Beer Review, Ølfabrikken Porter

Last night, before heading out for Tuesday Festivities (trivia at hooters), had an Ølfabrikken Porter. I checked beer advocate for appropriate glassware and they recommended Pint or Mug, and I so rarely get to drink from a mug so I brought out the mug my cousin John gave me for being a guy in his wedding.

The beer poured nearly black, about as dark brown as you can be, before being black. It was opaque so no light was getting through. When I initially opened the bottle I was hit by the smell of black olive and chocolate.

It felt really thick and didn't feel carbonated on the tongue.

It tasted... like a porter. Like a thick porter. There was prominent flavors of chocolate and black olive. There was a hidden coffee flavor. Lurking deep in the profile was some vanilla and caramel. Not much smoke flavor, but it was definitely roast-y. It was drying on the tongue and right at the end had a bit of bitterness.

The cheese in the foreground is Cahill's Irish Porter Cheddar. On my first sip of the beer, I downed a few lactase pills so I could eat some cheese with my beer. The picture is a little busy, with the buns in the back and the cheese on the paper, and the beer isn't prominently displayed, but I was in a hurry to eat some cheese and drink some beer. The cheese was good, it didn't really do a flavor explosion in my mouth like I was hoping for. It just seemed to go well with it.

Maybe I went into the pairing with too high of hopes, (like when I had a Reuben with the raspberry wheat at Harrisons) it didn't live up to that, it was just a good compliment. It wasn't newlyweds, this beer and cheese was an old married couple. They aren't staring madly in love into each others eyes, having sex in elevators... it was the old couple who ride the bus together that are the same height, have ears that droop the same, and don't really have to say anything to each other. They still hold hands, but it's not fireworks.

I picked up this beer in Indianapolis at (I believe) Payless Liquors, 7369 Madison Ave, Indianapolis. It's got a smaller beer selection, but, damn, it's a good selection.