Thr3e Wise Men Brews Delightful Coffee Porter Draft

Nate Lake, Brewery Ambassador at Thr3e Wise Men, pours another Hubbard & Cravens Porter draft.

If you like chocolate, coffee, and beer, then you’ll absolutely love the Hubbard and Cravens Coffee Porter draft made by Thr3e Wise Men Brewery in Broad Ripple. Although this porter is dark in color, it is light and airy upon that first sip. Beneath the frothy head lies a lasting mocha flavor that keeps your taste buds craving for yet another and another.

Thr3e Wise Men Brewing Company located at 1021 Broad Ripple Avenue has teamed up with Hubbard and Cravens Coffee and Tea, also in Broad Ripple at 6229 Carrollton Avenue. Together, they have established an exceptional recipe. Incidentally, Hubbard and Cravens supplies all the coffee and tea for all the Scotty’s locations.

“We look for the right balance of acidity, body, and taste,” says Jerry Cravens, co-owner of Hubbard and Cravens Coffee and Tea. “It’s been an experimental process along the way. We originally started with a dark roast profile and gradually perfected the feel on the palette comparing levels of acidity or how bright the taste is, and body or thickness (oil versus water) until we ended with the desired flavor.”

Nick Wente, assistant brewer, cleans the Brewhouse at the end of his shift at Thr3e Wise Men in Broad Ripple.

“This particular porter draft made with fresh coffee is a sweeter version of stout, but not as sweet as other porters,” says Keely Thomlinson, assistant brewer at Thr3e Wise Men Brewery. “Considered medium bodied, this beer has a roasted chocolatey feel to it. The main ingredient is malted barley (chocolate and black). To what degree the barley is roasted or kilned determines the darkness of color and chocolate flavor.”

Blending the Coffee into the Boil

To make each batch of Hubbard and Cravens Porter it takes 30 lbs. of fresh coffee for every 450 gallons. Interestingly enough, in order to help prevent any potential bitterness, the coffee is actually cold brewed (using lukewarm to cool water instead of hot) and sets overnight prior to adding it to the beer at the end of the boiling period.

After experimenting with different varieties of coffee and different ways of adding it to the beer, Thomlinson adds, “I like creating and fine tuning recipes, seeing it brew, ferment, and making a really nice finished product.”

Newest Hubbard and Cravens Locale

This perfected coffee porter (6.5 % alcohol) is on tap at several of Scotty’s restaurants and is now on tap at the new Hubbard and Cravens Coffee and Tea located at the Carmel City Center next to the Palladium at 703 Veteran’s Way.

This newest and seventh location serves an eclectic menu of exceptional wines and craft beers. In addition, breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus offer an array of local fare including organic free-range egg dishes, fresh salads, baguette sandwiches, and crispy flatbreads. There is even a juice bar where patrons can enjoy freshly-made smoothies and juices using organic fruits and vegetables.

Thr3e Wise Men Brewing More Than Just Beer

Thr3e Wise Men Brewing Company opened on January 17, 2011. This is one of nine Scotty’s locations which span across Indiana, including Bloomington, Muncie, Columbus, Southport, and Geist. This particular setting reflects a lodge-like appearance with exposed beams and rustic wood walls that portray a welcoming and casual environment.

Thr3e Wise Men now delivers their full menu and growlers within a three-mile radius every day after 5:00 p.m. (no growler delivery on Sundays). In case you’re wondering, a growler is a container that holds 64 ounces of your favorite draft beer that can be enjoyed at your own home and refilled again.

Although Thr3e Wise Men brews beer onsite, it also serves so much more. The menu offers pizza, calzones, homemade stuffed breadsticks, salads, desserts, and even elephant ears— a signature item! All the pizza dough, pretzels, sandwich bread, breadsticks, Zoe mustard, and homemade marinara contain beer within the recipe. Besides the local beers, many of the food items are homegrown here in Indiana as well.

“Like the other Scotty’s locations, we get many of our food and beverage items locally whenever we can. This is important to us,” says Russ Chargualaf, kitchen manager and assistant general manager of Thr3e Wise Men Brewery. “Our meats come from Lone Pine Farms, locally owned by the Moody Family, and from Smoking Goose, locally owned by Christopher Eley. Our cheeses come from Swissland Cheese Company, in Berne, Indiana. The complimentary popcorn that all our guests receive comes from Gutwein Popcorn Company from Francesville, Indiana. As you can tell, we want to support local as much as we can.”

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