Barrel Aged Ciders: A Collaboration Between Reverend Nat's and Raven&Rose

Warning: This post is not about beer. It's about cider that's almost as good as beer.

Reverend Nat's, always on the cutting edge of the cider world, has teamed up with Raven&Rose to produce two barrel aged ciders. Raven&Rose provided the Eagle Rare Bourbon barrels where Revival and Sacrilege ciders sat for about four months. This Thursday those ciders will be available at the Rookery Bar above Raven&Rose.

Before we get to the ciders and happenings  on Thursday, I wanted to share some of what I learned during the "lecture" owner Nat West gave to the Oregon Bartender's Guild. "Lecture" isn't really fair since it was one of the most interesting presentations I've been to (not to mention there was cider being poured throughout). He covered the history of cider in the US and abroad, the process of making cider and the varieties of cider.

Some of the most interesting takeaways:

• Prohibition was even more devastating to the cider industry than the beer industry. Thousands of apple varieties, suited only for cider making and not eating, were lost when there was no market for them. Unlike beer, when Prohibition was lifted producers couldn't just start making their product again; they had to wait for apples to be grown before they could resume their business.
• The Pacific Northwest is the fastest growing region in the US for cider. This is due in large part to easy (and inexpensive) access to apples from Washington, the nation's top apple-producing state.
• Glucose is the sugar in apples. Maltose is the sugar in grains. Glucose is much easier for yeast to eat. (Things got really science-nerdy here.)
• Most cider makers in the US use white wine yeast. Nat's a bit different (in case you missed his experiments with Angel of Death and Kumiss Mongolian Milkwine) and he uses Belgian yeast.
• All yeasts have different nutritional and temperature requirements. Nat is dialed in to what his yeast needs and has been known to show up at the cidery at all hours of the night to make sure they're able to do their job optimally.
• Even with all that attention, yeast used to make cider cannot be repitched, they're just too tired (true across the cider industry).

Now, back to the upcoming release of these two barrel aged ciders. I had a chance to try each and I can assure you that the barrel did its work on the Revival, imparting a ton of bourbon aroma and flavor. Not being a bourbon connoisseur the subtleties may have been lost on me but those more well-versed in the spirit should enjoy the side-by-side boilermaker experience of the cider and the bourbon from that barrel. The effect of the barrel on the Sacrilege is completely different and the result is a very dry and tart product. Intended to be a primary component in the Old Fashioned, generally a very sweet drink, the goal was to enhance the sour, dry and funkiness of the cider. Both the boilermaker and the "Old Fashioned" will be available for $10.

For those not able to make it to Raven&Rose Thursday there are a limited number of bottles of each barrel aged cider. But I can't tell you more than that...just yet. Keep up with Reverend Nat's online or check back here. I promise to let you know more as soon as I can.

Eagle Rare Bourbon Barrel Aged Ciders Release Party
Raven&Rose's Rookery Bar
1331 SW Broadway
Thursday, June 25th 6-10 pm

pFriem Beers + Spirits = A Most Adult Father's Day Pairing

When you get asked if you'd like to sit in on a meeting in which the parties will be creating beer and spirits pairings you don't say no. That's just what I had the opportunity to do when Dave Shenaut of Raven&Rose and Matt Kotwasinski of pFriem Family Brewers gathered in the upstairs Rookery Bar to figure out pairings for Father's Day.

Matt showed up with a case of beer, Dave flung open the doors of the well-stocked bar and in no time the table was filled with glasses. At the end of it all six pairings had been created that will be offered during brunch Sunday, June 21st 10 am - 2pm. Each pairing will be $10: 12 oz of the beer plus a 1 oz sidecar of the spirit.

Pilsner and John L Sullivan "10 Count" Irish Whiskey - The idea behind this simple pairing is that of "a powers and a pils."

Wit and Asbach Uralt 3yr German Brandy - The clean and crisp brandy is well matched with the zesty character the coriander and orange peel impart in the Wit.

Belgian Strong Blonde and 1792 R&R Single Barrel Bourbon - The easy drinking beer compliments the complex Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey.

Belgium Strong Dark and Hibiki 12yr Suntory Japanese Whisky - The combination of the ripe fig and chocolate notes from the beer and the whisky aged in plums is down right delicious.

Flanders Red and Zucca Rabarbaro - This is a perfect dessert pairing with the wood and smoke from the amaro liquor blend tastily with the fruit notes from the beer.

Blonde IPA and Ancho Reyes Chile Liqueur - Perhaps the weirdest and most fun pairing combines pFriem's bold take on the style with the smoky sweetness of the liqueur.

