Yesterday we were at our friends Paul and Sandi's for beer, food, and (after the fact) football. Paul had promised a beer that would blow me away, one that I would not expect. I had to write about it (and take pictures), naturally, which I'm always happy to do.

I can truly say I didn't expect them to produce a bottle of Ommegang Chocolate Indulgence—the 10th Anniversary 2007 limited edition stout brewed by Brewery Ommegang out of New York. They found it at The Bier Stein in Eugene and, well, a find like that you can't pass up.

From the brewery's story of this beer:

On October 13, 2007, at out Brewery Tenth Anniversary Party (Waffles and Puppets) we introduced Ommegang Chocolate Indulgence Stout to the world. Chocolate Indulgence comes with a thick tan head of foam resting on top of the rich onyx-colored liquid. The aroma immediately speaks of dark chocolate and dark malts. The gentle herbal nose of Perle hops compliments the darker notes, making the beer savory to the senses.

The label says it's made with "real Belgian Chocolate" and it's brewed to 7% alcohol by volume.

Appearance: Opaque black-brown, with a light brown head, creamy and leaving nice lacing on the sides of the glass.

Smell: Dark chocolate, cocoa powder, bittersweet chocolate... deep and rich.

Taste: Reminds of the Dagoba dark chocolate I have (which I received along with another stout)—rich black, pure chocolate without any sweetening—dry, bitter, dark, pure unsweetened chocolate. Everything about the beer screams "chocolate" but don't look for a candy bar flavor—it's the real thing.

Mouthfeel: Dry, lighter than I'd expect—I expected a full body, it's more medium. Long, dry, chocolate finish—very nice.

Overall: Long, drawn-out bitter character—almost like it's bittered with chocolate instead of hops, as Paul noted. I think the name is totally apt, this is indulgence in the extreme and a superb sipping beer. One I quite enjoyed.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of B+. On RateBeer, it scores 3.6 out of 5, and is in their 90th percentile.

Ommegang Chocolate Indulgence

Since Thanksgiving is looming, I've seen a few beer posts here and there for what people would pick for their Thanksgiving beers. I figured, what the heck, I'll throw my hat into that ring too.

• Coors Original (not Coors Light!): You always have someone who doesn't (or won't) drink craft beers, so having some American Macro Lager on hand is necessary. Coors Original (the "banquet beer" which seems somehow appropriate) is one of the best options out there. Backup: Pabst Blue Ribbon.
• Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale: Big, bold, hoppy IPAs complement the Thanksgiving dinner nicely. Sierra Nevada's seasonal will definitely brighten up the day. Backup: Stone IPA.
• Dogfish Head Punkin Ale: Because having a pumpkin beer at Thanksgiving is a natural. Malty, sweet, and pumpkin-pie spicy, this beer would be great as both a dessert and a main course beer. Backup: Elysian Night Owl Pumpkin Ale.
• Saison Dupont: Simply a fantastic beer that will pair well with most anything found on the Thanksgiving table. Backup: Ommegang Hennepin.
• Young's Double Chocolate Stout: Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate. One of the first beers I think of when I think "dessert beer." Backup: Rogue Chocolate Stout.

And, as a bonus, the digestif, the after-dinner beer: Doggie Claws from Hair of the Dog. A barleywine, of course—something to sip and savor and relax with after a big meal. As a backup, let's go with Horn Dog from Flying Dog.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Shipyard Brewing's Imperial Porter is one of the two limited edition beers being offered under their Pugsley's Signature Series. Here's their own description:

Imperial Porter is a full bodied, very dark, malty beer with a good roasted character coming from the Crystal, Chocolate and Black Patent Malts used in the mash. Warrior, English Fuggles, and East Kent Goldings Hops balance the malts with a good hop bite. The beer has an OG of 1.070, rounding out after fermentation with just a slight residual sweetness and cutting dry at the finish. 7.1% alcohol by volume.

So here's something to ponder. These days, the "Imperial" designation in American craft brewing connotes an "extreme" factor, typically through higher alcohol content. 7.1% is certainly higher than your typical beer (let's say 5-6% is typical for a porter), but at the same time, it doesn't seem strong enough for an "Imperial" designation.

