Tasting Notes: Cheddar Ales: Totty Pot

Cheddar Ales: Totty Pot (England: Porter: 4.5% ABV)

Visual: Speckled light brown head settles over a moderate black body.

Nose: Treacle, malt and wood. Some coffee.

Body: Charred smoke and wood, light bitter chocolate. Bitter, treacle and sweet back.

Finish: Dry charred oak, liquorice.

Conclusion: A beer that distinctly calls to mind a charred cask with a thin layer of treacle spread upon, an unusual image, and you’re not quite sure how it’s going to work out. It is surprisingly refreshing for such a smoke and oak beer, but it has a problem finding a distinct character outside of that.

The main body seem light and doesn’t take time play with any of the more interesting elements. Some of you may remember that I was intrigued by Festive Totty, which uses this as its base, but found it didn’t quite come together. This is a much simpler beer and does not manage to bring as much to the table as it’s more intriguing, but still flawed cousin.

Whilst this is somewhat of a critical review, it is worth mentioning that as a dip for chocolate chip cookies it worked quite well, however one feels that this was probably not the brewers original intentions.