This really only applies, I suppose, if you're local to (Central) Oregon. But my friend Simone is having a big garage sale this weekend, and they're getting rid of some homebrewing equipment, and as a favor I'm running the list here if anyone's interested:

• Primary Fermenter (5 gallon carboy)
• Stainless Steel Soda Tank (5g)
• Aluminum Keg (5g)
• Bottling Kit
• Black Metal Wart Cooker (5g)
• Copper Coil (wort chiller)

Anyone have any interest? Contact me if you do and I'll put you in touch.

I get various press releases and such sent to me, most of which I run, but they're always about beer. But today, I got one promoting Magners Irish Cider. I'm out of the cider loop, so even though it's a typical PR piece, it was interesting enough for me to comment on it.

Here's the meat of it:

This year, many Americans will be picking up the Irish tradition of drinking Magners Irish Cider "over ice."

Magners is the only hard cider imported from Ireland and has a crisp, refreshing taste. Often referred to as the "wine of Ireland," Magners is less filling than beer, more refreshing than wine, and not as sweet as artificially flavored malt beverages. Additionally, Magners is 100% naturally Gluten free, providing refreshment for over 3 million US consumers who cannot drink beer.

Magners is made from juice derived from 17 varieties of apples which are grown in Clonmel, Ireland, and specifically chosen for cider production. Magners has 4.5% alcohol and only 215 calories per pint bottle. Magners is now available in over 20 states in pint bottles, draught and 11oz bottles. A pint bottle will run anywhere between $5.50 and $7.00.

The interesting points to me:

• The "only hard cider imported from Ireland"—is it really? Is there much in the way of Irish cider in general?
• Gluten free, which I can see being a big selling point (though all cider is/should be gluten free).
• 17 varieties of apples(!).

Perhaps I should start checking out the cider segment of the market.

Deep Cover Brown Ale. Left Hand Brewing. I hate to say it, but right off the bat Left Hand commits the cardinal website sin: an all-Flash site. Even worse, the front "page" of the site is an age verification check—and regular readers know how I just love those. I hate to go off on a tangent here, but having an all-Flash site is about the worst kind of web presence a brewery could have; there are no direct URLs to link to, I can't copy and paste text at all, there's no accessibility, it's resource-intensive...

Okay, enough. I'll write a Beer Hacker article soon on the subject. In the meantime, back to the beer.

It's an English Brown Ale, very easy drinking at 4.23% alcohol by volume. It came with my Beer of the Month selection earlier in the year.

Appearance: Deep copper-brown beer with a thin and fizzy cola head that fell almost right away.

Smell: Very prominent notes of caramel and roasted brown malts. A touch of chocolate, maybe hazelnut.

Taste: Nutty and buttery, with a nice interplay of some lightly caramelized sugars and roasty, coffee-like grains. Not burnt in character at all, though—it's much more of a roasted nut / toasted granola character. Sweet with very little hop character.

Mouthfeel: Smooth, a little syrupy though it's lighter than medium-bodied.

Overall: Very pleasant nut brown ale—roasty without being harsh or astringent or burnt at all. Tasty.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B. On RateBeer, it scores 2.99 out of 5, and is in their 43rd percentile.

This isn't the typical type of press release I usually get from Anheuser-Busch; but it's a worthwhile effort so I'm running it.

As Teens Gear Up for Prom and Graduation, Retailers Employ Tools to Prevent Sales to Minors

“No Sale, No How, No Way.” It’s what teens who may attempt to buy alcohol during prom and graduation season will hear from retailers who are on alert and committed to helping prevent underage drinking. That’s according to a new poll that shows preventing minors from obtaining alcohol is a priority for those who sell or serve it. According to the Retailer Exchange survey, the vast majority of America’s retailers are doing their part to help prevent underage drinking. In fact, 93 percent report using ID-checking materials and consider them effective in preventing alcohol sales to individuals under 21 years of age.

Read full press release

Consider this my Cinco de Mayo post—though I actually missed the boat on the beer and was drinking some "Jose Cuervo Golden" margaritas. (The pre-mixed one they sell, rather than homemade.)

Last week I noticed Trader Joe's had two new house beers under the label "Trader José's." They're Mexican style beers, a light and dark lager (think Corona and Dos Equis). Even though I'd made a mental note to pick some up for today, I didn't.

Instead, Mario on Brewed for Thought has a post today about them. With a picture, and worth the read.

Also, they show up on BeerAdvocate as well.

Otter Creek Pale Ale is the pale offering from the Vermont brewery of the same name. At 4.6% alcohol, it's definitely an easy-drinking session beer.

(I had received this as one of the February Beer of the Month beers.)

Appearance: Clear and copper-colored; head was generous and off-white, though fell quickly.

Smell: Doughy malt with a green hop scent... Cascade hops, though it's not as intense as Northwest Pales.

Taste: Crisp and bitter in the mouth, with a woody hop character. A bit earthy and spicy, too. Malt is pretty neutral.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied and very dry character from the hopping... nice crisp aftertaste from it.

Overall: Perfectly decent American Pale Ale, light and crisp... works as a casual beer, a warm-up, or a palate cleanser with the hop crispness.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B. On RateBeer, it scores 3.24 out of 5 and is in their 65th percentile.

First Friday of the month means it's time for The Session! That's when (beer) bloggers across the web all write about a selected theme having to do with beer.

This month's topic comes to us from London-based Boak and Bailey: How did it all start for you?

Continuing the “Beervangelism” theme, we’d like you to write about the moment when you saw the light. At what point did you realise you were a beer lover / geek / enthusiast? What beer(s) triggered the conversion? Did someone help you along your way, or did you come to it yourself?

In short; how did you get into good beer?

I have two answers, and I can't say for sure which came first because the mists of time have worked their magic on my memory and my chronology is a bit mixed up. Both answers related to things happening within a fairly short period of each other which is why I can't quite remember... it's a bit of a "chicken and egg" problem in that sense, I guess.

It was the mid nineties, we were living in Spokane, and—being in my early twenties and going to school—the cheaper the beer I could get, the better. Sadly, I was a big drinker of Keystone Light, mostly because it was available at Costco for $7.99 per case. But I wasn't overly particular; sometimes I'd "splurge" and pick up Miller Genuine Draft—in bottles!—and at some point I graduated to Molson Ice. (Had the higher alcohol content, natch.)

I was certainly aware of the existence of craft beers; Deschutes was a big thing in my home town of Bend, and I'd probably tried various micros from time to time. But—well, it's a familiar story, so I won't bore you any more with it.

One of the first things to raise my beer awareness and start me down the path was my friend Geoff insisting I try some microbrewed beer one night while we were at Ichabod's North, and he bought a pitcher of Widmer Hefeweizen. The beer was orange and cloudy and smelled like fresh bread. My first impressions: thick, yeasty, bready, crisp, bracing, and the most delicious beer to pass my lips ever, at that point. Seriously, it was that good, and it really opened my eyes to what was happening with craft beer.

The other thing that happened was my introduction to homebrew. This was around the same time, and my friend Justin—who was also getting into good beer—brought over some homebrewed beer that a friend of his had made. It was Toad Spit Stout, the Irish stout recipe from Charlie Papazian's New Complete Joy of Homebrewing. (Yes, I intentionally linked to the second-edition version knowing perfectly well there's been a revised edition released.)

That Stout was far better than I frankly expected it to be, and opened my eyes to homebrewing the same way that Widmer's Hefeweizen opened my eyes to microbrew. I was hooked. I bought Papazian's book and it became my bible. I started homebrewing—clumsily at first, naturally—and explored Spokane's tiny craft beer scene.

(A big help in this was Jim's Homebrew—the best beer and homebrewing store in Spokane. Not only a homebrewing store, they had (have) several big refrigerator cases filled with craft and import beers—so I got to try a lot more beer than I would have otherwise (there were no other stores in Spokane at that time offering a variety even remotely like Jim's).)

After that, I had the bug. Ever since I'm always looking to try new beers, new breweries, and learn something new. Back in 2004, I went online and "officially" launched The Brew Site... and the rest, as they say, is history.