Coming Up: Brewer's Dinner Series at Raven & Rose

Raise your hand if you'd like to eat an insane amount of delicious food paired with an equally amazing beer flight. That's what Raven & Rose is serving up this Sunday at their Brewer's Dinner Series Goose Island Bourbon County Stout Release. I was invited to preview the dinner over the weekend and if you're not into hearing me gushing about food and beer you should stop reading right now.

The meal started off with a full pour of Goose Island IPA and a basket of what appeared to be fairly standard bread, butter and crackers. "Crackers" really doesn't do these delicious buttery, salty, house made squares of goodness justice but I can tell you that I could have eaten my weight in them. The dinner then got rolling with a bitter greens salad, because one should balance all that butter with some greens, right?

After a great intro, things kicked into high gear as a four beer flight was brought out consisting of Class of '88 Belgian Style, Matilda, Madame Rose and Bourbon County Stout. Then the table proceeded to be laden with platters of Painted Hills grass fed prime rib, Columbia River King Salmon, twice-baked potatoes, roasted Brussels sprouts, stuffed delicata squash and pot pie. While the sides may be slightly different this Sunday the prime rib and salmon will remain. Raven & Rose sources as much of their food locally as possible meaning what looked the best last weekend went my sides but something else may look even better to create yours this weekend.

The meal was and will be served family style, a deliberate move to encourage interaction at the table. Bar Director David Shenaut explained that they want to encourage diners to mix and match, to explore pairing the beers with each dish as they see fit. For those looking for more direction, they'll have that covered, too, as Goose Island representative will be present at Sunday's dinner.

Taking the recommendation I tried each beer with each dish, finding one of my favorites to be Class of '88 with the prime rib. My least favorite beer on its own was Matilda yet it was the one I felt worked the best with the greatest number of dishes. Keep in mind that when I say "least favorite" it's only because I hold the other three in such high regard that being served just them, without any food, would be a delightful [liquid] meal. As the main portion of the meal came to a close I finished off the last of my Class of '88 and Madame Rose, restraining the urge to do the same with the Bourbon County yet also wanting to try some with dessert.

Dessert, while the most modest portion of the night, seemed as large as the rest of the meal in flavor. Black sticky gingerbread, quince sorbet, ginger tuile, poached quince and warm sweet cream was served with a pour of Bourbon County Barley Wine. The beer was outstanding alone and with the dish, which was just as good with my remaining Bourbon County Stout. The trifecta was completely decadent and more than my happily full belly needed but I was unable to stop until I'd scooped up every last crumb and downed every last drop.

If you're now drooling, pick up the phone and give Raven & Rose a call to reserve your spot for dinner taking place at 6:30 pm this Sunday, December 7.

Raven & Rose Brewer's Dinner Series
Goose Island Bourbon County Stout Release
Sunday, December 7th 6:30 - 8:30 pm
$75/person
Menu details
503-222-7673 or email Natalia@ravenandrosepdx.com

A Delicious First Taste

You can only have so much beer before you need food. And sometimes food is just food, to fill the hole, to soak up the beer. But other times the food is equally as important, equally as good, perhaps even more so than the beer.

Tonight I had the chance to check out a place I had been hearing some buzz about - The Rookery, housed above Raven & Rose, in the hayloft of the Ladd Carriage House which is not only one of the few remaining buildings in the U.S. of the English Stick style of architecture but is also on the National Register of Historic Places AND an LEED certified building.

Starting next weekend they will offer a new family-style Sunday roast supper. This week's version of it featured two amazingly prepared meats - wood-fire roasted lamb and slow-roasted pork. Both were meltingly juicy on the inside with crispy exteriors. As a bonus the pork included the extra deliciousness of crispy chicharrones. The rich meats were accompanied by a well-rounded assortment of sides, my favorite being the beef fat-whipped potatoes. Yes, beef fat.

The Widmer/Logsdon Belgian pale ale collaboration, Ensemble, I had ordered before the group happily descended on the feast was a perfect palate cleanser. I could have spent hours alternating between bites of the luscious varieties of fats and refreshing sips of the pale ale.

The meal will be offered at $35/person 4:00 - 9:00 pm in the dining room and while they pour wine and cocktails, I highly recommend having your meal with a beer.

I'll also be recommending that my friends and I meet up either at Raven & Rose or the Rookery Bar to try more of the food I have no doubt will be equally as delicious as the Sunday Roast preview. Perhaps I'll be back next week on April 12th for the Samuel Smith's Brewer's Social. Who's in?