Viking Braggot Company Winter Squash Porter

8.4% ABV Released Oct. 25th, 2018
Beer Advocate score - 4.12/5

30C. Winter Seasonal Beer

A stronger, darker, spiced beer that often has a rich body and warming finish suggesting a good accompaniment for the cold winter season.

Aroma: A sweet maltiness on the forefront while hints of chocolate and vanilla dance in the background.   8.75

Appearance: An extra dark brown liquid with a nice mocha head. Head retention is long lasting with a decent amount of lacing when it dissipates.  9

Flavor: Strong coffee characteristics upfront with note of chocolate. A hint of caramelized squash on the back end. As the brew warms, the vanilla starts to mingle.  9.25

Mouthfeel: Really smooth and velvety with the right amount of carbonation. A nice sipping beer.  9

Overall: Wow! Just... wow! This is delicious! Viking Braggot Company has done a wonderful job with this seasonal brew. It is rich in flavor and they all seem to mingle with greater intensity the warmer the beer gets. I recommend leaving it out about half an hour before opening and beginning on your quest. I also recommend buying two bottles, you won't regret it.  9

Matt's mark: 4.5/5

Doctor who?

Early in the week, I knew what brew I was going to take home. Viking Braggot is my favorite Eugene, Oregon brewery. All their beers are well done. When I found out the date they were releasing this years version of the Winter Squash Porter, I readied myself for it. But life happens all the same. One cannot simply forget about fun to be had on Samhain (or Halloween). The local winery that my wife and I are members of (Saginaw Vineyards) have a annual party called "Hallowine" (I know, very clever). This year, we both decided to go as "The Doctor". I, of course, was the 10th Doctor (David Tennant) and the missus went as the 11th Doctor (Matt Smith). Later on that night, we both decided she looked more like Oswin from the same show, but Oswin doesn't have a cool sonic. We didn't win the costume contest because, well, hardly anybody at the party actually knew who The Doctor was... maybe a handful. We had fun none the less (wine was involved, duh). When the weekend arrived, the missus and I decided to go for a little nature walk on the outskirts of our small town. We started at a nature park near some ponds and the ventured out on a bike trail that used to be a train track. The tracks lead well out of town up to some defunct mines called the "Bohemia mines". During the summer, we even have a festival named after the mines. A pretty important part of our towns history. After a short hike (10.5 miles - no really, we hiked 10.5 miles in 3 hours) we were ready to call it a day. The missus went home to do whatever the hell she wanted and I went to the Village Green lounge to watch the Oregon Ducks homecoming game against UCLA. Today was all about relaxing. After 10.5 miles walking, your hips are quite sore and stiff and you don't want to do much of anything else. I did do some small stuff around the house but today was mainly about opening up a bottle (I bought two of course) of the Winter Squash Porter. This years version is so new that Untappd didn't even have a score. Beer Advocate did but I have it scored higher by quite a bit. I think this is the best beer I have ever had. That is saying a lot because I have had a lot of great beers... this is even counting my own beer... and I make good beer (at least I think so).

Part of the 10.5 miles of trail hiked this weekend.