Two Oregon Breweries Win Grand Champion Brewery Awards at the 2008 World Beer Cup

Five Portland breweries claimed a total of nine medals at the 2008 World Beer Cup held Saturday, April 19th in San Diego, California giving Portland the distinction of being the most medaled city in the world’s most prestigious international brewing competition.

BridgePort Brewing Co., Hopworks Urban Brewery, Pyramid Breweries and Widmer Brothers Brewing Co. led the way with two medals each. Laurelwood Brewing Co. claimed one medal from the elite panel of international judges who awarded 268 medals from among the 2,864 different beers from 644 breweries across 91 beer styles.

Highlights from the 2008 World Beer Cup included two Oregon brewmasters winning the prestigious Grand Champion Brewery award. Grand Champion Brewery awards are awarded in five different brewery size categories.

Read full press release

(With apologies to Stan's "Monday Morning Musings" and Rick's "Tuesday Tastings" and others who have themes of that sort. "Tuesday Tidbits" is not going to be a regular named feature here. I don't think. I just liked the alliteration.)

→ Don't forget this Friday, May 2nd, is the 15th Session. The topic is "How did it all start for you?"

→ I've been drinking through an old six-pack of novelty beer from Las Vegas—from the "Vegas Valley Brewing Company" (which no longer exists, and warrants a longer post)—that I picked up at least eight years ago, I think. Needless to say, it was stored poorly and the beer didn't make it. I diligently took notes on the first three I drank, though, and I'll have quite a bit more to write about it. The moral of the story: two things. First, beer is meant to be drank, not (necessarily) saved. Second, if you're going to save beer, cellar it properly!

→ Lots of blogger reactions to the news of Magic Hat Brewing buying Pyramid Brewing. I don't really have anything to add to the story—everyone else is doing a great job with it—other than to (selfishly) hope that we might see some Magic Hat beers filter out to the west coast sometime soon...

Go Oregon brewers! :)

Figures released today [April 24th, actually] by the Oregon Brewers Guild show 2007 was a banner year for Oregon’s craft brewing industry as production across the state grew at a rate of 8.1 percent. Total beer production for the state was approximately 860,000 barrels, or 285 million bottles of beer. That is an increase of more than 64,000 barrels, up from 796,000 barrels in 2006.

The industry posted strong growth despite increases in hop and barley prices, the two main ingredients in craft beer. Portland, Oregon currently has 32 microbreweries within its city limits, more than any other city in the world. The state of Oregon has 64 brewing companies operating 90 brewing facilities, with strong growth anticipated throughout 2008.

“The impact of the brewing industry stretches far beyond the breweries themselves,” said Brian Butenschoen, Executive Director of the Oregon Brewers Guild. “A strong production year supports a variety of local products including barley, hops, yeast and glass producers as well as providing nearly 5,000 family wage jobs and a draw for tourism across the state.”

Oregonians don’t just love to make great beer, they love to drink it, too. Of the beer brewed in-state, more than 11.4 percent, or 308,000 barrels, were purchased and consumed in Oregon. For draft beer, that percentage is even higher, with Oregon breweries producing 42 percent of all draft beer consumed in the state. This is the highest percentage of local craft draft beer consumption in the country. 2007 marks the first year that Oregon brewers have sold more than 300,000 barrels in state. A barrel is equal to 31 gallons or 13.77 cases or 331 bottles of beer.

“For years we’ve been producing some of the best and most unique beers in the world,” says Oregon Brewers Guild President Van Havig. “No wonder Oregon is known as Beervana and has become a mecca for craft beer enthusiasts.”

Oregon’s largest craft beer producer is Widmer Brothers Brewing Company of Portland, which produced 283,000 barrels in 2007. During 2007 one of Oregon's smallest breweries to open, the Heater-Allen Brewery in McMinnville, produced 36 Barrels.

The Oregon Brewers Guild is Oregon’s non-profit trade association for the state’s independent breweries. The Guild, which receives no state funding, comprises 59 brewing companies, 30 associate or supplier members and more than 1,860 enthusiast members or S.N.O.B.s (Supporters of Native Oregon Beer). For more information, see www.oregonbeer.org.

I've been remiss in posting this press release, and I promised I would (I got sidetracked with Theme Week). St. Louis' second annual Heritage Festival is coming up May 8 through 10, and Anheuser-Busch and their "Here's to Beer" campaign is a big proponent of it. In fact, A-B even offered to pay my way if I wanted to go—though I couldn't make it.

There are even some photos of last year's event after the jump.

If you missed last year’s inaugural St. Louis Brewers Heritage Festival held in the city’s historic Forest Park, then picture great beer and delicious food from some of the area’s finest restaurants, and 15,000 adults underneath blue skies enjoying various beer styles and toasting with friends. The festival proved to be one of the most popular new events in 2007 for both beer aficionados and those new to the beer scene, and should be on every St. Louisan’s “must attend” list this year.

Continue reading

Lakefront's stout offering is their Fuel Cafe, which is brewed with coffee from (and for) the actual Fuel Cafe in Milwaukee.

That's actually about all I can tell you about this beer. It's nearly 6% alcohol and there is a lot of coffee character going on here—is it caffeinated, perhaps?

Appearance: Nice and black; when I held it to the light, there's a bit of cola brown at the edges. Head was brown and broke down relatively quickly.

Smell: Black roasted malts and dry-roasted coffee... a hint of smoke; oily.

Taste: Nicely dry and bitter with a creamy "coffee syrup" kind of thing going on. Pleasant and drinkable, a solid dry stout.

Mouthfeel: Firm and dry, fairly smooth. Not too chewy but a nice presence.

Overall: Solid, back-to-basics stout. The coffee adds a nice character.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B-. On RateBeer, it scores 3.11 out of 5 and is in their 53rd percentile.

Lakefront's Eastside Dark, a dark lager (Dunkel Lager), is the type of beer I imagine the nineteenth-century German brewers were producing in America—and in Milwaukee in particular—prior to the introduction of the Pilsner.

Their own description of this beer:

The rich, coffee-like aroma and flavor of this fine, dark, Bavarian style lager is derived from a precise blending of three different specialty barley malts. Unlike many other dark beers, East Side Dark doesn't have a bitter aftertaste. Instead, your palate is greeted with the rich body and balanced flavor that only this beer can deliver. Art in brewed form.

I don't honestly know about "art in brewed form"—I can think of a few beers that I would apply that to—but it's still a fine beer. 5.52% alcohol by volume.

I originally reviewed this beer back in 2006; read that here. I wasn't originally very impressed, but this time around was much more positive.

Appearance: Dark brown in color—mostly opaque but with red-orange edges. Tan, putty-colored head.

Smell: Bready and grainy—almost a rye and molasses character. Grassy hop notes, kind of like green wheat.

Taste: Lots of grain and malt notes... rye/pumpernickel. Some chocolate, some light coffee, rich brothy notes. Clean with a bit of a tang.

Mouthfeel: Clean, medium-bodied, a tad astringent from darker malts.

Overall: Enjoyable, drinkable.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B. On RateBeer, it scores 3.24 out of 5, and is in their 65th percentile.

I've mentioned before how Oktoberfest is one of my favorite styles, and Lakefront's version is a worthy contribution.

Again, not much more to say... it's a pretty straightforward beer. At 5.7% alcohol, it won't knock you down.

Appearance: Hazy orange color tinged with gold and topped by an off-white, creamy head.

Smell: Malty with a touch of darker malts and a slight sourness. Otherwise, fairly clean with a light hop profile (very light).

Taste: Rich and malty with dark breads and a hint of spiciness. Sweet and buttery. A bit lighter than I'd be expecting in the style, but it doesn't detract at all.

Mouthfeel: Lightly medium-bodied with some nicely complex structures going on in the sweet body.

Overall: It's a tasty example of the style... I'd be happy to drink it again.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B-. On RateBeer, it scores 2.84 out of 5, and is in their 32nd percentile.

Lakefront's Organic ESB is a USDA-certified organic ale, one of their better-known beers.

I actually don't have much in the way of history or witty anecdotes or factoids for this beer like I did for the previous ones, other than to point out that this was the first certified organic beer in the U.S., introduced in 1996.

