The Best Things We Drank: November 13 - 19

This week's list focuses on our recent trip to the coast, Oceanside and surrounding, for a long weekend getaway. 

Starting out with a newer, and completely new-to-us, brewery is Public Coast in Cannon Beach. Last time we were there in town they weren't yet open, but in the interim we've heard great things about them.
Black Stack Stout - Named after a "very big rock" just off Cannon Beach, the beer presents with a great roasty aroma and a chocolate/slightly chalky flavor. Served as we prefer, on nitro, it is a creamy, drink-all-day beer. 

Checking out a place not far from our Oceanside rental in Netarts we found The Schooner to have a disappointing beer selection overall BUT they were serving the next beer just the way we like it.
Deschutes Obsidian Nitro - This is only the second time we've found this beer on nitro (not that we have been actively searching), the first being earlier this year in Bend. Since that first try, we're convinced that's the only way it should be served and therefore find it nearly impossible to pass it up. 

A second close-to-our-rental joint was the Upstairs Bar & Grill. This place was far superior in many ways to The Schooner and had we been in town longer we would likely have gone back.
Crux Cast Out - The stanky BO aroma and lovely hop flavor from the Galaxy hops make this a solid IPA choice. Add to that a creamier-than-most-IPAs mouthfeel and we could enjoy plenty of these. Fun side note: The name Cast Out comes from the Galaxy hops from Australia, a country once populated by English cast outs/outlaws.

This next place was the find of our trip! Black Squid Beer House was opened just a few months ago by a couple that moved to the coast from the west metro. Located on Hwy 101 in Lincoln City where a surf shop formerly resided, owners Sara and Andy have created a friendly and inviting feel for this bottle shop and taproom. They've also curated a very nice tap list and cooler selection.
Mother Earth Say When - We haven't had a ton of Mother Earth beer but this foray will encourage us to try more. Melony and yum, we love the flavor and would love to see a hazy version that would impart more body. 

Finally, a return visit to the Tillamook outpost of Pelican Brewing. Having stopped in a few years back, shortly after they opened, we were happy to be in the area for more of their beer.
Bad Santa - We know we've seen this beer around often but surprisingly hadn't tried it previously. More chocolately-roasty than bitter-roasty we enjoyed this CDA as is but really would have like to have been able to try it on nitro, too. 

The short getaway was just what we needed to recharge our batteries, both with relaxing views of the beach from the hot tub at our rental and the enjoyment of checking out new places and beers.

The Best Things We Drank: November 6 - 12

This week's edition is dedicated to The Commons. As anyone living in Portland knows, last Saturday was the last hurrah for the current incarnation of The Commons. We say that because we firmly believe that we will see them again in the future, especially if Mike's recent collaborations are any indication. We showed up at opening Saturday and during the course of our time there were fortunate to be able to say a "see you later" to Mike in person. In addition, Travis' familiar face was to be found behind the bar, a face we hope to see popping up somewhere else around town after the transition is complete.

We enjoyed all of the beers that found their way from the menu board to our glass, but these four in particular.
Eidolon (R) - We first enjoyed this sour, barrel aged amber farmhouse five years ago. Noting at that time that it was a "great approachable sour" we agree with that first impression. The beer was matured on two strains of Brettanomyces in wine barrels but the Brett holds a supporting roll. The shining star is the super fun combo of Meyer Lemon peel, jasmine green tea, jasmine flowers and New Zealand Hallertau hops.

Anderlecht (L) - Our favorite of the day we were so stunned with its flavor that we can't express just how delicious it was other than to say it is simply an outstanding wood aged lambic. If we could have gotten growler fills of it, we would have rounded up all the growlers we had and happily handed over how much ever they were asking for it.

Galaxy Myrtle (L) - We've been quite pleased with the few hopped sour beers we had, with this one continuing the trend. Here the bright Myrtle tart farmhouse base found a great partner with the Galaxy hops used. Starting with a definite hop aroma, the flavor is a melding of the two.

Fresh Hop Myrtle (R) - More lightly hopped than the Galaxy non-fresh hop version, this beer features Meridian hops. Effervescent and easy drinking, we enjoyed this as much as we did when we first had it in 2013.

