Robin Shepard
I owe Tom Porter, the owner of Lake Louie Brewing, a bit of an apology. When he told me he was adulterating a Baltic porter with tiramisu and red raspberries, I laughed — to which he responded, “It’s not just one of those damn flavored beers, it’s different!” Indeed, it’s a beer that’s full of surprises. Winter’s Mistress was created to complement bourbon as a distinctive Wisconsin twist to the boilermaker.
What is it? Winter’s Mistress from Lake Louie Brewing of Arena.
Style: The Baltic porter is a dark black beer, sometimes with garnet and ruby highlights. It is known for chocolate maltiness, often with hints of toffee, licorice and roastedness. The style can be quite strong, ranging from 7.6 to 9.3 percent ABV. It’s similar in its history and flavor to the Russian imperial stout, but the Baltic porter is made as a lager, which results in cleaner and sometimes more balanced maltiness.
Background: Bulleit Frontier Whiskey of Lawrenceburg, Kentucky approached Porter more than a year ago asking him to design a beer that could be matched with its rye whiskey. Last spring, the result was Ginger Hipster, a spiced-up version of the brewery’s Warped Speed scotch ale. This year Bulleit came calling again and the idea for Winter’s Mistress emerged. “We wanted to create a beer that would compete with the bourbon,” says Porter.
The heart of Winter’s Mistress is a maltiness rich in coffee, milk and toffee, all of which blend exceptionally well with the tiramisu and raspberry. “The tiramisu is in the front of the palate while the raspberry hits you on the backside of the profile,” says Porter. It’s a bold and strong beer at 8 percent ABV. With all the flavor, that strength is deceptive. Watch it, if you’re drinking it alongside the bourbon as a boilermaker.
Winter’s Mistress is sold in five-packs of four 12-ounce bottles of beer along with a 375 mL bottle of Bulleit Bourbon for $20. Six-packs of the beer alone run around $10 (these will be more plentiful after the Bulleit promotion runs its course in a few weeks). Winter’s Mistress is also on tap at many of Madison’s craft beer bars, where it’s sold by the glass.
Tasting notes:
- Aroma: Light maltiness, hints of toffee and chocolate tiramisu.
- Appearance: Black body with a thick soft, brown head.
- Texture: Medium- to full-bodied, with soft silkiness.
- Taste: Lightly roasted chocolate malt, however the chocolate tiramisu is clearly evident throughout.
- Finish/Aftertaste: The chocolate flavor continues and intermingles with light fruity hints of red raspberry. The beer’s alcohol warmth takes a while to notice, but it will emerge.
Glassware: The Guinness tulip glass is great to focus the chocolate aroma, especially that of the tiramisu, while showing off the deep black color and soft head.
Pairs well with: Bourbon! If you’re into boilermakers, the sweetness of the bourbon and the oak do go nicely with the chocolate and raspberry of Winter’s Mistress. I prefer drinking the beer with a shot on the side, rather than mixing the two in the beer glass, to better taste the core qualities of the beer. Winter’s Mistress is also good on its own as a dessert beer or nightcap.
The Verdict: My first thought was that a Baltic porter with tiramisu sounded a little gimmicky, but this beer surprised me. It blends the chocolate and raspberry with the dark roasted malts. Winter’s Mistress is a flavored beer, but not one in which artificial flavors dominate. There’s still a porter here, and a robust one. The tiramisu gives the toasted toffee character of the malts more chocolate complexity and depth, and the hints of red raspberry lend light fruity tones to the finish. Paired with the bourbon, there’s even more chocolate richness, which became smoother alongside the oaky warmth of the bourbon.
For Baltic porter style purists, all those added flavors will be distracting, but this is my new favorite winter warmer.