Mayflower Porter is my favorite of the regular offerings from Mayflower Brewing, especially on draft. It was an excellent accompaniment to our Colonial Tavern Dinner and of course it makes a fine way to unwind at the BBC before a late dinner.

Mayflower Porter is a quaffable brew, intended to be enjoyed frequently with friends and family. It has great flavor and balance, but it is not a super complex masterwork of the brewer's art that should be hoarded and savored on special occasions, alone in a wood-panelled library while your palate plays the role of analytical chemist.

Not that there's anything wrong with that, as they say. I love that. That's what the Cooper's Series is for.

But I cannot enter that state of foodie reverie when I think my nephew is sneaking up on me from behind at the family picnic and the dog is nosing his way into the cooler full of burgers. There are times that call for a God's-honest pint of good porter, and this is the pint I like to have.