Sierra Nevada XXX Anniversary - Part IV

The Michigan v. Ohio State game is one that I usually watch with a Buckeye fan - it's either my friend on the East Coast or my friend on the West Coast. This year, neither of them were able to work out the logistics, so I invited a friend from work over for the game. It turned out to be a bad day for football (was not expecting a 30 point shellacking - ugh) but a good day for beer. My work-buddy brought a six-pack of Sierra Nevada Celebration and I just happened to have a bottle of SN's fourth release of their 30th Anniversary beers - the Grand Cru. As Celebration is one of the blended beers in this release, it was a good chance to have a side-by-side comparison.

Grand Cru, by SN's description, is a marriage of our three most acclaimed ales: Oak-aged Bigfoot, Celebration Ale, and fresh Pale Ale blended together and generously dry-hopped.

The pour contained a sizable head that stuck around for quite a bit, leading to a lot of lacing. A dark red/heading-toward-brown color, it's got a little cloudiness to the liquid, but we're not talking unfiltered beer here. Picked up some strong hops in the nose - pine - and some malts and spices, but the hops were dominant. Oak kicked in about halfway through the bottle, but it was more of an addition to the scent vs. a complete reworking just because it climbed to room temp.

Sharp, pine-like hoppiness on the front end (this is the Celebration saying hello), little bit of caramel sweetness from the Bigfoot. And then your hair is blown back by dry-hop finish. Very bitter rush as the beer passes by with a hoppy aftertaste. You get some additional spice and some sweetness as the beer warms, but on the whole, this feels like the marrying of a red and an ESB. For my taste preferences, this is quite good. It's a solid blend, but I feel that the Celebration and Bigfoot are clearly in the driver's seat - if the Pale brought anything to the party, I wasn't immediately picking it up. Oh, and the alcohol isn't hidden - the 9.2% causes the occasional flash of heat, but it works decently with the rest of the flavors involved.

Of Sierra's four, 30th Anniversary releases this year, this would easily clock in as the second best offering (in order: the Stout, the Grand Cru, the Bock, and then the Barleywine) and it's definitely worth a try.

One Year Later: Black Butte XXI

Along with turkey and potatoes and a minor food coma and a 5+ hour return leg to Portland, I cut the wax on a bottle of Black Butte XXI. From my notes/impressions when it was green: bit of an alcohol burn, bourbon/sweet smell up front, malty flashes of dark chocolate and espresso. Pleasantly thick.

Now? Well, the alcohol has completely died off and, if it's still packing a north-of-10% abv, you cannot tell without letting it get close to room temperature. Even then, the alcohol is all at the back-end of the beer. Thinned-out a bit, but looking very dark with the occasional brown highlights and a moderate head that doesn't stick around for too long. The nose is predominantly sharp on the bourbon barrel character with some malt and a couple of wisps of coffee grounds. I passed the beer to a few others and they all agreed that the sweetness from the bourbon was the first thing to hit their nose. I figured that would be the first identifiable flavor with such a big headstart.

Could not have been more wrong. As far as the BB XXI is concerned, this is a convincing TKO in the year-long bottle-battle between these flavors: Coffee is your undisputed champ in this fight by a mile. This beer turned into a coffee porter, first and foremost, more than anything else. The front end is filthy with espresso flavors before giving way to some of the other ones like toffee and dark chocolate in the back half. Warming it up lets more of the bourbon out to play, but it's all secondary to the coffee. Hell, with this kind of bomb, the turkey was almost secondary to the coffee. Honestly never saw that one coming, but it was a more-than-pleasant surprise for someone who digs espresso-manipulated beer.

Happy Thanksgiving

It's a day early, but I'll be on the road to my hometown in the next few hours and wanted to wish everyone a good holiday. Safe travels to anyone heading out the door.

Brew-wise, the plan is to hit Flyers when we get up to Oak Harbor. I've heard good things about their beer and would like to obtain live, self-confirmation of the praise. And for my Thanksgiving meal, I'm breaking into the Black Butte XXI that I held off on about a week ago. Very interested to see what a year in the bottle has wrought.

Looking ahead to the weekend, the Beer Fridge stands empty and needs restocking. A trip to either John's or Belmont is extremely likely for Saturday with an eye toward the winter selections that have been rolling out. Maybe a side run to the Barrel house if I end up crossing the river. After the UM-OSU game, I might need cheering up with good beer.

Weekend in Review: November 19-21

Let's open with a tweet from Deschutes on Friday:

40 cases of The Dissident sold out in 2.5 hours at the Portland pub today.