And, it's a good beer.

Appearance: Very clear nutty brown color with a tan head.

Smell: Buttery, toffee, English bitter style... Ringwood yeast? Fruity notes... green apple, berries, moderately tart.

Taste: Nutty and bitter, but not too bitter... toasty, biscuity malt with a hint of chocolate. Hops are English—mildly spicy and pleasantly earthy.

Mouthfeel: Firm, medium-bodied with a touch of dryness in the finish.

Overall: Very drinkable and tasty... almost a nut brown ale.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B-. On RateBeer, it scores 2.84 out of 5, and is in their 32nd percentile. Obviously, that's not a stunning recommendation from that site; considering the first bunch of reviews on the page are positive, I'm not sure what to make of that.

The supplemental name for Lakefront's Riverwest Stein Beer on the label is "All Malt Amber Lager." This is their flagship beer, of which they say:

The rich amber color and smooth flavor are derived from the generous amount of caramel malt, with just a dash of roasted unmalted barley for a subtle toasted flavor in the background. The sweetness, body, and mouth feel tell you this is an all-malt beer. The finish has a balanced hoppiness which cuts through the malty character, leaving a clean palate which beckons for more.

Initially I wondered if the "Stein" in the name was a reference to Steinbier, the German lager style that was a description of the process: heated stones were dropped into the wort to bring it to a boil. Here's a bit about it from the German Beer Institute site:

Steinbier means "stone beer" in German.... The hot-stone method, therefore, was the only way the wort could be brought to a boil. Beer boiled this way also tasted different from "normal" beer, because the rocks, when dropped into the brew, scorched and caramelized some of the malt sugars.

As intriguing as that sounds, I think it's too elaborate for a major American brewery to bother with for a flagship beer. In this case I think "stein" refers to the mug variety and not the red herring that I followed. On to my notes.

Appearance: Lives up to its name ["Amber Lager"]... dark amber in color, fairly clear. Nice cream-colored head.

Smell: Clean and malty with mild caramel and a hint of butterscotch.

Taste: Bold with lots of roasty malt characteristics up front—almost a smoky character to it... finishes dry without any tang. Definitely makes an impression but it's tough for me to nail down any specifics... I'm thinking there's some malts in here that I'm not familiar with.

Mouthfeel: Big bold body here as well, even though it's more medium-bodied than anything. Finishes clean and dry.

Overall: "Steinbier" may have influenced my impressions... but this is a big beer full of character. Enjoyable.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B+. On RateBeer, it scores 3.45 out of 5 and is in their 81st percentile.

So, Cattail Ale from Lakefront Brewery... this is an interesting one, because I was under the impression that it was a totally different style than the Brewery itself suggests. And that's weird because I rather quite like it as the misunderstood style.

First, here's what Lakefront says:

This recipe is a true craft ale brewed with only water, yeast, hops and malted barley.
A Wisconsin style mild ale with a vibrant golden amber hue, a refreshing body, and a sweet, malty aroma.
Perfect for summer, but delicious any time!

All good, right? Even BeerAdvocate says it's an "English Pale Mild Ale."

Here's the thing... I totally thought it was a Belgian style ale. Like a Saison. That was based purely on my tasting of the beer, without knowing really anything about it. (My notes below reflect this.) So... what does that mean?

Nothing! It means I liked this beer and I'd drink it again. There's been some rumbling lately on the blogs about over-analyzing and over-categorizing beers (which I've been as guilty of as anybody), so rather than make a big deal about it, I'm just going to go with the sane, logical message to come out of it all: If the beer's good, then just enjoy it and drink more.

Appearance: Pale golden color, slightly hazy, slightly orange. Head is off-white, one finger's worth and abated quickly.

Smell: Wheaty with a sour—pleasantly sour—note; reminds me of Belgian funk in a good way. Is this a Saison?

Taste: Saison-y and peppery-spicy, a pleasant surprise since I didn't know this was supposed to be in the Belgian style. A bit of sour, a bit of crisp wheat, and a hint of raw bread dough. Lemongrass, spices... maybe coriander, maybe cardamom.

Mouthfeel: Crisp, on the light side, but with a nice edgy bite from the spiciness.

Overall: What a pleasant surprise... this is a well-done Belgian [Saison] and is enjoyable to drink.

On BeerAdvocate, this only scores a grade of C+. On RateBeer, they're even less kind, scoring it 2.66 out of 5 and it's only in their 22nd percentile. And it seems that the reviews are a bit schizophrenic, as well... I still like this beer, but I have to wonder if it's consistent from batch to batch?

Cream City Pale Ale is Lakefront Brewery's American Pale Ale offering. The first thing to notice on their page is this note about the name:

Named after the cream colored bricks used to build Milwaukee.

Which for me, not being from (nor having ever been to) Milwaukee, is interesting enough to explore a little further. According to Wikipedia, one of the nicknames of the city is indeed "Cream City", and this page tells the story.

Milwaukee masons have used these locally fired bricks since the first brick homes were built in the area in the late 1830s. By the 1850's, word of Milwaukee's cream-colored bricks had spread throughout the Midwest, and demand increased dramatically....

Milwaukee's brick making boom lasted well into the 1870's. More and more of the city's buildings were constructed of the local bricks, to a point that visitors could not help but notice the overwhelming cream coloration of the city. As a result, it was during this era that the city became known as the "Cream City," and the bricks in turn became universally known as "Cream City bricks."

Beer notes and historical trivia. What more could you ask for?

BeerAdvocate pegs this beer at 5.68% alcohol, and that's where I pulled the "American Pale Ale" designation from as well. But as I was drinking it and taking notes, it really struck me as more of an English style Pale Ale. That is, it doesn't have the "American flair" that typifies the APA these days...

Appearance: Clear amber-brown; slightly off-white head. The appearance makes me think "amber lager."

Smell: Malty, lightly hopped, and a touch buttery (diacetyl). Fairly clean, maybe a bare hint of copper (or something metallic).

Taste: Steel cut hops overlaying lightly roasted malts; it's got a hard-water bitterness that seems to me to be a combination of English earthy hops and roasted barley.

Mouthfeel: Crisp and edgy; medium-bodied. The hops/malt bitterness leaves a dry, lasting (though mild) bitterness in the mouth.

Overall: Almost more of an Amber Ale than a Pale Ale, though I'm splitting hairs... it also has what seems to me the clean and bitter profile of a lager. Decent, though nothing extravagant... comes across as more "English" than "American" in style.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B. On RateBeer, it scores 3.28 out of 5 and is in their 68th percentile.

Here's something odd: as I write this, Lakefront Brewery's page for their White Beer is blank. Not completely blank—there's a header and the logo and menu stuff at the top—but the content area is empty. Not sure what to make of it—just big white space for the White Beer?

Yeah, not so much.

Anyway, this is their Belgian Witbier styled offering, brewed with coriander and orange peel and unfiltered. According to RateBeer it's 5.25% alcohol by volume.

I'd like to tell you more about this beer, but since there's nothing on the website, I'll just have to leave you with my tasting notes.

Appearance: Hazy straw (pale) yellow, with a crisp white head.

Smell: Delicately floral with coriander and lemongrass; lightly wheaty.

Taste: Grassy wheat with a hint of sourness and the delicate, crisp bite of coriander. A touch of bitterness. Light and tasty with the right level of sour fruitiness.

Mouthfeel: Light and refreshing, with a nice body from the unfiltered yeasty haze.

Overall: Very tasty, and the unfiltered aspect is excellent (I've had other Wits that are filtered—not as good). Would be perfect (naturally) on a hot summer day.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B+. On RateBeer, it scores 3.29 out of 5, and is in their 68th percentile.

It's the third Monday of the month, so that means it's Theme Week here at the Brew Site. For this month I'm reviewing the beers of Lakefront Brewery of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

This actually goes back to Pumpkin Beer Week last November; I reviewed Lakefront's Pumpkin Lager and noted that in addition to the pumpkin beer I had request, they sent along their eight beer variety pack. Unfortunately, I had not yet gotten around to writing about those beers so I decided to devote this month's Theme Week to doing so.

(Since writing about eight beers in a row would basically amount to the same thing anyway.)