Which begs the question, where is the line drawn at "Imperial"? Is it higher (8-9%+) alcohol? An "extreme beer" characteristic of some sort? Should it be reserved for special edition beers like this that aren't necessarily monsters but are still special edition?

At any rate, I think this beer is a pretty excellent Porter, not coming at it from any "extreme" angles. I'm sure some aging would do this beer well and the higher alcohol level would come into play more as it ages.

Appearance: Brown-black like dirty motor oil in the glass, deep crimson at the very edges. Fluffy, thick head that's light brown.

Smell: Roasty malts, cocoa powder, coffee beans. A dusty, nutty character, along with wood and a bourbon note(?).

Taste: Nice dry porter going on here; bitter but not astringent; dark coffee, burnt wood, roasted smoky grains. Mellow hop bitterness—earthy and a tad spicy as befitting English hops. A dusting of bitter cocoa powder accentuates the dry finish.

Mouthfeel: I think it's pretty spot-on for a porter; light of medium-bodied with a lot of depth; I think the alcohol gives it a bit of an edge. Finishes dry and clean.

Overall: A pretty masterful porter, dark, rich, roasty and dry—like an extra-dark bittersweet chocolate. Top notch, showcasing a lot of brewing experience. (Though I'm judging as a "porter" and not an extreme beer.)

BeerAdvocate, meanwhile, classifies this as a Baltic Porter and so far there are only two reviews. Those two reviews average out to an overall B grade.

Bend Brewing Company has posted on their website that they're bottling their HopHead Imperial IPA for release this Friday, November 28th. Needless to say, this is a pretty limited release and while it might not be up to Abyss proportions, I expect they will sell out fairly quickly.

HopHead, you may recall, won the Gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival two years ago, and won the Bronze medal this year. It's 8.8% alcohol by volume and will be available in 22-ounce bottles.

Last week a package arrived from Shipyard Brewing, containing these:

Those are the two beers in the Pugsley's Signature Series of beers being offered by Shipyard: Barley Wine and Imperial Porter. You can read more about them from their blog:

Pugsley’s Signature Series is named after Shipyard Brewing Company’s master brewer, Alan Pugsley. Alan is from Hampshire, England where he worked with Peter Austin at the world-famous Ringwood Brewery before moving to the United States in 1986.

(An aside. The fact that they have a blog redeems their less-than-user-friendly website. Somewhat. But their main site really needs some work.)

Handsome bottles and packaging, for sure. Look for my reviews this week.

I first reviewed Inversion IPA two years ago, not long after it first came out. I quite liked it then, and I like it even better now. I chalk that up not only to it being an excellent beer, but to the fact that Deschutes really put some effort into its development.

The story goes (or at least, my apocryphal version of it), the Brewery's Quail Springs IPA just wasn't cutting it with consumers—it was an English-style IPA rather than the American style Northwest drinkers were used to, and just wasn't up to par compared to their regular beers—so they began experimenting with a new recipe.

Something like 15 recipes later (many of which were tried out at the Pub first, I'm sure), they finally settled on what is now Inversion IPA.

That's dedication.

The beer itself is a respectable 6.8% alcohol by volume, but oh-so-drinkable.

Appearance: Chestnut brown with copper penny highlights and a lacey, full head, light tan in color.

Smell: Full of American hops—floral, herbal, citrus, green. Sweet and malty on the nose behind the hops.

Taste: Solidly bitter, with a pungent, twiggy hop character that has touches of pine, resin, and loamy earth. Very tasty, though very mellow in the malty body—it's rich but soft, hints of caramel and rich brown (burnt, caramelized) sugar notes. Aggressive hopping in the finish reminds you of its IPA roots.

Mouthfeel: Medium-full body but very smooth with a cleansing hop presence.

Overall: Excellent, excellent Northwest IPA. Solid as a rock.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of B+. RateBeer... appears to be down again. (Their Google cache page says 3.51 out of 5, and 85th percentile.)

Deschutes Inversion IPA

Deschutes' Bachelor ESB is another of their standard beers that, like Cascade Ale, is often overlooked in favor of their higher-profile beers—but is, in fact, one of their most award-winning offerings. At 5.3%, this is actually a bit stronger than the more popular Mirror Pond Pale Ale.

