While "Ølfabrikken" translates to "Beer Factory" the hand made brews from this Scandanavian brewer are anything but mass-market.

The humble beginnings of Ølfabrikken took root in 2003 when two Danish computer programmers decided to close their laptops and fire up the kettle. The Shelton Brothers (respected importers of some of the world's best beer) tell the story of Ølfabrikken founders Martin and Christian:

Their plan was to brew a range of unfiltered and unpasteurized beers, focusing on strong, spicy, and hoppy ales, unlike anything that was being brewed at the time in Denmark. Back then,there were fewer than twenty microbreweries in Denmark, and most of them brewed beer for the untrained palate of the average consumer.

On a wing and a prayer, Martin and Christian used what little money they had to purchase used equipment from a small U.K. brewery. Martin's parents allowed the two to take over a corner of the family barn for brewing - that's where the two five-barrel fermenters produced the first beer in 2004.

The first year was tough for the two, despite sufficient demand for the new brew. It wasn't until an expansion and the addition of an extra brewer that Ølfabrikken grew from a side project to a self-sufficient business.

The "Ølfabrikken" name is a tongue-and-cheek reminder of the brewer's modest first steps, but it was inadvertent insight to a successful future. Today the "Beer Factory" produces over 10,000 liters a month and has more awards than any brewer in Denmark.

My Porter Tastes Like Stout

I've never particularly enjoyed porter, I'm more for stouts- so I thought. Based on my past experience with the style, I knew porter as represented by a wafting stale scent of old, soy-saucy raisins amidst a thinner-than-desired body and a strangely sweet, flat flavor profile. Mmmmm.... porter.

All of this porter-hate turned upside-down after I tried Tröegs Dead Reckoning. While not a traditional porter, Dead Reckoning is a great mid to full-bodied modern American style- sufficiently hopped, while still roasty and dark.

This was just about when I realized I had no idea what the hell I was talking about, and had no idea what a porter even was. Basically every dark beer I drank at that time I was comparing to stout.

I remember thinking (predictably), "Holy crap, this tastes like stout!" Well folks, as it turns out the two styles are very closely related and share their origin. The Campaign for Real Ale gives us the low-down:

Porter was a London style that turned the brewing industry upside down early in the 18th century. It was a dark brown beer - 19th-century versions became jet black - that was originally a blend of brown ale, pale ale and ‘stale' or well-matured ale.

It acquired the name Porter as a result of its popularity among London's street-market workers. At the time, a generic term for the strongest or stoutest beer in a brewery was stout. The strongest versions of Porter were known as Stout Porter, reduced over the years to simply Stout...

Restrictions on making roasted malts in Britain during World War One led to the demise of Porter and Stout and left the market to the Irish. In recent years, smaller craft brewers in Britain have rekindled an interest in the style, though in keeping with modern drinking habits, strengths have been reduced.

Look for profound dark and roasted malt character with raisin and sultana fruit, espresso or cappuccino coffee, liquorice and molasses, all underscored by hefty hop bitterness. Porters are complex in flavour, range from 4% to 6.5% and are typically black or dark brown; the darkness comes from the use of dark malts unlike stouts which use roasted malted barley. Stouts can be dry or sweet and range from 4% to 8% ABV

That all said, I think I'm even more confused than when I started. I hear there are purists who argue that brewers often confuse or mislabel stouts and porters, but I find this whole ordeal a tricky situation to argue. By the above definition I wonder if there ever could exist an imperial porter... You've got to love the bastardization of the system. The Beer Hunter would be proud, rest his soul.

My Experience

My new found love for the Tröegs led me on a search for more porter. I wanted to find something special for the site, the first porter worthy of excessive praise. The knowledgeable salesperson at Oak Tree in South Plainfield, NJ (my new favorite store) was quick to recommend the Ølfabrikken. The bomber sat in my fridge for an additional week or two before I nonchalantly selected it one night to share with my wife.

I remember pouring the brew into a couple of tulip glasses, admiring the almost-black viscosity. Honestly, the stuff poured like it was scraped out of the bottom of the "Beer Factory" generators. The beer is very dark brown and completely opaque- it looks black. Some beers trap light only once the glass is topped off, but this porter paints the walls with an impenetrable swirling mud bath of intimidating glory, immediately consuming all signs of life at first contact. You could seal your chimney with this stuff.

The look alone would ward off the weary. The beer smells great: an incredibly sweet, malty and inviting aroma is both pleasant but strangely understated. I expected more roastiness in the smell, though it was certainly there, basked in a coat of dark coffee. The taste and mouthfeel hand-in-hand create one of the most complex dark brews I have ever sipped: chocolate, coffee, carmel/molasses, smoke, dark fruit - creamy, silky and full in mouthfeel with a delightfully persistent and equally complex finish; simply amazing.

Final Thoughts

This is not a beer for light beer drinkers, nor is it a casual Sunday session beer. This is also not the beer you would give to someone you're trying to recruit from boring beer land. On the other hand, Ølfabrikken porter is a superior choice for dark beer fans, imperial stout lovers, and haters of porter.

This is not only the best porter I have ever sampled, but far and wide one of the best dark beers I have ever had. Imbibe and enjoy, there's not much else to say.

Denmark - 7.5% ABV

Ølfabrikken [website]

Porter