I’ve just got back from the weekly shop at our local Sainsbury’s and since I was last there, they’ve introduced special offers on a whole selection of Meantime Brewery beers, namely:

• Meantime India Pale Ale (750ml) [Meantime London Porter (750ml) [Meantime London Stout (500ml) [Meantime Pilsner – (375ml) reduced to £1
• Meantime Wheat – (375ml) reduced to £1

Time to stock up on those 750ml bottles of London Porter and India Pale Ale, folks. They haven’t been on special offer since this time last year (believe me, I’ve been checking every week) so you might not see them reduced again until this time next year. I’ve somehow managed to squeeze one of each into the already packed-to-capacity beer cupboard and I’ll be looking forward to renewing my acquaintance with both of them before too long.

Brewery: Fuller’s
Location: London, England
ABV: 5.4%
Version: Draught
Source: The Doric Arch, London

This Tuesday I didn’t really have time for a Bree Louise detour on the way back to Euston station, so I decided to try the Doric Arch (Head of Steam) instead. I hadn’t realised that the place was actually there until that morning, when I left Euston on foot for a change and happened to wander past. A sign in the window boasted that Fuller’s London Porter was available on keg and as this is a beer I’ve been wanting to sample for quite some time now I happily called in on the way back in the evening.

I was very glad I did. London Porter poured a lovely dark ebony brown with ruby highlights and a decent head. The first taste was full of liquorice and dried berry fruits, with a freshly ground coffee and fruit cake following on. There was a hint of smoke in there as well and a dollop of treacle for good measure. It was rich, sweet, smooth and went down extremely nicely indeed. If I’d left more time before the train I’d have sunk another one, definitely (although they had Kelham Island Pale Rider on offer as well, so I was sorely tempted to try that one instead). I have a sneaky suspicion that I’ll be back before too long, though.

My new mission is to get hold of some Fuller’s London Porter in bottles. Partly for comparison purposes, partly because I quite fancy trying the London Porter stew recipe on their website. Hey, Sainsbury’s Head Beer Buyer! How about it?

Quick heads-up for UK supermarket beer-shoppers. Our local branch of Sainsbury’s has 750ml, wine-bottle sized Meantime London Porter and Meantime India Pale Ale on offer at 2-for-£7, as opposed to the usual £4.59 (ish) each.

They also have a whole selection of bottled real ales at 2-for-£3 or 3-for-2 or something, but they’ve been running this sort offer all year as far as I can tell. The Meantime one is new. And both those beers are rather special. You’d be mad not to.

Brewery: Meantime Brewing Company
Location: Greenwich, London
ABV: 6.5%
Version: 750ml bottle
Source: Sainsburys

I have to admit to still being a little in the dark with regard to the precise dividing-line between ‘porter’ and ‘stout’ (although I’m working on it… as often as I can). Meantime have thoughtfully provided a micro-site at www.london-porter.com, which includes a selection of rather fascinating articles on the origins and history of the porter style, but still nothing definitive on where that dividing-line lies. More research needed on my part, clearly…

Meantime London Porter (not to be confused with either Meantime London Stout or Meantime Coffee Porter) is the brewery’s flagship dark beer and they supply it in exceedingly generous 750ml wine-bottle portions. Now then, I’m a big fan of the 750ml approach, if only because it gives you longer to appreciate a particularly fine beer such as this one. You can pour yourself a full pint and leave a decent half in the bottle for an ongoing top-up, or let it breathe for a while and try it again as a stand-alone second helping.

Meantime London Porter is a beer that definitely warrants that second helping: it pours a rather lovely dark ruby red, with a thick, bubbly head and gives off enticing scents of liquorice and treacle. Strong coffee notes come to the fore, alongside more treacle and molasses, with that ever-present liquorice providing the lingering after-taste. The second measure has an even more richly complex flavour, one that demands to be savoured.

All in all, it’s a big bottle, full of a very big drink indeed. If a pint of Guinness is meant to be a meal in a glass then this one is something of a six-course banquet, complete with liqueurs and brandy to finish. But to come back to the original point: except for the higher alcohol content (and the larger bottle) I’m not entirely sure what the essential, key difference is between the London Porter and the Coffee Porter, or even the London Porter and the London Stout. I reckon I’ll just have to drop Meantime a line and ask the experts. I’ll let you know what they let me know in due course.