Situated in a quaint little coastal town of Portarlington, about 5 mins from the heart of Geelong, Victoria. We were disappointed when we couldn’t pop into this brewery on our trip through Melbourne but it’s surely on the cards next time we head down.
Served in a beer tulip the jet black pour whipped up a generous 1 and a bit cm tan head that settles to a halo with minimal lacing. What it lacks in lace it makes up for in the aroma. The first whiff yields gorgeous briney wafts of salty shellfish from the use of Portarlington’s blue mussels, chocolate, coffee and roasted malts. Good balance between the roasty and salty aromas. The body is quite light on with mild carbonation. The only let down is a slightly thin mouth feel. Again, very gamey on the palate. With some rich dark malts, chocolate, coffee, salt and a hint of dough. There is a subtle smoky, gamey flavour on the rear-palate that rounds off a pretty drinkable stout. Quite a low ABV for it’s kind (5.2%) we thought it could have done with a bit more to add some extra body but don’t take anything away from this beer. Great stuff, up there but not better than Murray’s boysterous bicep.