Color me unshocked. I arrived about an hour after they opened and saw the sizable dent in the available stock. Passed three guys on the sidewalk with half-cases and zen-like expressions and another four people walked in to buy their bottles while I was there. You just got the feeling that a post-work trip would've been fruitless. I felt happy to grab my three bottles and a shirt when I did. Timing is everything, etc, etc. I caught Angelo (and Tyffany, should have at least said hello but I blanked on her name from the site) from Brewpublic at the bar and chatted a bit on the beer itself. I obtain a lot of my beer-in-Portland knowledge from that site and I was a little surprised that he remembered my face from the party for the website a few weeks ago. Our opinions of the beer were fairly in sync and he let me try a pull of the tulip glass he was working on. He had also already tried the other beers in my weekend plans (quell surprise) and had some initial suggestions on what to expect.

As for The Dissident, it landed right about where my flavor preference wanted it to be. I cracked open one bottle after putting the other two in storage and will stand by my first impression. Malt, cherry, almost a hint of a cinnamon flavor, yes - but the brettanomyces are large and in charge from start to finish. My one sample of the '08 variety was so long ago (and before I started to really pay attention) that I cannot compare the two with any major accuracy, but my memory says there is more bite to the 2010 vs. the 2008. If you got your hands on some, high-fives all around - get those bottles under lock and key. If you missed it, the Bend location reportedly still has it in stock. I suggest a road trip.

Saturday, I hit Hopworks to try the two beers with their estate-grown San Juan hops. Angelo said I would probably like the dark lager more than the double-IPA and damned if he wasn't right. Pig War (the IIPA), while pleasant, is not much different from other offerings. It held the 'sweet' note that I associate with Hopworks beer and built a hoppy pile on top of it. I didn't find myself picking up huge differences in the hop variety used for this brew, but that's not a complaint. Decent, but they've done better work.

Better work like Dark Helmet. Wow. This is a black lager with a thin body and miles of dirty/dark taste to it. If told that they dumped six cartons of Marlboros in the tank during the brewing process, I would likely buy that story. There is a monster vein of tobacco running through this beer and it's one that gets you sitting up and taking notice. I got a touch of chocolate off the malt, but that's at something like '2' while the tobacco is at '9'. At 5.0% abv, this is an easy-drinking lager with a hell of a flavor profile - one that I can't immediately tie to another beer I've tried. Good stuff.

Dissident 2010

My god . . . it's full of Brett.

The Next Two Days

Item 1: The Dissident, The Dissident is here.

(note to self: get Vs. on the iPod for the drive in tomorrow)

Deschutes is dropping the 2010 version at both the Bend and Portland brewpubs at 11am sharp. The word is "no more than six bottles a person" and considering my horrible, horrible plan in 2008 ("of COURSE I'll be able to find them in a few weeks"), your author will be at the doors in the first hour of business to carve his share from the existing supply. A Brett-backed brown ale (Flanders-style) aged with cherries in wine casks for 18 months, if this is anything like the '08, it's going to be gloriousness in a glass. Can't wait to try it.

Item 2: Hopworks has two new beers on-tap and both are made from hops grown on San Juan island. This hits home for me: I grew up in the same area on Whidbey Island and I'm all about trying some creations with 'local' ingredients. The two beers are a black lager and an imperial IPA, so I definitely won't be confusing the two at all. I'll be heading into HUB on Saturday for a few tastes of both and I suspect I'll end up bringing some home with me.

As always: it's good to live here. And I say that even while looking at the darkened clouds and torrents of rain falling to the ground.

Eisbock 28

Back when your author was in college and fairly inept about alcohol, I felt ahead of the curve on ice beer. Rock Ice (Rolling Rock's minor dip into that pool) was in my fridge for quite some time and I was somewhat insufferable about my 'knowledge'. "They freeze the water, man! That leaves, like, all the booze! How is that not better?? This is my beer from now on!"

Cue the facepalm every person usually has when thinking about their youth.

I reflected on that as I was cracking open Redhook's Eisbock 28, their Fall selection in their limited series run, because the ice beer of my youth should not even be in the same store as this stuff, let alone the same zip code. That's not to say this is gold medal brew, but there were a lot of things I liked about it. There is some sweet, date-like flavor and bran malt in the nose of the beer that I found well-balanced. I compare it to opening a fresh box of sweet-smelling Raisin Bran and taking a large whiff. The 11% abv is much smoother than some other beers with the same alcoholic content. Yes, you can tell it's there, but no, you're not wondering if somebody put a shot of Everclear in your glass when you weren't looking. I don't know if I'd swing for it at a 6 or 7 dollar price, but if it's at your local market for under 5 bucks (Fred Meyer to the rescue) then it's worth a shot.

I should seriously start listing the things I thought about beer before my head was screwed on straight. Just not sure if I can type while repeatedly cringing.

Station Break

After a Saturday where I tried The Bruery's Autumn Maple (verdict: one of the better 'fall' beers that I've tried. Spicy, chewy, and crazy tasty good. Who knew that yams could add that much flavor?), I found myself in a bit of a funk this week and didn't replenish the Beer Fridge. This has led to a week of no beer (gasp!), which I find to be a good refresher every so often. It's not quite like the beered-out feeling one gets from a post-festival funk, but it's enough to get it out of the rotation for a week.

