Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
Fruit seems to be the theme of the Reserve series so far. Of course, Widmer is only two beers into it. But first was Cherry Oak Dopplebock (which I still wish I could get a bottle of) and now comes the prickly pear paired with a malty mead. Sounds interesting.
Ballard’s Bitter was one of the early craft brews back when I was a young lad. A lot of beer has been brewed since then and Redhook seems to be losing favor among the beer geeks.
But there appears to be signs of life this year. New releases are coming. I hope it portends better to come.
Who can say no to French Toast and Danish beer? I can’t. Especially when it is at the beach on a beautiful, sunny day at the excellent Library Alehouse.
First a photo of the food…
now just the beer….
Back to my favorite style, IPA from Thomas Hooker.
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.
The can movement is picking up steam. How do I know? Tall boys are back.
“We’re pleased to announce that Half Acre will be installing a canning line at the end of this month. Craft beer and cans are a great combination and we’re eager to make this change. What does this mean for you? Once we’re rolling out cans from the brewery we will begin to transition from six-packs of 12oz bottles to four-packs of 16oz cans. That’s right, Tall Boys! We’ll begin by canning two beers, Daisy Cutter Pale Ale and Gossamer Golden Ale. That means Half Acre cans will be a reliable friend come late April.”
Now craft beer is pushing it’s way into another industrial beer stronghold.
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).
“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.
Gose is a little known East German specific style that is one of my favorites. I had it in Leipzig and was hooked. Now there are two brewers in Portland re-creating this forgotten beer. Cascade and now Upright Brewing.
Here are the specs:
Gose – Upright’s first German-style beer. It’s a neat style that dates back nearly 300 years and uses a unique ingredient – salt.
Malts: organic pale, wheat, organic caramel 15
Hops: hallertauer mittelfrüh
Also: coriander, salt
Yeast: French saison
5.2% abv
As promised, here is the 2nd Welsh entry.
Breconshire Brewery is considered the leading Welsh light of their craft beer revival.
Two of their beers struck my fancy. First is Ramblers Ruin – “Dark amber, malty and well hopped with a beautifully balanced aftertaste; a champion Old Ale. High percentages of Crystal and Black Malt create the malt/biscuit undertones; bitterness and aroma are provided by Goldings and First Gold amongst others.”
Second was 6. “This 4.4% abv complex ale is the colour of Welsh Gold; smooth, full flavoured and brimming over with character. Oat and Rye malts give the redish hint to this golden ale, whilst Challenger, Goldings and Sovereign hops provide the bite that underscores the flavour profile. Like the Welsh team, this beer promises to make a great and lasting impression over this Six Nations….
4.4% abv”
Since I am striving to bring my faithful readers beer news that spans the globe. (ripped off Stephen King and Wide World of Sports, sorry) Today’s brewery spotlight falls on Wales! (Kudos to Pete Brown for bringing these breweries to my attention)
The first stop is the Purple Moose.
Here is a little background…
“The Purple Moose Brewery is a ’10-Barrel’ micro-brewery based in the historic harbour town of Porthmadog, North Wales, close to the mountains of Snowdonia.”
Here is the important beer information…
“We currently produce four standard beers in both cask conditioned and bottled formats. These are Snowdonia Ale (3.6%), Madog’s Ale (3.7%), Glaslyn Ale (4.2%) Dark Side of the Moose (4.6%)”