Great American Distillers Festival

Rogue has capitalized on the regional enthusiasm for micro-distillation and hosts the Great American Distillers Festival next weekend. Now in its third year, it will be held at the haute Gerding Theater (formerly the Armory) in the Pearl. The list of attending distillers is impressive:

Prichards Distillery (TN)
Peach Street (CO)
Brandy Peak (Brookings, OR)
Clear Creek (Portland, OR)
Lantrix (ID)
Triple Eight (MA)
Hangar One (CA)
Indio Spirits (Portland, OR)
Modern Spirits (CA)
New Deal (Portland, OR)
Shakers (MN)
Bluecoat (PA)
Bend Distillery (Bend, OR)
Anchor Steam (San Francisco)
McMennamins Edgefield (Troutdale, OR)
Rogue Spirits (Newport, OR)
Essential Spirits (CA)
Ransom (McMinnville, OR)
Dolmen Distillery (McMinnville, OR)
Woodstone Creek (OH)
NW Distillery(Liquid) (Bend, OR)
Ocean (Maui)
Hood River Distillers (Hood River, OR)
Square One (CA)
Tito's (TX)
Stranahan's (CO)
House Spirits (Medoyeff ) (Portland, OR)

These 27 distillers will be offering over 50 liquors. For a full list of what they're bringing, here's a .pdf from Rogue.

Details and Schedules
Sat, Aug 25th: 11 am to 8 pm; Sun, Aug 26th: 11 to 7 pm
Gerding Theater, 128 NW 11th at Davis
$10 entry fee includes 3 free pours

Distilling Seminars (Sat.)
5pm: How to Distill
6pm: What exactly is Rum, Vodka, Whiskey, Bourbon, Brandy?
7pm: How to make a perfect cocktail

Mix Master's Cup - A competition among professionals
Saturday: 1pm Rum; 2pm Gin; 3pm Vodka
Sunday: 1pm Brandy; 2pm Flavored Vodka; 3pm Whiskey; 4pm Finals

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This looks pretty cool. Portland currently has more distillers than any city, and Oregon trails only California in total distilleries (sound familiar?). This is an opportunity to see what the micros are up to. I haven't been before, but I may try to make this one.

The Mouse Lush

Alcohol producers do not all regard consumption in the same way. For national brands, the more sold, the better--whether it's canned beer, boxed wine, or plastic-jug vodka. But specialty producers have a vested interest in the opposite--they want people to taste their product, not just use it to kill brain cells. They don't need to sell volume to stay in business, and they regard consequences of alcoholism with as much alarm as MADD.

Teasing apart the causes and effects of drinking is therefore something I expect craft brewers have a strong interest in, and a researcher at Idaho State may be able to help them out.

Fred Risinger never gives his eastern Idaho bar patrons a last call -- but then his customers are mice. Some are teetotalers who eschew the mouse-sized shots of alcohol they can obtain at any time simply by pressing a lever in their cage. Others Risinger describes as "your wine with dinner mice." And some are raging alcoholics, downing, in human terms, several fifths of liquor each day.

Risinger, an Idaho State University professor, said what makes the alcohol cravings in the individual mice different is the same thing that makes the alcohol cravings in humans different: genetics.

His goal is to find the right combination of drugs to short-circuit those genetic cravings that would lead the heavy drinkers, first with mice and then humans, to be able to turn away from alcohol.

Remember the old slogan?--"Schaefer is the one beer to have when you're having more than one." This isn't the attitude craft brewers want to encourage. It would be cool if alcoholism could be a treatable disease in the future.

Cheater Pint Alert

As you know, one of the standard pub glasses in Portland is the "shaker pint," the gently-fluted cylinder of thick glass you regularly find in taverns. Unwittingly or unscrupulously (depends on the establishment), these vessels are labeled "pints," though they hold about 13 ounces of liquid if they come with a skiff of head (almost 14 if you go right to the brim). Among those of us in the know, this is one of those accepted dirty secrets. We're not going to turn down a glass of Total Domination just because it comes in a wee glass, but it chafes to spend four bucks on a cheater pint.

But here's a new one. Last night, we had a nightcap at Kells and ordered a round of libations that included three beers. Two came in cheater pint glasses, but the third came in a Guinness tulip-style pint glass, which, depending on the style, is either a full pint or 20 ounces. It's a bit difficult to tell which version they were using.

Selling the same beer in different volumes is unacceptable. I have no doubt Kells is in the dark about this, but that's really no excuse. (On the other hand, if you go, you can probably request the Guinnie glass and know you're getting the secret bonus.)

Roots Expansion

I took Sally's brother and wife to Roots last night and we got lucky and saw Craig there. He gave me an interesting update I thought I'd pass along. Sometime in the not-to-distant future (this year, though), Roots will be expanding into the space to the south. They will actually move brewing ops to where the seats currently are and shift them to the new space in the future. Roots also plans to add a permanent bottling line. Currently, they make do with a mobile bottler who visits the brewery periodically to bottle Woody IPA.

Last year they brewed around 1,500 barrels and are aiming to triple that this year. With the brewery expansion, capacity will go to 8,000-10,000 barrels a year. After which, Craig says, he'll be happy with.

(Yeah, right.)

Anyway, look for changes soon--



[Update: I forgot to mention--Craig also said that Roots is the beer sponsor of the Dew Tour stop (the X Games event) in Portland, which is pretty cool. Oh, and Roots also has a new website--hosana! Sometime in the very near future, they'll be able to regularly update what's on tap at any given time. The Gruit Kolsch blew when I was there and it's still listed as on-tap, so that's apparently not operational yet. Go check it out.]

Total Domination

My wife's family is in town from New England this week (Boston and Maine), and we've been drinking a fair amount of beer. They're staying at a hotel sort of close to the Henry, and we've been stopping in for pints here and there. A couple things to note.

1. The Henry's beer list has gotten better. They boasted 100 taps when they opened, but about half were indistinct national brands or safe bets. They've gradually expanded their list of interesting beers and now have at least a dozen that are hard to find elsewhere. It's also a great place to take people who like beer but aren't super familiar with the arcana of styles. The menu is arranged roughly by beer style, so it's easy to do a tour. Examples of interesting beers right now: HotD Blue Dot, Walking Man Cherry Stout, a nice Belgian selection (Saison Dupont, Delirium Tremens, Hoegaarden), and Ninkasi.

2. Speaking of Ninkasi, I had a pint of the Total Domination. Whoa. My brother-in-law likes traditional English styles of beer (we scored an early perfect ten in his mind with Doryman's Dark), and when I had him sip the Blue Dot, he marveled. Later, I got the Total Domination, which like Blue Dot is a symphony of green, and he was intrigued. It's not as intense as some hop monsters--all the edges are smooth and approachable. It's just a saturated kind of citrusy hopping that hits all the notes--bittering, flavor, aroma. Yesterday, he ordered a pint and it appeared to grow on him over time. I don't want to project too deeply about his experience, but it's possible that over the past two days, I watched the birth of a hophead. A beautiful thing.

Thanks, Jamie!

Speak of the Devil

This is shaping up to be the year of the Belgian strong ale. Max Tieger opened his new brewpub with Farmer's Daughter, one example. Double Mountain came out of the gate with a combo IPA and Belgian strong (IRA). And Deschutes' first foray into Belgians led them to brew a strong golden. It's a welcome change in direction for Oregon breweries, which have been dominated by big English-inspired ales, and I hope represents further maturation of brewing culture here.