Now on to two other great beers we enjoyed to finish out our list.
Revision Dr. Lupulin 3x - We've just started seeing Revision's beers hit this market and so far we've been impressed with the offerings from this, hold on to your shorts...Sparks, Nevada brewery. Before we get to the beer, a bit about the brewery. Sparks is essentially a suburb of Reno, sitting on the Western edge of Nevada, and less than a day's full drive from Auburn, CA. That's relevant because Auburn is the location of Knee Deep Brewery, the brewery Revision's founder Jeremy Warren founded seven years ago. The full backstory is on Revision's website but the short of it is that Jeremy left, taking with him the first brewer he hired at Knee Deep, Jeb Taylor. Officially open just eight months ago, if this triple IPA is any indication of what is to come, we are totally on board because to make an 11.3% beer with massive IBUs this smooth is an incredible feat. 

Crux Tough Love [BANISHED] 2015 - Our favorite of the three vintages offered at The BeerMongers during their Tough Love event the big, Russian Imperial Stout offered a licorice aroma and flavor that was smooth with a tannic finish that makes one want to keep drinking it. 

This time next week we may all be waking up with a hangover (of the food variety). Before then, however, we'll be taking a look at some cranberry offerings that have recently come across our radar. Stay tuned!

Recommendations for 2017 Cheers to Belgian Beers

Today is the second (and final) day of the 2017 Cheers to Belgian Beers festival at the North Warehouse. We went yesterday and while we only had 17 of the 70+ beers we're happy to share recommendations based on the things we drank.

We, along with a majority of the folks we compared notes with at the festival, easily put pFriem Abrikoos and Crux In the Pocket on the "don't leave the festival without having these" list. Abrikoos was new to us and is a fantastic Lambic-style beer that’s a very drinkable 5.5%. In the Pocket, a red wine barrel aged Saison with Brett and a beer we'd had recently (bottles of it are around town) is also very drinkable...but with nearly double the ABV at 9.9%.

Two others that hit high notes with us were Baerlic Black with Two Sugars and Migration Quinn and Juice. Coffee is our second favorite beverage and Baerlic's masterfully crafted beer drinks like a cold version of it, with a luxurious splash of heavy cream (although there isn't actually any in it) and a touch of sugar. The hook on the Migration beer for us is that on the rare occasions we drink hard liquor, gin is our go-to. This beer displays the aroma of those botanicals and is accompanied by a surprising mouthfeel to create a dangerously drinkable package weighing in at 9.2%.

We happened to be drinking with one of our friends who is supremely talented when it comes to blending beers. Yes, that may be blasphemy to some but if you're game we highly recommend blending, in a one-to-one ratio, Baerlic Black with Two Sugars and Migration Quinn and Juice. It doesn't sound like it would work but trust us here, it does.

The other blending might be a little more intuitive but it's the ratio that is important here. Start with Ex Novo Are You Afraid of the Dark?, a Saison fermented with boysenberries and black currants, and add just a splash of Gigantic The City Never Sleeps black Saison. Start with a small splash and add another if needed to get to that perfect black beer base that's complimented by the berry flavor of Afraid.

With that, get on with the drinking and cheers!

Cheers to Belgian Beers
North Warehouse, 723 N. Tillamook
Saturday, June 3 Noon - 8pm
$20 (glass + 8 tickets)

The Best Things We Drank: May 1 - 7

The three beers on this week's list were so good that a few beers that would have made the list in other weeks aren't included here. Not including them doesn't diminish how good they are, it's simply a matter of perspective. Just like when someone asks, "what's your favorite beer?," and the answer is a favorite current beer (or two), those beers that didn't make the short list are in comparison to the beers drank in chronological proximity.

Coalition Dark Horse - Last Saturday Coalition resumed taproom hours at their brewery (huzzah!!), with weather that was made to order for such an event. This rare beer was one I hadn't had before but was so glad I had the opportunity to drink. An imperial stout that was aged on Brett and cherries in Pinot barrels, it definitely took on wine characteristics in the most delectable way. Appearing black it's actually the deep red color one would expect of a wine and while lower in ABV than most wines at 9%, it is a dangerously drinkable beer.

