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Deschutes and Goose Island have teamed up for the final Class of ’88 installment….
And here is the little blurb put out about it…”This exotic beer was brewed with Michigan Riesling and Oregon Pinot Noir grapes, hops from Mt. Hood and pilsner malt – all aged in barrels that previously held Muscat wine in them for 10 years. ” Beers with grapes can be tricky to make beer-y enough with good wine characteristics so this will be a test to see how these two “ancient” breweries handle it.
First things first, this is the Boulevard branded version of Terra Incognita. Now onto what else I am watching/listening/reading while reviewing. Why? Because great craft beer makes me enjoy all the good things in life. Kinda new age-y but that is fine. So I am on a season 1 of Fringe kick right now. If you are a Netflix-er. Catch it there. I am also a big fan of the ESPN/Bill Simmons/McSweeney’s mash-up Grantland. Funny and spot on sports reporting/commentary as well as culture analysis of Mad Men that will leave you rolling.
On to this mash up of Chico and Kansas City…..The cork shot out of this bottle. Lots of foam initially, followed by a big blast of barrel aged notes. Whiskey. Not bourbon heavy. Still quite effervescent after settling down. Getting some acidity and hop bitterness after the oaky notes fade. Amazing that it is 8.5% when you consider how strong the aroma and taste is. But it is indeed light when you let it linger on the tongue.
This is one of those beers where you know what you are going to get but it still hits with a punch. Deschutes is known for their Black Butte Porter and Great Lakes has their Edmund Fitzgerald so you know going in that this beer is in each of these breweries wheelhouse. But then the beer pours a light cola color. Lulling you into thinking it is not that imperial. The aroma hints at the smoke but chocolate notes come into play as well. Then you take a sip and the smoke descends. This is really “rauchy”. And that liquid smoke lingers. You would need a big BBQ sauce to soften this beer. Otherwise, most other foods would pale against it.
Rauch is not my cup of beer usually. But I can tell what was being aimed for here and it was hit. If you don’t like the smokey then this is not the beer for you but if that is a something you like then this is one to pick up.
Count me as a fan of Sierra Nevada hop bombs and also count me as one who isn’t super fond of Dogfish Head IPA’s. But I love that these two big regional breweries can collaborate from time to time. Life and Limb part one and it’s cousin Limb and Life were both really solid beers. So how does Rhizing Bines fare…..
Well it pours a light orange color. I get a big alcohol hit in the aroma and some dankness. I will have to compare it with the recent Celebrator beer magazine 25th Anniversary Imperial Pale since they both use the experimental 644 hop. The Celebrator beer was super boozy but the blueberry and citrus notes popped more. This beer was much more on the Dogfish Head side of the spectrum than the Sierra side. Uber malty with a slickness that coats the tongue. The hops are there and their fruit notes are underneath but I would prefer them in the forefront.
The collaboration craze shows no sign of abating and I, for one, am not surprised. If brewers can be creative with malt and hops then why would that end when more industry friends are invited in.
Now Deschutes will collaborate with breweries from the Class of ’88. North Coast – Rogue – Goose Island – Great Lakes Brewing who have all reached the 25 year mark. This will be a series of beers honoring that joyous mark.
According to schedule the first to appear will be a barleywine in March of this year.
Then a couple months later a Smoked Imperial Porter will be released and finally a Belgian Style Strong Golden will arrive late in the year.
In my mind, the Bruery has been on a roll in 2012. So many beers covering a wide range from light to dark and some great local collaborations with Eagle Rock and Bootlegger’s to name just two beers. Now they have teamed up with the high flyers at Hangar 24 for a strawberry accented beer called Ichigo Highway. Here is the review…
Here is the label copy, “Ichigo Highway is a collaborative beer that we created with Hangar 24 Brewing from Redlands, CA. The base style is a sessionable sour red ale that we aged in oak barrels along with a whopping amount of strawberries, most of which were picked from the fields besides Hangar 24’s brewery. Aged for approximately 8 months, this beer has developed a pleasant funk and a delightful acidity that is balanced by the intensely sweet aroma and flavor of the strawberries as well as a unique dryness achieved by using a sake yeast along with our house strain along with souring bacteria.”
Beer # 3 from Gigantic is a collaboration with Indiana’s famed Three Floyds. Here is my review of Axes of Evil.
P.S. Beers 4 & 5 came out last month. Black Friday and the Royale….
Looks like the collaboration between Dogfish Head and Sierra Nevada was fun enough and didn’t harm Life and Limb. So now they are back with a beer name likely to be misspelled on many a blog.
I would have liked to see them do a pilsner of helles but I will be trying this out if I run across it.
A great video about the collaboration between The Bruery and TAPS for A Stein’s Throw part of the Provisions Series of beers. The Bruery just this year has gotten together with Eagle Rock, Bootlegger’s and now TAPS.
For those of you who were scratching their heads at Conflux # 2. Here is the info on # 1!
“The beer is a blend of two Deschutes beers, The Stoic and The Dissident, as well as two Hair of the Dog beers, Fred and Adam. All four were brewed at Deschutes’ facility in Bend in March of 2010. All four were then aged in a variety of wooden barrels for two years including Rye Whiskey, Cognac, Sherry, Pinot Noir, Bourbon, used American Oak which previously held beer, new American Oak, and new Oregon Oak.”