Belgian beers are harder to categorize than other styles because, outside broad groups, they are mostly individualistic. So a Belgian "strong" may be an abbey-style ale, a blonde (Leffe, Affligem), or a golden in the style of Duvel or Delirium Tremens. By cocking your head, you can shift many of these beers into another, related category or find an argument for why they fit into none. Generally speaking, they're yellow/gold, alcoholic, spicy and fruity, and smooth. But each one is distinct. One style or two hundred--it's not always easy to say.

However, one of the clearest examples is Moortgat's Duvel. After trying the Deschutes Golden (a review that some folks seem to think was overly critical), I decided to go back to this touchstone beer and see what made it such a standard. As American breweries use elements of these beers in their own recipes, it's good to remember what the original is like.

The name Duvel ("DOO vul") is a corruption of the Flemish for "devil," has inspired a whole series of rivals and imitators, and their names signal their inspiration--Judas, Lucifer, Deugniet ("rascal"), and so on. Although I haven't seen it stated explicitly, the name seems to refer to misleading, seductive power of this beer--it looks and tastes like a much lighter, smaller beer than it is. The devil in these details read 8.5--the beer's strength. Drinker beware.

I was amazed again when I had a bottle over the weekend. It is fantastically lively. The instructions on the bottle say "pour unhurredly," but unless you've got a large glass, you can't pour slowly enough to stop the massive head from rushing to the rim. You pour in increments, steadily building the pure white froth up like a vanilla cone. The beer is pilsner pale (made in fact with pilsner malt) and roils with bubbles. Still, it's not at all viscous, evidence of ample added sugar that gives the Devil it's juice.

It is hopped with Saaz, and their essence is captured in the head. The flavor, however, is very gentle, boardering on sweet. The Saaz add a robust bitterness and the characteristic spiciness sets off the sweet nicely; it finishes mostly dryly, with just a bit of residual sugar. However, it is in no way challenging--all the notes are beguiling and you really have to remind yourself of the strength to avoid quaffing.

So what are the lessons of Duvel? It is apostacy among Oregon brewers to add sugar to a beer. Moortgat doesn't even bother with candi sugar--they throw in regular old sucrose. Boosting alcohol with malt means a much heavier, maltier beer. This may be a frontier worth exploring.

Duvel is fermented three times after infusions of sugar and yeast (two strains are used). It's bottle-conditioned and aged for at least 6 weeks in cold storage before heading out into the world (the expiration date of the bottle I tried this weekend was November 2009). Bottle-conditioned beers, because they contain live cultures, age better than "dead" beers. The pocket of air in non-conditioned beers inevitably leads to oxidation, which happens more slowly in bottle-conditioned beers, which are preserved by the yeast. Bottle-conditioned beers continue to slowly ferment as well, which removes sugars and dries a beer out.

I hope breweries continue to experiment with Belgian styles, and if they do, I hope they start to experiment with the methods Belgian breweries use. Although they are at odds with the way a lot of commercial breweries operate--getting beer out the door as soon as possible, focusing on "freshness" above maturation--I suspect they're critical to achieve the types of beers Belgians manage.

ROS Party - a Cure for Hoarders' Loss Syndrome?

Lew Bryson has a problem I can relate to: inveterate hoarding.

I realized earlier this year that I literally had too much beer. The Dedicated Beer Fridge was full to bursting, I had almost a case in our regular fridge, there were two cases sitting under the kitchen table, and 14 cases under the basement steps. Some of it was beer that was never meant to age -- I had most of that in the DBF -- some of it was probably over the hill, and I had no good storage space for more beer.

In the hoarder's mind, hoarding is its own end. Getting rid of these beers, even using them for the purpose you hoarded them in the first place--drinking them--is hard to face. Lew plans a one-clean-motion remedy:

I happened to talk to Scott "The Dude" Morrison about my problem. "Dude, R.O.S.!" he said, with a big Dude grin. R.O.S.? "You need to have a Really Old Shit party! Get it all out and drink it!"

I see the virtue here, and perhaps I'll muster the courage. A lot of the beer I have is irreplaceble though--Tony Gomes doppelbock, single-batch concoctions that go back to the millenium, etc. If I drink them, then ... they'll be gone. Oh, the dilemma!

I should read some wine blogs; surely they have to deal with "hoarders' loss syndrome."* How do they manage it?

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*Not an actual diagnosis.

Hopheads in Beervana

If you were going to assemble an august group of scientists to talk about the mysterious, beguiling, bewitching Humulus lupulus and its effect on beer, where would you host it? Beervana, if you have a poetic sense about you. And so it is that the Hop Flavor and Aroma Symposium is now underway in Corvallis.

John Foyston adds some detail:

Topical sessions begin on Thursday with a presentation by Denis Dekeukeleire, from the University of Ghent in Belgium, who is widely regarded as "the godfather of hops," according to Shellhammer. Dekeukeleire will speak on light-struck reactions in bottled beer in his presentation, "Beer Lightstruck Flavor: The Full Story" - a discussion of the factors and chemical reactions leading to "skunky" flavors in your beer....

This first conference of its kind in North America is timely in several ways, Shellhammer said. The hop season is in full swing, with the harvest only a month away. The Northwest produces about 30 percent of the world's hops, with prime growing areas in the Yakima Valley in Washington, and Oregon's Willamette Valley.

It's one of those kinds of industry events that don't have much interest among laypeople (Topic: "Nonvolatile Aspects to Hop Flavor"). But there's something satisfying about just knowing that they have come here, to the place where the results of the chemical analyses, experiments, and manipulations will be most appreciated.

Welcome to the homeland, folks--


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PHOTO: Erika Barnes.

Review - Deschutes 19th Anniversary Ale

For it's 19th anniversary Deschutes celebrates with a Belgian-style golden ale. It is an energetic experiment and a bit of a high wire act: 60 IBUs, 8.7% alcohol, ingredients unfamiliar to the brewery, including candi sugar and Curacao bitter orange peel. It is the first Belgian the brewery has attempted, and ... well, it shows.

Age is a funny thing. Nineteen years in the American market make Deschutes one of the venerable oldies. But compared to the breweries of Belgium that brew the original golden ales, it's not much time at all. Those world classics have resulted from refinements over the years or generations; one imagines the first batch of Orval wasn't the transcendent elixir it has become.

So 19th Anniversary Golden feels like the first draft of a very good novel, but it could use a little bit of editing.

Tasting Notes
It looks fantastic. A slightly hazy golden ale with a vigorous bead, it pours out like a beer from Brussels. The effervescence is a good sign that Larry Sidor got the yeast right--it hasn't been overwhelmed by the alcohol (later, the liveliness on the tongue will confirm this). The Curacao is evident in the nose, though the hops are somewhat subdued. There's a touch of volatility from the alcohol, and a wee bit of hard candy.

The palate is unrefined, however. Tibetan monks have a chanting technique known as "overtone singing" which allows them to produce multiple frequencies at the same time. The Golden Ale left me with that same impression. The high note is hops, which are sharp and peppery. Down below is the strong alchohol note, which has a liquor-ish heft to it. (Not to mention a licorice quality, but that's a different matter.) What I want is for these flavors to become stewed together, so that the alcohol strength is balanced by the hop bittering.

My guess is that this would be an entirely different beer had it rested for six months before bottling. I'll buy a couple to cellar, but the quality won't be the same--the beer will oxidize in the bottle (which aren't bottle-conditioned) and though the flavors should still come together, they'll be different that a matured batch would have been.

As I was drinking it, I was thinking that for a 19-year-old brewery, the economics of laying a beer aside for a year may not make sense. For a more established operation, it may not make sense to release a green beer so soon. Age is funny that way.

