Red duck ‘queen bee’ honey porter

Rating:

redDuck_queenBeeHoneyPorterThe name ‘Queen bee’ actually had us believe it had something to do with the honey component in this porter, but in actual fact, it is named after the brewer’s Great Grandfather’s yacht which won plenty of races in the waters around Norfolk and Oulton Broad on the East Coast of the UK in the early 1920’s. Rich little piece of history there.

On to the beer, which we served in a beer tulip. The appearance displays a very muddy, dark brown with a frothy 2 finger tan head that settles to a 5mm crown. Laced well. Very sweet and syrupy on the nose, definitely from the honey. Quite an earthy complexity happening too, wafts of roasted nuts, toffee and chocolate malts come forward with a dark fruity undertone of either raisin or prune. Interesting. In the mouth it’s smooth and oily with mild-medium carbonation. Medium-full body. Matching the aroma is a firm taste of honey in the flavour profile. Again, like the aroma an earthy or even spicy complexity opens up through the mid bringing with it a faint hint of licorice and raisin. A little alcohol warmth (6.6%) is felt as the roasted, nutty finish is nicely drawn out on the back end. Good duration. Decent porter, the honey is a nice addition and offsets the roast nicely. Just didn’t blow us away. Not bad at all.