This is a terrific beer, one I really need to drink more often. And here's a hint: at the Pub, they have Bachelor Bitter—which is the same—only on cask. Bachelor ESB is good from the bottle—but it's great cask-conditioned.

Appearance: A tawny copper brown, clear. Light tan head with a tint of orange(?).

Smell: Caramel notes and a malty, heady aroma; earthy, spicy hops too.

Taste: Spicy, earthy hops fill the mouth and a generous, malty backbone follows that up. Crisp, caramel malts and a nice, biting bitterness is the overall presentation, very traditional.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied, a tad light; very clean hop bite washes the palate clean and leaves a pleasant residual hop bitterness.

Overall: Clean and tasty, a traditional (non-American) hop note that's a nice change. Very well done, it's a shame this isn't more prevalent.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of B+. On RateBeer, it scores 3.57 out of 5, and is in their 88th percentile.

Deschutes Bachelor ESB

One of the things that impresses me about Deschutes Brewery is the sheer number of varieties of beer they offer—not just the specials, but for the standard lineup as well. There's a beer for almost any mood or occasion.

Want a light lawnmower beer? Cascade Ale. American Amber? Green Lakes Organic Ale. Organic ale? Natch. Darker beer? Black Butte Porter or Obsidian Stout. Fresh Hop? Yup. You see where I'm going here.

Between the regulars, the seasonals, and the various special offerings, they've got a wide spectrum of beer styles covered. And for styles they don't otherwise offer, there's always their tap-only pub exclusives; for instance, last weekend I had a pint of "Harv's Wild Plum Stout"—a Belgian-esque stout brewed and conditioned with plums grown on one of their employee's trees. (It was good.)

Even for all that, there are naturally some styles or beers I'd like to see make an appearance. Such as:

• A Pumpkin beer. To my knowledge, Deschutes has never produced one of these, and it's high time they did, and bottled it. As a Bond Street Series beer, perhaps. I think they could do something great with pumpkins.
• A Belgian Wit as a year-round offering. Take the 20th Anniversary Wit recipe and brew it year-round. It was really quite good and adding another lighter beer to the lineup would be a good thing.
• A Barleywine. These show up at the Pub occasionally, and word is there's another bottling of Mirror Mirror planned for 2009, but I would love to see a barleywine style ale joining the seasonal lineup, a là Jubelale.
• Some Lagers. A Doppelbock would be great, as would a Czech Pilsner. (Similar to past anniversary beers.) Again, lagers show up from time to time at the Pub—let's bottle 'em!
• A Smoked beer. Something like Rogue Smoke, or an Alaskan or Stone Smoked Porter, maybe, or a traditional Rauchbier, or something different. Like pumpkin, I think they could really do something good and cool here.

What would be on your Deschutes wishlist?

Deschutes' Cascade Ale is one of their year-round beers that I don't drink very often. Not because it's not good—it certainly is—rather, you just don't see it on tap very often outside of the Brewery, and when I'm buying their bottled beer, I usually go for something darker and heavier.

(When I'm not buying up the coveted limited release stuff and seasonals, you know.)

Nevertheless, Cascade Ale is one of their staple offerings, a true session ale at 4.5% alcohol by volume, and it's been around for a long time. It used to be called Cascade Golden Ale, in fact, and more often than not I still call it by that name.

I like to call this type of beer a "gateway" beer... light and easy-drinking enough for people used to drinking macrobrews, but with plenty of flavor and character to open their eyes to alternatives.

Appearance: Light, golden yellow, honey-colored really. Off-white head.

Smell: Hoppy and grassy over toasted biscuit malt. A sweet note, otherwise fairly clean.

Taste: Grainy, toasty malts—bready wheat—with a nice, crisp, but not overpowering hop presence... floral and not overly bitter, with a touch of lemongrass.

Mouthfeel: Shy of medium-bodied, and a bit fizzy, but sports a nice presence with a nice herbal bitterness in the aftertaste.

Overall: Crisp, clean, dangerously drinkable and a great lawnmower and "gateway" beer.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of B. On RateBeer (which is back! That's news in an of itself), it scores 3.11 out of 5 and is in their 52nd percentile.