This weekend, I do intend to correct course. A trip to John's today to see what kind of newness they have there and I'll definitely get the Beer Fridge restocked. There's also the bottle of Black Butte XXI which is just now hitting the "best after" date that they have listed. I was thinking to save that one for Thanksgiving, but it might get cracked open this weekend if the mood strikes.

In a sidebar note, I know that Brewmasters is coming up on the Discovery Channel in a little over a week and I had a couple of friends ask me about it. Personally, I back Jeff's musings on the subject. I like Dogfish Head and some of their beer is very good, but this show worries me since the angle is less "Beer is awesome!" and more "DFH is awesome!" It's not that I don't get the reasons why the production went that route, it's just disappointing that all the clips I've seen either feel like Standard Manufactured Reality Drama or DFH giving themselves a tongue bath. It's what Ace of Cakes is to cooking - you're not getting technical details by any stretch of the imagination and it's all about the Owner Who Doesn't Play By The Rules and his Fun, Wacky Staff. There might be bits and pieces that I enjoy, sure. I just don't think that's enough to warrant weekly watching by any stretch. Your mileage, as always . . .

Zeus Frowns On Fake Red, Smiles On Rainbow Bridge

Elysian Brewing. I admit I'm a fan.

In business about 15 years in the heart of Seattle, they've produced some very good beer that I have no problems recommending. The Immortal IPA, The Wise ESB, Perseus Porter, and - my favorite - the Dragonstooth Stout (chosen as the first beer of 2010 for your author) are all top-notch examples of their particular style. I have friends who worship their Jasmine IPA as a minor deity. When asked about them, I would always respond that you honestly can't go wrong with anything on their roster.

Sadly, I'm forced to change that statement. You almost can't go wrong. And while I'm not saying that The Mens Room Original Red Ale is swill, it's definitely not up the standard that Elysian set with their other brews. I realize this opinion runs counter to Seattle's - bottle shops in the area have had this beer at, or near, the top of their selling list so it's clearly getting love. But I think that love is tied to the KISW drive-time show that it's named after/created for and not for an actual opinion on the beer itself. And while I know this style can range from mild ambers to bitter hop blasts, I feel saying "Red Ale" means you plan for the bitter end of the scale. This beer couldn't find Bitter with Google Maps and a GPS.

There is the barest hint of a reddish-tinge to the beer along with about a finger of head that didn't stick around. The nose is not big and letting it warm up for a few minutes produced more sweet malt scent than anything else. It tastes very neutral with both the hops and the malt moving around on your palette, but neither one stepping forward. The finish is faintly hoppy but there's a spice bite that comes in from left field that took awhile to identify. The more time I gave it, the more I got convinced it was cinnamon. But I can't find a single recipe or mention of this anywhere else, so you would figure I have to be wrong. It's possible that one of the malts tricked out my taste buds, but I was not enthusiastic about that finish.

It's an amber with a bit of spice to it. Not horrible or an immediate drainpour, but nothing I'm suggesting you should try.

BiFrost, on the other hand, is not one to shy away from. An odd-looking Winter Warmer (straw-colored, almost like a pale ale), it's got a pine-like hop scent to the nose with a little bit of floral worked in there. While not bread-chewing quality, the beer is thicker than what you would expect from a visual standpoint. Opens with sweet floral hops and then quickly transitions into a more pine/weed hop bite with a spicy/bitter finish. Tiny bit of alcohol burn, but not quite something that would have you reach for the bottle to look up the ABV (7.5%, if you care). It's not among my top three or four seeds from the brewery, but it's still a moderately good offering.

Deschutes Portland Pub Trip

First of all: go vote.

I was in the area on Sunday and, having not been there in a couple of months, my wife and I swung by Deschutes for some lunch (her focus) and some beer (that would be me). I had hoped that I might stumble upon The Dissident getting a secret, oh-boy-aren't-you-lucky release but no such luck. Guess the world still has to wait a week or three before getting hands and lips on that one.

They were, however, pouring Black Butte XXII and I was very curious to see how the beer was fairing. The story is probably known at this point, but Deschutes made the decision to not ship this beer earlier in the year after taking a look at it. Not a small announcement when it's your Anniversary Brew. Made with chocolate that they had never tried before, it never fully blended with the ingredients and the visual look of the beer was less than appealing. This led to many discussions of visual aesthetics and how that relates to taste. The brewery did decide to still pour the stuff at their locations, so consumers were able to try it at the very least.

There are large amounts of chocolate and toffee/sweet in the nose with a faint hoppy note that might be a bit of the orange peel. It's got some thickness to the body but I think that had more to do with the creaminess of the liquid. I don't mean to indicate thinness, but I did not get the sense that this stuff could balance a quarter on it's head. The beer rolls with several touches of chocolate and roasted flavors in the taste before finishing with a . . . well, it's hard to describe. It dried up with a bitter finish that I first took to be the chilies but then realized that couldn't be it since I couldn't find heat anywhere (and my taste buds are fearful of chilies to the point of immediate ID if I'm dealing with them). While it's worth a try, I definitely have fonder impressions of previous versions.

