Category: Brewery Tour

A concise brewery bio

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North by NW Brewing

On Sundays in May, I will post a snapshot of a southwestern US brewery along with a suggested beer or two to try. I will give you a sneak preview of one brewery now.

North by Northwest Brewing in Austin, Texas.

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Duckabish Amber
Pilsner, Caravienne, and Chocolate malts give this beer its beautiful, deep amber color. It is soft and creamy and balanced by Horizon hops.

Pyjingo Pale Ale
Brewed in the style of the great ales of the Pacific Northwest, this complex combination of Pilsner and Caravienne malts and Horizon, Cascade and Amarillo hops make it a great session beer.

Okanogan Black Ale
This rich, malty dark ale is reminiscent of the smooth ales produced by the Weltenberg Brewery in Northwestern Germany. The Pilsner, Caravienne, Munich, Chocolate, Black malts and Roasted Barley give this great dark ale a creamy, roasted malt flavor, which is perfectly balanced with Cascade hops.

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Crow Peak Brewing

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We use the power of a beer map to focus on a South Dakota brewpub, Crow Peak!

LOOKOUT LAGER: This straw colored, medium-bodied lager is dominated by a dry maltiness. Hop bitterness is very low, however, a mild note of hops lingers on the tongue.

SPEARBEER: This is a light copper-colored English style Pale Ale with a malty character and just a hint of fruitiness balanced by medium hop bitterness. The ale finishes with a pleasant hop flavor and aroma.

11th HOUR IPA: Hop aroma and flavor dominate this IPA. However, the malt character of this deep amber colored ale nicely balances the hop component thus avoiding a harsh bitterness. A truly quaffable beverage!

BEAR BUTTE BROWN: This deep brown colored ale has a strong malt character with a hint of roasted barley. There is a slightly detectable hop bitterness, but no hop flavor or aroma.

PILE O’ DIRT PORTER: Named for the ridiculous 4 foot dirt pile we had to put our brewery on to get us out of the FEMA-designated 100 year floodplain (no-one can remember this part of Spearfish ever flooding). This robust porter is black in color, is medium-bodied and has a rich, roasted malt flavor ending with a pleasing hop flavor and mild hop bitterness.

I always get a brewery history lesson from the names, so I would sample the Pile ‘O’ Dirt first because of the floodplain reference.

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Porterhouse Brewery

To Ireland we fly to talk about the Porterhouse Brewery. Ireland and Scotland have fallen behind Wales in craft beer but with BrewDog and Porterhouse, maybe the tide is turning.

Here are two of the beers that piqued my curiousity…
hersbruckerlrg
“A classic full bodied continental style pilsner with an ample balance of lip smacking Hersbrucker hops. A soft, quality hop flavour with the matching subtly of fine malt and sweetness.”
Oyster-stout
“Brewed with fresh oyster. A smooth drinking aromatic stout with a discernible but unidentifiable aromatic aspect. Not suitable for vegetarians.”

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Pale Horse Brewing

For quite awhile, if you drove south from Portland, your next beer destination was Eugene. You drove right past the state capital of Salem.

But now there are signs of life. One is Pale Horse Brewing.
pale horse
They have a Hillbilly Blond, the Hopyard Dog and the signature Pale Horse Irish Dry Stout.

Pale Horse Brewing
(brewery only, no pub)
2359 Hyacinth ST. NE
Salem, OR 97301
503-364-3610

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Migration Brewing

A brewery that blatantly loves the Portland Trailblazers. All I can say is Red, Hot and Rollin’
Migration

They started with guest taps but will slowly fold in their beers as they are ready. First up is the MPA. Their take on a pale ale. West coast style.

Get the latest news on Migration Brewing HERE

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Mother Earth Brewing

Last year there was a bit of a kerfuffle over an online “who is the best beer city” poll that grew out of proportion. It was Beervana Portland vs. newcomer Asheville.

What was good about it was the attention that got focused on what was important. Bringing attention to a brewing hotspot.

I have now purchased beer from Bruisin’ Ales and that led me onto their newsletter which led me to this new brewery…
meb
About the brewery: “Take the goodness of garden-grown products, the warmth of small town life, the earthy ethic of rock ‘n roll, a deep respect for a time-honored craft…and you have the ingredients of Mother Earth Brewing. Born in the summer of 2008, Mother Earth is the dream-child of Stephen Hill and Trent Mooring, two guys from Kinston, North Carolina, a sweet southern town in the heart of the old tobacco belt.”