Deschutes Cascade Ale

This Saturday, November 22nd, is Deschutes Brewery's annual Garage Sale—where they sell off discontinued merchandise at great prices. Shirts (tees, sweatshirts, cycle jerseys), glassware (pint glasses, four ounce taster glasses, often cool tulips and other stemware), hats, and probably a few other goodies.

This year as an added bonus, there's a Bake Sale too!

Deschutes Brewery's first ever Bake Sale takes place this Saturday during our Garage Sale in the Mountain Room. Treats from five local bakeries will be available for you to sample and take home. All proceeds will go to the Arthritis Foundation in support of one of our bakers who will be the co-Grand Marshall of the Jingle Bell Run.

The sales are running from 11am until 3pm Saturday at their Mountain Room (901 Simpson Avenue, Bend). I'm definitely going to try to be there—the earlier, the better.

Mmmmm, Jubelale... one of my favorites from Deschutes. This is one of the beers I look forward to every year, and the release of Jubelale is the herald of the winter/holiday season. Or at least the herald of seasonal beers...

I've already written a bit about this year's Jubel from the Brewery's launch party for it; I even have a poster of this year's label. (Each year, the Brewery commissions a local artist to paint a label for the beer.) This year is a winner—for both the beer and the label.

The beer itself is a Winter Warmer at 6.7%, and—trivia time—it was the first beer ever bottled by Deschutes.

Appearance: Amber brown in color with a tan head... orange highlights when held up to the light.

Smell: Malty, rich, and warm... sweet notes like a Belgian candi sugar. A bit of an alcohol note. Dark fruits, molasses.

Taste: Spicy essence (nutmeg, cinnamon, "winter" spices) blending with a rich and warming, malty brew. Very tasty, satisfying. A little spike of alcohol heat, and a Belgian strong dark thing going on.

Mouthfeel: Nice and chewy, not as full as a stout but more body than "medium." Pleasant warmth in the aftertaste.

Overall: The best Jubelale in recent years, and still one of my favorite Winter Warmers. One of the best.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of A-. (RateBeer is still unavailable.)

Deschutes Jubel Ale

I've written a lot about Deschutes Brewery over the years—beer and event reviews, speculation, news, and even posted press releases (which I can't take credit for). I won't link to everything, but I thought I'd at least point to other reviews I've written.

• Jubelale (2004)
• Jubelale (2005)
• Hop Trip (2005)
• Poor Richard's Ale
• Hop Henge (2006)
• Mirror Mirror (2006)
• Inversion IPA
• Broken Top Bock
• Jubel 2000 Millenium
• 18th Anniversary Pilsner
• Hop Trip (2006)
• Jubelale (2006)
• Obsidian Stout
• Twilight Ale (2007)
• 19th Anniversary Golden Ale
• Hop Trip (2007)
• 3 fresh hop pub-exclusives
• Mirror Mirror (2008 tasting of 2005 vintage)
• The Abyss
• Green Lakes Organic Ale
• Cinder Cone Red (2008)
• Hop Henge (2008)
• Twilight Ale (2008)
• 20th Anniversary Wit
• Black Butte XX

Holy crap, even I'm a little appalled. And I'm not even counting this week's reviews!

Deschutes Brewery has been making Hop Trip since 2005, making this year's the fourth iteration of the fresh hop ale. Which also makes the Brewery one of the old hands in the still-young "fresh hop" category. This year's version is really good—as I wrote in the Brewery's Fresh Hop Tasting review, "they've had several years now to fine-tune the recipe and I think they've really got it dialed in."

I've reviewed all the previous versions since 2005, too.

• Hop Trip 2005 review
• Hop Trip 2006 review
• Hop Trip 2007 review

Not much more to say, other than jumping to my notes. This year's Hop Trip is 5.5% alcohol by volume, and is still available. I'd recommend grabbing a few.

Appearance: Bright and clear, honey-amber colored with a thick, fluffy head.

Smell: Light, effervescent (if you can call that a scent), very green and fresh, but not overwhelming. Twigs, stems, leaves, resin...

Taste: Hop punch is here (rather than the nose). Bitter with a pleasant vegetable character—leafy green veggie. Maybe radish greens? A similar spiciness, too, in the middle. Very bright and fresh and light on the tongue. The malt is all in the background, a bit toasty.