Here's a picture of the variety pack box:

I've since seen this elsewhere, but when I received it, it was my first exposure to it. It's a great way to do a sampler pack, especially for a brewery that produces a large number of beers. And the box is sturdy and closes up tight, as well.

The beer from the pack (they don't quite match the packaging on the box):

• White Beer
• Cream City Pale Ale
• Cattail Ale
• Riverwest Stein Beer
• Organic ESB
• Oktoberfest
• Eastside Dark
• Fuel Cafe

That's the order I'll be posting the reviews, incidentally.

This month the latest Deschutes Brewery seasonal was released, and I received a package on my doorstep containing a bottle of it: Hop Henge. This year's batch is sporting a new recipe and a new style designation: Imperial IPA.

Head Brewer Brett Porter says, “This is a truly exciting and groundbreaking beer. We reformulated everything about the hop recipe to give Hop Henge an extraordinary aroma and flavor similar to a fresh hop beer.” In addition to the Cascade and Centennial hops, Deschutes Brewery is experimenting with a hop variety so new that it has yet to be named.

At 8.75% alcohol by volume—and offered up in the Bond Street Series of 22-ounce bomber bottles—this beer is nothing to sneeze at.

Appearance: Deep orange-copper in color, like a dark, clear honey. Dense, substantial two fingers of head piled up on top—and leaves a substantial lacing behind.

Smell: Bright, green, powdery hops, almost juicy in the nose. There are hints of a solid, malty backbone, but the hops dominate.

Taste: Strong, hoppy, bitter, resiny, a bit piney and green on the tongue. The hops permeate the malt, giving the impression of a sticky, almost syrupy hop extract. At the same time it's a rich, slightly roasty, slightly sweet malt base with a touch of the alcohol heat seeping through. A hint of oaky, woody character.

Mouthfeel: Bright, lively, rich and nearly full-bodied. A lingering, pungent hop presence in the aftertaste.

Overall: Excellent, excellent, excellent. Juicy and hoppy and tasty and bright. It doesn't go all scorched earth with the hopping, though—instead, this comes across as really well balanced despite the big hops.

On BeerAdvocate, there's a bit of a problem: there are two entries for Hop Henge: one "India Pale Ale" (the original) and one "Imperial IPA" which is marked as retired... however, both have current reviews in them. The first has a grade of A-, while the second has a B+.

On RateBeer there's a similar situation though they correctly have the Imperial IPA version as the current and active one: it scores 3.67 out of 5 and is in their 92nd percentile.

Cinder Cone Red is one of the popular seasonals from Deschutes Brewery, and I'm (finally!) posting my review of it from the promotional bottles I received from the Brewery last month. This year's version is sporting a new label, even.

Ironically, Lew Bryson reviewed this beer today as well. Sadly, he doesn't care for it overly much:

But after it came a heavy-handed rush of caramel malt, accompanied by a grainy, husky dryness — an addition of roasted barley is probably the source — that could have been an asset if it had been less insistent. It was almost enough to make me angry; this beautiful promise crushed by an overplayed hand.

I'm sorry to hear that. For my money, this is exemplary of the Northwest Red style we've come to love here out west; big hops with that twangy, caramel-roast malt character that leaves you dry. Myself, I liked it.

Appearance: Deep, amber brown—less red, more dirty penny copper. Creamy thick off-white head.

Smell: Nicely hoppy in the nose—spicy Amarillo punctuated by a caramel-sweet base.

Taste: Roast grain notes with crisp, dry hoppy bitterness right up front. Interplay of sweet crystal malts and herbal, spicy hops... tasty hop showcase without being over-hopped.

Mouthfeel: Dry, medium body with a crisp dry finish.

Overall: This is a classic Northwest ale, quite drinkable and a big local favorite.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B+. On RateBeer, it scores 3.65 out of 5 and is in their 92nd percentile.

Sea Dog and Shipyard Brewing Companies each took home a medal at the 2008 Australian International Beer Awards (AIBA) in Melbourne, Australia. AIBA is the showcase awards event in the Asia Pacific Region and 1,084 entries were received from 42 countries.

Shipyard Brewing Company’s Chamberlain Pale Ale won a Silver award in Class 3 – Ale Packaged - British Style Pale Ale. No Gold was given in this category. Last year, Chamberlain took home a Bronze medal in this same category.

Sea Dog Brewing Company’s Sea Dog Bluepaw Wild Blueberry Wheat Ale was awarded a Bronze in Class 17 – Fruit Beer Packaged. No Silver or Gold was given in this category. Bluepaw received this same award in last year’s competition.

Master brewer Alan Pugsley oversees the brewing for both these companies. Sea Dog and Shipyard beer is available in over 35 states across the U.S.

Adam over on the Beer Bits 2 blog is announcing/launching a new group blogging meme: Homebrew Blogging Day, inspired by The Session.

In an effort to foster a community of homebrew bloggers who share their experiences and wisdom I'm proposing a Homebrew Blogging Day....

On the last Friday of every month a different homebrew blog will host the event. Beer Bits 2 will host the first event on Friday, May 30th. The topic will be "I remember when I started homebrewing." Inspired by this months topic of The Session # 15 How did it all start for you?. Simply post about your earliest homebrewing adventures and email me the URL (beerbits2@gmail.com) or post it as a comment here. As the host of this first event I'll collect and post a wrap up of all the posts.

• Event Name: TBD, we'll vote on it and perhaps come up with a logo.
• Date: Friday May 30th, 2008
• May's Theme: I remember when I started homebrewing.
• Who's invited: All bloggers who have ever homebrewed.
• Rules: It doesn't have to be the first time you brewed by yourself, but, you had to at least be present and do something like carry water or drink a beer ;-)

Well, what do you think? Who's in? Email me your topic suggestions. Let me know if you would like to host.

Sounds like a neat idea, I'll participate. And don't consider "Homebrew Blogging Day" to be a final name... after all, The Session was originally called "Beer Blogging Friday."

Theme Week here at The Brew Site starts next Monday (the third Monday of every month), and this month's theme is Lakefront Brewery. I'd mentioned the possibility of doing this before, so I made the executive decision (which is easy to do when it's just me on this blog!) to go with it.

I'll have eight beer reviews and maybe a bit more to say about the brewery, as well. I will say this right off, though: they make some tasty beers.

The next Session—number 15, for those counting (I'm one of those)—is being hosted by Boak and Bailey and the topic is "How did it all start for you?"

Continuing the “Beervangelism” theme, we’d like you to write about the moment when you saw the light. At what point did you realise you were a beer lover / geek / enthusiast? What beer(s) triggered the conversion? Did someone help you along your way, or did you come to it yourself?

In short; how did you get into good beer?

If you can talk about a specific beer, so much the better — it would be good to see if there are any trends.

Sounds good! I'll be there.

Back on the 3rd (it's the 14th already? Where's this month going?), I met with Jason Randles, one of the marketing gurus I've been corresponding with at Deschutes Brewery, and got an "insider's tour" of the brewery. We also talked a bit about blogging, beer, other breweries, and this whole "new media" thing.

First off, though, most of the tour I received is, I imagine, much the same as the standard brewery tour that they offer; this is at their brewing and bottling facilities down on the Deschutes River in Bend (as opposed to the brewpub downtown). I mention this because if you haven't been on a tour of the Brewery, go! I'm kind of ashamed to say that prior to this visit, I hadn't even toured the place myself. (I'd been to their Mountain Room several times, though.) It's totally worth it, and you get the first four tasters at the tasting room free.

Among things I saw or learned from this trip:

• A sneak peak of the artwork for this next year's edition of Jubelale (the beer itself is already brewing, too);
• Some info about their new Portland Pub (grand opening May 2);
• The Brewery has really expanded over the years, but some of their year-round, flagship beers (like Obsidian Stout and Cascade Ale) are still brewed in the original 50-barrel(?) system... which surprised me a bit because Obsidian is fairly popular—I would have thought they brewed it in larger quantities;
• In the face of the hops crisis, Deschutes is dedicated to using whole flower hops for the long haul—and in fact, they've even sold off extra hops to smaller breweries (like what Sam Adams is doing);
• I got to sample something called "Seaweed Porter" from the employee taps;
• I saw where The Dissident is being aged under lock and key—with Brettanomyces yeast(!).

