Ayinger Oktoberfest-Märzen

Since I’ve got what I hope turns out to be a reasonable Oktoberfest-Märzen fermenting right now, I figured it was a good time to refresh my tastebuds on what the original style from Ayinger tastes like. I remembered it being a pleasantly malty, coppery, well balanced beer that suits these dark winter days quite well. A little glass of late-summer/early-fall sunshine to cheer us up!

From the bottle, it pours clear and the color of sun-baked straw; golden and a little toasty. There is a little head retention and some foam lacing on the sides of the pint glass. The aroma is of malt and a hint of corn and spice, with a slight alcohol and ester edge to it. It has a fairly delicate mouthfeel, not a strong carbonation but just enough to tell you that the beer isn’t flat and make it feel alive.

The flavor is definitely malty, a little bit sweet, with a slight metallic tang on the finish. A slight hoppy bitterness at the end keeps the sweetness from being cloying, drying the flavor out quite a bit. There’s a bit of an alcohol and corn or grain (think Grapenuts) flavor, which I’m sure is from the malts used.

So, I remembered correctly! It’s a sunny, warming beer that I’d look forward to drinking in the fall and winter. Here’s hoping mine turns out even remotely this well.

Roots Brewing’s Chocolate Habañero Stout

Ah, fall in Portland. The season for darker, interesting, and wacky beers. Bring on the stouts, the bourbon-barrel releases, and the winter warmers!

Roots Brewing has released a chocolate habañero stout; a stout brewed with chocolate malt, chocolate wheat & five pounds of coco nibs in the mash, boiled for two hours during six pounds of organic free trade semi sweet chocolate syrup made by Alma Chocolate is added. After fermentation they dry hopped with 100 chopped habañeros. For those of you not in Portland, Alma Chocolate is a local chocolatier that makes fantastic, interesting, fancy chocolates.

On first pouring, this beer has a chili pepper aroma along with dark malt notes — just as you might expect — and a medium head that dissipates fairly quickly. This isn’t an oily Guinness, it’s more in the vein of a dry Irish stout. It is completely black, not even a hint of wan Portland afternoon light gets through this pint.

As it warms, the flavors definitely improve. On my first taste, this stout was dry, not very chocolatey, and I couldn’t taste the habañeros at all. Now that it’s been warming for a little bit, there’s a definite spiciness up front and in the finish. Swishing it around in my mouth makes my gums tingle with spice – both weird and interesting in a beer. If you’re expecting this to be a sweet chocolate stout like Young’s Double Chocolate stout, you’ll be disappointed. This has more of a cocoa nib chocolate character rather than a bittersweet chocolate flavor. The sweetness is more apparent after 30 minutes of warming, so come in for a pint and relax a while to let the flavors come out.

The spice level definitely grows over time, more of a nice slow burn that lingers than a sharp up-front heat. I can also taste the chilies in the finish, which give a slightly toasted note to the flavor.

All in all, this ended up being a pretty interesting stout. I’m not sure the habañeros were necessary, though the warm tingle on the back of my tongue is nice on a blustery Portland day. I almost want the chocolate to be more prominent or sweeter since it’s muted by the black malt of the stout and the chili flavors. However, this had the potential to be a really weird beer, and instead it was a tasty and interesting beer.

Keep up the experimentation, Roots!

Upright Brewing #5

I keep hearing about this new craft brewery in town, Upright Brewing. A pal was just talking about them this morning, and they have a beer on tap at the Green Dragon. I don’t know much about them yet, but tasting this beer tells me that all signs point to tasty.

The #5 is a “Belgian Farmhouse Bitter”, according to the bartender. Of course, he also tried to give me change for a $20 when I only gave him a $5, so his judgement may be questionable The #5 is slightly hazy, but fairly clear, with a golden/reddish color. A small head remains on the beer after pouring, and the foam is lacy on the glass. It has a medium to creamy mouthfeel. The aroma is definitely tart and tangy, which made me expect a really spicy farmhouse style ale. But on tasting the flavor is more of malt with a slightly bitter finish, not of spices and citrus. The bitterness isn’t one of strong hops so much as it reminds me of tonic water. More crisp and refreshing, which is good because this beer could be too sweet or heavy without some bittering.