Mouthfeel: Nicely medium-bodied and crisp—refreshing and finishes clean with a pleasant sticky bitterness in the aftertaste.

Overall: A lovely fresh hop this year, super drinkable.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of A-. (Still no RateBeer.)

Much has been written already about Deschutes Brewery's The Dissident—for instance, here, here, and here—and indeed, there is much to write about. This is easily the boldest beer Deschutes has ever brewed, for a number of reasons:

• It's the first beer they brewed with wild Brettanomyces yeast. This is a dangerous yeast to have around a conventional brewery, so they kept the beer isolated—literally under lock-and-key—and brought in a separate, dedicated bottling line, all in a huge effort to avoid cross-contamination.
• The style itself—a Flanders Oud Bruin—is a departure for Deschutes' signature English- and American-style ales.
• They let this beer condition and ferment for 18 months—something almost unheard of in the American craft beer industry.
• 20% of the beer was aged in cabernet and pinot noir wine barrels, and cherries from Washington state were thrown in for good measure.

With that kind of pedigree, it's no surprise the Brewery released this under their Reserve Series, in wax-dipped 22-ounce bottles retailing at $10 per bottle. At 9% alcohol, this is a beer you won't soon forget.

Appearance: Brown-colored with a generous beige head. Nice deep crimson when held to the light.

Smell: Sour cherries, sour in general (though not unappealing), a touch of funk. Some Belgian candi sweetness. More Belgian yeast subtleties emerge as it warms.

Taste: Tangy, sour, and a little bit horsey right up front. Puckery! A cherry tartness and a taste of wood (cherry pits?). Sour! You don't taste the alcohol at all... Some green apple tartness, tannins, the spiky tart-tangof underripe raspberries. More of the horsey Brett comes into play particularly in the back of the mouth as it follows the sour and other notes.

Mouthfeel: Tart, puckery, a very fine fizz of carbonation. Finishes fairly dry, and leaves a tangy aftertaste.

Overall: Very different, very good... I can't judge on the technical merits (my experience with sour beers is pretty limited), but I think they've pulled off an amazing beer.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of A-. (RateBeer is still unavailable at this writing.)

And, as a bonus, I couldn't resist taking a picture of the wax leavings:

This week is Theme Week here at The Brew Site, and all this week I'm going local and devoting the blogging to Central Oregon's largest microbrewery: Deschutes Brewery.

Regular readers know that I write a lot already about Deschutes—and why not? They're local, they've been around since 1988, and they produce fantastic beer. I consider Deschutes one of the "old guard" of American (and Northwest in particular) microbreweries—along with those like Sierra Nevada, BridgePort, Widmer, Samuel Adams, Full Sail, and Brooklyn Brewery.

In fact, there's a great history of the Brewery online at (of all places) FundingUniverse.com.

The new brewpub hit a low spot in December of its first year, when ten straight batches of beer went bad due to a flaw in the brewery's design and had to be dumped. The grain mill was located directly over the mash tun, and airborne bacteria on the grain dust kept infecting the beer. Once the problem was solved, Deschutes beer began selling in Portland and Fish's dark, flavorful beer caught on. The brewery sold 310 barrels of beer its first year, far exceeding Fish's expectations of a few kegs of excess capacity to nearby central Oregon resorts.

Deschutes' first brewmaster, incidentally, was John Harris, who is working magic these days at Full Sail Brewing.

So stick around, I've got a lot more to write about Bend, Oregon's first microbrewery.

Next week (already!) will be Theme Week here at the Brew Site, and as I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm going to devote the week to Central Oregon's largest microbrewer, Deschutes Brewery.

Nor will this be the last time I dedicate a Theme Week to a brewery; I opened the door earlier in the year with Lakefront Brewery Week, and I'd definitely like to explore more. Maybe two a year.

And don't worry, even though I've written a lot about Deschutes already, it won't all be rehashed material. I've got several new beer reviews, for one thing, and some other things in mind.

I popped open the bottle of Redhook Double Black I received last month with lots of anticipation; this was a beer I'd first (and last) had way back in the 90s and Redhook stopped brewing it after 2000. I'm a big fan of these big bold beers (as you all know) and even though this isn't as big as many these days (7% alcohol for an Imperial Stout seems paltry by current extreme beer standards), a 22-ounce bottle will still do ya.

