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Breakside Brewery Big Country / Oregon
“Our take on a winter ale is something uncommon in the Northwest: a rich and balanced strong ale inspired by the starkbiers and weinnachtsbiers sold in winter in the open air markets of Germany. Malt driven notes of orange, cocoa, candied fruit, and toast dominate the aroma and flavor of this beer. the body is luscious and full and gives way to a refreshing, spicy finish.”
with thanks to Samurai Artist!
Not one of my favorite labels from Gigantic Brewing but I do like the quote on the side. Very cool and fits into many points in a person’s life. This stylistic mash-up pours a dark reddish / brown color with a nice off white head to it. Aroma is a little alcohol heavy with a sprinkling of citrus. This is a cheek warmer. Solid herbal and citrus mix of bitterness with a nice malt punch to it. But the bitterness here is the star. Hitting hard at the start and lingering with each sip. I think I may like hoppy amber more than Black IPA’s.
On the non-beer side of the ledger, I have to tout Grantland again. The rambling and funny discussions between Malcolm Gladwell and Bill Simmons are great and thought provoking with many ideas that I wish were implemented in the world of sports.
Onto Round 2 of the BrewDog TV review!
This post revolves around the Seattle, Portland and Denver episodes.
Since I wrote a small piece about a coffee beer for November BeerPaper LA and I am writing a larger piece about coffee and brewing for December, I was glad to see that the show went with the obvious for the Seattle episode. And though the molecular gastronomy was enlightening with the beer pairings, I would have skipped the added caffeine boost section and given more screen time to the chocolatier and the baristas and Elysian. That’s a personal preference though.
The Denver / Boulder show scared me a bit with the meat smoked thing though I liked the choice of pale ale. On the whole this one is probably the weakest so far. Maybe because it was titled Denver, I was expecting more of actual Denver but no mention except for brief bits on Great Divide and Strange. Plus they like Falling Rock which might be good outside of GABF but has a Toronado SF vibe that I don’t like. I much prefer Freshcraft. The gourmand section was fun too. It is my favorite segment of the show by far.
I was really excited to see the Portland show seeing that it is my hometown. A little strange to see them partner with Deschutes. Nothing against them but they don’t scream Portland to me. Much like my issue with the Denver show, call it Oregon or Colorado if you are going farther afield. The beer style was inspired though and takes a play from the Beers Made by Walking idea. My favorite beer that I won’t get to try. The food section ranks second behind the Philly donut section.
Overall, the show really works for me though. I enjoy the accents and the self-deprecating humor. They seem to be enjoying themselves which helps the viewer to enjoy the show!
If you have had Fred from Hair of the Dog then you will need to try this companion beer “from the wood” that bears the name of Otto. And wears the jaunty Germanic hat. This palindromic twist on Fred is another aged beer from HotD. And they certainly know how to make them.
Have a pint. Change the World.
It can and is being done at the not-for-profit pub, Oregon Public House in North Portland.
On my most recent trip to Portland, my mom took me to the Public House. It was a first time for both of us so the helpful employee at the door gave us the rundown. You order your beer and/or food. Then you pay for it. All normal so far. But then you can pick the charity that ALL of the proceeds go to.
Or you can have your tab split amongst the choices on the board. And/or you can drop some extra greenbacks into the Give-O-Meter through your choice of stein….
All well and good but what about the beer? Well, it was a good list. Competitive for Portland beer buyers dollars in my opinion. I picked up the Lime Kolsch from Burnside Brewing and enjoyed it while my mom had the Proletariat Red from Lompoc. And I could have easily picked a couple other beers to have or the cider from Reverend Nat’s which piqued my interest.
And if you need further prodding to head out that way, Breakside Brewery is literally 1/2 a block away. Two birds. One stone.
Thanks Hopworks, now I have to get my hands on the Amarillo, Meridian, Falconer’s Flight and Cascade hop versions too! Love the label. Simple design with a great use of graphics to give a little bit of hop knowledge to the drinker. I especially like the disclosure of the hop farms that grew the hops that made it into this particular beer.
The Centennial version pours a dark orange. Aroma isn’t huge to me. I get some spice notes primarily. The taste has a solid level of bitterness and it is tilted more to spices and herbs. By solid, I mean that it delivers hops but doesn’t bludgeon you with them. Nice and bubbly and fresh tasting. The IPX tastes a bit stronger than 6%.
And since we are reviewing part of my bounty that I brought back from Portland, I would be remiss not to mention that Season 3 of Portlandia is now streaming on the Netflix. I thought Season 2 was a bit less funny than 1 (despite the standout Battlestar Galactica episode) so I am curious as to how the latest season plays out. And to see which Portland Trailblazer (if any) make a guest appearance.
Billed as an India Style Session Ale, Simple from Coalition Brewing pours a slightly hazy orange. Aroma is almost wort-ish but pleasant. I get some spice notes from the addition of the rey and a small touch of orange. But the dominant note is grapefruit and the pith. You almost get a grapefruit juice quality of bitterness. Some slight grain notes as well. And I think the label is quite well done. Bright colors and a easy to spot hop cone to latch onto when beer shopping.
My recommendation for this review is neither books nor movies nor music but donuts! Blue Star Donuts from Portland. My mother and I had a great time choosing a donut to have with our coffee but I can easily see pairing one with a beer like this that has such a great citrus taste. The Rhubard/Berry glazed donut would be a great start.
My trips to Portland have to have three things. Time with my mom. Time with my sister and four nephews and lastly, time with the beer that I don’t see in LA (though yes I did have some Ninkasi which is now available in the Southland. So here are the beers of Portland along with ** or !!! to signify what you should be trying when you visit the Rose City next.
Base Camp In-Tents IPL
Oakshire Line Dry Rye +
Ninkasi Total Domination & Believer Red
@ Breakside Milwaukie (more on this spot in a later post)
Passion fruit sour +
Spruce wheat – (my brother-in-law tried to talk me out of it
Esb –
Old Skool hop bomb +
Imperial sour apricot +
Session brown –
Aquavit Braggot ++
Pfriem Strong Blonde +
Fort George Three Way IPA collaboration with Gigantic and Lompoc
Occidental Kolsch + (16oz tallboy)
Double Mountain Cluster single hop IPA +++
Kloster Andechs vollbier @ Beer Mongers +++
Freigeist pink gose +
Elysian super fuzz blood orange pale —
Breakside Pilsner +
De Garde Berliner Weisse +
in Hood River
pFriem tasting tray at their excellent taproom near the Columbia river
pilsner +
blonde IPA ++
IPA +
Little saison +
saison +
schwarzbier +
Big Horse Brett +
Everybody’s Brewing Hoedown Brown
Back in Portland
Boring Brewing Oatmeal pale
Gigantic High Fidelity pale
Lompoc Rat and Warthog IPA
Lompoc Eleventy One CDA
Burnside Lime Kolsch
Migration Glisan Street Dry hopped pale ++ (at Podnahs BBQ)
Breakside Amarillo wheat
Worthy Imperial IPA
5 Days. And I did not set foot in Belmont Station or Bailey’s Taproom or Cascade or other favorite haunts.
(more on growlers in grocery stores and Breakside in Milwaukie and other Stumptown beer posts later this month)
Our second and final huge, Gigantic review is the Hole in the Head IPA, cause you need another IPA like you need…you get the picture.
Our first huge, Gigantic review is the seldom seen style, Vienna Lager. Maybe because it is hard to do and most lagers are considered verboten. I love ’em though! Here is what I think of Dark Meddle and the crazed squirrel on the label….