Hop Press: Crafting a fresh hop ale

Hop Press: Crafting a fresh hop ale

Over on my Hop Press blog today I’ve posted about my latest homebrewing undertaking: brewing up my first-ever fresh hop beer. Part of the challenge, of course, is figuring out exactly how much of the hops to use when they’re still wet (as opposed to the known quantities for dried … Continue reading

Saranac Octoberfest

Saranac Octoberfest

This Saranac Octoberfest was one of the four beers that Matt Brewing sent me last month and, like their Pumpkin Ale (which I’m writing about next), is the first Oktoberfest beer of the season for me. This is a classic Oktoberfest-style lager, made with German Pilsner malts and Saaz and … Continue reading

Barley Brown’s Turmoil CDA and Speed Wobble IRA

Barley Brown’s Turmoil CDA and Speed Wobble IRA

Last weekend my friend Kina facilitated the delivery of two growlers of beer from Barley Brown’s over in Baker City: their GABF-gold-medal-winning Turmoil CDA (Cascadian Dark Ale) and a new beer, Speed Wobble IRA (Imperial Red Ale). I’ve had Turmoil before (and reviewed it here) and drinking it fresh again … Continue reading

The next Session: Thanks to the big boys

The next Session (#56) has been announced and it’s being hosted by Reuben at The Tale of the Ale, and the topic is “Thanks to the big boys“: Most of us that write about beer do so with the small independent brewery in mind. Often it is along the lines … Continue reading

Recap of The Little Woody

Recap of The Little Woody

I attended Bend’s The Little Woody for a couple of hours Friday evening, and wrote up a “first look” (with recommendations for others attending) over on my local Bend blog which I encourage you to go read if you’re interested in how the Fest shaped up. But of course I … Continue reading

The Session #55: Label, Coaster, and Cap Art

The Session #55: Label, Coaster, and Cap Art

The Session: collaborative beer blogging that occurs on the first Friday of each month, on a topic suggested by that month’s host. Ready? Go! This month’s topic is hosted by HopHeadSaid and Curtis has suggested the topic of Label, Coaster, and Cap Art: Posting Directions: Choose your favorite label, coaster … Continue reading

Pumpkin beer recipe time again

Pumpkin beer recipe time again

It’s that time of year when people are starting to think about brewing pumpkin beers, and for the past month six of the top 10 search results to this site are for variations of “pumpkin ale recipe” (for which I am still is the #1 result on Google for that … Continue reading

The Little Woody beer list

The Little Woody beer list

Here is the list of beers that will be pouring at this weekend’s The Little Woody barrel-aged beer festival in Bend this weekend—lots of good stuff here: Hopworks Urban Brewery Bourbon Ace of Spades Hopworks award-winning Imperial IPA aged for two months in Buffalo Trace Bourbon barrels. 10% ABV, 100-plus … Continue reading

The Little Woody

The Little Woody

I can’t believe I’ve almost neglected to mention that The Little Woody, Bend’s barrel-aged brewfest, is coming up this Labor Day weekend—this Friday and Saturday, September 2nd and 3rd, to be exact! This year marks the third showing for this festival, which features barrel- and wood-aged beers from Central Oregon’s … Continue reading

Widmer Falconer’s IPA

Widmer Falconer’s IPA

Falconer’s IPA from Widmer Brothers is the latest in their “Rotator IPA” series, the company’s experimental IPA line, and is just hitting the shelves now. (You’ll recall that I received two sample bottles of Falconer’s two week back.) It’s a 7% abv IPA made with Falconer’s Flight™ hops, a proprietary … Continue reading