New Beers For The New Year

Forgive the delay on some of these, I was busy spending Christmas in the frozen beer-wasteland of Minnesota. Strangely, it was warmer there than it was in PDX for the first couple days, and they had less snow...

It wasn't a total bust; our hotel ended up being less than a mile from Blue Max, one of Minnnesota's premier bottle shops. I managed to squirrel away a few bottles and cans (mmm, Surly) in my checked luggage to share with people here.

Like another unexpected load of snow (or hail?!?), the new year starts off strong with some incredible new beers from here and abroad.

Gouden Carolus Cuvee Van de Kaiser Rood (red label): (commercial description) - To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the "Cuvée van de Keizer Blauw", the brewery launched a blond-version : Cuvée van de Keizer Rood. This beer is similar to the previous Gouden Carolus Easter Beer. Blond rich beer that is brewed each year during the easter period. It contains several types of malt and during brewing 3 herbs are added. It's golden blond colour, it's high alcohol concentration of 10 %, it's full and balanced taste make this beer into a source of vitality and strength which will appeal to the demanding beer taster. For ideal tasting pour out gently in one pull to a temperature round 7-8° C. Served with pride it is drunken with respect. This pleasant golden blond beer is chosen for he who loves a richer, somewhat spicy and refreshing beer.

Gouden Carolus Hopsinjoor: This pale beauty encompasses all that is right in the world of Belgian beers; a radiant orange color, a massive white head that leaves a trail of lace down the glass, and a complexity of flavors that can only come from Belgian yeasts. If you enjoy Taras Boubla, Urthel Hop-It, or Houblon Chouffe you owe it to yourself to try the Hopsinjoor.

Malheur 10: (commercial description) - 10% abv – re-fermented and bottle-conditioned Full bodied, medium strong, gold coloured beer, with a rich honey-like texture, and a pleasant warming, slightly hoppy-dry lingering aftertaste

Malheur 12: (Commercial Description) - 12% vol.alc. – re-fermented and bottle-conditioned Rich, dark coloured beer, with a wonderful hoppy, floral nose and well-balanced flavours, making it easy to drink.

Deschutes Buzzsaw Brown: This is a pretty respectable, if somewhat boring brown ale. A translucent brown body capped in beige foam leads to biscuity malt character and a smooth, nutty finish. Good for those spring days when it's too cold for a pils and too warm for an imperial stout.

Bridgeport Beertown Brown: (commercial description) - Roasted chocolate and pale malts shake hands creating mild caramel flavors. Brown is your new reason to love beer. Hops are added to create the perfect balance of sweetness to hopiness. Brown is back... and it's beautiful. The only thing I can add is that the beer is much better than the silly name...

Bakalar Czech Lager: A crisp, slightly sweet Czech pilsner. Simple and effective.

Leinenkugel's 1888 Bock: (commercial description) - Leinenkugel 1888 Bock, a lucisous brew, originally created to serve lumberjacks, will be available for all who want to try its excellent boutique of Caramel, Pale and two-row Chocolate malts. Cluster hops add a touch of citrus character and when combined with Munich malts and a 20- to 25-day cold lagering process, you have a truly timeless beer.

Stone/Nogne O/Jolly Pumpkin Holiday Ale: Pours a deep amber/brown color with a white foamy head and nice lacing. Aroma of spice, spice, and more spice. The smooth caramel malt body supports the wide array of spices and hops. A nice full-bodied mouthfeel leads to a moderately hoppy finish that drags traces of nutmeg and carraway along for the ride.

Stone Cali-Belgique IPA: Stone IPA meets Belgian yeast. Fruity, hoppy, and oh so delicious...

Nonge O Dark Horizon (2nd Edition): The first edition of Dark Horizon was one of the most intensly beers I've ever had. Coffee, roast malt, smoke, mollasses, and alcohol collided in a hedonistic expression of the brewers art. The label for the second edition suggest waiting until fall of 2009 for it to properly meld and round out. Do you have the patience?