My slight disappointment was cleared up with Hop Trip. Flavorful, hoppy, bright - it's everything you want in a fresh-hop ale and then some. Grapefruit and citrus in the nose, blast of fresh hop flavor (I'm becoming convinced that Crystal hops are the go-to-winner for fresh hop beer) that lingers with a clean finish. Truly a winner and worth your wallet getting cracked open.

Some new offerings from Elysian are in my hands for later this week (Men's Room Red, BiFrost) and Full Sail dropped this year's version of Wreck the Halls. I've also got the bottled version of Pelican's Full House and am very curious to see how it compares to the glass I had on-tap at Bailey's. In other words: it's going to be a good week.

Alameda

They don't conduct massive festivals or drop 18% sour ales with chocolate nibs, but I still have a soft spot for the Alameda Brewhouse. It was the first brewpub I visited in Portland and I retain fond memories of decent food and good beer after climbing out of a five hour plane ride. I'm not in Northeast a whole hell of a lot, true, and when I do wander that direction, there is usually a previously-selected beer target drawing me up there. Alameda is not a place I'd drop by if I was hitting Saraveza, for example.

But I do find the establishment another reminder on how different Portland is when it comes to beer vs. the rest of the United States. Alameda would be a huge hangout and praised for their beer city-wide if picked up by space aliens and dropped down in, say, Wyoming. But because it's located in this slice of the world, it tends to get lost in the wash when up against the OMFG selection that Beervana can provide.

Alameda does have a few of their options in bombers and I recently took two familiar selections for a review spin:

• Black Bear XX Stout - the '03 GABF winner in the Foreign Stout category (for comparison, Obsidian Stout from Deschutes took 3rd that year) and a repeat champ in 2005. A trending-toward-black-yet-still-brown color with a nice head greets you in the glass. Lacing aplenty as I worked through it. Light chocolate malt on the nose - little bit of hops but fleeting. Big burst of roast-malt and molasses that hangs out for a bit with some bitter chocolate. I am still surprised this stuff isn't thicker - gravity hangs right in the middle of the road. This isn't bad, but the smell and appearance sets up a "incoming chew-fest!" and that's definitely not the case. It's a very good beer and hides the near-7% pretty well.

• El Torero IPA - Cloudy orange/amber with about a finger of head. Fruity-hop smell, but it's not overpowering. Good swirl of hop flavor on the front end that leads into a specifically-bitter finish that I normally associate with rye-based beers. This definitely increased as the beer warmed up and while I found it good, those who aren't a fan of the rye-finish are likely to have issues. What's amusing is that Torero's description lists all-organic grain, 7.2% abv, and 80+ IBUs. I don't see rye on there, the abv is well hidden, and it doesn't feel like bitterness is shotgunned into your taste buds. It's still a nice IPA and worth a sample, but I found it odd that my experience was so different that what the basic bullet points would suggest.

Drop by if you're in the area. It also does wonders for easing jet lag if my experiences are anything to go on.

Brewpublic has excellent taste. Go figure.

I was in the Run Like Hell 10K on Sunday and took the day off yesterday, so it was a long weekend for your humble author. This was a rainy set of days, perfect for indoor weather, hearty soups, thick bread, and excellent beer.

As noted on Saturday, I headed down to Bailey's for Brewpublic's second birthday party. I drove in and arrived about two hours into the festivities, hoping that enough time had passed to let things thin a bit. With the weather, any outside-options were going to be slim and I had guessed that the demand would be wholly for the Cascade Blueberry concoction. Figured an hour for that to blow, another hour for the top 10-15 percent to bail, should be fine, right?

Ha ha ha ha ha - no. Not even close: it (understandably!) looked like a rock concert. Angelo from Brewpublic was at the front door when I rolled up and I kind of stammered a weak "Happy Birthday" as I gazed upon the sea of humanity. Shoulder-to-shoulder, absolutely no room to move around, body surfing (okay, that last one might be stretching it). I couldn't even see the hint of a line toward the counter and I felt that the enjoyment-to-CAN'TMOVE ratio was not in my favor. Or, anyone else's if I was going to add myself to the crush. I headed back to my vehicle, rolled across the river to watch my wife sing in a concert in NE, and then returned at about 9:30pm to a smaller crowd. Things were still solidly attended, even 5+ hours in, but definitely lighter. I mean, walking up and ordering was actually possible - success!

Two bucks for a five ounce taster, 3 bucks for a 10 ounce glass, or 5 bucks for a pint. With so much to choose from the 20 taps (the Cascade, as expected, was gone-daddy-gone), I kept to glasses and tasters in the hour I was there. None of my selections were misfires and here are my three favorites:

• Kentucky Coffee Girl (Fort George) - I like my coffee stouts to be a little filthy and this had some earthy qualities that I really enjoyed. A little thinner than the crude-oil that one expects from an imperial stout, but it was still creamy and carried some sweetness on the back-end that cut through the coffee.