There were some things I can't talk about, and no, I didn't take pictures.

One of the things I did strongly encourage was a blog on their website; Jason and I talked quite a bit about this whole blogging/"web 2.0" thing and no surprise, I'm pushing blogging. He loves the idea, but is concerned about time, which is fully understandable (it's largely just him updating the site as it is). I even volunteered to blog for the brewery pro-bono if they get that off the ground—so consider this a possible disclaimer in advance (I should be so lucky!).

All in all, pretty exciting stuff. I highly recommend taking the brewery tour and stopping by the tasting room—it won't quite be the tour that I got, but it's definitely worth the time.

Sierra Nevada's Bigfoot is of the Old Guard and an American classic. This 2008 edition of this barleywine (billed the "25th Expedition"—their 25th year!) is 9.6% alcohol by volume and absolutely maintains its status as one of the best American barleywines around.

Appearance: Beautiful clear orange-amber color; nice, thick, dense, creamy head—three fingers worth—slight amber tint to it, too.

Smell: Syrupy sweet barley, Crystal and Cascade hops. They're powdery and green. Malt—caramel, rock candy, some caramelized sugars.

Taste: Thick and full of American hops and alcohol heat... it's delicious. Juicy and rich, with toffee and light molasses and roasted grains and a hint of vegetable... sweet alcohol notes and bright crisp hops.

Mouthfeel: Full and smooth and just a touch dry in the finish. Very well balanced all around.

Overall: I think the praise throughout my notes is pretty telling, but I'll just reiterate: this is a fantastic beer.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of A-. On RateBeer, it scores 3.89 out of 5 and is in their 98th percentile. High marks all around.

Turbodog is one of the flagship beer from Abita Brewing, which is near New Orleans—"nestled in the piney woods 30 miles north" in fact. This is my first Abita beer, even though I've occasionally seen their Purple Haze available locally. I've been aware of Abita for awhile, and finally picked this up when I saw it.

They label this a "dark brown ale" though at just over 6% alcohol and from my notes, I'd classify this a porter, myself.

Appearance: Murky, very dark brown with ruby red tints at the light. Nice thick light brown head... a bit rocky.

Smell: Cocoa powder and freshly ground light roast coffee. Some bitter, roasted barley in the nose, too.

Taste: Roasted and chocolate malts, slightly dry and a bit of bittersweet chocolate. Reminds me of a cocoa-laden porter more than a "dark brown ale" as the bottle says... soft and a bit astringent.

Mouthfeel: Soft, smooth, creamy and a dry finish. A little light of medium-bodied; soft water character.

Overall: Definitely has "porter" written all over this for me. I think it would be better on tap; the bottled version isn't bad but this seems to be a beer that begs for cask conditioning.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B. On RateBeer, it scores 3.22 out of 5 and is in their 63rd percentile.

Lion Stout is from The Lion Brewery in Sri Lanka, and was one of my Beer of the Month Club selections. It's a classic Foreign/Export style Stout, with a nice kick at 8% alcohol—but smooth enough so you don't notice.

Appearance: Opaque dark brown, nearly black—no light is getting through this. Topped by a luscious thick, cocoa powder head.

Smell: Chocolate and mocha notes... sweet dark syrups and lightly roasted grains.

Taste: Very rich and creamy and sweet... roasted malt astringency tempered very well by the dark chocolate body. Caramel, a hint of smoke, black licorice, a touch of alcohol warmth, burnt coffee, toffee, milk sugar.

Mouthfeel: Thick and full-bodied and chewy. Great balance of sweet and dry.

Overall: An excellent, drinkable stout. Top class; I really liked it.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of A-. On RateBeer, it scores 3.82 out of 5, and is in their 97th percentile.

Today's the day—New Beer's Eve, Legal Beer Day, however you'd like to call it—when Congress modified the Volstead Act to allow 3.2% alcohol beer legal as a precursor to the full Repeal of Prohibition later in the year.

Shortly before the beer began pouring at 12:01 a.m. on the morning of April 7th, 1933, August A. Busch, Jr., went on national radio (KMOX CBS) to address the nation.

Anheuser-Busch has uploaded that address to YouTube and put together a nifty video with it consisting of their historic imagery and video:

"There is a song in our hearts as 'Happy Days are Here Again.' And they are here again for out of a maze of confusion and anxiety has come a beacon light to guide the way to better times."

One of the first cases of Budweiser was shipped directly to President Roosevelt via air express... this really amuses me for some reason. Maybe it's the image of a mad dash to get as much beer out to the people as possible as soon as possible... even to the President.

The eve of Legal Beer Day! Or 3.2 Day...or New Beer's Eve as Bob notes in this comment.

(I kind of like "Legal Beer Day" for the 7th, and maybe "New Beer's Eve" for the 6th...)

Anyway, some more tidbits I kind of like from the Anheuser-Busch stuff. First, I like this photo of St. Louis brewery workers loading up the trucks:

I guess I like the sense of "imminent to midnight" feel this seems to convey... loading up the trucks to be ready to roll out at 12:01 a.m. on the 7th.

Similarly, another picture:

The caption for this one reads, "A crowd estimated at 25,000 gathered at Anheuser-Busch’s Bevo bottling plant before midnight on April 6 to be among the first St. Louisans to taste post-Prohibition Budweiser." Sounds like a crazy Saturday at the Oregon Brewers Festival. Interesting on how A-B wasted no time in ditching their Bevo drink for the real deal—I imagine this sentiment was shared all over.

Speaking of Bevo, I've ferreted out some more Prohibition-era products A-B was producing. Aside from the Bevo and malt syrup and ginger ale and such, there were:

• Buschtee and Kaffo: soft drinks (introduced 1920, withdrawn '21)
• Extra Dry Ginger Ale
• Old Devon Root Beer
• Grape Bouquet (?)
• Corn sugar, corn oil, corn syrup
• Carcho: chocolate beverage
• Other drinks: Malt Nutrine, Ino, Fermo, Windsor

Interestingly, by 1926 their ice cream sales topped 1 million gallons per year—though I don't know what a comparable ice cream production/sales figure for other companies would be.

Tomorrow: Drink a beer for Legal Beer Day!

It's the first Friday in April, meaning that across the interwebs, beer bloggers are all writing about a common theme: yes, it's The Session.

This month's topic comes to us from Stonch, across the pond in England: Beer People.

Enjoying beer is as much about people as it is malt and hops. The term "social lubricant" has always seemed a little too euphemistic to me, so lets be honest: having a few pints and getting merry is bloody good fun. That's why we do it.

It's ten times better when you're with good mates, or meeting interesting new people. I've made lots of new friends in my favourite pubs and through my involvement in the beer industry. From the most skillful brewers to the louchest boozehounds, they're the reason why I keep doing this.

On Friday 4th April, the date of the next Session, I'd like you to write about people. Choose someone you know personally. That person might be a brewer, a publican, someone who sups at your local, or maybe just a friend who is passionate about beer. Let's read some pen portraits of your companions on the path to fermented enlightenment.

I like what Stonch is getting at, but I'm actually going to deviate a bit. I want to write instead about the people I've encountered, not just because of beer, but because of beer blogging.

When I started beer blogging, it was mainly with "hobby intentions"; that is, I hadn't aspired to (or indeed even been aware of) the doors that would open and the contacts that would be made in the brewing world. But—especially over the past several years—I've been amazed at just that. It has enabled opportunities to contact and network with all sorts of interesting people I may not have otherwise.

Other bloggers and writers is the obvious first group I'm referring to. I read a ton of other beer blogs, and I've corresponded with, or linked to (or been linked to) a number of those other bloggers. People like Stan, and Alan, and Jay, and Sage, and Chris, and Jeff, and Bob, and Chris, and Ron and Al, and Rick, and Nate, and more (sorry if I missed a name or ten!). Without fail, every blogger I've had the pleasure of communicating with has been friendly, generous, enthusiastic, and a genuinely nice person.

