PIB Is Showing Some Midlife Flabbiness

Note: post updated with my recommendations after last night's visit.

I had, as usual, a delightful time at the Portland International Beerfest last night. Sally and I were in line by 3:35 and I scored a table in the shade as a base of operation. Although the fest gets more popular every year, it was still mild by OBF standards, and the shade, good beer, and doggy vibe always pleases. Okay, praise doled out, we now move to the airing of grievances. PIB seems to be developing a few bad habits and a friendly intervention or two may help them steer back to the straight an narrow. My complaints:

1. False advertising. PIB has never had the greatest system for directing drinkers to selected beers. The free brochure has always been a convoluted mess, trying to serve twin masters--drinkers and the distributors who help make the fest possible. The result is that you stare at a beer map written in 8-point font on one page and try to get back to find beer details on another page--which is organized by distributor, not brewery. I've gotten used to this. What was new--and distinctly uncool--is that the ticket prices listed in the brochure didn't always match the number at the tap/bottle. Cantillon's Lou Pepe Kriek was listed as three tokens in the brochure, but six (!) when you finally made it to the bottle.
2. Declining quality of beers. I mentioned this in my review, but it was more palpable once I was there. The problem is that almost all foreign bottled beers are now at least two tickets, and most are three or four. A lot of these are only average beers. (One of my friends, not a big beer fan, paid three tickets for Lindemans Framboise--a beer that retails for about five bucks a bottle.) If you're going to charge a buck an ounce, you better assemble a stellar list. I found a number of nice beers, but I knew how to look.
   
3. Lack of information. This is an ongoing problem, but was highlighted by an email I got from the OBF while I was at the fest. It contained detailed descriptions of all the beers. In past years, PIB did a half-assed job of at least giving descriptions on-line. This year, almost none of the beers had descriptions on-line. The meager brochure was no help, either. It may not benefit PIB's bottom line to spend the money to pay someone to put this together, but it's gross malfeasance to fest-goers. Only a tiny fraction will have had any idea what to expect from most of the beers. This has always been a problem, but I've chosen to overlook it due to the fest's overall strength. I overlook it no more. Pay someone a hundred bucks and put out a decent guide, folks. And get rid of that stupid way of listing beers by distributor.
4. No Odin's Tipple! This was the final straw. I'd saved my last four tokens for Haandbryggeriet Odin's Tipple, which apparently didn't make it. These things happen, but it was a bad note to strike at the end of the fest. Two other people, incomprehensible brochures in hand, were also standing where this beer should have been, and of course, the poor pourer had no idea what the issue was.

The OBF went through a similar midlife slump, resting on its laurels even as many serious beer fans abandoned it. (They have thankfully rallied.) PIB needs to get its act together or a similar fate looms.


Update. I shouldn't miss the forest for the trees. Here are three nice beers I tried yesterday:

• Rose Petal Imperial Golden Ale. Honest to god, this was my favorite beer from the fest. It has a magical property. After you swallow, the botanical volatiles coalesce and you get a lovely, rosey aftershock.
• St Feuillien Saison. fresh and organic. Got the raised eyebrow of surprise when I passed it around.
• Bateman's Mr. George's Ruby Porter. Have it early because the subtle roasty flavors are delicate and easily crushed by palate-dulling hops and sourness.

Of course, La Folie and Double Mountain Kriek were fantastic, but you probably already knew that.

PIB 2010

Portland International Beerfest
North Park Blocks (entrance at Davis and Park)
Fri 4-10, Sat noon-10, Sun noon-7pm.
No children allowed, but dogs are okay

The Portland International Beerfest rolls into town tomorrow, bringing with it 134 beers. For those who have been to past incarnations, much will look familiar: the pleasant location in the North Park Blocks, exotic bottles swimming in icewater, the eye-popping variation in price between pours (some as little as a buck, some as much as seven). These idiosyncrasies distinguish it from the all-draft fests that are the standard almost as much as the beer itself, ranging from exotica--to the average beer drinker, anyway--like apple wheat beer (Unibroue Éphémère) to Danish bacon beer (Mikkeller Beer Geek Bacon). Among the subtle changes are a growing emphasis on domestic beers and--though I can't find info on this--and draft beers. More than half (79 by my count) will be flowing from kegs this year, rather than bottles.

I've been hearing a little grumbling by the hardcore beer geeks that this year's line-up is weak, and after studying the list, there's some truth to this. PIB seemed to make a conscious decision this year to highlight American beers, and the result means fewer options from other countries. The German listing is especially weak, notable mainly for the Spaten borg of beers. The British Isles are almost completely abandoned. Just four beers from England and nothing from Scotland, Wales, nor Ireland. This is especially sad, since British beers are enjoying a major renaissance in the craft beer world--beers we almost never see. Nonetheless, part of the reason the list looks weaker is because it has been so consistently mind-boggling in the past. Although there are surely uber beer geeks out there who have tried most of the beers here, for the average drinker, trying to winnow the list is still going to be tough work.