That's it for now, but a little birdie told me to expect cans from Oskar Blues next week, and a keg of Gordon was delivered to the (painfully smoke-free) Horse Brass today, so it may already be on tap by the time you read this.

Speaking of a smoke-free Brass, I'd like to leave you with this great photo by Anand Barnard, compliments of the Willamette Week flikr stream:

We are open!

Just a quick note to let everyone know that we are open for business today until 10pm. We will be open tomorrow from 10-6pm.

Travel safely!

Widmer Drifter Coming Soon

Last night one of our loyal customers was kind enough to drop by with a sample of the Brothers' latest creation, the new Drifter Pale Ale. It's hard to get excited about a simple pale ale, but I gotta say I thought the stuff was delicious. So good in fact that I forgot to take any notes while I was drinking and it was gone before I knew it. Oh well, I suppose we'll just have to wait until it comes out (in late January I'm told) and try it again.

In other news, we're open for business at the moment, but if you're planning on coming this evening I'd suggest calling us at 503.232.8538 before you head out.

Cheers!

The Dark Others

Let's not forget about the other thick, robust, and chewy beers whose names aren't Abyss, Dark Lord, or Entire...there's a healthy divergency of other distinctly qu/affable brews to sate your esurience for grubbin' goodness during these snowy hyperborean times. These are sapid specialties to not overlook.


Trappiste Rochefort 10: Any monk-blessed brew is a keeper for certain, but the Rochefort 10 stands in a league of its own alongside the ranks of the rarefied and regal West Vleteren 12 and the saintly Bernardus apt brew. A deep, nutty, pitchy chestnut character topped by a lasting beige head certifies this recipe as a distinct worldly wonder. Earthy, smoky, yeast, and layered with candied effervescence, the Roch-10 is a means to treat ones self to the utmost wonderment in craft beer.






Moylans Ryan O'Sullivan's Imperial Stout: Thick dark beer to chew on. this self-proclaimed cigar stout holds smokey and fruity undertones. Clean and very enjoyable from a snifter, Ryan's private reserve is one beer containing a distinct cacao and cherry nip. Finishing slightly dry and wholly gritty and lovable during the dark and cold months, this nearly coagulates as it percolates in your aperture. For the price, this beer rivals all of those highly hyped hearty, husky objects of study with the allure of barrel-aging and the like. This Imp Stout is simply a complex standout.





Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter: Imperial Porter? More like an Imp Stout. In fact, this big dark, beautiful brew was awarded a 2008 World Beer Cup gold medal in the Imp Stout category. Crystal, chocolate, and black malt makes for a ballsy Dr. Hunter S. Thompson inspired brew that delivers on a promise to "bite you in the ass if you don't show it the proper respect." The folks at Flying Dog claim this beer is also perfect with cigars ablaze as it undoubtedly pairs rich chocolate and hearty beef slabs. Like the late good doctor, this beer is deep, daring, and complex.





Victory Storm King Imperial Stout: Aphotic, atramentous and highly advisable brew from Downington, Pennsylvania's killer brewery that pushes out fat beers like Hop Wallop Double IPA and Old Horizontal Barleywine. Storm King is a hugely hopped, roasty, dark black Imp Stout. Victory claims this beer to possess "more flavor than mere words can adequately describe" which might seem amplificated, but the claims that the King "will warm your heart" are obviously warranted. 9.1% ABV, it is easy to see how a barrel aging and/or a wax dipped bottle could escalate the price of this special beer to a high level. However, this beer remains a year-round paramour.

So there you have it, four wonderfully deep, dark, delish brews with oomph.

Recent Arrivals

Even ice and snow can't keep the good beer from reaching us. Just be sure to drive carefully (or take Trimet) so you can get home safely with your new found treasures. Speaking of Trimet, we're 4 blocks north of the #15 (get off at 45th and Belmont) and 5 blocks south of the #20 (get off at 44rd and Burnside), so even if you don't feel like driving you should be able to reach us fairly easily. That said, here's a few new things to drool over while you're snowed in...