I even had a bit of the Dagoba dark chocolate they sent with this beer; they pair well together and overall, I really enjoyed it.

Appearance: Black, dirty motor oil-colored with a nice dense froth of foam (though I didn't pour it rigorously enough to be overly thick). Opaque and quite attractive.

Smell: "Roast" is an apt description—it's full of coffee and roasted barley and some deep bittersweet chocolate notes. Almost a coffee liqueur thing going on.

Taste: Black as night and tastes every bit of it. "Char" notes—in a good way—make me think "burnt wood"; French roast black coffee (Turkish?); lots of black malts; a touch smoky. Fairly dry even as it has a silky texture. Very "roasty" here too.

Mouthfeel: Full-bodied, well attenuated, a silky smooth feel overlaying other subtleties. Finishes dry with a coffee aftertaste.

Overall: Very good, very rich and lots of roasted goodness happening here. The more I drink, the more I notice the long, dry finish—it's fairly pronounced and enhances the coffee character. Holy smokes, it accompanies the Dagoba dark chocolate really well.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of A-. (RateBeer is still down.)

Coopers Brewery in Australia produces a number of beers which you occasionally see turn up here in the States—usually along the line of their Sparkling Ale and Dark Ale (both of which I've had). Their Best Extra Stout you can find, too, and overall they might be revelatory to someone who thinks "Australian beer" means Foster's.

The Best Extra Stout is an Export Stout style that weighs in at 6.3% alcohol by volume. I received it from my Beer of the Month Club earlier in the year.

Appearance: Dark and inky—very dark brown to black. Chocolate foam head, dense and creamy, built up nicely.

Smell: Coffee and chocolate—cocoa powder, bittersweet chocolate, French roast coffee. Smells delicious.

Taste: Creamy and dry at the same time... mellow. Nice roasted malts (roasted barley) that taste like they may have been stored with coffee beans. Dark chocolate—not sweet at all but like bitter cocoa. Barest hint of a lactic sour tang.

Mouthfeel: Very smooth, and lighter than you'd expect—solid, medium-bodied but well attenuated. Dry.

Overall: Very good, though drier than I'd expect for an Export Stout. Pleasant.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of B+. (RateBeer is still out of commission.)

Coopers Best Extra Stout

Deschutes Brewery launched their new website at the end of last week, and not only is it much better (and more up-to-date) than their last one, but it also incorporates a lot of the "Web 2.0" stuff that I wish a lot more breweries would adopt.

Mainly, blogging; you can visit the Brewery's new blog here. You'll notice they're also going full steam ahead with Flickr, Twitter, and delicious (on the blog), and they're staying on top of their "What's On Tap" feature that I really like.

Even better: "What's On Tap" for the Bend and Portland pubs have RSS pages! That means you can follow them in your favorite RSS reader and get automatic updates when new beers get added to the tap list. That's the Brewery Killer App that every brewery site needs. RSS for Bend is here, RSS for Portland is here.

Disclosure: I am actually now working for the company that developed and hosts the Brewery's website; and yes, I've done some of the work on it myself. The ball was already rolling on it when I started there, though, so I can't take any real credit for much other than gruntwork.

Yesterday's Session is barely in the can and already there's the announcement for next month's Session (#22), hosted by the 21st Amendment Brewery.

21st Amendment Brewery is thrilled to host The Session in December, and we've chosen a topic that's near and dear to our hearts: the repeal of Prohibition. December 5 is the 75th Anniversary, which brought beer back to the masses.

In 1920, there were thousands of breweries across America making unique, hand-crafted beer. The passage of Prohibition wiped out this great culture. On December 5, 1933, the states ratified the 21st Amendment, repealing the 18th Amendment, thus ending 13 years of Prohibition in America. At the 21st Amendment Brewery, the repeal of Prohibition means we can celebrate the right to brew beer, the freedom to be innovative, and the obligation to have fun.

What does the repeal of Prohibition mean to you? How will you celebrate your right to drink beer?

I don't think I've seen a more perfect topic; it actually falls on Repeal Day on the 75th anniversary of the end of Prohibition. That's like a perfect storm of beer blogging.

