Ymm, Beer!

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Island Jumper (draft)-FlyBoy Brewing

Happy hour pint at a buck off and recommended by our waitress as their best seller. A solid choice.

Pour was a clear, yellow-gold with a modest, creamy head. Lots of pineapple and grapefruit scents and tastes without being a NEIPA/hazy juice. Matching flavors with a little bit of rind and hints of orange, finishing with a light brown sugary sweetness. I'll guess IBUs about 60 and ABV on the chalk board was 7%. A nice pairing with a toasted, Italian grinder and some mixed greens.

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Tail Gunner Stout Barrel Aged (draft)-FlyBoy Brewing

More local!

Two ounce sample that was supposed to be first but a small mistake made it the second taster so I made it dessert .

Dark brown color with a small head and a sweet, syrupy, boozy nose that coated the palate with dark caramel, dark chocolate, molasses and bourbon. I'll guess IBUs about 40-50 and the ABV was 9.1% but "felt" higher. I don't drink many stouts in the summer but when the waitress offered tastes of any of their brews, I couldn't pass up this one.

Overall, a good experience with Mrs. dd enjoying a good wedge salad and tastes of my mixed greens/bleu cheese/tomato/pickled onion side salad and a toasted Italian grinder.

It might be worth a walk down there tomorrow night for a snifter of Deschutes Brewing XXX Black Butte Porter on draft...

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the Shade-Ninkasi Brewing Company

(Disclaimer: the name of this brew is not my responsibility)

More local!

A summer IPA, whatever that may be .

From last PM, this is the first bottle from a 12 pack sampler.

Pour was a clear, orange-yellow with a moderate, foamy head. A tropical and citrus fruit salad cornucopia of pleasing scents and tastebud-tickling flavors, including primarily pineapple and grapefruit with a lot of orange, citrusy zest, a bit of resin and very mild sweetness. IBUs pretty generous at 72 with ABV at 6.8%. A solid entry from a brewer with a very good west coast reputation. Would wash down some mildly spicy fish tacos or some 'cue. Ingredients below:

Malts: 2-Row Pale, Vienna, Flaked Barley

Hops: Summit, Centennial, Simcoe, Columbus, Crystal, Palisade, Amarillo, Magnum

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Prismatic-Ninkasi Brewing Company

More local!

Specimen #2 from my IPA sampler, this one a 12 ounce can included with the other 3 species of bottles.

Labeled a juicy IPA, the pour was a medium straw-yellow with a small head. Pineapple, mango and guava tantalizes my nostrils, followed by tastes of the same with maybe a mildly bitter stone fruit finish. Sweetness is minimal. I'd serve with a grilled fish or shrimp kebabs/kabobs, basted with some mango salsa. Ingredients below:

Malts: 2-Row Pale, Vienna, Flaked Barley, White Wh*at ("on holiday")

Hops: El Dorado, Centennial, Simcoe, Citra, Mosaic CRYO HOPS®, Simcoe CRYO HOPS®

Partial explanation of the ® above from their website:

"CRYO HOPS® is a registered trademark of Yakima Chief - Hopunion, LLC, Yakima WA."

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10 Hop IIPA (draft)-Rogue Ales

More local! And a very recent limited local/regional release, starting in May.

Two ounce sample before I had my dessert beer.

Fourth (?) in their series of multi-hop beers, this hop/booze bomb was quite sippable. Pour was a light, orange-amber with a small head. Nose mostly of citrus with a few tropical notes. Pretty complex tasting profile with orange liqueur, pineapple, mango and honey all prominent and highly flavorful. I don't think Rogue used to do this but their website provides IBU #s (75) and ABV (10.1%) so even my small taster lasted about 10 minutes . Here's the ingredient list:

"Ingredients: Rogue Farms Dare™ & Weyermann Pils Malts; Rogue Farms Liberty, Newport, Revolution, Independent, Freedom, Rebel, Yaquina, Alluvial, Adair, & Keven Hops; Pacific Ale Yeast, Pacman Yeast, & Free Range Coastal Water."