Brouwerij Rodenbach Alexander - Shared by my friend, John, who had been sitting on this beer for many years there were no defining markings on the bottle to verify the vintage so 1990 check in on Untappd is only a guess. That said, this is one of the best beers ever to have crossed these lips, riding the perfect balance of tart and fruit and funk.

Crux In the Pocket [Banished] 2017 - Also courteous of John, the use of Brett in what is described as an "imperial rustic Saison" that was aged in red wine barrels makes the 9.9% ABV nearly laughable. Following Dark Horse's lead it would be so very easy to finish off the full 22oz bottle on one's own.

So there you have it, two beers you can probably find with some looking, and one which may or may not live up to this rave review depending on its vintage. Happy drinking!

The Best Things We Drank: January 16-22

Last week was a BUSY one over here - talking about beer events, attending beer events and then over the weekend judging beers in Bend. With all that going on the Best Things fell by the wayside. To make up for that we'll double up starting off with the middle of January.

This was an exceptionally good week for beer with the highest notes all coming from Oregon breweries. Some of these are more readily available than others but with a little looking any of them should be available.

Culmination Oregon Kara Sakura - Brewed for the Japanese market, specifically the Cherry Blossom Festival, most of it was shipped to Japan with the remaining, limited supply available in their tap room. It was brewed with wild yeast, Oregon cherries and rose hips from Jasmine Pearl Tea Company (just down the street from Culmination) with the result being a delicious, mild sourness.

Burnside Gin & Joose - Saisons aren't generally at the top of our list but put them in gin barrels and ta-da, magic! This French Saison aged in Ransom gin barrels with peaches, strawberries and lavender is a complex beer that is both imminently drinkable and something to covet.

Crux Stout - Dark as one would expect from a stout, Crux puts their own twist on this style with a beer that has great body and mouthfeel to compliment the dark coffee-chocolate-caramel flavors. The simple name belies the obvious craftsmanship that went into the brewing of this beer.

Saison Facile behind, dry hop in front

de Garde Saison Facile and the Dry Hop Cuvee version - de Garde is a bit of a polarizing brewery both in terms of their beers and their availability. One may recall that when they started very little was distributed; to get it meant a trip to Tillamook or friends who would bring some back. These days the supply is more abundant although the most special beers still require a trip. This rings a sour note for some. For others the sour notes in their beers, which we're a fan of, come across as one-dimensional. To each their own. This beer, or rather these two beers, that Chris shared with us were a fun back-to-back comparison. Both were great tart beers but the Dry Hop Cuvee slightly edged out the other providing stronger citrus notes and less effervescence.

Ordnance Of Chimpanzees Porter - Ordnance makes an appearance on the list for the second consecutive week with a coffee beer that uses Home Town Coffee Roasters coffee and has the aroma and flavor of cold brew. The name is a bit weird but has a great story. Coffee fiends will want to swap out their morning brew for this! And at a drinkable 5.3% perhaps you can.

Style preferences, at opposite ends of the color and flavor spectrum, once again showed themselves this week. Dark and coffee anchored one end with light, fruity and sour at the other. We might be somewhat predictable but we do keep it diverse.

Holiday Ale Festival 2012: A Recap

The 17th Annual Holiday Ale Festival was put to bed Sunday night and off came the wristband that had been my constant companion for the last five days. If you wanted to go, I hope you had a chance to. I was fortunate enough to be able to go both Wednesday and Friday, arriving shortly after the gates opened and therefore having very minimal crowds to deal with. There was however a notable difference between the two days with Friday's crowd building faster. Thanks to a friend who was a real trooper, showing up all five days of the festival, we had a table to drink and chat at even as the space filled up.

If you recall from my preview post, I had 13 beers on my must drink list. I was able to try all but one - Full Sail 2011 Black Gold - as well as a handful of additional beers. Those that made the festival worth attending were Cascade Brewing Diesel #2, The Commons Boysen, Widmer Brrrbon Vanilla, Crux Fermentation Project Snow Cave and two of Wednesday's special release, 2 ticket beers - 2005 Samichlaus and 2008 Ten Fiddy. Both of those beers were well worth the extra tickets and although I know I'll have to live on the memory of those alone I do hope to find some of the other beers around. It sure would help ease the chill of winter to sip and savor their deliciousness.