Beer Reviews
And … I’m on summer vacation. I wouldn’t normally tackle a 10% abv beer on a Wednesday night, but I have a flight to catch mid-morning tomorrow, and this seems a fine accompaniment to packing. It’s also a delightful sipper on a cool and rainy Oregon evening, but likely a terrible match for the humidity [...]
I’m heading to the midwest in a few days (I’ll be touring Boulevard Brewing on Sunday), so I thought I might acclimate my tastebuds by sampling this Minnesota beer (from the last stash provided by my generous, beer-smuggling mother-in-law). I was expecting something a little less hoppy than a Northwest Red, but I was very [...]
I attended Portland’s monthly “History Pub” for the first time a few nights ago with a history buff friend. History Pub is a production of the Oregon Historical Society, and usually includes historical presentations in the theater at McMenamins Kennedy School. If you’re not an Oregonian, you may not be privy to the McMenamins story, but [...]
Once more I dipped into the four-pack of Tallgrass beers I received from the brewery. Reading a bit more on their website, it seems there’s a reason most of the beers I’ve tried from the brewery don’t neatly fit an established style – some are at least in part based on brewer Jeff Gill’s homebrew [...]
Took the family over to Hopworks’ 2nd Annual BikeToBeerFest yesterday (inter-capitalization mine; they prefer the less-readable BIKETOBEERFEST) and had a great time. I didn’t attend the inaugural event last year, but after spending a few hours there yesterday, it’s officially in my “Top 10 Portland Beer Events” list. I like my beer festivals low-key, family [...]
Another walk down memory lane with this one. Ballard Bitter was a standby when I first moved to Portland. I was already familiar with Red Hook, as it was one of the few West Coast micros that was reliably available, even in Iowa (the Blackhook Porter was also an early favorite). Even then, it was [...]
The tough thing about drinking every day (my life is so hard) is the days that you really don’t want to imbibe. There are the obvious days (usually the day after a day when you consumed a wee bit too much), and the not so obvious ones (when your tongue just maybe needs a break). And [...]
My first trip to the Pacific Northwest was when I was in high school. My mom, recently separated from my dad, packed up my sisters and I for a family vacation. We did all the tourist things, including the “Duck” tour, which was pretty fun. It was interesting to see up close this city that I’d [...]
This is easily one of my favorite beer label designs I’ve seen in the last year. The hand-drawn illustration, color palette, and simple, hand color separations are just really artful and well-made. As is this beer. Much has been made of the time spent by Deschutes’ brewers trying variation after variation (as many as 22 recipes) [...]
I had a bottle from Brau Brothers a year or more ago, before beginning my 999 beers in 999 days journey, back when beer drinking was just for sport! As a graphic designer, I was turned off by the cheap-looking plastic label, the same material that wraps plastic soda bottles, only less well-executed than most [...]
Apparently, I’m the only beer blogger not on the list for free samples. But this is one worth paying for. After reading the glowing reviews, I asked all over town for this beer, and after nearly giving up hope, I eventually located it at Beermongers. If I were you, and I were in Portland, I’d [...]
I picked this beer up for our “RheinheitsgeWHAT?!?!” beer tasting. Most beers on the list, I just picked up a bomber or a pair of 12-ounce bottles. But on the recommendation of the salesperson, who “really liked it,” I went with a six-pack. Better value, you see. It’s not a pour-out, I’ll give it that. It [...]
Trying to soak up what increasingly is looking like a short summer here in Oregon. Most beer bars in Portland tend to be of the indoor variety – it does rain 7-8 months out of the year here. But a cherished few have great patios and great beer. The Moon and Sixpence is one of [...]
I’ve tried to hit this airport brewpub at least two other times I’ve visited the Salt Lake City airport. An unhappy little boy (my own) foiled my last attempt, and a fortunate standby situation nixed the other. I’ll begin by saying that I’m a sucker for a clever name. I’m a marketer by day, where [...]
I got a text message from my friend Bruce on Monday night letting me know he and his family were getting dinner at Fire on the Mountain, a great hot wings place in Portland. They also happen to be a source of great beer on tap, and it’s a great place to watch a Trailblazer [...]
Despite enjoying this at my dining table, I somehow failed to take a picture of the beer. I will say that the label is of a somewhat amateurish/generic design, which does no justice to the contents contained within. A wonderfully complex beer that I think would be an excellent choice for Thanksgiving dinner. Beer Name: Maibock Brewer: [...]
Whew! Long, hot day here in Portland. I spent most of the day prepping for and cooking at a work picnic, and with heat approaching the 100 mark, I was pretty well cooked myself when I got home. A little AC, a whole bunch of water, and this beer restored my spirits. Beer Name: Oasis Ale Brewer: [...]
Pabst Blue Ribbon probably would have been the more appropriate choice for beers, given the occasion. I went to the Portland Adult Soapbox Derby for the fourth or fifth year on Saturday, and there were more ironic mustaches and pseudo-Indie lagers than I could count. I tried to class the joint up a bit with [...]
Now, that is a picture of summer in Oregon. Please allow me to break it down for you. Fresh cherries, two kinds: Bing and Rainier, both from the farmer’s market, and probably the best cherries money can buy. BLT. Normally at this time of year the B, L, and T would all be local to our [...]
Did you ever have one of those experiences of suddenly understanding a cultural reference you’d been missing all your life? Perhaps chuckling with the group when someone said “Plastics, my boy,” and just thinking it was a random thing to say. And then, years later, you watch The Graduate, and it suddenly all makes sense? Same [...]
You know how they make this stuff, right? It’s continuously hopped for 90 minutes? Hence the name? Once the old brew kettle is boiling, the wacky brewers at Dogfish Head load up an “electric football” game (the one that vibrates “player” gamepieces towards cardboard end zones) with enough hop pellets to last the boil. “Set it, [...]
I would have given this beer a four, because I really enjoyed it. But look at that picture. Is that a pale? Would that have been the beer you were expecting upon reading the label? No, sir, that beer is an amber. So I subtracted a point. It’s my blog, after all, and while there [...]
I was prepared to disclaim this review heavily, as I bought this bottle on discount at the QFC by my house, being as the bottle was nearly a year past its expiration date when I bought it a few months ago. But it turns out that this IPA, like my oft-cited and much-beloved Blue Dot, [...]
Stone sure does make a lot of “special release” beers. Theirs this series, released on the occasion of the opening of their brewery (hey, congrats!). There’s their mathematically-ascending “Vertical Epic” series (01-01-01, 02-02-02, etc.), and a host of collaboration brews (with Dogfish Head, 21st Amendment, Firestone Walker, Victory …). Good thing they’re mostly all delicious, [...]