Stats
Malts: French pilsner
Hops: Czech Saaz, Slovenian Golding, Liberty, Brewers Gold
Alcohol by volume: 8.7%
Original Gravity: N/A
Bitterness Units: 60
Other Notes: Special Belgian yeast strain, candi sugar, and Curacao orange peel
Available: Through September '07
Rating: C+

The Dreaded Twenty-Two

In my fridge, as I mentioned yesterday, is a bottle of Deschutes' 19th Anniversary Ale. It is a 22 ounce beer, and the beer is 8.7% alcohol. That's the rough equivalent of four beers, which is far more than I like to drink in a sitting. Where did these damn things come from? Why did anyone think they were a good idea? Why on earth would a brewery bottle an 8.7% beer in a massive bottle like this?

I'm not going anywhere with this, but if someone wishes to share some insight about these bottles and/or a little outrage, consider this an invitation.

Three from Far Shores

Over the past week or so, I got on a little import jag. Herewith are my findings on the three I tried. Deschutes' Anniversary is in the fridge, so a report on that soon, too.

Cantillon Organic Gueuze
The appellation "gueuze" looks unpronounceable and pretty much is, and its etymology is unclear, so I wonder whether we'll have a new name in English sometime. "Blended lambic," for example. For the record, you can pronounce it just about any way you like: gooz, gooz-ah, gerz-ah. Jackson describes it as being very similar to "cursor," but he's a limey and who knows what that means. I opt for gerz-ah.

Cantillon's offering is a blend of young, middle-aged, and elderly lambics (1-3 years in the cask). The blending allows a certain consistency of flavor, as the brewery combines different ages in combinations to produce the right level of sourness and complexity (lambics get funkier as they age). Resting in the cask, lambics tend to go "still" (flat), but Cantillon's gueuze was extremely lively. In fact, as it poured out, straw-pale, bubbly, bright, and white-topped, it looked distinctly like a pilsner. Only a very slight haze hinted at the wheat used in the grist.

What an intense beer! I'd love to bust this out on unsuspecting guests I'd just reeled in with a Duchesse de Bourgnogne, just to watch their eyes pop out. Despite the mellow appearance there is a wicked nose--sour and distinctly cheesey. A sweaty, been-sitting-on-the-counter fo a coupla hours cheesey. If anything, however, the nose understates what's to come. The two strongest notes, and they compete like prizefighters, are a withering crabapple sourness a bark-like medicinal bitterness which is evoked by thinking about some of the harsher grapefruits you might have tried. You can find other notes--anise, lemon--but they appear between the sharp sour and bitter jabs. This is a beer for those who like extremes in brewing. I thought it was extraordinary and would drink it occasionally--but only just. Like a nice Islay malt or jalapeno, it's something you need to be in the mood for.

Young's Oatmeal Stout
I want to like Young's, the venerable old London institution that pre-dates Shakespeare. I buy bottles, thinking that I will be transported to the roots of brewing, as when I have a beer from their city rivals at Fuller's. But each time I am disappointed, and so it was with this new version Young's offers.

Oatmeal stouts are generally creamy and light, a touch sweet and eminently drinkable (the opposite, perhaps, of gueuze). Young's is none of these. It is burly and chalky while not being particularly creamy. The brewery touts its use of roasted barley--maybe they're trying to attract Guinness fans--but it's this ingredient that fouls the beer up. Roasted barley can be harsh and tannic, and it is here. It doesn't dry out the palate like a nice Irish stout, though. The brewery seems to have cadged the worst elements of each stout variety and highlighted them in this recipe. Not good.

Brasserie Caracole "Nostradamus"
I'm not entirely sure why I picked this beer up. It's a wintery sort of tipple, brown, rich, and very strong at 9.5% abv. Somehow my hand was drawn to the bottle, though, and I tried it out. Fortunately, it's been kind of wintry in Portland lately (69 as our high yesterday), so I didn't mind and out-of-seasonal.

Caracole is a new company, but like so many in Belgium, the residents inhabit an ancient brewery. Located in Wallonia, near the French border in Falmignoul, Brasserie Moussoux was founded ten years before America was born. In the year the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, the name was changed to Brasserie Lamotte before eventually becoming Caracole in the year Clinton was first elected. The brewery is proud of its artisinal heritage, and still brews the old-fashioned way, over a wood fire.

Two things I didn't expect about this beer: it had an enormous, fluffy head that persisted to the final sip (amazing for a beer of this potency) , and it had a distinct hazelnut flavor. I looked at the website after I bought it to see what I'd gotten (the label was terse), but they offered this useles information: "piquant in the mouth with liquorice, mocha flavors, pear and toasted bread background." Which makes me wonder--do they even try the beers, or just select adjectives at random?

For me, this was a strong nut ale, neither piquant or bearing pear. The strength and thickness of the beer demanded a slow, sipping experience, but the hazelnut note was sweet and approachable enough that I was almost drawn to quaff. I suspect a good part of the sweetness comes from caramelization that occurs over the wood stove. I wouldn't describe it as an incredibly complex beer, but it is quite pleasant. I will have to remember to try it during the actual winter, perhaps in front of a fire.

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All of these beers are available at Belmont Station. The Caracole and some Cantillon offerings (but not Organic Gueuze) can be found at the New Seasons on Division.

Review - Double Mountain Brewing

8 Fourth Street
Hood River, OR
(541) 387-0042

Hours: Mon - Thurs: 4 - 10pm, Fri: 4 - 11pm, Sat: noon - 10pm, Sun: noon - 9pm
Prices: 14-ounce glass, $3; 20 ounce imperial: $4, five-sample tray, $5.
Other info: Seasonal sidewalk seating; kids allowed

As Oregon's brewing industry matures, we're seeing more and more places opened by brewers who have been honing their craft at larger breweries. For those who recall the first generation in the 80s and early 90s, the result is a marked improvement in quality, creativity, and sophistication. In the beers of these "second generation" brewpubs, you taste the intention and experience, as if the brewers had been biding their time and perfecting their art, just waiting to try out recipes they've been working on for years.

Double Mountain features alumni from Full Sail, which is literally just around the corner. Although the pub space could use a little more attention--it feels more like a coffee shop than a pub--the beer and food are both exceptional and allow Double Mountain to debut as one of Oregon's best brewpubs. A remarkable accomplishment for a place that just opened in May.

Beer
Brewers Matt Swihart and Charlie Devereux aren't slaves to style. Of the six beers pouring when I visited in late June, four had improvisational elements. The change-ups were subtle; rather than screaming out, "look at how funky we are," their beers featured, say, unexpected yeasts or hops. Their creativity is more a nod and a wink to the beer geeks they expect to come to their pub. (I wrote at greater length about this here). A testament to their attention to detail, I think there were three different yeast strains--and possibly four--in the beers I tried.

Most breweries have a house character, but with styles appropriated from Germany, Belgium, and England, I honestly couldn't describe Double Mountain's. Perhaps improvisation and surprise is the character. Have a look at these beers and see if you can tell what they'll brew next. It escapes me. [Note: I intended, but failed to steal the menu when I was there (you can see it in this picture), and so I didn't write down the stats or ingredients of the beers. Sorry.)