It's the first Friday of the month in the beer blogging world and that means it's time for The Session! Today beer writers and bloggers across the web will partake in the group writing effort, all on a common theme—so it's the same, but different.

This month also marks the 21st Session—making it "legal"!

The topic this month comes from A World of Brews: What's your favorite beer and why?

Before you say I don't have a favorite beer or how do I pick just one. I say BS everyone has a favorite. There will always be a beer that you would grab above all others, your go to beer per say. The one beer you will almost always choose over the others. When I get asked that question I almost always say I don't have one but then when I came up with this topic I realized I did and I know you do too.

I would like to take this topic one step farther for purely selfish reasons. I am trying to do better reviews on beers that I drink and I would like to see how other rate and review their beers. So put on your BJCP hat and Review and Rate your Favorite Beer.

The classic answer to this question—possibly first put forth by Charlie Papazian (even before he wrote this), but that's entirely apocryphal on my end—is, "the beer I'm currently drinking." I may not go quite that far, but honestly, at the risk of sounding like a copout, I don't have any one favorite beer.

I really don't; what I choose "over all others" depends on my mood, [seasonal] availability, whether it's new—things like that. That is, for beers X, Y, Z, I never always pick beer Y; sometimes I feel like X, sometimes Y, sometimes Z.

Don't worry, I do have favorites (plural) that I will strongly agitate for. But asking me to pick my very favorite? I don't think I can.

• Deschutes Brewery's The Abyss is definitely near the top of that list, to no one's surprise. Read my review here.
• Alaskan Smoked Porter is pretty sublime. Here's my review.
• When it comes to winter/Christmas seasonals, Deschutes' Jubelale has a pretty strong showing (review). But I also really like Sierra Nevada's Celebration Ale—it's a true American classic (review).
• Saison Dupont has variously (and rightly) been called one of the best beers in the world. Believe it.
• I've talked up Rogue's Shakespeare Stout enough times that it rightfully belongs on this list. Review.
• Regular readers know I have an affinity for pumpkin beers, and fresh hop beers. I don't know if they're favorites, per se, but I will make the effort for them if they're available.

But I still like the answer: The beer I'm currently drinking.

Earlier in the year, I received Casco Bay Winter Ale (subtitled "Old Port Ale") from the Beer of the Month Club I was a part of; yes, it's a very late review. This is a Winter Warmer, with 7.3% alcohol by volume.

Appearance: Deep amber in color with a thin, off-white head that fell quickly.

Smell: Brown malt with a steely tang in the nose... A bit of a sweet (brown sugar?) note.

Taste: Roasty, sharp and bitter notes... dry and nutty. Largely bitter aftertaste, I'm not sure if it's the hops or dark-roast malts. Could be hops—slightly woody, plainly bitter without any green or floral notes.

Mouthfeel: Long, dry, and bitter finish... rather medium-bodied and prickly in the carbonation.

Overall: So-so. Not my favorite.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of B+. RateBeer is still down.

Doggie Claws is the winter/Christmas seasonal from Oregon's Hair of the Dog, a barleywine but with HotD's typical flair. For example, the label says the beer was made with "dark wild flower honey collected on Mt. Hood."

It's a little thing, I know, but it's flair. It's also 11% alcohol by volume.

This was the 2007 brewing of the beer, one I had earlier in the year—I know, a late review.

Appearance: Translucent (cloudy?) deep amber, bordering on an orange-brown. Full, generous head is off-white, dense, and leaves a nice lacing on the glass. There's residue at the bottom of the bottle (chunky). [Note: This beer is bottle conditioned.]

Smell: Fragrant—sweetly floral hops (lavender) and the cloyingly honey-sweet nose of a good, malty barleywine. Alcohol with a brandy-ish character and some sort of green wood note.

Taste: There's that fresh floral character again, reminds me of lavender but it could be clover—strong from wild flower honey? Malt is rich and dark syrup sweet and it draws it out into a long, dry honey finish. Hops are nicely balanced into this, not letting the malt get too overwhelming in cloying sweetness, but really bringing out the honey notes. There's definitely an oaky brandy character there too... alcohol packing a bit of a punch at the end.

Mouthfeel: Full-bodied, with that complex sweet structure I noted that finishes long and dry... mouth ends dry with an alcohol note and a touch of heat.