• Full House Imperial Brown (Pelican) - What can I say? I love their Doryman's Dark Ale, so a doubled-version was only going to pander to my tastes. Malty and chewy, this was masking the 8.3% behind a swirl of flavor that I found to be very well blended. Slight hop on the back end with some nuttiness to the finish - a winner!

• Force of Nature (Lucky Lab) - I'd never been able to sample barrel-aged beer from the Lab before, so this was a must try for me and, wow, I was not sorry at all. It's an imperial pale aged in pinot barrels and the sour/tart qualities from the aging matched up very, very well with the hops. I sent the glass around to several people standing with me at the bar and all of them agreed with my assessment: more please.

Some of the beers at this event are still on-tap at Bailey's as of this posting. You could do worse than having a pint there before things kick.

Beer from Alameda Brewing on the radar this week.

Go Brewpublic, It's Your Birfday!

KillerBeerFest at Bailey's Taproom.

I am heading down there in the next 30 minutes. With that lineup, how could I not?

Saraveza's 2nd / Cascade Barrel House

Saturday was a pretty good day.

Early at Saraveza - before the masses started their post-work arrivals that evening.

I wasn't in the front door of Saraveza for two minutes before Tyler Vickers (of Tyler the Elder fame) was pouring me an imperial porter with a Whopper dropped into the head. This apparently earned me some street cred at the bar from a patron or two, but I was unable to gather if it was because I was drinking porter at 11:45am or if it was due to my immediate agreement to add candy to my beer. In either case, this is just an example of how fun this place can be. It had been about 10 months since I was last there and I felt immediate pangs of regret to live halfway across the city. Saraveza has friendliness pouring from the windows and it's a great little watering hole. I enjoyed the spicy chili that was recommended to me (not the best pairing with my beer, but it's all good) and just missed a bottle-cap-in-a-container-guessing-contest win by about 20 (225 to 243, I think and the total in Container #1 was about 270). If you're in the north part of town and rolling down Killingsworth, you are implored to stop by.

There are worse ways to start your day.

The beer was from Caldera Brewing down in Ashland - 'Mogli' Imperial Porter. The picture above is one sip in and it was an effort not to chug before getting the camera out. This was a good porter that turned into 'very good' with the chocolate backbone involved. The balance is nicely done with some light bittering from the hops moving the chocolate flavor smack in the middle between Sweetened and Unsweetened. If you see in on-tap, it won't disappoint. Just pack Whoppers ahead of time - I doubt other places are going to offer.

Step two on my Saturday trek was a visit to the new House of Sour.

Returning to Cascade is not a matter of if, it's a matter of when.

For those not aware of their history, Cascade Brewing is a great example of How To Succeed In Oregon Brewing. It's no secret that there are a large number of breweries in this neck of the woods, so to rise up from the pack, carving out a niche (and then kicking ass at it) is almost mandatory. Cascade dove headlong into aging and sour ales a few years back and, seriously, bless them for it. The Gold AND Silver medals for Wood-Aged Sour (2009 GABF) turned a few heads and their popularity, both in town and outside of it, has steadily increased. My primary reason for visiting? The two beers that took those medals: Bourbonic Plague and Vlad the Imp Aler. In bottles. For sale.

The second reason was that the Barrel House is getting obscenely good reviews (at least the garbled sounds of delight seemed positive) and I definitely wanted to see if the joy was legit. Cascade's own description of their house: "Of the 7,100 sq ft, the pub takes up 2,100 sq. feet. On the aging side – not open to the public - we can house 350 wine, whisky or port barrels in the cooler, plus another 150 outside of the cooler, as well as bottles for filling and aging. The barrel room is specially designed to keep the sour beers at a proper temperature for aging, specifically the cultivation of bacteria that give these brews their distinctive tang."

Yes, the place is badass. How's the beer? Tongue-tying in uniqueness. You are simply not going to get anything remotely like this unless you're on an active Sour Seeking mission. Even then, the chances of you getting a lineup like this are between slim and HAHAHAHAHA.

My first beer there was the Bourbonic Plague. While I'd like to look all kinds of knowledgeable and worldly in my reviews, I have to be honest: it's almost too complex for someone with my skills to break down. Sure, the nose is fairly straight-forward with white wine and a sweet note or two. But the taste is like drinking Calculus out of a glass when Algebra II is all I've seen so far. Just a rush of flavors across your taste buds and you're getting everything from oak to faint hop to cinnamon in there. Sour finish (natch), but not anywhere near as oppressive as you might think. I'm just not the guy to pin down the sixty tastes that are flying around in there - it took me six sips before I finally said, " . . . oh, cinnamon!" That's one flavor, mind you. Definitely good and definitely worth a try. My purchased bottle is going into the Beer Cabinet of Perpetual Darkness for a bit, but having this now would not be a problem.