• Kolsch. This is a style rarely brewed (in Oregon, anyway) with the appropriate yeast. It's the kind of beer you can fudge. If Double Mountain didn't use a kolsch strain, though, they did one hell of a job of fudging. Their version has a very lively tartness, detectable in the aroma right on through to the swallow. They have overhopped it for style, but selected hops that draw out a lemongrass note, complementing the tartness. People who love kolsches will forgive the bitterness, and people who like hoppy pales will find it interesting. Rating: A-
  
• Pale ale. Northwest pale ales are almost always characterized by citrusy local hops, and are consequently rather soft and sweet. Here again, Matt and Charlie buck the trend. They opt for herbal, piney hops. What results is an unexpected pale. The nose is quite herbal, and the bittering tends toward a sagey, peppery hop. There are citrus notes, but they're subdued. Sally, who tends to like British hopping more than local varieties, was especially fond of this one. Rating: B+
• India Red Ale. (Also known as IRA.) Ira is an IPA brewed with a Belgian yeast strain. The resulting beer is softer and rounder than a muscular Oregon IPA. It has a creamy sweetness that buoys the ample hops and simultaneously seems to enclose the bitterness in a gentle pocket. I am reminded of Orval, which is also a huge, yet deceptively smooth beer. Rating: A
• Hop Lava. This was the most pedestrian beer pouring, though it isn't mild. Supposedly dry-hopped, but I got very little aroma (the beers came out quite cold, which may have dampened the nose). It's a straightforward IPA, crisp, clean, very bitter, and quite strong. It's the kind of green monster that leaves a slick of hop resin on your tongue. Rating: B
• Alt. Altbiers are another style that breweries often try to fudge. The yeast used in traditional alts is an ancient German ale, but one with very little fruitiness--they taste more like lagers. Once again, if the brewers fudged this, they did a great job. It emphasizes the malt, which has a hearty grainy flavor, but also a touch of honey sweetness. It has impressive mouthfeel--close your eyes and you can in its creaminess almost conjure a porter in your mind. The hops are present and assertive, and they dry out the malt out so that it finishes cleanly. Alts are hard to pull off, and Double Mountain more than succeeds. Rating: A
  
• Devil's Kitchen. This is a Belgian style strong that nods to Duvel (Flemish for "devil"). Served in a goblet, it looks like Duvel--deep golden with a snowy head. It is heavier than many Belgian strong ales, though, and sweeter. It is vigorously carbonated, and a mineral quality helps offset some of the sweetness. It has a bit of mustiness--a nice touch that recalls the cellared beers of Belgium. It was a bit too heavy and too sweet, and I wonder if subsequent efforts might be drier and slightly lighter. A worthy effort, though. Rating: B-
  

Food
I am again hamstrung by my lack of a menu, so I can't tell you the full variety of what is available. We had salads and a pizza, and they were both wonderful. The salad was a lightly-dressed, very fresh Greek. The pizza may have been modeled on the enormously popular Ken's Artisan Pizza in Portland. Like Ken's, the crust is wafer thin and delicious. The choices included a nice mixture of traditional styles. Sally, who is regularly disappointed by brewpub food, gave Double Mountain a rave.

We arrived at about 5 pm on a Saturday, and there was only one table available. An hour later, there was a waiting line. It appeared to be populated mainly by locals, which is always a good sign. Translation: the word's out.

Don't let that dissuade you, though--Double Mountain should be considered a destination brewpub. Take a trip to Multnomah Falls, drive down the Columbia River Highway, check out the Vista House, and then conclude your journey at Double Mountain--a perfect day.

Duchesse de Bourgogne - the Universal Beer?

A little over a year ago at the 2006 PIB, I discovered Brouwerij Verhaeghe's remarkable Duchesse de Bourgogne, a Flemish red. This is one my favorite styles, and Rodenbach Grand Cru would make my top ten no matter what mood I was in. The Duchesse is almost a different class of Flemish red--the sourness is subsumed by a sultry chocolatey richness. Yet it is dry and more tart than sour. Yet it is also creamy and rich. The impression is of an ale with more in common with wine than beer. (Flemish reds aren't known as the "burgundies" of the beer world for nothing.) It attains this complexity by long aging--18 months in an oak cask before being blended with an 8-month-old batch at bottling.

When I tried it at PIB, one of the friends I was with had drawn a firm line: she didn't like beer. It was the "beery" quality that got her. With PIB I made some headway--we got her to a kriek early (not "beery," but you don't need me to tell you that), and she was muscling through some dark ales. But then came the Duchesse, which she actively enjoyed.

When someone doesn't like beer, and you find a beer she can tolerate, generally it's a bad beer everyone else hates. But not so with the Duchesse. It was passed around to high acclaim from the Belgian-lovers to the Belgian-haters, to the NW hop-monster lovers. I wondered then if I had found the universal beer.

I recently discovered that you can get the Duchesse in a four-pack at Belmont Station (for $13--which means it's priced like a wine!). I brought some home and we tried it at a barbeque recently and I was again reminded of how popular it is. (That's another thing; it's not a beer that is so inoffensive everyone can drink it--everyone seems to rave about it.)

I didn't think such a thing was possible, and I may well find someone who doesn't like it. But if you're trying to share your love of beer with someone who adamently (and honestly) hates beer, give the Duchesse a try.

[Update: cool article here that describes the history of the beer and it's inspiration, the Duchesse. It describes the blending somewhat differently, too.]
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PHOTO: Lau (a fan)

Teri Fahrendorf and Her Amazing Journey

Teri Fahrendorf is already a pioneer. She was the founding brewer at Steelhead, which was a pioneering early brewpub in Eugene. But even more significantly, she was an early woman brewmaster in a profession that is still overwhelmingly male. But now she's doing something that breaks blogging ground by heading across the country and visiting breweries and writing it up at Road Brewer. I have meant to draw your attention to it earlier, but now that the craziness of July has passed, it's a great time.

Her most recent entry comes to us from Cooperstown, where she visited one of my favorite breweries, Ommegang:

Arrived at Ommegang after most of the staff had retired for the evening. Only brewers Mike McManus and Wes Nick were left, brewing the last of the six batches for the week. They were both pulling a 12-hour, 6:00 pm to 6:00 am shift. If you haven't already figured it out, brewers work very hard to bring you your libation!...

Mike and Wes brought me to Ommegang's tasting room and set me up with a real glass (no plastic cup for the road brewer) and a bottle of their current limited release, Ommegeddon. This beer is on the trucks headed all over the country as I write. If you buy some, buy two bottles because this beer will continue to change over the next two years, and you'll want to save a bottle for later.

The base of this beer is similar to the Ommegang Abbey, however it has been infused with Brettanomyces and dry hopped. The extra hops is subtle, but the Brett is definitely present. As QC Manager & Brett-Wrangler Jason Parrish told me, you have to be patient with Brett. Jason thinks most American breweries overpitch the Brettanomyces, but Jason likes it to grow and flower and slowly develop its characteristic horse-blanket, copper-penny flavors and aromas.

Now, if you haven't tasted a beer with Brettanomyces before, this is a good starter Brett beer because the Brett character is still fairly subtle. You may think the beer reminds you of the flavors in a slightly funky French or Italian wine. Then wait six months or a year (or two) and try it again. Voila! Mondo funkadelic. But not now. Now it is baby-barely-funk.

She started the journey in June and will roll into Denver for the GABF in October and then head back to Eugene. She's posting nearly every day, and nearly every day she's at a new brewery. Next stop is Burlington, Vermont (a great beer town) where she'll stop in at Magic Hat and others.

I will be checking in regularly to hear what she's learned--you might enjoy checking in, too.

Bones and Brew

Rogue hosts an annual benefit for the Oregon Zoo called Bones and Brew which is, shockingly, in its 13th year.

Held along three blocks in the Historic Pearl District, over 5,000 people attended last year. This year’s event is a celebration of everything summer: BBQ, small, traditional craft micro-breweries, and live Classic Rock.

Each street will be dedicated to a separate theme. The street of BBQ’ers will include My Brothers BBQ, Sellwood BBQ, Wildcard BBQ, Smokin Man BBQ, and more. And a BBQ rib contest will determine which BBQ’er walks away with this year’s People’s Choice trophy. The street of Microbreweries will include 25+ Microbrews from the Northwest including Roots, Hair of the Dog, Eugene City Brewery, Old Lompoc, Issaquah Brewhouse, Laurelwood, Rogue Ales, and more. Live Classic Rock music will include local bands such as Afterburner, a ZZ Top tribute Band (below).

