OBF 27 – beers to watch for

The first day of the 27th annual Oregon Brewers Festival is done (even though this is the second year they started on a Wednesday, I’m still thinking in terms of starting on Thursday… or I remember starting on a Friday even… yeah, get off my lawn), and it already looks like a great year. (You can follow along on Twitter on the main OBF account, or by the hashtag #obf27, or the Specialty Tent.) If you’re planning on attending any of the next four days, I thought I’d throw out some recommendations for beers to keep an eye out for.

Lisa Morrison at the 2012 OBF
One of my favorite pictures from 2012’s OBF, with one of my favorite people (Lisa Morrison) and lots of Brewfest beer.

You can find the full list of what’s pouring in the main tents here.

Fruity/Sour beers: these (along with the IPAs) make up the majority of beer “styles” this year, and some simply look too interesting to pass up. Note there are a number of other fruited beers pouring, including several fruit-infused IPAs, but these stand out to me as worth the token(s).

  • 10 Barrel Cider Weisse: A blend of their Berliner Weisse with green apple cider
  • Cigar City Brewing Mangosteen Florida Weisse: Another Berliner Weisse fruit blend!
  • Ecliptic Brewing Perihelion Crimson Saison: A saison brewed with rhubarb
  • Elysian Brewing Perfesser: American Wild Ale with plums, sounds intriguing
  • Gigantic Brewing Who Ate All the Pies?: My favorite name on this year’s list, it’s a strawberry rhubarb gose—this would be my first beer to try,  hands down. Plus, that’s two with rhubarb this year, if you’re counting.
  • Paradise Creek Brewery Huckleberry Pucker: another Berliner Weisse

IPAs and Pale Ales: yes, the other most-represented category, and what kind of an OBF would you have if you didn’t sample some IPAs that you can’t necessarily get around here?

  • Alaskan Brewing Hopothermia: A double IPA that should be solid since it’s from Alaskan.
  • Ashtown Brewing Blackberry India Pale Ale: I have to admit I’m intrigued since it has my favorite berry in it. Plus I’ve not had any beers from Ashtown yet.
  • Boundary Bay Double Dry Hopped Mosaic Pale Ale: They always bring a solid beer to the OBF, and Mosaic is on fire right now
  • Fitger’s Brewhouse Hoppelujah IPA: From Minnesota—I don’t know anything else about them but I’m always intrigued by some Midwestern IPAs.
  • Maui Brewing Lorenzini Blood Orange Double IPA: Yes, it has fruit, but it came all the way from Hawaii…
  • Port Townsend Brewing Extra Special Hop Diggidy: How can you pass up a name like that?

Intriguing and/or Couldn’t Resist the Name: If the name or style didn’t catch my eye in either of the above list, they fall here:

  • Beer Valley Heavy Sugars Honey Ale: The one and only braggot at the fest that I can see, and I enjoyed the name.
  • Collaborator Czech’d Out Pils: I’ve been on the lookout for good Pilsners these days, and the Collaborator brew (Widmer + Oregon Brew Crew) would hit the mark I think.
  • Deschutes Ester the Farmhouse Maiden: A saison with a great name.
  • Dogfish Head Burton Olde English: Big malty sweet old ale. Dogfish Head always brings interesting beers (Raspberry Mint Imperial Stout, anyone?).
  • Dunedin Brewery Moon Reflects on Hibiscus: A Belgian IPA with fruit and flowers. I’m intrigued, but I remember a few years ago the first Dunedin beer I had wasn’t terribly impressive.
  • Kells Brew Pub Billy Ray Citrus: Oh good lord, a CDA version of their Miley Citrius IPL from the Oregon Garden Brewfest. I can’t help but like that name though.
  • Logsdon Sraffe Drieling: A Tripel, and knowing Logsdon this should be great.
  • Lucky Lab Hopperopolis: A “copper ale” with a great name.
  • Old Town Brewing Yosteamite Sam: A California Common and the name? Yes.
  • Rogue Dopplesticke: A double alt style, I think?

Finally, Old Standbys:

  • Anderson Valley Summer Solstice
  • Ballast Point Sculpin IPA
  • Caldera Brewing Caldera Toasted Coconut Chocolate Porter
  • Cascade Brewing Raspberry Wheat
  • Full Sail Cascade Pilsner
  • Ninkasi Oktoberfestbier
  • Terminal Gravity IPA
  • Widmer Widberry

Happy drinking!

3 comments

  1. Just finished first visit to OBF14…don’t waste the token on Gigantic or Dunedin! Billy Ray Citrus has a great name, but it is not tasty and getting terrible reviews. Please base suggestions on something better than a name.

  2. That is good advice in general, although that’s also how I’ve discovered some very memorable beers and breweries in the past (if not for seeing “Arrogant Bastard” on the placard at the OBF many years ago, for instance, who knows when I would have discovered Stone Brewing in Bend?).

    I did see a favorable review of Gigantic’s Who Ate All the Pies? already so I had my hopes up…

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