Here are the description of a couple beers that caught my eye:
Endless River Kölsch
“A clean, crisp beer, Kolsch offers a very slight fruity flavor and aroma. It is light gold in color, with a delicate head. This light-bodied beer appeals to nearly everyone who samples it. Expect to enjoy a slight tang in the finish.”
Weeping Willow Wit
“This beer style is over 400 years old, and continues to enjoy overwhelming popularity. Offering low hop bitterness, it is easy to enjoy. It pours very hazy, with a light gold color… we say it’s like summertime in a glass. Bitter orange peel and fresh coriander add zest and depth to this refreshing beer.”

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Cocoa Beach Brewing

A new entrant in the fast growing Florida beer scene is Cocoa Beach Brewing Company.

Here is their beer list:
Cocoa Beach Pale Ale – A traditional American Pale Ale featuring two row malts, Nugget, Pearle, and Cascade Hops.

Cocoa Beach Key Lime Cerveza – Unique to Cocoa Beach Brewing Company, this Caribbean style beer is brewed with Pilsner Malt, Crystal Hops, and real Key West Lime.

Cocoa Beach Dirty Blonde – A refreshing, crisp, low(er) calorie beer brewed with Pilsner Malt and Crystal Hops.

“Just Some” Oatmeal Stout – Made with two-row pale malt, dark chocolate malt, black malt, and flaked oats – this rich stout is brewed with more than one ounce per gallon of Fuggle hops.

Sofa King Double IPA – Our take on the traditional India Pale Ale, our Double IPA is brewed with Pale and Crystal Malts. It is dry hopped with a generous amount of Simcoe hops.

Matt’s Special Bitter – Brewed with Maris Otter and Biscuit Malts, this complexly hopped British Ale is the brainchild of guest brewer Matt Backus.

Von Braun Ale – Our classic brown ale recipe, but with German Nobel hops. This unique beer with a Space Coast flair was a collaboration with guest brewer George Folmar.

Cocoa Beach Oktoberfest lager – Our version of the classic German beer, it is brewed with Vienna, Cara-Munich, and Victory Malts and traditional German Nobel hops.

The key lime cerveza sounds great. Much better than jamming a wedge of lime into a dirty Corona.

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Down on the hop farm

rogue_logo
When you think of Rogue Ales, I want you to think lodging too.

That’s right. You can stay at their B&B in coastal Oregon or at their micro-hop farm in Independence, Oregon. And all for pretty cheap.

Here is the address:
Chatoe Rogue Micro Hopyard, 3590 Wigrich Road, Independence, Ore.; 503-347-8288
For more information follow this LINK to their website
Double rooms at the house on this hops farm start at $90 per night.

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Gilgamesh Brewing

Another one of the reasons why I love the craft beer industry, (I think this is now reason #77) is that it is truly a labor of love for the entire family.
That is the case with Gilgamesh Brewing in Salem, Oregon. (remember-Salem is a growing beer town).
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“Brothers Mike, Nick and Matt along with their father, Lee have loved brewing beer at home for years and decided to take a crack at making a business at it. The family has been in the Salem area for over 40 years, with most of the family members growing up here and graduating from Sprague High School.”

Here is the beer list:
BLACK MAMBA
Brewed with earl grey tea leaves in lieu of hops, plus a hint of tangerine zest. A high gravity HOPLESS beer that is extremely aromatic and complex without the fruity finish. INcredibly drinkable.

COPPER
Mild maltiness with the perfect combination of hoppiness. Similar to a mild amber ale.

IPA
Here come the hops! This is a 60 minute IPA. We add our 3 favorite hops (Zeus, Simcoe and Amarillo) every minute during the brewing process, and then another pound per barrel added during fermentation. Very citrusy and floral. A Hophead’s dream ale.

HOPSCOTCH ALE
Our most popular ale. It has a very traditional Scottish style malty body with an additional smattering of hops added during the fermentation which adds a complimentary floral finish.

SEASONALS —-

CRANBERRY SAISON
Another hopless beer, brewed and fermented with local cranberries. It has a pleasant tartness with clove and banana esters.

CHOCOLATE MINT STOUT
No Hops again. The perfect combination of cocoa, locally grown mint, and stout beer flavor -without being too sweet. International award-winning Amano Chocolate’s Madagascar cocoa nibs are used.