I have high hope for Upright Brewing after this! It’s a very interesting first taste for a new brewery, and I’m glad they were brave enough not to release yet another NW-style IPA into the world just to win popular tastes.

The Big Island’s other brewery: Mehana Brewing

The only brewery from Hawai’i most of us know about is Kona Brewing, especially since it has mainland distribution through Widmer Brewing. Lucky Kona! But on a recent vacation to the Hilo side of the Big Island, I found out that there are other breweries to check out.

Mehana Brewing doesn’t have a pub attached to the brewery, there’s just a small tasting room and gift area. Local grocery stores carry their bottle beers, and they sell kegs to lots of restaurants and bars on the island. I tracked down the tasting room just so I could get a sense of their full range on tap. Their beers tend toward the lighter ales and lagers, though they did have a seasonal porter. They definitely tweak their styles to suit local tastes, which is pretty cool. Though I tasted all of the beers at the brewery, I bought some bottles so I could give real reviews of their two best-selling varieties.

Mehana’s Humpback Blue Ale is a kolsch-style ale, a light amber-colored beer with a malty nose and a fairly smooth mouthfeel. The flavor up front is a little metallic, but with a nice cereal note that isn’t too sweet. Unlike beers in Oregon, Hawaiian beers are mildly hopped, and the Humpback Blue is no exception. There is a strangely tart note to the beer, much like I’d expect in a sorghum or gluten-free ale, that’s coupled with a slightly bitter edge in the finish when the beer has warmed a bit. All in all not bad, but not my favorite kolsch.

Roy’s Private Reserve is brewed special for Roy’s Restaurants, but it’s also available by the bottle. It’s even lighter than the Humpback Blue, but with a finer bubble and more “refined” qualities. It has a sweet malty aroma with a lot of cereal in it – that Grapenuts smell I associate with well-malted beers. The flavor reminded me of a Belgian golden, but without the Belgian yeast taste in the finish. It had some honey notes to it, and a hint of spice that I didn’t expect.The Roy’s Private Reserve seemed like a Japanese take on a Belgian beer.

All told, Mehana is doing pretty good work. They weren’t my favorite beers, but it’s interesting to taste localized versions of familiar styles. If you’re in Hawai’i I definitely recommend checking them out!

Pelican Brewing’s Spring Seasonals

A 4-day trip to the Oregon Coast has to include at least one stop at Pelican Brewing for a taste of what’s new and some bottles to take home. And what’s a greater reward for a 1,200ft ascent up Cascade Head than a refreshing local craft beer?

I had their Riptide Red, which was a more traditional take on a red ale than most local breweries might offer. Not bitter or hoppy, this red had some rye notes to the finish and a solid bready malt flavor. It’s medium-bodied, fairly light on the palate, and not at all sweet. There’s a hint of clove and spice in the flavor, but nothing overwhelming. This is definitely a red you’d drink after a hard day’s labor. It was perfect on a warm yet overcast coastal day, just as the Irish would like their red ale.

Kathy had  the Nestucca ESB, which was completely different than I’d expected. The aroma is strongly green hop, very bright and fresh, nearly grassy. But after that green hop aroma comes a malty, bready flavor that washes away any astringent hop notes. There’s some caramel and toffee in the finish, but it’s well-balanced so the final flavor isn’t at all sweet. It has a medium to slightly fizzy body, a hint of esters in the flavor, but winds up crisp and refreshing without being overhopped. I thought I’d hate this ESB, but it was really good! If growlers at Pelican weren’t so expensive ($15 with your own bottle, $23.50 if you need a new bottle) we would have gotten one of the ESB.

Drop by Pelican Brewing some time this spring and give their offerings a try! They’re also working on some Belgian styles that are bound to be interesting. We’ve got a 22oz bottle of Saison du Pelican that I can’t wait to taste.