Overall: Magic from Hair of the Dog.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores and overall grade of A-. RateBeer is effectively down right now so we'll just have to be content with BA.

Actually, this is just a catch-all post for a few odds and ends. I don't really have any election-specific content, though I suppose I'm asking for votes on a topic below...

A couple of press releases came in for holiday beers: Pike Brewing's Auld Aquaintance and Goose Island's Bourbon County Stout. Auld Aquaintance is a low (for a holiday ale!) 5%, but I like the sound of the spicing: "subtly seasoned with orange peel, coriander, cinnamon, and nutmeg."

The Bourbon County Stout I'm particularly excited about because it's going to be available in Oregon for the first time; I'm definitely going to be on the lookout for it. (Hey, an Imperial Stout aged in bourbon barrels; you know I'd be all over that!)

You'll notice I said these were press releases, though I've yet to run them; truth be told, I'm getting a lot more marketing and press releases lately and I just ran two yesterday. I've said I'll run stuff that people send me (conditionally, of course), but I don't want to end up being a marketing clearing house.

So I may tone down the press releases a bit, and only run the ones that I find really interesting; or perhaps I'll create a "Press Releases" section on the site, separate from the main blog entries, and run them all there, because ultimately I do think they offer value. Thoughts? Ideas?

Elsewhere, I'm two weeks out from this month's Theme Week and looking for a topic. I may do a "Deschutes Brewery Week" because The Abyss is launching that weekend and I've got a backlog of reviews to do—including The Dissident, this year's Hop Trip and this year's Jubelale.

And don't expect a Theme Week in December; I'll be running my fourth(!) annual Beer Advent Calendar every day up to Christmas—that keeps me plenty busy. Plus, it's the holidays so, you know, vacation and stuff.

That's right, Deschutes Brewery's The Abyss is back this month! The Brewery is kicking off the 2008 edition of this fantastic beer with a pair of launch parties, first in Portland:

Friday, November 14th | 10 pm to Midnight

Join us at the Deschutes Brewery & Public House in Portland's Pearl District to celebrate the return of The Abyss!

Featuring a special menu with items made or paired with The Abyss. Get there early for samples of the 2007 vintage!

And Bend:

Sunday, November 16th | Toast @ 5pm

Join us at the original Deschutes Brewery & Public House in downtown Bend to celebrate the third release of our darkest and most mysterious Imperial Stout.

Featuring this special, mouth watering menu...

• Abyss Braised Chocolate Borlen Beef Short Ribs with NW Mole Sauce
• Smoked Duck Pate with Abyss Wort Reduction (passed appetizer)
• Smokey Blue Cheese Dip with Abyss Bread
• Chocolate Chambord Mouse with Raspberry Tuile

Goblets of The Abyss [2007 & 2008]

Door prizes and 22 oz bottles for sale!

If you need any encouragement, check out my notes on the previous launch party, and then come back for my review of the beer itself.

Don't miss out!

The Holiday Ale Festival in Portland is now exactly a month away, starting on December 3rd. It's like the Oregon Brewers Festival of the holiday season... just check out the beer list in the press release. One day I'll make it up there to check it out.

Announces Wednesday opening with rare vintage beers

The Holiday Ale Festival is giving beer lovers a gift by opening one day early, and rewarding those who come with a selection of rare and vintage kegs. The 13th annual Holiday Ale Festival will take place Dec. 3 through 7 at Pioneer Courthouse Square, located at 701 SW Sixth Ave. in downtown Portland. Hours for the event are 3 to 9 p.m. Wed., 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thurs. through Sat., and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sun. The event has also expanded, increasing its capacity to better accommodate the crowds.

Read full press release

St Austell Brewery, brewer of the South West’s favourite beer, will bring an extra glow to pub goers’ faces this Christmas with the launch of Tribute Extra, a new limited edition brew for the festive season.

At 5.2% ABV Tribute Extra is based on Austell Brewery’s flagship ale, Tribute but conditioned in oak bourbon casks for a stronger flavour.

In addition to appearing on the bar of many of the South West’s pubs this winter, Tribute Extra will join more than 100 great beers on offer at the 10th St Austell Brewery Celtic Beer Festival in St Austell on Saturday 29th November.

Read full press release