The beer story:

"Dedicated to Farmers & Fermenters. In a bold collaboration with Mother Nature, we grow our own varieties of aroma hops at Rogue Farms in Independence, OR. We also string, stake, train, test, trim, separate, sort, kiln and cool them. Brewmaster John Maier meticulously selected and blended 10 varieties of our aroma hops to create this behemoth of an IPA, the pinnacle of the Rogue Hop experience."

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Black Butte XXX (draft)-Deschutes Brewery

Drink local!

Apparently, this was released on 6/27 to most locations that carry their Reserve Series to celebrate the 30th anniversary of brewing Black Butte Porter, so, to find this as a guest draft at a small brewery in a small strip mall that is 0.9 miles from our hotel, I think is rather amazing. Bet this never makes it to the Roanoke distribution center/area.

This 10 ounce pour (not cheap at $8, but it was my dessert and lasted about 45 minutes) was in a snifter and was opaque and almost black with a thin, mocha head. Seductive scents of dark chocolate, dark caramel and dark, dried fruits. Palate perceptions are the same along with some black strap molasses, oak, burnt coconut and a lot of booze, though I can't pick out which ones as they used eight different varieties of oak barrels. Forget any foods/desserts with this porter as it was so decadent and really resembled an imperial stout and not a porter. IBUs were 40 and the ABV is a stunning 13.6% and thoroughly dangerous. The ingredients:


Malt: 2-row, wh*at, C-75, Chocolate, Midnight Wh*at
Hops: Millenium, Cascade, Tettnang

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From 7/4/12:

Tricerahops-Ninkasi Brewing

Another great name to be added to the list of brew monikers. My son discovered this bomber in a grocery store in Portland when he interviewed out there in February. It is a double IPA (DIPA or IIPA) that pours a slightly cloudy yellow-orange with a moderate foamy head. The scents are pine and citrus and melted caramel and the potpourri of tastes match the aromas with a well balanced blend of malty sweetness and some citrus and peachy notes. (I thought citrus and he thought peaches as we shared the bomber last PM.) The high gravity of 8.8% ABV is deceptive and the hop blast of 100 IBU is not over-powering. Very solid night cap or beverage to serve with spicy and/or hot dishes. The brewery is in Eugene so I doubt I'll ever see this brew again .

So much for my predictive powers.

From last PM:

Tricerahops-Ninkasi Brewing

Item #3 from their 12 pack IPA sampler.

They've toned this down a bit with the IBUs now 84 and ABV at 8%. Both stats are still in the IIPA range but all the above still hold service and overall a bit more mild stage presence than 6 years ago. This was a a tad disappointing based on the brewery's reputation and my distant memories of that tasting .

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F-Bomb (draft)-Stickmen Brewing Company

I swear I don't make up these names .

More local!

I can't think of a better way to start my flight tonight than dropping the F-Bomb .

Pour was actually a 2 ounce taster before the actual flight and was a light gold with a small head. Nose of citrus and pine with similar flavors plus a bit of rind and peach.
This sits on the IPA/IIPA border with IBUs or 75 and ABV of 7%. At any other time, I'd have added two $5 bombers to the dinner tab and packed them in the car but got scared trying to figure out how I'd get them safely/securely in checked bags without having any ski boots with us on this trip .

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Rupert (draft)-Stickmen Brewing Company

Even more local!

Second member of my flight tonight.

Four ounce pour was a cloudy yellow-orange with a small head. This met my expectations of a Piña Colada beer as advertised on the menu. Aromas of the tropics and tastes of (canned) pineapple (I saw the Dole pineapple cans in the brewing area ) and coconut milk with a mild pucker as it was listed as a kettle sour. Light on the IBUs at 18 and intermediate ABV at 5.9%. Fun start to sharing a Margherita pizza with Mrs. dd.