New American Beers:

The Bruery Partridge in a Pear Tree: Based on the text of the back label it appears that The Bruery is beginning a "12 Days of Christmas" series. The first verse is a Belgian-style quadrupel, which seems like a fitting choice for something that's designed to be held onto for 11 more years. As it stands now it's a little bit under-carbonated, but I'd guess that was an intentional choice to keep the beer from becoming over-carbonated at some point down the line.

Lakefront East Side Dark: (Commercial Description) "The rich, coffee-like aroma and flavor of this fine Dark Bavarian style lager beer is derived from a precise blending of three different specialty barley malts: chocolate, black patent, and Munich malt. Munich malt is also added to bring about the creamy body of this malty brew that has an original gravity of 1060. The most impressive aspect of this brew is the perfect balance between the specialty malts and coveted Mt. Hood hops. Unlike many other dark beers, East Side Dark doesn't have the bitter aftertaste associated with it. Instead, your palate is greeted with the rich body and balanced flavor that only this beer can deliver."

Avery 14er ESB: (Commercial Description) "Named for the 54 Colorado peaks which tower over 14,000 feet in elevation, our session beer is a spectacular copper hued beauty. The treatment of our water to simulate English hard water and the blending of several specialty malts and hops produce a delicate balance between aromatic maltiness and herbal hops."

Avery Ellie's Brown: (Commercial Description) "This beautiful, deep russet brew has the sweet and somewhat nutty character of Adam Avery's late (1992-2002) Chocolate Lab, for which it is named. Crystal and chocolate malts give this beer a brown sugar maltiness with hints of vanilla and nuts, while subtle hopping gives it an overall drinkability that's second to none, just like Ellie!"

Sam Adams Chocolate Bock: (Commercial Description) Samuel Adams partnered with Scharffen Berger Chocolate to develop their newest innovation, Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock. Tettnang Tettnanger and Spalt hops were hand-selected from the world's oldest growing area and combined with a complex selection of malts including two row Pale, Munich and caramel to create a rich and satisfying brew. This dark beer has a big, malty character that is combined with the subtle sweetness of chocolate. The chocolatiers at Scharffen Berger crafted an exclusive blend of chocolate for Samuel Adams made with cocoa beans from Ghana called forastero. Samuel Adams Chocolate Bock was aged on a bed of this chocolate to create its unique layers of flavor. As the beer matured, the fruity, tart, earthy and chocolate aromas were infused into the liquid to give the brew a complex, full-bodied taste with a velvety finish. A hint of vanilla was added to meld the symphony of flavors together.

Woodchuck Oak Aged Cider: Personall I thought this stuff was painfully sweet, but no more so than any of the other varieties of Woodchuck. It does have the slightest hint of oak character to it, but as the cider warms up the residual sugar starts to dominate and it's hard to get past it. If sweet cider is your thing it's definitely worth a shot, otherwise I'd suggest moving on to something drier.

Heater Allen Sandy Paws Baltic Porter: (Commercial Description) "Our Christmas beer. This year's Sandy Paws will be a Baltic Porter - think Dopplebock with more roasted flavors. Big, roasty, malty. A great beer to sit by the fire with. (1.022 BG, 6.60%, 32 IBU, 30 SRM)"

New Old Lompoc C-Note Imperial Pale Ale: Now available in 22oz bottles! For most Portlanders this beer needs no introduction, but for the unfamiliar it can be summed up in one word: HOPS. A huge load of "C hops" (Centennial, Crystal, Cluster, Chinook, Cascade, and Columbus) induces lupulin-based euphoria and the 7% abv is tucked under the smooth, creamy malt profile where you won't notice it until it's too late.

