Besides being a rather creepy movie about a ballet dancer, (and really, are there any other kind?) the black swan refers to a theory that basically says that if something is surprising, than it has more psychological impact. While it was pretty surprising to find a brewpub of this quality in the wilds of Indiana... well it's as good of a introduction as any, deal with it.
The Black Swan brewpub is located in a suburb on the southwest corner of Indianapolis, about 15 miles from the speedway. It's a bit of a drive if you find yourself in the middle of the city, but it is very much worth the drive if you have an interest in good beer and good food. The Black Swan is one of those breweries put as much effort, care and innovation in their food menu as they do in their beer menu. Aside from the normal pub fare the menu features such dishes as sweet potato gnocchi with braised duck or beef carbonnade. I really can't speak to any of these as I am pretty constrained by a budget and was quite happy with their Italian sausage sandwich with fries. Pretty simple, pretty good and yet they still manage to add a little something extra. French fries are about as simple as it gets most places. You take potatoes, deep fry them, salt them and serve them with pretty much everything. At the Black Swan you get your choice of five or six different seasonings and dipping sauces for your fries.
The result: If you are there with a group, like I was, you are going to be trying each other's fries and sauces. It's best to just embrace the experience. But now on to the beer:
Tafel beer: I had never heard of this style, if it is a style. Typing the words 'Tafel beer' into the Google only lead to a series of references to an obscure beer in Namibia. I don't know what if anything this has to do with this beer in Indianapolis, but an interesting side note. This is basically Black Swan's version of a pilsner. It pours golden yellow with no detectable aroma. Taste is clean and refreshing with just the slightest hint of hops in the back. Basically this is what people drink when the don't find Budweiser on the menu. Not bad, but nothing interesting.
Fuggles Mild Ale:
This beer is named after a type of English hop and the name pretty much says it all. Very bitter with lots of pine, grassy and floral flavors. Not a whole lot of malt to back this one up, so the hop character really stands out here. A bit much for a mild ale, but not bad.
EKG Pale Ale:
Strange color for a pale ale. Usually a style served clear and yellow to amber in color, this one was cloudy and light brown. Flavor and aroma were very light, I picked up some wood, pine and some maple flavors. Finishes clean with very little hop profile.
Black Swan Tripple:
As a rule I don't tend to favor the overly malty beers, although I tend to prefer that then a hop bomb. This is on the far end of the malt spectrum, but it is fantastically complex and wonderful. The aroma is very, very light but slightly fruity. The flavor is full-bodied and has lots of wine flavors mixed with berry, apple, pear and just a hint of alcohol. No hops to speak of, but this is fantastic without them. With the body, and the high alcohol content, I probably couldn't have more than about one of these in a sitting, but I would be willing to try.
Also a sweeter beer. I picked up a lot of malt, some light strawberry and citrus flavors that gave way to floral hops on the back side. Not a whole lot to say here. It's pretty good, but it was probably a mistake to try this one immediately after the Tripple.
Scottish Ale:
Nice caramel and light berry aroma. Also on the malt end of the spectrum, but I tend to save the hoppy beers for last. Still a lot of malt in this beer and, like the Tripple, is done very well. A little apple dark cherry with a strange, but pleasurable wood finish. I'm not sure how to describe it, but I want to say it's like hickory flavor. This one ended up a little sweet for my palate, but I still really enjoyed this beer.
Crispin Cider:
Although this is not made by Black Swan, it was still a part of the taster platter that I enjoyed. This is actually a product from a company by the same name in Michigan. The apple flavor here is prominent, but I also picked up hits of spices that made me think of apple pie. Those who stay away from cider saying that it is too sweet, might enjoy this. It is a lot drier than I was expecting.
Cream Stout:
This one had most of the normal flavors one would associate with a cream stout, lots of roasted barley, and charcoal with a lot of body to go with it. This particular stout had some smoke, and was unusually heavy on floral, pine hops and finished drier than expected.
ESB:
This one came out light brown and slightly cloudy. The aroma was filled with citrus and floral hops. The flavor was just slightly tart with citrus and lemongrass notes. It finishes with bitter English floral hops.
IPA:
That's all for this week. Next week I'll have finished this particular cross-country run and finish in South Carolina.
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