My other selection at the House was Nightfall. The description from Cascade: "Nightfall Blackberry starts as a soured blonde wheat beer aged for 12 months in oak barrels, then laid on blackberries for another six. It features intense fruitiness and a concentrated color and aroma." My glass was sent over with zero head, which was odd since the beer ended up providing good lacing. Sours are weird that way. Fruit and sour/wine in the smell - obviously with a predominant blackberry angle on things. Admittedly, I love sour fruit if it's done correctly and during my first sip of this, my eyes lit up like I was about to explode. I'm amazed that the fruit can just overpower the sourness of the ale to create a great blend like this - the margin for error has to be slim as hell. It's a testament to brewers who know the process and can get the most out of it and I have to high-five Cascade on their skill. Those who visit Cascade's new place are strongly advised to put Nightfall on their list.

Just another weekend in Portland. Hard work, this.

Rethinking Believer

Ninkasi's Believer Double Red Ale and I did not get off to a good start.

As I've indicated before, I'm not the biggest fan of their standard lineup and my previous experience with this beer in bottled form was unpleasant. There was a underlying metallic taste to a large portion of the sips, I found the bitterness to be wholly unworkable with the beer, and ended up transferring the last third of the bomber to the drain.

Sunday evening, my wife and I had an anniversary dinner at Caffe Mingo (our #1 seed for Favorite Portland Restaurant). Like any Italian-based eatery, their wine list is wholly dominant, but they always have about three local beers on tap. When advised that Believer was one of the three, I decided that a red would work well with my chosen meal and figured I'd give it another shot.

And, woo-hoo!, excellent call on my part. This was not the beer I remembered. This, instead, was pretty damn good. Massive head that stuck around and produced heavy lacing down the glass, an eye-catching dark ruby color, and a very nice blend of malt with the hops flexing their muscles on the back-end. I found nothing metallic this time around and the balance was very well done. As a fan of red ales in general (I lean toward Bitter vs. Sweet), this is a beer you can trust to fit the flavors of the style.

This experience basically confirmed my personal maxim that, "If you can find it on-tap, drink it on-tap." Additionally, as this is the third or fourth time that I've have had issues with a particular beer in a given format (bottle or draft), but pull a complete one-eighty on it when I have it the other way, I feel a need to reassess how I'm forming my opinions on things. I should revisit some of the "I wish this had been better . . . " beers in my personal history if I can find them in a format that differs from my first time. Then I can see if my opinion has either changed over time (due to the different method of deployment) or if I just snagged a bad bottle or had a bad keg. I don't think all of them will flip quite like this one did, but there might be a few that will surprise me.

A Pair Of Reviews

Topic the First: Alaskan 2010 Smoked Porter. Alaskan reminds me of Full Sail - solid regular lineup and a great group of seasonal releases. With the Smoked Porter, the brewers have always been up front about the importance of aging this beer. This means that you are guaranteed an insane amount of flavor when drinking a particular version in the same calendar year. After this bottle, I can safely say 2010 is par for the course.

Deep black swirls, malted-milk colored head, and . . . well, let's be honest - you didn't buy this for the looks. The smell is where it's at and it's extremely distinct. Your olfactory sense is immediately grabbed by the smoke and it just continues straight into the flavor. In it's current form, this is like drinking beer formerly buried in an alderwood-house fire. There are some tobacco notes here and there, but the smoke is dominant and not letting a whole lot else get through. This is another beer that will be good after a year or two on the shelf.

Topic the Second: Ninkasi's Sleigh'r. This was another one I picked up over the weekend in favor of the "Ninkasi does better seasonals than year-rounds" rule. And damn if it isn't another very strong showing from these guys. Described as a "dark, double alt", The New School took a look at this earlier today and I have to concur with the opinions: Get Some.

Sweet, dark malt and toasty/bread flowing up out of the glass. But Sleigh'r throws you for a loop with the taste - more hop flavor than I expected but it's wonderfully mixed with the malt backbone. The bitter finish is enough to let you know it's there, but not enough to wipe out the previous taste patterns. There is more happening here than I would've expected going in, but I'm not at all familiar with Alts. My knowledge would immediately increase if this was the mold they all emerged from. Take the praises coming from reviews everywhere to heart and find this beer if you can.

Brrrbon - See You In 2011

A few months back, Widmer announced their third release in the Brothers' Reserve series. The first (Cherry Oak Doppelbock) and the second (Prickly Pear Braggot) were both reasonably decent, but the headline for the third had me pretty excited: Barrel Aged Brrrbon. That would be Brrr (Widmer's winter offering) aged in Kentucky bourbon barrels for four months. I like Brrr. I like barrel-aging. You can see why I'd be intrigued and (possibly) drooling. This was targeted as a must-try when it hit the shelves.