New Old Lompoc Special Draft (aka LSD): I have a feeling that this beer would be flying off the shelves at a much faster rate had the folks at NOL been able to write "LSD" in drippy, psychedelic lettering on the label. But this is America, and the TTB wouldn't want people to get confused and think there's LSD-25 in the beer, so they were forced to drop the distinctive logo seen on tap handles across Portland and change the name from "Strong Draft" to "Special Draft". Other than that, it's the same strong, hoppy, and slightly smoky brew you know and love, now in a convenient take-home package. We postponed the NOL bottle release and tasting until Monday the 22nd, so cross your fingers and hope the weather is a little more agreeable by then.

New Imports:

Unibroue Taster 4-pack #1 (6% series): This gift set contains one bottle each of the Raftman (smoked ale), Chambly Noire (black ale), Blanche de Chambly (witbier), and Ephemere (Belgian ale with apples). With the exception of the Ephemere, none of these is available in Oregon, so it's a great way to try some of Unibroue's other offerings.

Unibroue Taster 4-Pack #2 (9% series): The "strong pack" contains one each of Maudite, Trois Pistoles, Don de Dieu, and La Fin du Monde. If you're new to the Unibroue line up you should definitely check this one out.

Haandbryggeriet Nissefar: (commercial description) This beer is full of all the dark malts that we have at hand and displays a full and complex malt taste, almost reaching in to the porter style. It has a balanced fruitiness from hops with a good mouth feel and smoothness, and a lingering aftertaste of roasted malts.

(Struise T'sjeeses: (commercial description) "Deep to orange blond abbey triple winter beer which has been lagered for 8 months on different stone fruits. Tsjeeses was born out of a 5 year brew experience regarding x-mas beer without being capable of finding a suitable name up to now. With the name came a face, a caricature actually, that was drawn on the day Urbain, our brew master and master brewer, drank too many Tsjeeses's. Every time he drinks one, he says "Tsjeeses, what a beer". Therefore the name is more an expression of stupefaction than a curse. We have had already many discussions around the pronounciation of "Tsjeeses". Very close would be that you say "cheeses" or cheese in plural.

Dieu de Ciel Solstice d'Hiver: Mmmm, barleywine. Nothing says "cold weather sipper" like a glass of strong, warming nectar. I've yet to try a bad beer from DdC, and this one is no slouch either. Low carbonation, subdued alchohol presence, and a full body encourage you to take your time and savor the season.

Olfabrikken Winter Porter: Apparently it's a spiced Baltic porter brewed with honey and cold fermented, which sounds delicious. I'll be drinking one of these in a little bit, so I'll try and update this post ASAP with some more info.

Returning Favorites:

Chimay Grand Reserve Magnums: Same Chimay, bigger bottle.

De Ranke Pere Noel: This hoppy Belgian delight never lasts long, so don't delay is you want to grab a bottle or two.

Reindeer's Revolt: This English strong ale is from Ridgeway, the same brewery responsible for the whimsical "Bad Elf" line of Christmas brews that have become popular the last couple years. I'm not sure why it arrived months later than the others, but it's back and ready to get stuffed into someone's stocking.

Weltenburger Wintertraum: Most German brewers eschew spices, fruits, and other adjuncts in an attempt to follow the Reinheitsgebot, so there's not much room for creativity when it comes to seasonals. None the less, Weltenburger has crafted a wonderfully full-bodied Vienna lager to capture the warmth of the season.

Redstone Vanilla/Cinnamon mead: Mmm, fermented honey with spices. Simple, clean, and potent, which is just what you need after spending the day with your family...

Kulmbacher Monchshof Weinacht Lager (5 liter mini-keg): The Weinacht flows from the minikeg with a deep golden hue and a frothy white cap, reminiscent of the picture of Santa on the outside. It's medium-bodied and has a fairly pronounced "cookie dough" malt character along with light herbal and citrus hop notes in finish. Bring this smooth, easy drinking beer to your next holiday party and see if you can find a couple of elves to do a mini-keg stand!

That'll do it for now. There's more snow coming, so stay warm and safe out there...