Some people will drink any style of beer during any time of year, pounding pale lager in a blizzard and sipping imperial stout in mid-summer. I am not one of those people. While there are some beers I will drink all year long (cough*IPA*cough), I tend to drink a lot of dark beer in the winter and load up on lighter and mire refreshing beer for the warm days of summer. That means my dark beer drinking is winding down with the nicer weather moving in, so I am trying to clear the stouts and porters out of my beer fridge to make room for some saison and pale lager. It’s a tough job, but somebody needs to do it. I was pleasantly surprised at how many different local porters I found this winter, and many of them have been excellent. One of the last versions I finished in my beer fridge was Owl at Night from 4 Quarters Brewing in Winooski, Vermont. 4 Quarters Owl at Night is available on a rotating basis on draft and in 16 oz cans.
4 Quarters Owl at Night pours nearly black with a solid tan head. The aroma features plenty of rich roasted malts. These malts also lead the flavor, notes of milk chocolate, toffee and molasses. This is balanced by just a hint of earthy hops, which also add a little bitterness for balance. Owl at Night is medium-bodied, smooth, and not overly boozy at 6% ABV. The finish is rich with some lingering malt flavor and a bit of sweetness. Overall this is a nice porter, but with the flavor leaning heavily towards the dark malt and the residual sweetness it drinks more like a stout to me. Still, a tasty beer for all dark beers fans. Hoppy Boston score: 4.25/5.
Previous 4 Quarters Reviews:
Hoppy Boston 