This is a family friendly event with buckets of chalk for street art, Italian Ice, Elephant Ears, and balloon artists to entertain the kids, and the adults! $2 donations at the door go directly to the Oregon Zoo.

It's cool that this exists, because it's about the polar opposite of the Portland International Beerfeet, with its cool $4 pours of compost beer. Of course, I love PIB, and ZZ Top tribute bands--well, let's say they fall outside my sweet spot. So enjoy if it's your cup o' tea, but don't look for a skinny balding guy in a beard--he'll be elsewhere this weekend. Details for those who are interested:

Bones and Brew
August 4-5
Saturday 11-9, Sunday 11-7
NW 15th and Flanders in the Pearl District

New Medford Brewery

Somehow I missed this. A seriously well-funded new brewery in Medford is scheduled to release their first beers next month:

Testing the theory that it's not what you know but who you know, Hammond, 43, set out to find the right person to handle his brew. That happened to be Anders Johansen, 48, whose resume includes both stints with Pyramid and Deschutes breweries as well as a couple of start-ups.

"I surround myself with people smarter than me," Hammond says. "I hired someone with experience and ability who knew exactly what equipment we needed...."

Rather than piece together a new brewery from discarded and used parts, Hammond bit the bullet and invested $1 million into equipment.

"We could've started with a lot less and basically pulled ourselves up by the bootstraps," he says. "But we wanted mostly new stuff that's reliable and we wouldn't have to fix. We're starting small, but I bought enough equipment to where we can grow without more capital expense in the early years."

Southern Oregon Brewing Co., located at 1922 United Way in Medford, will debut with a 20-barrel brewhouse, capable of producing 620 gallons in an eight-hour period. Hammond anticipates brewing once per week in the beginning.

And it will have a tasting room:

Tasting room hours will initially run from 4 to 10 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Occupants at the 24-foot bar and tables can view brewery activity through two large plate-glass windows.

"We'll see how business is going and then probably expand," Hammond says. "Our primary focus is going to be on manufacturing and wholesale distribution."

Looks like it might be time for a road trip.

___________________
PHOTO: Mail Tribune

OBF - The Final Roundup

And now, to complete the great month of beer here in Oregon, a final post on the OBF, with odds and ends that haven't made it into the first 79 posts about the OBF. And then I'll stop. Promise.

Faves
The beers I heard most about on my visit (Friday) were Green Flash and Standing Stone, two wonderfully balanced, albeit aggressive NW IPAs. I had the Green Flash a little late in the day, and it was very nice; however, I suspect that big beers stand out in people's mind because they blast through murky palates.

I have been monitoring the Brew Crew listserv (the local homebrew club that is behind so many of the good-beer events, including the OBF), and the Flying Fish bourbon dubbel and Golden Valley Quercus seemed to excite the most interest. Pliny the Elder, Racer X, Rawkin' Bock, Butte Creek Pils, and Hopworks IPA also got mentions.

Around the 'sphere, the big winner was definitely the Golden Valey Quercus, cited by Jon, Ghost Dog, and Dave. Prometheus IPA, which I also gave high marks, was favorited by Suds Sister and Dave. Other faves were distributed evenly, with one vote each for Flying Fish (Jon), Diamond Knot Industrial IPA (Lisa), Green Flash (Lisa), and Rawkin Bock (Suds Sister). The Quercus was definitely a winner for me, as was Standing Stone and Green Flash. Pliny, in a category by itself, must also be mentioned.

Update: Beau at Die Klutzbrauerei puts in a nod for Pliny and DK Industrial (bumping it up to two). He also like the Monkey House, which I have failed to mention--it was really nice for a McMenamins. And he also joins in on the raspberry for Widmer.

[Available blog reviews: Jon at the Brew Site. Ghost Dog at Gone Ronin. Lisa at SudsPundit. Suds Sister at Portland Food and Drink. Dave at Champagne of Blogs.]

No Thanks
Give Widmer credit, they tried something interesting. Unfortunately, they get credit only for trying: to Noggin Grog, their imperial wit, I award the year's raspberry.

Woooooo!
First primal scream on Friday afternoon: 1.24pm.

Mugs
Portland is regularly identified as one of the greenest cities in the country, and brewing is one of the greenest industries. So why, then, does the OBF not only insist on using unrecyclable plastic mugs, but also that they only ever be used at one fest? A Brew Crewer suggested that you buy a mug and then get issued a sticker to put on it every year. You pay either four bucks for a sticker or a mug, but you keep the mug out of landfills by stowing it in your cupboard until the next year. (After all, we already recycle the tokens.)

What we noticed was a cottage industry in re-selling the mugs. Two hippy-ish kids with dredlocks were approaching people (including us) all day long on Friday with $3 castoffs. Of course, the sales pitch included a white lie about re-selling their own mugs--but they were clearly scavenged from just outside the Fest, where piles were gathering like empties at a cookout. And why not? For every mug the kids re-sold, there was one mug that didn't end up in the landfill. (Sanitation is another matter...)

On the way out of the Fest at about 8pm on Friday, I held up my mug and a festgoer on the way in snatched it out of my hand within seconds. My own brand of recycling.

Time to come into the 21st Century, Art--let's quit using the plastic.

Colored Mugs
Another controversy this year were cold-sensitive mugs that turned blue. A friend I was with was instantly fascinated, and we went on a trek to discover what the hell this blue beer was. Needless to say, when our journey ended at the mug sale booth, not a tap, he was incensed. Most beer geeks were, as it happened. I was neutral. Who knows, maybe they'll make their way into someone's child's hands rather than the landfill.

But overall, the platique must go!

Done
Only 360 days til' the next OBF. . .

OBF Cost Changes

I recall that when I first started going to the OBF back in the early eighties, it seemed damn expensive. I was a young post-college kid, but still, it was more expensive than a pint at a pub (which was by turns more expensive than a half rack of Rainier pounders), which meant it was a specialty event.

But I noticed this year that I spent less on beer than I did on food. Admittedly, this is because I got an eight-token boost by virtue of my much-mocked media credentials, but let's say you cruise in with a 20-spot and you get a mug of beer for four, eleven tickets for beer, and save five bucks for something to eat later. Those eleven bucks would have purchased you about four bottles of beer* Given that you had to go our of your way to find a beer below 6% abv, you would have walked out in a pretty happy mood on those four bottles, spent a few hours by the river drinking beer and had lunch--all for $20. Not bad.

If the price of tokens had increased with inflation, you'd have spent $18.80 in tokens alone. (A dollar then is now worth $1.71.) Prices will probably go up at some point, but the fest was actually a pretty good value. At the International Beer Fest, by comparison, you probably would have spent more than twice as much for 11 pours (a single pour ranged from $1 to $4).

Just a random observation...

______________
Were those 3-ounce pours or four? I split the difference in my calculation.

Notes on OBF Coverage

I plan to get a post up tomorrow about the OBF reax from around the blogosphere. Things are really starting to hop blogwise, and there's an impressive array of posts commenting on the fest. Won't happen until the afternoon, though.

Also, just a question: was this the best OBF you recall? That's really my impression, but maybe I've gone soft in the head. Even the beers that didn't quite work were impressive failures (the imperial wits, for example). It seems like breweries are finally starting to get that this is a fest to showcase their mad brewing skills, not a marketing opportunity for their latest half-assed commercial endeavor (Mac's and BridgePort take notice).

Anyway, more tomorrow. . .