Blogging has opened doors to people in the brewing industry that I wouldn't otherwise have known about, as well. "Behind the scenes" folks often involved with PR and marketing for a brewery—I'm sure there will be people who sniff disdainfully at me for calling out marketers as "legit", but oh well—to me they're as important as the rest of us in the beer world. People like Neal Stewart from Flying Dog, Marty Jones from Oskar Blues, and Jason Randles from local Deschutes Brewery (to name a few) are doing great jobs reaching out and making this an enjoyable field to be in.

(In fact, yesterday I met with Jason from Deschutes and got an insider's tour of the Brewery and talked a bit about beer, and blogging, and more. Really cool opportunity—more on that later.)

And the brewers? Well, the brewers are the rock stars of the beer world. Some are definitely more well-known that others—we all know who they are—but if it weren't for all of them—well, we wouldn't really be here, would we?

Do I sound like a fanboy? Well, yeah, that's largely because I am.

The beer world is really a tight-knit, friendly community—from the bloggers and writers to the brewers to all the rest of the industry people I've corresponded with.

And you know what? Nothing better illustrates this than The Session itself. Yes, The Session is about writing about beer with a common theme, but—even more importantly—it's about the people from all across the web collaborating and getting together (in a virtual sense) about beer. When I hosted The Session a couple of months ago, I was more excited to correspond with so many great people than worry about what they actually wrote (though the writing was good, too—don't get me wrong!).

And that is what it's all about.

Going through the press kit that Anheuser-Busch sent me for their "Beer is Back" campaign, I find the products that A-B produced during the Prohibition years fascinating. The main reference I have for these from the kit is imagery; what follows are some examples.

Along with non-alcohol Budweiser (think "near beer"), they produced other malt-based and soft drinks. First, Bevo:

Then, ginger ale:

Yes, the tagline says, "Makes an excellent horse's neck." No, I don't know what that means.

Of course, like many struggling brewers, A-B produced malt and yeast (but never to be combined!). An example ad for malt:

Perhaps the malt syrup could be poured over Anheuser-Busch brand ice cream. Yes, ice cream—another staple produced by brewers, whose vats and tanks and large-scale refrigeration equipment required minimal conversion:

And finally, this next image is so oddball enough that I couldn't not post it:

No, I have no context for this image whatsoever. But I like it.

Right before we left for a few days last week (during Spring Break), I received a box from Flying Dog Brewery. Can you guess what it contained (besides from the title to this post, or, er, the picture to the right)? You can if you read other beer bloggers—for instance, here, here, and here. That's right, the box contained a bottle of Flying Dog's new spring seasonal, a Bière de Garde: Garde Dog.

Flying Dog is definitely bold with their brewing choices, and even bolder when it comes to promoting their beers, embracing the internet like no other brewer I can think of offhand. I respect that; if I were to be marketing beer I would totally go the blog/social networking/grassroots technology route, too.

(Speaking of that, they've even produced a video promoting Garde Dog and put it online; you can view it here. About the only thing different I would've done there would be to put it on YouTube instead/as well; that's the powerhouse of online video right now.)

Back to the beer. It's 5.5% alcohol by volume, made with (among other things) French hops (grown in the US), German and Belgian malts, rye malt, and Belgian yeast. Yet for all that, the label comes across (once you get past the slathering fangy Cujo of a dog) as fairly patriotic—lots of red, white, and blue. Reminds me of the American flag—though the thought occurs to me that the French flag is blue, white, and red, and this could be representing that, since the style is French in origin.

Appearance: Very clear golden ale, with a crisp white head.

Smell: Sweet—Belgian candy sugar—a bit of the French-Belgian "funk" prevalent in this style of beers, a hint of tartness. A tad fruity... golden raisin? Nicely mild though, not overwhelming.

Taste: Funky, grassy, bitter; toasted malts with hop and yeast spiciness cut throughout—white pepper, grains of paradise (?), steel-cut greens (arugula?). Apparently there's rye in this too, which accounts for the crisp and steely-bitter bite here, I think.

Mouthfeel: Crisp with a bite, as I said... fairly light but nicely firm on the tongue with a "cutting" bitter character that's refreshing.

Overall: Pretty interesting, on the whole... I'd like to cellar this for six months and see how it ages.

Over on BeerAdvocate it's shown up with 8 reviews, and thus far earns a letter grade of B. On RateBeer, they are more fickle; it scores 2.91 out of 5, which lands it in their 36th percentile.

April 7th is the anniversary of the modification of the Volstead Act, where beer was made legal again after 14 long years of National Prohibition. Well, legal up to a point: up to 3.2% alcohol by weight, to be exact. (That's 4% by volume.) Not only that, but this year is the 75th anniversary of the Volstead Modification (and Repeal), and Anheuser-Busch is pulling out all the stops to celebrate with their "Beer is Back" campaign.

(An aside: April 7th was not the Repeal of the 18th Amendment, and thus Prohibition; that actually occurred on December 5th with the ratification of the 21st Amendment. Bob Skilnik has a good post on this. Therefore December 5th is "Repeal Day" and perhaps April 7th should be called "3.2 Day" or something similar...)

In fact, A-B sent me a press kit package for Beer is Back, consisting of a CD-ROM full of material, a bottle opener, and, oddly (but in a strangely cool way), both those small things came in a rather largish wooden crate—the type of crate, I'm guessing, that used to hold those old-timey bottles of beer. It's really well constructed, with a hinged lid... check out my pictures:

I know I'll be using it to store beer in, at the very least.

But anyway, Beer is Back... A-B is really promoting this and the CD-ROM includes things such as historic imagery, the audio of August Busch Jr.'s radio address from April 7, 1933, bits about history, and more. I actually find this rather cool because I just read Maureen Ogle's terrific book Ambitious Brew earlier this year and loved it—I thought it was particularly eye-opening in regards to the big brewers that people love to loathe.

Incidentally, Ogle has been running a daily "countdown" of sorts on her blog leading up to April 7th, as well... good stuff.

So each day up through April 7th I'll be posting a bit from the Anheuser-Busch package, some historic tidbits here and there (along with my regular blogging). Basically just cool things I find on the CD, and maybe more.

In the meantime, check out that crate.

Over the final weekend of Spring Break, we visited some friends up in McMinnville (Oregon), home of Golden Valley Brewery. I got a chance to stop in briefly—long enough to try the sampler and snap a couple of quick pictures—just enough to write up an initial review.

The outside of the Brewery is fairly unassuming, but the inside is great. Plenty of seating, high ceilings with the raw-wood-open-beam architecture that I like, and dark wood everywhere. They're a full restaurant and sport a full bar, which is the pride of the pub:

A distinctive feature of the brewpub is the bar, which is frequently recognized by visitors who remember when it hosted patrons at the Grand Old Hoyt Hotel in Portland. Dating to the 1920’s, it is made of solid Mahogany and stands fourteen feet high and twenty-seven feet long. From the bar you can watch the brewery in action as the brewers create some of our famous lagers & ales.

Here's the amateur photo I snapped of it from the booth we were at:

The decor in the rest of the pub is based around that, basically.

The beer sampler was presented in what is to date the coolest presentation I have seen:

They've taken the stave of a wine barrel (making perfect sense—McMinnville is in the heart of Oregon wine country) and bored ten holes big enough to hold the sampler glasses. The thing arches the entire length of the booth table. Plus, it's ten samples for only $7—quite a deal! Those are Golden Valley's full lineup plus two seasonals.

Here are my notes, from memory (and the handy sheet I kept); beers go from right to left:

• 3rd Street Wheat: light, crisp, a nice lemony flavor, like lemongrass almost. I quite liked it.
• Grand Island Golden: light, nothing too fancy, kind of like a mild Pilsner.
• American Pale Ale: standard APA, a bit citrusy and hoppy but not too strong.
• Chehalem Mountain IPA: Nice and hoppy and toasty malt without being too overwhelming. The hopping was fairly well done.
• Red Thistle Ale: their flagship beer (since 1993), very much an amber ale, rich, not too dense.
• Geist Bock: their spring seasonal; light, creamy, tasty.
• Tannenbomb: their winter seasonal which I've reviewed before. Yum!
• Dundee Porter: a dry porter with lots of coffee notes.
• Muddy Valley Stout: creamy, dense, roasted malts and some chocolate.
• Black Panther Imperial Stout: wine barrel aged, so you know I loved this one. Big, malty, rich, and dangerously tasty.