So let's get to a few thoughts and recommendations.

Diversity
As always, Belgian beers are the featured attraction among imports. German beers are close behind, but there are plenty of countries represented. This is another slow-building trend, the increasing number of very good breweries from around the world. Here's what you'll find:

• Belgium (23)
• Canada (8)
• Czech Republic (4)
• Denmark (6)
  
• England (4)
  
• Germany (19)
• Italy (1)
• Japan (2)
• Netherlands (2)
• New Zealand (3)
• Norway (2)
• Poland (3)
• United States (57)

Old Standards
Lots and lots of people will come to the fest with very little knowledge of foreign beer or world beer styles. If they wanted to get a quick, cheap education, they could hit a number of the old classics--mostly from Belgium and Germany. For you, consider these:

• Drie Fonteinen Schaerbeekse Kriek and Cantillon Lou Pepe Kriek (fruit lambic)
• Orval, Westmalle, and Rochefort (Trappist beer)
• Duvel (strong golden)
• Saison Dupont (saison)
• Pilsner Urquell (pilsner)*
• Spaten Oktoberfest (oktoberfest)
• Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse (hefeweizen)
• Spezial Rauchbier and Mönchshof (rauchbier)
• Kulmbacher Eisbock (eisbock)

Recommendations
it's always dicey recommending beers you've never tried--and yet I always do so. Earlier this week, I mentioned some of the good looking American offerings, many of which I'll sample. Among the foreigns, here's my short list of must-tries:

• Jandrain-Jandrenouille IV (Belgium). I'm a sucker for saisons, and this one gets some high marks.
• Drie Fonteinen Schaerbeekse Kriek (Belgium). Lots of love for this rare kriek from a traditional gueuze blender.
• Urthel Hop-It (Belgium). I've long wanted to try this beer that was inspired by the brewer's pass through the Western US.
• Cantillon Iris (Belgium). Um, it's Cantillon Iris. Enough said.
• Scaldis Prestige (Belgium). A 13% bière de champagne.
• Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast Bacon (Denmark). A beer made with bacon, the natural endpoint of a mystifying fad. I won't try it unless I hear from braver souls that it won't kill me.
  
• Bateman's Mr. George Ruby Porter (England). Bateman's is a venerable family-owned company, and this 5% porter should be a nice palate-cleanser.
• Spezial Rauchbier (Germany). One of the last traditional rauchbiers. The brewery maintains a maltery in Bamburg, and smoke their own malts.
• De Molen Hel & Verdoemenis (Netherlands). The name of this imperial stout translates to Hell and Damnation. As a friend of mine always says (sort of)--always trust the Dutch!
• Epic Armageddon IPA (New Zealand). Epic is bringing two beers, an American strong ale and this one. Of the two, this one seems most accomplished.
• Haandbryggeriet Odin's Tipple (Norway). A massive imperial stout that gets much love from the beer geeks.
  

I will probably tweet from the fest and mention any buzz beers that emerge. Hope to see you there--

_____________
*Yes, a lesser version of itself, but still an important touchstone.

PIB's Best Beers Are ... American?

The something-annual Portland International Beerfest (PIB) pulls into the North Park Blocks this weekend. (The event must be at least in its tweens--I seem to recall going in the 90s.) For the student and and fan of international beer styles, it's easily the quickest ways to educate oneself about the standards. More than that, it's an opportunity to see how the trend winds are blowing. I first noticed how Northwest hops had begun to inspire European breweries five years ago (Belgians, per usual, got in on the act first). Barrel-aging, collaboration brewing, imperializing--all of these trends have appeared first at PIB.

Well, here's something to consider: America may now have the greatest density of the world's best breweries. Dunno if you call that a "trend" or not, but it's something. Looking through the list of beers (sortable by country), a thought sprang to mind. If I were forced to only drink the beers of one country, which would it be? No contest--the US. Hell, if I were to choose between domestic and all imports combined, the choice wouldn't be easy. This is in no way to denigrate any other country. Offerings from Belgium, in particular, are looking most appetizing. (Cantillon Lou Pepe Kriek, Jandrain-Jandrenouille IV Saison, Urthel Hop-It headline a nice list.)

But have a look at some of the Yankee selections and see if your mouth doesn't water:

• Firestone Walker Parabola and Double Jack
  
• Old Lompoc Barrel-Aged Doppelbock
• Rogue Deschutes Black Butte XXII
• New Belgium La Folie
• Double Mountain Devil's Kriek and Molten Lava
  
• Cascade Brewing barrel-aged mystery beers
• Walking Man Parade Belgian Pale
• Great Divide Chocolate Oak-Aged Yeti
• Caldera Rose Petal Imperial Golden

We'll never find agreement about "best brewing country," but it's far from absurd to include the US in the conversation. For the first time, I expect about half the beers I sample at PIB will be domestic.