OBF Hot Tips

If you're waffling about whether to brave the crowds to go to this year's fest, waffle while you quaff: this is the best OBF I can remember. The beers are uniformly good and there's a fair number that are fantastic. I'll update my earlier report with a few more observations from yesterday.

Four to Try
Green Flash IPA (hopolicious)
Fifty Fifty Donner Party IPA (silky and rich)
Old Market Midsummers White (exceptional Belgian wit)
Elysian Prometheus IPA (I don't remember this beer exactly, save that it impressed me)

A Couple to Skip
The Bison Chocolate Stout was thin and astringent, the Stone Vertical Epic was cloying and unnuanced (it was an imperial wit, which I think is a style we should relegate to the dustbin), and BJ's C'est Bon Blonde which although not bad, was not great, either (bon?--c'est médiocre).

I had hoped to run a series of beerlebrities on phone cam, but somehow the regulars I often see (which in the past has included Charlie Papazian, Fred Bowman, John Harris, Art Larrance, Alan Sprints, David Zuckerman, and so on) were absent or cleverly avoiding my prying eyes. But I did manage one, the estimable Fred Eckhardt:

If you have still not headed down, don't miss it: go!

OBF - Early Reviews.

I was cordially invited to the media tour at the OBF today, and I must say there was a paucity of bloggers. In fact, except for the Mercury folks (young, attractive) and Gary Corbin (not young, attractive), I was all alone. Some of the writers from bigger publications even gave me the snub.* Actually, while I'm thinking about it, follow this second footnote, wouldja?**

(Foyston, bless his heart, already has text and photos from the event.)

But anyway, I digress. To the beers!

Laurelwood PNW Pils. Strangely, Noel Blake, who was leading the media tour, and whose beer can actually be tasted at the festival (he was the author of Collaborator Rawkin' Bock), started us out with three huge hoppy ales, shattering our palates. And he knows better. This beer, which hopheads will love, was actually not pilsnery enough for me. Too sweet and fuzzy on the tongue.

Hopworks Urban Brewery. This is not the beer they had at the Organic Beer Fest. It's much more balanced, less tannic, and quite tasty. Creamy, slightly candyish malt and peppery hopping. Nice!

Standing Stone IPA. Billed as 95 IBUs, but not remotely that hoppy. Instead, a very nicely balanced IPA. My notes were already degrading at this point, and what I have to offer you is this: "Best so far."

Flying Fish Bourbon Barrel Double. Finally Noel ratcheted back off the hops. As I hoped, this malty, dark-fruit dubbel was the perfect beer to age in a bourbon cask--it pulled out the vanilla notes and produced a winey, rich ale.

Trumer Pils. Wonderfully fresh and refreshing, though not particularly hoppy. The kind of beer most festgoers will miss, but worth an (early!) taster. ["fresh and refreshing" is the kind of write-up readers must suffer through when a blogger returns from a beer fest an immediately writes up his notes. -editor.]

Rawkin' Bock. This was Noel's homebrew recipe, translated to Widmer-scale brewing. What resulted was a slightly overhopped (and therefore very pleasing) bock of 36 IBUs; it's darker and roastier than the deep Mai Bock Noel envisioned. Sadly, there are only four kegs of it, and if you don't get down there tonight, it'll probably blow.

Later. At this point, I was enjoying the company and my notes ceased. (At one point, freelancers heard a publisher say she was paying a buck a word, and we went into a frenzy. It wasn't true, but bouyed by the frenzy, things turned social.) I tried the Golden Valley Quercus, and thought it very nice. The wine comes out in a rich, sweet note, softening but at the same time acidifying the beer. Definitely a must-try.

That's my main info. I should also mention that I met the publisher/editor and art director of a new Portland-based beer mag that will debut in October. It's called Beer Northwest, and Megan and Annalou assure me it will kick ass. I, in turn, assured them that I would send all my vast traffic to their website (which is, admittedly, a bit skimpy just now--their website, not my traffic, though it too is skimpy). So go give them a hit, and look for more info--I'll link through when they're up and running.

__________________
*A lie. John Foyston is really cool. In fact, he said that comments really matter to the Oregonian, so go comment and keep him blogging.
**Back when I started writing for Willamette Week, I was aware of this grave rivalry between WW and the Oregonian. But there was never any between John and me, nor any other beer writer I've encountered. Writing about beer, which is of far lower status than actually brewing it, creates the foundation for a kind of brotherhood. So cheers to all us failed professional brewers.

OBF - Around the Blogosphere

You may wish to consult other beersters for tips and advice. Many of them are offering it. I notice these fine pieces:

• Metroblogging has Ten Easy Steps to Enjoying the OBF. (Best tip: "Don't linger in the beer line - seriously - there is a huge amount of space in the area - it's not that hard to get back in line once your cup is finished. Don't crowd the lines while you're standing around drinking and socializing." Indeed--get outta my way!)
• Jon at The Brew Site gives you a very detailed "what to take" list (But wet wipes? Isn't that what the grass is for?) He also gives you his beer picks.
  
• Suds Sister has a guide to the Fest that rivals mine in length (which means I approve). She tapped the estimable Noel Blake for tips, and he offered this nice one, about Diamond Knot IPA, "They put Columbus hops *in the keg.*" Good enough for me.)
• There's a beer blogger meetup at Belmont Station from 3-5pm on Sunday when "most of the OBF taps should be dry, anyway."
• And finally, PDX Beer Blog has its picks. (All four of the preview sites agree: Flying Fish is a must try!) And despite its un-PC nature, I feel compelled to quote this passage in toto: "Horny dude alert: the best place to chill is near the taps for 21st Amendment Watermelon Wheat, Kona passion fruit wheat, and Raccoon Lodge Raspbery Wheat." So true. However, if you want to find the discerning women, skip over to the Pliny tap. It will separate the girls from the women.

That's all the news that's fit to link. Enjoy.

Oregon Brewers Festival 2007 - Preview

I have, several times in the past, given general a preview info about the OBF. If you've never been to it, look here for tips about how to approach the event. I will devote this post to the beers, of which I think there are 27 (literally) about which you ought to be aware. That's better than 72 (and also palindromic, which is somehow pleasing), but you're still going to have to exercise some discretion. For ease of use, I have divided the guide into three categories: Ones to Watch (the beers I'm most interested in), Old Reliables (beers that won't let you down), and New Arrivals (breweries new to the Fest).

Incidentally, I will have a 90-minute opportunity to sample beers on Thursday afternoon. I'll have a tip sheet based on my experiences up by Thursday evening. All right, onto the beers...

Ones to Watch
When I go to the Brewers Fest, I have a strong orientation to the new and/or exotic. This isn't everyone's situation. Some folks will never have tried Pliny the Elder (surely one of the best beers made in America), Terminal Gravity Tripel, or North Coast PranQster, and they should definitely have a taster. But in many cases, this will be my only chance to try, say, Stone Vertical Epic. So with that in mind, here are ten beers I will absolutely not miss:

• BJ's C'est Bon Blonde. BJ's has developed a minor specialty in Belgian-style ales, and it will be interesting to see what they have whipped up for the Fest.
• Brewery Ommegang, Hennepin. Okay, I actually know exactly what this beer tastes like--it's an amazing Saison, the only version that is in the same ballpark with Dupont. A world-class beer that I can't recommend more highly.
  
• Flying Fish Bourbon Barrel Abbey Double. This New Jersey brewery regularly brews an abbey ale, but this batch has been specially aged in bourbon barrels. Bourbon doesn't always make the beer, but it should be an interesting experiment with a dubbel.
• Golden Valley Quercus. Golden Valley started out as a winery, so things come full circle here: they've aged this ESB in a pinot barrel. A wonderful inspiration.
• Klamath Basin Golden. Normally I wouldn't elevate a lowly golden ale to my must-try list, but this little brewpub from Klamath Falls knocked my socks off at last December's Holiday Ale Fest. They earned my interest, and so I'll be trying this offering.
  
