Porkslap Pale Ale

Porkslap Pale Ale

The label says, “Pale Ale” and then right underneath that it says, “Farmhouse Ale”

USA

POP:  Wishing Well Liqours, 786 Idlewild Avenue  Easton, MD 21601

Container: Aluminum can

Price: I lost the receipt.

This beer comes in a can, which I think is cool. I’m not the only one, of course. Lots of fancy beers come in cans these days. It’s greener, and keeps light out of the beer. This beer also comes with a recyclable plastic six pack holder, instead of that old-fashioned fish-choker kind that you have to cut up with scissors.

On the front of the can, two hogs are slapping bellies, hence the name. I think this is kind of corny. If you are on a first date and you order this at a bar, your date will not confuse you with James Bond. The name Porkslap seems vaguely misogynistic or politically incorrect in some way. Like “donkeypunch”.  As I mentioned above, the can claims that what’s inside is simultaneously pale ale and farmhouse ale. I don’t really know what farmhouse ale means. It also says “all malt”. Sounds good to me.

The head on this beer is really magnificent. I highly recommend pouring this beer into glass just to see this head. It looks like a cappuccino.  The beer is a clear and beautiful copper red. It smells great, too. Flowers and citrus.  This is probably due to freshness. The beer I had was canned on May 22. Pretty impressive to get a beer to the Eastern Shore from New York that fast. Again, no light getting in through the can helps a lot.

The taste is great. Not overly hopped at all (is that what all malt means?) I bet in England they drink ale like this at close to room temp. Not too sweet, but lots of the flowery and citrusy notes promised by the smell. Really smooth, no yeastiness. A light and complex flavor that would go great with porkchops (duh) or grilled chicken. I would even drink this with a BLT instead of the traditional iced tea. If you could get this and a real sausage at a late season baseball game or early season football game, you would be a pig in shit. Get it?? Fresh heirloom apples and brie also comes to mind.

I think the name is silly, but at the end of the day this is really a terrific beer. The can and the recyclable holder are really positive ways to go.  You could take this camping and cool it in a mountain stream like in those old Busch commercials from the eighties. I really think you could drink this at around 50 degrees and it would be fine.
Overall: A