Fish Brewing Company - Mudshark Porter

Very dark brown in the glass with deep garnet flashes and a cap of light brown foam, Mudshark offers a rich looking appearance. But, at just over 5% ABV, it's quite a sessionable brew, which is a good thing since after our first glass we wanted to follow with another straight away. On the nose, roasty notes of dark chocolate with hints of coffee meet a delicate floral hop overtone. Look for these characteristics to expand in the flavor with deep notes of very high cacao percentage dark chocolate, scorched toast, and a bit of a woody hint, as well. The underlying light residual sweetness bolsters this porter's remarkable smoothness but is easily balanced by the roasted flavors and moderate hop bitterness, and the end result is a dry brew from start to lingering finish. The brewery recommends pairing with BBQ, sharp cheeses, or chocolate, and we agree! The sweetness of a chocolate cake would make a nice foil to this brew's roastiness, while the shared chocolate character would connect and complement. Cheers!

When one thinks of the epicenters of the craft beer renaissance in America, the Pacific Northwest undoubtedly springs to mind immediately. The region is the source for the vast majority of hops produced in our country and has long been home to innovative brewers at the forefront of the push to expand our palates beyond the "macrobrews" that dominated America's beer culture for so long. Fish Brewing Company in Olympia, WA is one of those brewers. Founded in 1993 by Crayne & Mary Horton and a group of local investors, Fish Brewing Company began as a brewpub on Jefferson Street, with a 15-barrel brewing system. Just three short years later, demand had reached the point where it was time to grow. The brewpub was expanded and they acquired the historic Skoog Building across the street, a much larger facility able to accommodate a bottling line and allowing Fish to become a legitimate package brewery. With their brewing system relocated into the new building, their first 6-packs hit store shelves in 1997.

The succeeding years have seen a series of new business expansions. In 2001, Fish merged with Leavenworth Biers, a brewery specializing in German styles. Around 2004, they acquired Spire Mountain Cider, the oldest commercial craft cider producer in the country. And, in 2006, Fish upgraded their 15-bbl system to a new 40-bbl system, allowing much greater production capacity for their Fish Tale Ales and other brands. More recently, just last year, Fish jumped into the distilling industry with the acquisition of Grapeworks Distilling and their Vitis Spirits brand which specializes in grape-derived vodka and a line of very unique 80+ proof varietal grape spirits from Pinot Gris, Chenin Blanc, Gewurztraminer, and Riesling. For more info about the brewery and related brands, their Jefferson Street brewpub, or their Taproom in Woodinville, call 360-943-6480 or visit www.fishbrewing.com.