Porter originated in London around 3 centuries ago, so it has a quite long history. Where does the name come from? Well, it became very popular among the porters, who worked at the local markets and delivered those products to the pubs.
According to beer-historians the style evolved from Brown ales, that were widespread back in those days. Since then Porter is continuously developing – in terms of ingredients, technology and of course taste. As many other styles, Porters disappeared after the World Wars, but they ascended with the start of the craft beer era.
Back in the 19th century Porters were widely-exported, first in Europe and later to the US. The English version – that is usually soft, sweet and caramelly – hasn’t changed much, unlike its foreign variants. The American Porter is stronger, has higher gravity and not surprisingly it’s also hoppier. In the Baltic countries, where German lager brewing dominated, it became a bottom-fermented, high ABV, dark Baltic Porter.
And the story of the Russian – or Imperial – version is related to the import to St. Petersburg, supplying the needs of the British diplomatic community, especially after daughter of Queen Victoria married to the Czar.
Grain bill
| Variety | Quantity | Quantity | Colour EBC | Colour ºL | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swaen Ale | 4 kg | 8.8 lb | 7 | 2.6 | 70% |
| Swaen Munich Light | 0.7 kg | 1.5 lb | 14 | 5.3 | 12% |
| Gold Swaen Munich Light | 0.4 kg | 0.88 lb | 100 | 38 | 7% |
| Platinum Swaen Brown Porter | 0.3 kg | 0.66 lb | 425 | 160 | 5% |
| Black Swaen Chocolate B | 0.2 kg | 0.44 lb | 900 | 339 | 4% |
| Black Swaen Black Extra | 0.1 kg | 0.22 lb | 1300 | 490 | 2% |
The base of the grist is our Ale malt, with some addition of Munich for the fuller rich malt character. Special malt varieties are essential for this style. Cara (Chrystal) malts will help with caramel flavours and residual sweetness, which is required to balance the bitterness of hops and the roasted grains. A mid-colour caramel malt should work well.
Historically Porters were brewed with brown malt, a very dark base malt. We recommend Platinum Swaen Brown Porter. We kilned – not roasted – this product in our roaster, at lower temperature, in order to avoid burnt flavours. You can increase its ratio vs roasted varieties, in order to have a smoother result. A single step mash for 60 minutes in the middle should work well (67ºC / 153ºF).
Hops
| Variety | Quantity | Quantity | Duration | Alpha acid | IBU |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Challenger | 28 g | 1 oz | 60 min. | 9% | 27 |
| Challenger | 28 g | 1 oz | 10 min. | 9% | 10 |
As the focus is placed on malt flavours, you don’t need to think a lot about what to add. We recommend traditional English varieties, like Fuggles, EKG, Northern Brewer or Challenger. For an American version feel free to switch to local hops. They can be allocated evenly for bittering and aroma purpose. Please note your hops need to have enough character to compete with bitter flavours of roasted malt.
Yeast
Any typical English or American-style ale yeast should work well in a Porter. For a fuller body we would recommend to use a lower attenuative strain. To have the best result, ferment at 20°C / 68°F. As for many other styles, the higher is your ABV, the longer aging is required.
Dry examples: Fermentis Safale S-04 or Mangrove Jack M36 Liberty Bell Ale.
Liquid examples: WLP002 English Ale or Wyeast 1028 London Ale.
Results
| Batch size | 23 L / 6 gallon |
| Efficiency | 75% |
| Original gravity | 1055 |
| Final gravity | 1012 |
| Colour EBC | 57 |
| Colour Lovibond | 22 |
| IBU | 37 |
| ABV % | 5.6 |
| Carbonation | 2.2 |
| pH | 5.0 |
Appearance
Deep brown colour, with creamy foam.
Taste profile
Platinum Swaen Brown Porter – paired with other specialties – definitely brings you what you need for a Porter; an intense range of chocolate, coffee and caramel flavours, but without the burnt, roasty aroma.
Food pairing
Beef dishes, BBQ