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Plum Hibiscus Ginflower (barrel-aged draft)-Stickmen Brewing Company

Sour #3 in my sampler last PM.

More local!

This 4 ounce pour was amber-whiskey colored with no head. Juniper/gin aromas followed by some stone fruity and woody/boozy tastes and a mildly floral, bitter finish. IBU was 26 and ABV was 7.5%. I drink very little/few distilled spirits so the gin/juniper tastes were a bit unusual to me but pleasant and paired reasonably well with our pizza. Would taste again.

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From 5/6/12:

Total Domination IPA-Ninkasi Brewing Company

Another "import" from a brewery with which I was not familiar from Eugene, Oregon. Split a single of this with my son last PM who "smuggled" it in from Oregon after his trip out there in Febrewary (sic). Pours a pleasant orange-yellow with a generous head that has a floral bouquet aroma from the 3 hops which also impart similar tastes along with some citrusy notes. Plenty of pale and caramel malts for balance, too. IBUs check in at 67 and the ABV was 6.7% so we were able to split another brew before bedtime. I'd enjoy one of these with curry dishes or hot Chinese entrees as I believe the brew would hold up well against spicy fare. I have a 2nd one which is available for sipping or trading later this month or next.

From last PM:

We interrupt this flight to bring you another Ninkasi review:

Total Domination IPA-Ninkasi Breweing

Still local!

Talk about a hop bomb. This 12 ounce bottle poured a yellow-bronze with a moderate, fluffy head. Aromas much more pine and resin than I'd prefer but still with a bit of citrus. Tastes about the same with some orange flavors, some rind and a mild caramel-y sweetness. A bit unbalanced at 81 IBUs and 6.7% ABV. Would pair well with the usual spicy entrees.

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Akvavit IPA (draft)-Stickmen Brewing Company

Sample #4-not a sour but still local!

Light amber color with a small rim of a head. Spicy nose with pine, licorice and rye and tastes to match, all originating from the dry-hopping with Cascade, Amarillo and Chinook varieties that followed several months of aging in Bull Run Aquavit barrels. IBUs at 40, a bit low for the style, and an ABV of 6.8%. Another unusual and intriguing combination and good pairing with the last few morsels of pizza.

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Galaxy Pale Strider (draft)-Walking Man Brewing

This brewery was less than a 2 mile drive from our night's lodging and we walked in with limited expectations and were pleasantly surprised by the food and their malted beverages. So, you guessed it: drink local!

Beer #1 on my four beer flight. As the name implies/suggests, it's a single hop pale ale and was a light yellow-amber with no head. The expected tropical fruit blast from the Australian hops never materialized and my olfactory lobe was greeted faintly with stone fruits and hints of the tropics. Tastes were subdued, too, and consisted of fruit punch, some pineapple and guava with a touch of pine at the end. IBUs were 35 and the ABV rolled in at 5%, both pretty standard for the style. Mrs. dd and I shared a smoked salmon garden salad and a chicken, feta, hummus, cucumber and red onion Naan wrap and I thought both matched nicely with the first beer. Mrs. dd, of course, said, "It tastes and smells like beer."

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Ramblin' Raspberry (draft)-Walking Man Brewing

Local beer #2 from the flight.

This raspberry wh*at ale also sipped well with the entrees. Pour was slightly cloudy with a small head and a faintly pink-tinged straw color. Raspberry is quite prominent, but not overly sweet on first taste and remains throughout the 5 ounce pour. There are some orange and grass flavors, too. IBUs at 28 and ABV at 4.8% fall in line with the listed style.

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Homo Erectus (draft)-Walking Man Brewing

More local!

And, before anyone goes all PC on me, think of the name of the brewery and the "story" of how/why the beer was named this:

"Brewed in celebration of being erect for 2 million years! This NW style Double IPA doesn't mess around. Big piney, hop notes with a big malt body to back it up."



