 |
| Smell smoke? 1 – 7 (No – George Burns) | 2 |
| Smokepower taste: 1 – 7 Smokestacks | 2.5 |
| Sausage detection? Y or N | N |
| Beer thickness 1-7 (water – used motor oil) | 4 |
| Overall Happiness Rating: 1-7 (low – high) | 3.1 |
Websites OK, have your ID ready:
SmokeBeerMinistry 