On Friday I was able to pick up a bottle at John's along with a few other things. The stats:

Malts: 2-row pale, Carapils, Caramel 10-L, Caramel 80 L & Dark Chocolate
Hops: Alchemy (bittering), Simcoe & Cascade (Aroma)
ABV: 9.4%
IBU: 40

I'd like to be able to give some flavor characteristics other than "there's a hint of caramel bourbon flavoring", but I'm unable to do so at this time. This is because the 9.4% was punching me in face on every sip. Front end, middle end, back end - booze, booze, and more booze. The heat off the alcohol was extremely difficult for my taste buds to navigate, but there were one or two sips where I can see light at the end of the tunnel. Halfway through warming up, I got an very nice mix of some sweet vanilla/caramel with the malt/spice of the Brrr. I just wish there were more of those moments instead of fighting through it.

Predisposed to like this, I'm a little sad that I can't sing it's praises right now in this incomplete form. Brrrbon will, in all probability, be an enjoyable beer when it matures a bit. I'm planning on picking up another bottle and putting it straight into the Beer Cabinet of Perpetual Darkness - we'll say hi again around Halloween of 2011. But, yow, straight-up green with this stuff? Only if you have developed an ability to ignore boozy heat and find the underlying flavors. Even then, it's going to be a challenge.

Reviews on-deck from the weekend: Alaskan's 2010 Smoked Porter, Deschutes' Hop Trip, and a realization that Ninkasi's Believer is a wholly different beast on-tap than what I remember out of the bottle.

John's Market

As I've mentioned a few times, buying beer in Portland is a treat. Other areas of the country have stores and locations and great brewpubs that are worth visiting and I truly don't mean to give them a pat on the head while saying, "Buck up, little camper!" But there are a sickeningly good number of options in this area of the world and I'm well aware of how good I (and the rest of the western-Oregon beer drinking fools) have got it. I've had conversations with other transplants from the east coast in my office and all of us went through the same, wide-eyed, kid-in-a-candy-store realization. It's like loving BBQ and living in Kansas City - every so often, you just need to sit back and give a contented sigh.

So, we're buying beer, yes? Neophytes quickly realize that there are three main ways of going about this:

• Supermarket Shopping: your Whole Foods, your New Seasons, your Market of Choice - these spots all have beer selections that can easily satisfy your immediate needs. Even Safeway or Fred Meyer works in a pinch. Not so different from anywhere across the country, Oregon locations usually have a nice mix of local and regional selections. On rare occasions, head-turning options will just magically appear. Sierra Nevada's 30th Anniversary series, for example, (bottle #1 - the stout) had a slow rollout and I was having a hard time running it down in the first few days. Ended up snagging one from a Market of Choice while ducking in to grab a loaf of bread. Sometimes, you just get lucky.

• Brewpubs: on the one hand, you're limited to what they are pouring on the premises. On the other, this is why growlers were invented. While more expensive than a six-pack (a $10 growler fill is on par with an $11 sixer), you're still getting draft beer at much, MUCH cheaper prices than they will sell at the bar. Four pints to a growler, 10 bucks per? By my weak math skills, that $2.50 pints. That completely works for me. And having several growler options available for a party is a good way to look cool. You're also getting beer straight from the brewer - both from an 'economically-rewarding-the-creator' and a 'it don't get no fresher' viewpoint, this is a good thing.

• Bottle Shops. Pretty much in two styles - Total Beverage/Total Wine joints with near-warehouse capacities of wine and beer, and smaller locations with a more limited selection. But while TB/TW possess tons of alcohol, the beer selections lean toward single distributor lineups and you see nothing but the "large and local" range. Total Wine in Virginia, for example, can be counted on for Brooklyn, Rogue, Magic Hat, Sam Adams, Stone, Dogfish Head and others that qualify as big for the area or nationally-known micros. But the odds of you finding a great deal of, say, Rogue's extended lineup vs. Dead Guy, Amber, and maybe Mocha Porter are not in your favor. And there's no way in hell you're finding something like Russian River or Pelican. Foreign beer? The brew had better be a pillar of it's country (Beck's, Dos Equis, etc) or you need to be equipped with a plane to fly there and get it yourself.
  
  Smaller shops may be limited on the total number of bottles or square footage, but the harder-to-find stuff and local brewery offerings make it worthwhile. And while I met people at larger shops who could reasonably speak about beer, they don't hold a candle to the knowledge in the average bottleshop shelf-stocker.

John's Market in Multnomah Village is one such location. And let me get this out of the way now: if you are viewing this, live within 30 minutes of Portland, and have never been to this place? Stop reading and get over there now. You'll thank me later. Actually, I can even save you some time and give you your reactions in advance:

Outside: " Ugh, seriously? I'm looking for beer, not sunflower seeds and Mountain Dew."

5ft Inside: "The guy that sent me here is getting punched in the throat."

10ft Right: "Cute wine selection, but I-- . . . wait, what's to the left?"

Turning Left: " . . . oh my god."

