Ghost Pigeon Porter

Ghost Pigeon Porter
One Growler, $10.00, 5.8% ABV

Purchased at the brewery, Woodbridge

This is a scary-good porter, brewed in the classic porter style, that leaves a scary search history in your browser, perhaps named in homage to a slightly cultish samurai movie starring a hulking one-eyed black guy. Intrigued? You should be.

Once again, New England Brewing has created a world class beer with a world class confusing name. The Ghost Pigeon is another of NEB’s draught/brewery only offerings that they only make a few times per year. I think they started making this one in 2011, but I’m not sure. It doesn’t matter now, as long as they keep making it.

Malty, slightly burnty, roasty flavors round out this full-bodied midnight black beer. I’ve picked up a couple growlers over the course of 2012 and have made my wife happy with them. She happens to love porters and stouts that aren’t too wacky. As I said, NEB has created a smooth, chewy classic porter that ranks among the best.

NEB says:

n/a

Unfortunately, they have nothing to say about the matter. Like a ghost. But a pigeon? Yeah, Ghost Pigeon.

I recently failed to explain any deep meaning (however fanciful on my part) behind NEBCO’s Gandhi-Bot’s name, so I feel compelled to do better with this page. So let’s see…

tumblr_ly5yhj5Yi11rna67do1_400I happen to really like the movie, Ghost Dog. My wife, Hoang, happens to hate it. I like it for many reasons: I like Forest Whitaker, I like cool samurai movies and I love RZA. This was the first movie he did the soundtrack for and props to Jim Jarmusch for recognizing the best instrumental soundtrack composer of, dare I say, a generation.

Anyway, Ghost Dog fans know that Ghost Dog only communicates with his employers via pigeon. The movie opens from the POV of a carrier pigeon delivering a note to Ghost Dog. (These notes are usually directions to murder some nefarious person.)

The pigeons are porters for Ghost Dog. You could call them Ghost Pigeons. In fact, someone sort of did a few years ago when one of the first apps was created for your smartphone that covers your calling and texting tracks for whatever reason you wish. (Here’s more.) There are more apps like this now and let’s be honest, they are pretty much just about hiding the woman you’re having an affair with, right?

So here I am, reading various pages about the Ghost Pigeon app and will surely forget to delete my history and maybe my wife will find that stuff and… Well, she did already ask me why I was watching Ghost Dog clips. And, now that you’ve clicked on that Ghost Pigeon app link above, you’re in potential annoying conversation trouble too. Sucker.

Fortunately, Ghost Pigeon Porter isn’t as sketchy at Ghost Pigeon. And you can drink it with your significant other without fear. Just don’t let it slip that you are fully aware of what the Ghost Pigeon app is or…

You get the point. Just shut up about this rarely brewed treat from the boys at NEBCO and just concentrate on getting growlers of it and drinking it.

“Ghost Dog, power, equality.”
“Always see everything, my brother.”

Who couldn’t dig this movie? (short clip)

Overall Rating: A
Rating vs. Similar style: A

Beer Advocate’s Reviews of Ghost Pigeon Porter
New England Brewing Company
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