• Fax's Fanno Creek Farmer's Daughter. Max's is the new brewpub in Tualatin, run by brewer Max Tieger. It's gotten some buzz, so I'm interested to see what they can do.
• McMenamins Monkey House. Each year, the McMenamins host their own in-house brewing competition, and this year's winner got to go to the OBF. It comes from Chris Haslett at the Fulton Pub, an IPA he called No Mas Lento in the competition.
• Rogue Imperial Porter. A monster that was nevertheless designed as a "summer porter," it features orangey Summit hops and has an OG of 18.7 (Shakespeare Stout's is 15). Yow!
• Stone Vertical Epic. The Arrogant Bastards do this very cool thing. Each year, they release a version of Epic Ale to be tasted in a "vertical tasting" in 2012. This year's was released on 7/7/07 and you'll be able to try it here. Dunno what kind of beer it is, but I expect it to be big, aggressive, and green.
  
• Widmer Noggin Grog. Each year, the Widmer Brothers brew a beer especially for the OBF, and it is always interesting. Noggin Grog is described as an Imperial Wit, which is apparently all the rage in the brewing world.
  

Also of note is Bison Brewing's Organic Chocolate Stout (uses actual chocolate), Boundary Bay's Single Hop Pale (Galena hops; this is a good way to learn to accurately identify hops), Deschutes 19th Anniversary Belgian Golden (it'll be in stores soon, but people will still find it hard to resist), and Kona Passionfruit Wheat (it will be sweet and girlish, and have lots of fans--though I probably won't be among them).

Old Reliables
It's likely that a few of the above beers will be duds ([cough] Passionfruit Wheat [cough]). When I get into a run of bad experiments, I turn to the old reliables to save me. Here's a short list I'll keep handy:

• Bear Republic Racer X. A big fan favorite: 9% abv, massive hopping--what's not to like? (Don't drink it first, though!)
• Fearless Scottish Ale. Fearless probably brews other beers, but I don't know 'em. This is what they're known for: a malty, creamy beer that everyone loves. (It's not a hoppy palate-wrecker, either.)
  
• Celis White. After Pierre Celis packed up and went back to Belgium, Miller sold off his equipment and ultimately the recipes to Michigan Brewing. And so the beer that introduced America to Belgian wits ("white") is back. If you like whites, you have to like Celis.
  
• Russian River Pliny the Elder. Oh joy! Liquid strength, liquid hops. The best strong ale in America.
• Sprecher Mai Bock. This is how they brew in Wisconsin--the German way. Try Mai Bock early and appreciate its subtlety (otherwise don't try it at all)--and see if you can identify the dry-hopping.

New Arrivals
Finally, let's welcome the newbies. These are breweries that haven't appeared at the OBF before. A surprising number of them have just recently opened--evidence of the robust craft beer market. For many of us, this will be the first opportunity to sample these new offerings.

• Fifty Fifty Brewing, from Truckee, CA, near Reno, opened in May and is just down the road from Donner Lake. If that reference seems familiar, maybe the beer will remind you why: Donner Party Porter, a hefty 6.7% ale that sounds more like a stout. Let us hope the brewery's luck is better than the Donner Party's.
• Hopworks Urban Brewery is Christian Ettinger's new place, and it's still not open. But the beer is flowing, and this IPA will please people who loved his hoppy Laurelwood beers.
• Klamath Basin Brewing actually opened in 2005, but that qualifies as "new" for those of us in Portland. (See above for more.)
  
• Max's Fanno Creek also opened in May, in Tualatin. (See above for more.)
  

There are some other breweries that are new to the fest (or back for the first time in years). Briefly: Diamond Knot Brewery from Washington arrives with an imperial IPA. Eel River, founded in 1994, is the country's first all-organic brewery ('99), and will also be pouring an IPA. Grand Teton Brewing is located in the remote town of Victor, ID (north of Jackson, WY), and they offer their GABF-winning flagship, Bitch Creek ESB. And finally, Trumer Brauerei was founded in 1601 in Salzburg, Germany, and because of the water, founded a branch in Berkeley in 2003. They debut their ancient Trumer Pils at Waterfront Park this year.

Stay hydrated, cool, and happy. And look for the balding, skinny guy with a patchy graying beard if you want to say howdy. Cheers!

OBF Week

Lots of content to come. But first, a video of last year's fest...

Oregon's Smallest Brewery?

I was in Corvallis on Friday and for the first time visited the Oregon Trail brewery. Or anyway took a gander at it from the Old World Deli. It occupies the space of a large closet (admittedly a tall one--rising two [three?] stories above its tiny footprint) in the corner of the sprawling restaurant.

The beer, though, was tasty. I had a pint of brown ale, which was a little stronger and a little hoppier than most styles you find--it was hearty and creamy and most satisfying. My friend had an IPA which I deemed delightful and in balance, but which he, after two-thrids of a pint, described as overly hoppy. I'll have to go back for another pint and do my own research.

They have several taps (five or six Oregon Trail beers were pouring) and the price is right. I was shocked to see that they have two-dollar happy hours, and I think my shaker pint was about $3.75. It's in downtown Corvallis, so stop in the next time you're passing through:

341 SW 2nd Street, Corvallis (inside the Old World Deli)

Try the brown!

Banish All Ratings!

So says Joe Sixpack, via Appellation Beer:

FURTHER EVIDENCE of the dumbing down of America is now on display on the necks of Pilsner Urquell. The bottles are adorned with a big "93," its most recent score from Chicago's Beverage Testing Institute....

But who needs a score to choose a beer?

I dunno - someone who wants to impress his friends, maybe, but doesn't have a clue about style, flavor or quality? Who is so filled with self-doubt, he can't spend a few lousy bucks without an expert holding his hand? Whose vocabulary is so limited he needs a number to describe what's in his glass?

A wee bit harsh, but overall, good analysis. Ratings are tough. I really dislike RateBeer and the Beer Advocate's rating system, and wondered if I should have them at all. I do, but uneasily.

Beerveza?

I stumbled across an ad last night for the newest in a long string of half-assed industrial beers aimed squarely at the 21-year-old set: Miller Chill. (Which is charitable; many high school parties will no doubt feature half racks of Chill.) It follows in the long line of alcohol products for people who don't like beer--wine coolers, alcopops, Zima, etc. Although the non-malt beer substitutes irritate me, not so much as when a venerable old brewery like Miller succumbs to a purely commercial faux beer like Chill. Witness the new ad:

Ad copy:
Introducing and unexpected new twist on cerveza: Miller Chill, the refreshing light beer brewed with a hint of lime and salt. Inspired by a Mexican recipe. It's beerveza, brewed for a new level of refreshment.

Uggh. What an embarrassment.

PIB 2007 Wrap-up

I will begin this post with a confession: I had intended to go back to the fest on Sunday and didn't make it. That means no video and a smallish sampling of beers for review. By my notes, I tried 13 on Friday, which amounts to a little more than 10% of the total available, and I had saved at least a half dozen in my mind to try on Sunday. So obviously, what follows is a wee smattering of all the beers on offer.

That disclaimer out of the way, here are those I did try, with my notes.