The 3rd four ounce pour was a yellow-bronze with a small head. Syrupy aromas and up-front orange liqueur tastes. It's a DIPA as they quote above but almost drinks like an English style barleywine with a lot of malty, caramel-y, brown sugary flavors and earthy, herbal hops. It's moderately (severely?) bitter on paper at 90 IBUs () but the ABV of 9% makes it very well balanced and a bit dangerous to consume. I drink this after dinner as a pre-dessert beer, hinting at my next post...

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Cherry Stout (draft)-Walking Man Brewing

This one obviously makes no reference at all to the brewery name .

(They also brew a beer named Lucy.)

Last 4 ounce sampler of the evening yesterday. Dessert beer.

Their menu description of chocolate, coffee and cherries is pretty darned accurate. Pour was a dark brown with hints of ruby. Very small head. Lead-off batter is dark chocolate followed in the line-up by sweet cherries, interwoven with mild espresso, all in the aromas and tastes. Cherries are the only adjunct. Mouthfeel is slightly thick and oily but not imperial stout slick/smooth. IBUs are 35 and the ABV is 7.2%, both lower than the previous brew which, fortunately, didn't numb the taste buds at all.

Overall, the pale ale was average to slightly above average and the other 3 were very good. The food was better than expected, too, so a rather nice discovery in the Columbia River Gorge in a town of about 1400 residents.

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I'll start with a couple 2 ounce tasters that the beer-tender offered while we waited for our table and I deliberated about my choice/s.

Kettle Soured Mango Berliner Weisse (draft)-pFriem Family Brewers

Yes, it's boring but local again!

Slightly cloudy yellow-straw-orange color with a fizzy, short-lived head. Such subtle aromas of sour fruit, followed by very mild puckeriness of the same with some lemon-lime soda, essentially no bitterness and virtually no alcohol presence. Very refreshing on a 95 degree (no typo) evening at 6 PM in the Columbia River Gorge, especially at 6 IBUs (yes, the number six) and ABV at 3.5%.

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Sample #2:

Flanders Red Kriek (draft)-pFriem Family Brewers

Local! Again!

This would rival any Belgian lambic.

Pour was a gorgeous, light cherry color with no head. Vinegary aromas (not a turn-off) with mild to moderate acetic mouthfeel with modest sourness, wonderfully balanced by the added cherries. Wet leather and blanched almonds also come to mind when thinking about flavors. I think the tartness is in the Rodenbach range and certainly not in the extreme Destihl Flanders Red range. IBUs of 10 and ABV at 7%, somewhat high for the style as some lambics check in at 3% or less. This would have been $9 for an 8 ounce pour () so, for the "waiting for dinner beverage," I moved on to..

More tomorrow.

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Belgian Strong Dark (draft)-pFriem Family Brewers

Drink indigenously!

Why not sample before you buy? The beertender was kind enough to pull a 2 ounce sample before completing my take-away purchase.

He managed to put a one inch, tan head on the small pour . Dark brown color with alluring aromas of dark fruits, toffee and dark rum. Tastes of milk chocolate dipped cherries, raisins, dates and figs with a warming, rummy (not added or aged) finish. Not labeled a quad but that's what it most resembled. IBUs at 38 and ABV was 10%. Glad I only had a taste but, if forced, I'd have another 8 ounces for $6. Pairing? A 12 ounce snifter would be fine.

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Super Saison (draft)-pFriem Family Brewers

Another taster before purchase .

Same zip code.

Pour was slightly cloudy and straw-yellow. Modest, meringue-like head. Nose of straw, not fully ripe pears and apples and a whiff of spice. Tastes of the same with some lemon and a grain or two of freshly ground black pepper. I'd have never guessed the IBUs of 38 (I actually had this before the Belgian Strong Dark above) and super because the ABV was 9.5%, rather high for the style. Wouldn't hesitate a moment to order a full pour of this one either. I'd pair with a fruit plate/dessert or a salmon BLT.