I think the three I liked best were the 3rd Street Wheat, the Tannenbomb, and the Imperial Stout—though the rest were all good, solid beers too.

I also picked up a mixed six-pack to go. They have a limited selection of bottled beers, so I picked three beers (two bottles each) that I haven't seen locally (except maybe for Red Thistle): American Pale Ale, Red Thistle Ale, and Geist Bock.

I'll definitely try to go back! It's a great place.

Golden Valley Brewery
980 East 4th Street
McMinnville, OR 97128
(503) 472-BREW (2739)

Woo hoo! Hop Henge! This hasn't been out since, what, 2006? (Although the Brewery site says there was one in 2007... where was I?!?)

Deschutes Brewery’s Hop Henge Imperial IPA returns to the Bond Street Series line-up this April in extreme fashion. Staying true to the experimental nature of the series and the “never settle” philosophy of Deschutes, our brewers went back to the drawing board to create an amplified version of last year’s monument to hops.

Head Brewer Brett Porter says, “This is a truly exciting and groundbreaking beer. We reformulated everything about the hop recipe to give Hop Henge an extraordinary aroma and flavor similar to a fresh hop beer.” In addition to the Cascade and Centennial hops, Deschutes Brewery is experimenting with a hop variety so new that it has yet to be named.

The team at the Bend Deschutes Brewery and Public House recommends Hop Henge as the perfect accompaniment for a variety of spicy foods, so be sure to have a bottle handy next time you make a batch of hot wings and go for the five alarm award. The high-octane hoppiness is a wildly refreshing antidote to a wide array of hot foods.

Hop Henge Imperial IPA will be available in 22-ounce bottles and on draft throughout the western United States for just three months – April, May & June. Don’t miss this amazing hop experiment that is sure to leave your taste buds begging for more.

8.75% Alcohol by Volume (ABV)
95 International Bitterness Units (IBU)

In less that two weeks, this one's coming up quick, but I like their ideas for getting the word out. And their charging of $25 for unlimited pours is interesting; that could pencil well, I think. And with 30 breweries participating, that's not bad at all.

I guess consider this an... unorthodox press release.

After 2007's exciting and successful First Annual Montana Beer Festival, where over 3,000 people congregated to celebrate beer, brewers, and the beer lovers, we're gearing up to produce the Second Annual Montana Beer Festival (MBF) on Friday, April 11, 2008, at the Gallatin County Fairgrounds in beautiful Bozeman, MT. This year, through marketing and eager word-of-mouth, MBF expects to overflow with nearly 4,000 Northern Rockies Craft Beer lovers.

Suggestions to help market the Second Annual Montana Beer Festival:

• Please add MBF to your online calendar
• Contact us at info@montanabeerfest.com for interviews and stories
• Your educational and informational magazines/literature/collateral will help us fulfill our goal to educate the beer community. Please send materials to Montana Beer Festival, 111 South Grand Avenue, Ste. 219, Bozeman, MT 59715
• Please consider advertising with or sponsoring MBF.  Our award-winning marketing team will help market your business and brand in the Rockies.
• We welcome your donations which will support the Montana State Brewer's Association and the Montana Food Bank Network.

If you have any questions, you are more than welcome to contact Sam Porter at info@montanabeerfest.com or visit our website at www.montanabeerfest.com

The popular Oregon Brewers Festival comes of age, celebrating the 21st Amendment in conjunction with its 21st birthday

In 1933 the 21st Amendment to the United States Constitution repealed the 18th Amendment, which had mandated nationwide Prohibition. Since the Oregon Brewers Festival turns 21 this year, the event finds it fitting to celebrate the ratification of the 21st Amendment during its four-day course. One of the nation's longest-running and best-loved craft beer festivals will take place July 24 through July 27 at Tom McCall Waterfront Park in downtown Portland. Hours are Noon to 9 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, and Noon to 7 p.m. Sunday.

Seventy-two craft breweries from 18 different states will each send one product to serve at the event, hailed by many industry experts and beer fans alike as the premier craft beer festival in the nation. A 73rd beer, Collaborator, is a joint project between members of the Oregon Brew Crew homebrewing club and Widmer Brothers Brewing Co. More than 60,000 beer connoisseurs annually travel from around the world to sample the vast number of beer styles, which highlight the influences that different regions have on the brewing process.

Joining the breweries are industry exhibits by hop growers, homebrewers, breweriana collectors, and national beer writers. Four days of live music showcases the best high-energy talent the Northwest has to offer. Food booths sell meals and alternative beverages, while the Crater Lake Soda Garden provides handcrafted sodas free of charge to minors and designated drivers. Minors are allowed into the event when accompanied by a parent.

Admission to the festival grounds is free; however, a 2008 souvenir mug costing $5 is required for consuming beer. The mug is good for all four days, and mugs from previous years will not be filled. All beer is purchased with tokens, which cost $1 apiece. Patrons pay four tokens for a full mug of beer, or one token for a taste. Sales of mugs and tokens cease 1/2-hour each evening prior to the close of the event.

Alternative modes of transportation are encouraged, with free bicycle parking available each day. The main entrance at SW Oak Street and Naito Parkway is located one block from the MAX Light Rail line.

The Oregon Brewers Festival takes place during Oregon Craft Beer Month, a celebration of craft beer by Oregon's specialty breweries. A variety of special events will take place at craft breweries throughout the state, culminating with the Oregon Brewers Festival.

The Oregon Brewers Festival was founded in 1988 as an opportunity to expose the public to microbrews at a time when the craft brewing industry was just getting off the ground. Today, that industry has succeeded, especially in Oregon, and particularly in the city of Portland. There are currently 89 craft brewing facilities in Oregon, and 32 breweries operating within the Portland city limits - more than any other city in the world. The Portland metropolitan area boasts 40 breweries, making it the largest craft brewing market in the United States.

For more information about the Oregon Brewers Festival, visit www.oregonbrewfest.com or call 503-778-5917.

Yes, I am really behind on some of these things I want to blog about. I received this email early in the month and it looks pretty interesting; a new show intersecting TV and the web and, naturally, it's about beer. (Almost TV; it's available online and in DVD format and their FAQ says they're "working hard to get it on the air.")

Their site is nicely done, too. Integrated Flash player without weighing down the rest of the site with Flash cruft. Good work.

Redtail Media announces the release of its inaugural episode of "The Local Brew," in a unique documentary format. "The Local Brew" is a grassroots television and web effort specifically created to inform and inspire viewers about the ever advancing world of craft brewing. The artfully-packaged DVD features nearly three hours of content, including the thirty-minute main show, and a full-length "Beer vs. Wine" bonus episode. The DVD will retail for $14.99, with 10% of all proceeds going to benefit selected charities.

The Local Brew takes you past the average 'behind the scenes' TV traveling show approach, delivered with an engaging style and creative production value. In its first episode, The Local Brew takes viewers on a trip to North County San Diego to visit the Stone Brewing Co., one of the most respected craft brewers in the world. Host Mark Marion gets an inside look at the brews, culture and hard work that have taken Stone to the top of their field — and finds that doing so involves activities from harvesting organic produce at a local farm, earning a degree in "Beerology", to the unlikely task of hauling thousand-pound boulders with Stone CEO Greg Koch.

"I don't need to be a typical host," says Marion, a Boston-based chemical engineer and avid home brewer. "There's enough personality in the world of craft brewing that the people involved are their own storytellers. This format allows me to play the more natural role of curious enthusiast." The result is one in which the viewer discovers insights and uncovers secrets along with Marion, rather than hearing a host merely regurgitate a company's PR lines.

"The Local Brew team did an amazing job at capturing the vip, vinegar, vibe, and vitriol we have here at Stone Brewing," said Koch, to which he continued jokingly "Well, two of those anyway...and also the desire to see ourselves on TV." The special-edition DVD includes over two hours of special features — from interview out-takes to a "Beer vs. Wine Dinner" show, chronicling a culinary pairing showdown recently initiated by Koch, who is a self-described "tireless promoter of all things craft beer."