Haand Bryggeri Dark Force - A stout in the American style--thick and chalky, robust. Not intensely nuanced, but roasty and nice. [B-]

iQhilika African Birds Eye Chili Mead - Wild sensation. The base drink is a standard dry mead. As you swirl it around your mouth, you get almost none of the chili--it's just a pleasant, sweetish note. But then as the liquid starts going down the hatch, it really heats up, and the finish is all pepper. [B+]

Coniston Bluebird Bitter - Wonderful recipe, taking advantage of such few ingredients (the guide says it's a 3.5% ale). Creamy palate, mild biscuity sweetness, earthy hopping. Yeast has a characteristically English quality. [A]

De Proef Saison Imperiale - Saisons are one of the hardest styles to brew, and De Proef proves the point, delivering a treacly ale that seems more tripel than farmhouse. Creamy and fruity rather than crisp and dry. [C]

Bink Bloesem - Another abbey-style ale but without complexity. Flat palate, musty, and thin, despite the alcohol. A dud. [C-]

Pinkus Altbier - Switching gears to a nice, subtle beer. Very crisp and dry, but somehow richer than the sum of the parts would indicate. An excellent warm-weather beer. [B]

Oudbeitje - [notes as written, with added comments to follow] "Tart but not complex. Okay, as I drink it, it is--but more subtly than I first appreciated. Smoky notes, some mustiness. Very earthy. Strawberry nearly absent, but like old strawberries, decomposing almost. Sally arrives, notes 'Smells like compost!'" This beer delighted no one but me, and it did delight me, more and more as I drank it. Unlike anything I've tried--so organic tasting that it was one step beyond. But I like it out there in the ultrafunky Belgian wilderness. [A]

Rodenbach Grand Cru - People were giving me such a hard time about the Oudbeitje that I decided to get a Rodenbach to show that I knew good beer. This beer was bought out by Palm in 1998, and everyone has feared the worst. Grand Cru is aged in great oak tuns at the brewery which are decades old and contribute the unique character to the beer--perhaps my favorite in the world. Palm's intention to "modernize" the brewery had caused panic. When the brewery reintroduced Grand Cru a year ago, I have to admit I was too scared to try it. But I plucked up my courage and went for a pour. The result? Magnificent. If you've never had a Sour Flanders Red, it's difficult to describe the experience. They are sweet and sour simultaneously, but deep and resonant of palate. In my notes, I wrote "just the same." Go buy a bottle if you haven't tried it before. [A]

Monchshof Schwartzbier - Faintly chocolaty, wet, not particularly distinctive. I would like it drier, and with a crisper malt palate. Not so hot. [C]

Spezial Rauchbier - This was actually Sally's beer, and she was nonplussed. I, however, thought it was quite nice. Perfumed with a very light, subtle smokiness. Roasty and malt-forward, with smoke lingering at the edge of perception, but a light, crisp, summery beer. Strikes me as a great example of German brewing. This beer is the oldest rauchbier still made (1536), in Bamberg, where the style was born. [B+]

Haand Bryggeri Norwegian Wood - Billed as "moonshine," this is actually a traditional brewing style from Norway, with a recipe dating back to a time when all the beer was essentially homebrew. Malt is kilned by fire, and juniper berries are used in place of hops as seasoning. I didn't know this at the time, but my notes bear out the recipe: "Smoky like a rauch, slightly viscous in a way that suggests other grains might be used in the mash. Sweet, hearty brown ale." If you ever see a bottle, buy it for the experience. [B]

HW Lees Harvest Legavulin - I somehow missed that this beer, at 11.5% alcohol, only had 25 IBUs. Hoy! It was like a beer reduction, syrupy sweet and undrinkable. Sadly, none of the Scotch aging came through, except--possibly--in the nose. Or maybe I was just trying to give it some credit. [D-]

De Ranke Kriek - I actually went with four bucks over to the ticket counter for the Lees Harvest debacle, and realized I couldn't go out on such a beer. So back I went to buy three more tickets for an always-reliable kriek. This isn't my favorite example, but it is intense. The sourness shoots it into some kind of physics-bending dryness. The mouth puckers involuntarily. Cherry is mild, and there's a cellary-musty quality which inclines me to think it's been aged a bit. I picked up a hint of salt, which was unexpected but not altogether unwelcome. [B]

Thems the notes. Sorry there aren't more. Ah well, there's always next year!

OBF Stats

The PIB is done (final review later today), which means we're inside of two weeks to the Oregon Brewers Festival. Having had my first real gander at the beers, here is what I note:

20 - Years since inception
73 - Participating breweries
14 - Participating states

21 - IPAs (six imperial/double)
12 - Belgian-style ales
-9 - Wheat ales (two hefs, four wits, two fruit wheats, one weiss)
-9 - Lagers
-7 - Pale ales
-6 - Pilsners
-6 - Minimum number of years in a row that 21st Amendment Brewery has sent Watermelon Wheat

More to come . . .

Hidden Agendas

This letter appeared in today's Oregonian, perhaps inadvertently giving us more information than the writer--former reporter and broadcaster Pete Schulberg--intended. I'll reproduce the whole thing, but the interesting bit is bolded:

Alcohol industry wins again

What is it that the Oregon Legislature doesn't undersand about a tiny increase in teh beer tax, which hasn't been raised in 30 years ("On alcohol, Oregon's in denial," July 15)?

Once agains legislators ignored the constituents and cave in to alcohol manufacturers and their distributors. Survey after survey has shown that Oregonians would pay a few cents more for a beer if the money went driectly toward prevention and treatment.

Look at the progress that has been made in dismantling the culture of cigarette smoking in this country. That was done by major efforts in prevention and education. It's time the legislature gets as serious about Oregon's frightening increase in alcohol-related deaths and underage drinking as it is about campaign contributions from the beer industry.

Pete Schulberg
Communications Director
Oregon Partnership

There are a number of motivations and intentions in the beer tax debate, but I was surprised to see Pete (probably unintentionally) so baldly refer to "the culture of cigarette smoking." No one in the brewing industry is interested in seeing alcoholism rates, alcohol-related deaths, or underage drinking continue at high levels. But a lot of Oregonians strongly resent the overt attack on the "culture of beer drinking." It is in no way analogous to smoking. The culture is a valuable, vibrant piece of Oregon's character. Pete offered the traditional argument for a beer tax, and larded it with sanctimony to drive home the point. It's the sanctimony, however, that reveals the assumptive faults in the legislation.

You want to reduce alcoholism rates, alcohol-related deaths, or underage drinking? Fine, but put the Puritan disdain of beer drinking aside.

PIB Interim Report

No time to do a full review on the beers I tried last night, but here's a thumbs-up/thumbs-down quickie in case you're still heading to the Fest. Most of the beers were in that middle category of average to excellent. Below are the sublime and disappointing.

Thumbs Up (Don't Miss These)

• Coniston Pale Ale. Amazing how much flavor you can get from so few ingredients.
• iQhilika African Birds Eye Chili Mead. In your mouth it's a sweet sensation (though quite dry for a mead) but going down the hatch, it heats up mightily. Strange sensation.
• Rodenbach Grand Cru. Amazing as I remember. One of the best beers in the world.
  
• Oudbeitje (Strawberry Lambic). This was wild stuff. Sally said, "It smells like our compost!" (It did.) It was sour, only very faintly strawberry-y, and had a rank, musky quality. I couldn't put it down.
  

Thumbs Down (Don't Bother)

• JW Lees Legavulin. I missed that it had only 25 IBUs--WAY oversweet and not a hint of the Scotch cask. An expensive dud.
  
• Bink Bloesem. For such a big beer, surprisingly little taste. Not horrible, but not worth a pour.

Best value: Flyer's Sick Duck. One token, and it appears to be leavened with a half-ounce of rum. Hoo boy.

Bait and switch: the printed pour prices are not the actual pour prices, so buyer beware. (You won't be surprised to learn that they are inevitably more expensive than listed in the guide.)

Further reax by the BS brew collective at Champagne of Blogs.