Sprinting Forward: *hyperventilating noises* / *mortal fear for your wallet* / *tears*

Excellent domestic options to the left, an Epic-Tour-Of-The-Planet foreign selection to the right, and awe-struck first timers wandering the aisles - you can't go wrong. I love watching new people in there for the first time. Disbelieving grins and phone-cam shots tend to dominate, along with mutterings of "I'm going to spend so much money here." Good times, good times.

John's should be given gifts. I'm in there pretty much on a bi-weekly basis to replenish the Beer Fridge and I bring new people in as much as possible. I'm not going to get into arguing if Belmont Station or Bottlemongers are better spots (there are pluses and minuses for each), but John's can easily stand shoulder-to-shoulder with any place in town from a sheer selection standpoint. By all means, visit - just remember to keep to a budget. Either that or you're hiring a Sherpa in advance to mule your purchases home.

Jubelale - '10 version

There are quite a few beer drinkers in Oregon who consider Jubelale from Deschutes to be as tied to the holidays as turkey, mistletoe, snow, and Santa. For good reason, too: it's an established, well-made, tasty winter ale. This year's version started dropping in various locations around town and I picked up a six-pack a few days ago.

So, just a quick little review on this. I like the new label (there's a new one every year) and the appearance of the beer is pleasing to the eye. Trending toward a darker-amber, it was a smooth pour. About a finger of head and this reduces to a nice glaze over the beer, sticking around as you progress down the glass. Moderate amounts of sweet hop to the nose with some 'warm/roast' malt swirling around in there. Good flavor, but there are some differences this year. Hops, yes. Spice & molasses, yes. But less of that pairing this time around than I've come to associate with this beer and more alcohol burn than I previously recall. Now, the reduction/increase is not wildly pronounced and I don't want to give the impression that the flavors are all out of proportion. Personally, I only noticed the alcohol sprinting to the front of the taste pattern as the beer warmed up. YMMV.

Still - it's Jubelale, man. Even with a few tweaks to the process, you're still in good hands.

2010 Hood River Hops Fest

The crowd enjoying spectacular weather and good beer.

Hood River is just about an hour away from the heart of Portland and is a great little place to visit. Besides the beer scene (Full Sail, Double Mountain, Big Horse), there are a number of nice restaurants and it's incredibly scenic. I drove out on Saturday for the Hop Fest, parking about 8 blocks away from the location and walking down. Mugs were $6 with dollar tasters. Per usual, the size of your taster was based on the mood of the volunteer who was pouring. Most of mine were the usual 3-4oz., but both myself and others also were hooked with half-mugs on occasion.

The appropriated parking lot across from Full Sail was just the right size for this event - at least during the afternoon hours I was there for. My understanding is that business picks up post-6pm as a lot of locals roll in, but things were perfect in my experience. Longest line I found was four people deep and that was only because the woman doing the pouring was chatting with everyone. Met Jaime Rodriguez of Hopworks for a few minutes, so that was kind of fun. Also hit the Full Sail pub for a bite before leaving town - the food was good and the pint glasses are marked and filled above the line. All in all - GREAT day, wholeheartedly recommended if you're in the area next year.

Looking up the line of the pouring stations.

I was able to sample eleven offerings while I was there. These three stood out for one reason or another:

• Total Crystalization (Ninkasi) - Hop. Overload. We're talking a mathematical improbability to get any more hops in here, and I mean that in the best possible light. After all, this is a location billing itself as a Hop Fest, dammit, THIS is exactly what should be on the menu. Crystal hops are just jammed into the mug and between the nose and the taste, it's like burying your face into a freshly picked pile of cones. Wonderful offering. This was truly remarkable stuff.

• Tyler the Elder (Upright) - Samplers either walked away nodding appreciatively or made a face and looked to dump it. I watched two friends argue both angles and I can see what they are talking about. It's an odd co-mingling of tastes with what 'felt' like a saison yeast with fresh Nugget hops. The bitter back-end of this beer was at odds with the sweet front-end and it's understandable that it would not appeal to everyone, especially those who were there for Standard Hops. Interesting experiment.

• Vernon the Rabbit Slayer (Big Horse) - Much in the way that Ninkasi's offering shotgunned samplers in the face, this was another one that unloaded both barrels right out of the gate. Just an unashamed attempt to kill you with hop oils, nothing much to get crazy about. But where the TC was floral, the Rabbit Slayer was like getting whacked in the face with a pine tree. Great front end, bitter finish, definitely a winner - and I have to say that a lot of the conversation around the tables were people encouraging others to try it or commenting on how good it was.

Went with Adam's Malty Bomb (Full Sail) to finish off my day at the brewpub since I was looking for something with the hops dialed down JUST a bit. Really good choice, full of porter-like bitter chocolate, some tobacco flavors, and a clean finish. I've liked several of the Brewers' Share beers and this is another good addition to the ranks.

This was a great festival and one worthy of Hopheads who are nuts for the style. I'll definitely be looking to head back here next year.

Our intrepid reporter (about five beers in) after sampling the Rabbit Slayer.