This is not a program about the popular, generic beer culture of gimmicky advertising and buffoonery. Things you will not find on The Local Brew include keg stands, beer pong, sodden barflies, and other similarly enlightened fare that attracts the attention of existing alcohol-oriented programming. "It's about the artisanal quality of the beer, and the dedication of the people behind it," say the show's creators, Christopher Burke and Jared Cotton, who hope to find a national audience for the show and the burgeoning culture it represents. Though large domestic brewers continue to spend millions on advertising campaigns, sales of these lighter styled beers have flatlined in recent years. Meanwhile, a 31.5% growth in craft beer sales in the past three years reflects Americans' growing appreciation for unique, artisanal brews. "When you take the time to learn about the process and environment necessary to create a high-quality craft brew, you'll always find an interesting story just under the surface. And we're willing to go even deeper than that."

The inaugural episode, "The Local Brew: Stone Brewing Uncut" is available now at thelocalbrew.com. For more information about The Local Brew, please call 323.445.3227 or email christopher@thelocalbrew.com or jared@thelocalbrew.com
"The Local Brew" is a redtailMEDIA production.

Gordon is the third and final beer I received from Oskar Blues Brewery to review (albeit late) for last month's Canned Beer Week.

This is a serious beer: an American-style Imperial (or Double) IPA, with 8.7% alcohol by volume—the highest of the three I've reviewed.

Appearance: Dark copper colored beer, fairly clear. Substantial head that leaves nice lacing, like all of these, but there was no "hiss" from the can (as I mentioned previously).

Smell: Brightly hoppy, very green and stemmy and very floral. Almost a fresh hop character—it's that bright. There's a sweet undercurrent of maltiness below that but it's subtle.

Taste: It's the hops here, punctuated by a sweetly malty, almost barleywine-like character. Hops are full of resin and woodiness. Very green. I like the sweet malt base, too... there's the touch of alcohol heat and an almost cloying barleywine character.

Mouthfeel: Smooth and a bit thick... substantial on the tongue, and the strong hops leave you dry and puckery.

Overall: Interesting, complex beer—not one to take lightly (especially for the alcohol content).

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of A-. On RateBeer, it scores 3.86 out of 5 and is in their 97th percentile.

Old Chub is a Scottish Ale from Oskar Blues and, I believe, is the second beer they canned (after their Dale's Pale Ale). Like the Dale's, I received this can in a promotional package but fell too far behind to get it written up last month for my Canned Beer Week.

One thing I noticed with these canned beers from OB, and especially with this beer... there was no "hiss" of gas under pressure when I opened the can. Which seems weird, because you can see in my pictures that there's a full head on these... but no. No pressurized hiss.

8% alcohol by volume.

Appearance: Dark brown with red highlights. Thick, light tan head. (Website calls it "cola" in color and that's fairly true.)

Smell: Malty and rich—buttery, toffee, a hint of smokiness and something spicy like cinnamon. Brown sugar.

Taste: Tasty Old Ale character with some alcohol heat. Dark sugars, molasses-like, a hint of that spiciness I noticed in the nose. Some dark fruit—plums, maybe prunes, like that. Earthy, spicy hops.

Mouthfeel: Chewy, with firm body... a little dry finish thing going on from the alcohol, I think.

Overall: Very good, it's rich and warm and pleasant and you just want to keep sipping it. Definitely another beer I wish I had access to all the time. I think it's my favorite of the three Oskar Blues beer I tried.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of A-. On RateBeer, it scores 3.69 out of 5 and is in their 93rd percentile.

Back when I was doing Canned Beer Week in February, I spoke with Marty Jones with Oskar Blues Brewery and he sent me three cans of their beer in a promotional shipment: Dale's Pale Ale, Old Chub, and Gordon. I didn't get them in time to coincide with that week and unfortunately it's taken me until now to review them, but here we (finally!) are.

Dale's Pale Ale was the first American microbrew to be canned (back in 2002). It's a generously-hopped 6.5% alcohol Pale Ale in the American style. This beer right here will go a long way toward changing doubters' minds about canned beer.

Oh, and I don't mean for BridgePort to be competing with Dale's in the picture there... I just thought it would be fun to throw a logo glass into the photo mix every once in awhile to mix things up a bit.

Appearance: Nice bright orange-copper. Creamy looking head that's slightly off-white.

Smell: Hoppy—a not-quite-fresh hop character that's green and earthy. Sweet malt, almost cloyingly sweet. Hops are enjoyably floral.

Taste: Big hoppy bitter punch right up front... full of earthy, grassy notes that make me think of warm hop fields just before harvesting. A touch of spiciness playing at the edges. Malt is sweet though neutral and light, with caramel notes.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied and nicely chewy without being heavy.

Overall: Excellent hoppy showcase pale ale; could very easily be a "fridge standard" for me (if only it was available in Oregon!).

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B+. On RateBeer, it scores 3.76 out of 5 and is in their 95th percentile.

Time to start catching up on my blogging! I mentioned in this month's Session that Deschutes had sent me some promotional bottles of the new Green Lakes Organic Ale (which I reviewed for that Session); in addition to the three bottles of Green Lakes, though, there were three bottles of their seasonal Cinder Cone Red, with the new label.

Both are excellent, tasty beers, and since the Green Lakes has been reviewed, I'll be posting my review of the Cinder Cone Red shortly (along with about a zillion other things that I'm behind on).

In the meantime, I've at least posted the picture of the two different beers there; I particularly like the Cinder Cone label.

This is the first Theme Week where I didn't actually drink and review any beers, although I did drink McMenamins' seasonal Irish Stout after work today, so perhaps that's not quite accurate.

(It is indeed a fairly dry Stout, with roasty, slightly astringent notes and a low session-level alcohol—4.77%—that makes it very easy to drink.)

To tell the truth, the week got away from me (the world beyond my blogging) and I just didn't have the time I'd have liked to devote to this month's Theme. So I apologize if one or more of the last posts seemed like I was phoning it in...

Incidentally, I notice that McMenamins' next featured beer is their Workingman's Red, which is an Irish Red Ale in style. Pity they didn't have any on tap when I was there, or I could've capped the week off fully Irish style!

The two styles that originate in Ireland are Irish Dry Stout and Irish Red Ale. The more famous of the two is, naturally, the Stout, since that's the one everyone is exposed to.

The Dry Stout style evolved from the London Porters of the time, and were a stronger version of that style—a "Stout Porter." It was also a stronger beer than is (typically) brewed these days—around 7.5% alcohol by volume (compare to 4-6% currently).

I won't go quoting numbers excessively, but I'll point to the BCJP guidelines as a starting point.

And here is BeerAdvocate's top 10 list for the Dry Stout style; interesting to note that it's dominated by American brewers (the exception being Carlow Brewing).

The Irish Red Ale is a lighter beer, a maltier and less hoppy counterpart to the English Bitter style. Easy drinking, with toasty notes and a possible dry finish, Michael Jackson in Ultimate Beer pairs Irish Reds with pork when considering food:

What could be heartier than an Irish red ale (even if the color is closer to chestnut or amber) with boiled bacon and cabbage, or with loin of pork, perhaps? The love of bacon, ham, and roasts is not merely a question of Irish tradition: there is also in Irish ales a sweetness, a creaminess, and sometimes a slight butteriness, which highlights the flavor of such dishes.

Again for the numbers junkies, the BCJP guidelines for Irish Red; and looking at the BeerAdvocate top 10 list for it, it's again dominated by American brews (though overall less reviews than Dry Stout), with one exception: The Biddy Early Brewery in Ireland.

(Yes, there could be a whole discussion on the preponderance of American brews on these lists for foreign styles, but that'll be a discussion for another time.)

Irish Red is definitely a less common style than Dry Stout; other than seeing (off the top of my head) Killian's Red (which isn't technically a true Red Ale) and Smithwick's at the store, they seem to be virtually non-existent from the shelves. Although in a number of ways the style sounds very similar to the American Amber style of ale, so a reasonable substitute in that case is relatively easy.