The Forty Four Porter: A coffee-infused porter featuring Frothy Monkey

Previously known as POTUS 44

{written by Carl Meier of Black Abbey Brewing Company}

I spend a lot of time in bars.  Some time in restaurants too, but mostly bars.

In some professions this would be considered unhealthy.  It can be difficult to get a lot of work done if you are hanging out in a bar all day.  However, in the beer business, you make an exception.

Some might say that I modified my career to fit my lifestyle.  I’m not sure that’s entirely true.  Since The Black Abbey Brewing Company opened, I have been in a great many more bars in different parts of our fine city than I had ever been to before.  I have met hundreds of fascinating, intelligent, driven, successful people.  I have watched deals be made, drama unfold, friendships fostered and candidates interviewed.  I have observed as untold amounts of dark, strong liquid have been consumed by men and women of all ages, and I have consumed more than my fair share.

I suppose you could call me a bar fly.  A coffee bar fly.  (You didn’t think I was talking about beer bars all this time, did you?)

We work strange hours at The Black Abbey.  Brewdays take a long time, events take place, people drink beer in the evenings and into the night and we like to be there to share our brand with them, tell them our story and share a pint.  This leads to many late nights.  Life goes on, however, and if we want to stay up with the men (as they say) we have to get up with the men.  This necessitates copius amounts of coffee.

Thus began our relationship with the fine folks at Frothy Monkey.

I met the Frothy crew at 12 South Winter Warmer three years ago.  We chatted quickly in a frozen tent in Sevier Park over a 2-ounce pour of our coffee porter.  Days later they had me pouring that same beer at the Frothy Monkey Staff Holiday Karaoke Extravaganza.  I became fast friends with the team in a way that only beer and karaoke can accelerate.  I fell in love with their attention to detail, their unique and memorable branding and their love for local and delicious things.

The Black Abbey started holding meetings at Frothy Monkey on 12th Avenue South.  We ate dinner there often and were always impressed with the high quality of the food and service that we received.  We met Nate Akey with 5 String Furniture at Frothy. (He ultimately hand-crafted all of the furniture in our Fellowship Hall.)  We wrote our brewery insurance policy at Frothy; we made plans, reviewed plans and executed plans at Frothy.  We drank an enormous amount of coffee at Frothy.

So when the time came for us to brew POTUS 44, our coffee-infused porter, we called Frothy Monkey.

POTUS 44 is a robust porter, first and foremost.  It fits comfortably within established style guidelines.  We added coffee at the suggestion of a good friend who enjoys our penchant for history and its relationship with craft beer.  We thought we would “liberally” infuse our porter with Kenyan and Hawaiian coffee and a little bit of smoke that won’t quit.  We knew this would give our beer a dazzling personality, but we needed expertise to make the coffee all it could be.

Enter the crack staff at Frothy Monkey.  They sourced a custom coffee blend for us and ensured that it was brewed in such a way that aromatics were maximized and acid content and oil were reduced.  We think they nailed it.

The most exciting part is that this week we will be able to share our coffee/beer collaboration at the Frothy Monkey locations in 12South and Franklin.  So thank you to our Frothy friends for working with us to create a unique and approachable product that is an exciting and delicious reflection of both of our brands. I look forward to many more hours of meeting, observing, reminiscing and drinking to come!

Carl E. Meier
The Black Abbey Brewing Company
2952 Sidco Drive Nashville TN 37204
@BlackAbbeyCarl

“So when the devil says to you: do not drink, answer him: I will drink, and right freely, just because you tell me not to.”
-Martin Luther