Bard’s Tale Sorghum Beer: Revisited

I was at Fred Meyer the other day doing some grocery shopping when I noticed they had Bard’s Sorghum Beer on the shelves. What really caught my eye was the new design of the packaging – a complete departure from the previous pseudo-Celtic affair. A few months ago, during my gluten-free month, I had reviewed Bard’s Tale Dragon’s Gold beer and found it lacking. Not only was it spendy, but it was a shadow of what real beer is. But now that Bard’s Tale had re-branded as “Bard’s”, dropped the dragons and uncial script, and developed a whole new look, I figured it was only fair to give the beer another chance.

Poured into a pint glass, the beer has a golden honey color and is crystal clear. There’s little head retention, and some lacy foam on the glass as the head recedes. The main thing I noticed is that it’s  sweet on first taste, medium bodied, carbonated like a macrobrew – a medium bubble that’s like soda from a fountain rather than a can. It has a little metallic taste, slightly tangy from the sorghum, but not bitter. There’s a spicy, honey-like finish with a little alcohol flavor. In this case, the tang of sorghum seems to cut the sweetness of the beer, making it pretty drinkable.

I was really surpised to find that I enjoyed Bard’s re-branded beer. While it is still expensive, it’s less so than last spring, and they seem to have improved the recipe. They’re no longer calling it a lager, focusing instead on being the “original sorghum malt beer” which means all bets are off for style. It’s basically a sweet amber ale, as before, but not as rough around the edges.

Besides, I like the new packaging design. Good work, Bard’s!

Moylan’s Hefeweizen

It’s a rare clear, dry, sunny day in November here in Portland, which means I had to go out for lunch to sit in the sun. With the rumor that Green Dragon is going to be bought out by Rogue Brewing, and considering that Green Dragon is 4 blocks from my office and has sunny outdoor seating, I had to head there for lunch. Which of course means beer!

Their rotating tap list can be overwhelming, but a gorgeous warm day like this calls for something crisp and light so I chose Moylan’s Hefeweizen. For a hefe, this is a very clear and golden ale. No wheaty haze at all. I was also surprised on my first taste at how sweet – but not sugary – this beer is. It’s the sweet of hay drying in the summer sun, not the sweet of caramel or candy. It’s medium-bodied and well matched to a sunny but not hot day.

While a delicious beer, I’m not sure it qualifies as a hefeweizen. The lack of haze or citrus flavor left it tasting more like a cross between a cream ale and a kolsch. Not that I’m complaining! It just wasn’t a hefeweizen at all.

Now I wish I could go back for another and sit in the sun some more, but work calls…

Hoegaarden Witbier

Most of us in the states are familiar with Celis White, Peter Celis’ witbier from his brewery in Austin, Texas. Inbev bought the Hoegaarden brewery from Celis, which resulted in the move to Texas. You may recall that InBev now owns Annheuser-Busch, the maker of Budweiser. And Celis is now owned by Miller (which is in turn owned by a South African company). So much for small breweries staying small. Wikipedia has the whole story, of course.

At any rate, it’s not that often that I see Hoegaarden’s witbier on a beer menu. Usually, it’s Celis White or a local hefeweizen. Not at the Press Club where I ended up for lunch today. In fact, I’m not sure I’ve ever had the Hoegaarden version.

It’s a very pale – think ginger ale – slightly cloudy beer as you’d expect from a wit. After pouring, it retains a nice thin foam on top, with champagne-like bubbles. Good champagne, not cheap brut. The aroma is of yeast, coriander, and spice with a little citrus tartness thrown in. The flavor is much like the aroma, crisp and pretty refreshing, though the yeastiness keeps the beer from being too light. It’s a great lunch time beer – not heavy, not too alcoholic, better than a sweet soda or some plain old water.

To be honest, I’m not sure I could tell this from Celis White, though I think it’s maybe a little lighter and more refined in the end. In the grand scheme of choosing beer based on speciality or location, both are owned by megacorporations, so it’s a no-win proposition. I’d just pick whichever is least expensive and available.

Elysian Brewing’s Night Owl Pumpkin Ale

I don’t usually like pumpkin ales. They can be over-spiced, or weirdly tangy and heavy on citrus flavors, or just downright gross and better used as a marinade for meat than a beer for drinking. Elysian’s Night Owl is the rare exception to the rule!

It’s a gorgeous, clear copper with citrus, anise, and clove aromas. The brewers at Elysian actually use pumpkin and roasted pumpkin seeds in the brewing! I think the secret to their success is that they add the spices in the conditioning rather than in the mash. There’s no bitter too-much-cinnamon flavor at all.

If you think this will be a sweet, heavy beer, guess again. It’s crisp, medium-bodied like an amber ale, with a malty touch to the finish and arom that’s balanced by the slight tang of hops and spices. It has a finely-carbonated mouthfeel – not too velvety, not too bubbly. And there’s no bitter or sweet aftertaste, just a hint of malt and hops with a slightly estery edge.

This is a great beer in the bottle, but an awesome beer on tap if you can find it. It’s crisp and refreshing like a fall evening, but warm and cozy like a night next to the fire. Next October, I’m going to try to head to Seattle for the Great Pumpkin Beer Festival at Elysian Brewing.

Bring on the fall and winter seasonals

While it may have been sunny and 70 in Portland last week (freakish!), some of my favorite seasonal beers are available again despite the unseasonably warm weather.

I found Bridgeport Brewing’s Ebenezer on sale for $6.99, so of course I had to buy some. Bad news: this isn’t a great Ebenezer year. The brew has an every-other-year success rate as far as I can tell, and this year the beer has a strangely bitter tangy finish that wasn’t there last year. I’ve tried it with sweet foods, savory foods, cheese, you name it – nothing clears out the strange finish. It seems to be at its best tonight… and I burned half the tastebuds on my tongue on some hot soup a few hours ago. Sorry, Bridgeport!

New Belgium’s 2º Below was on sale for $13.99/case, so I couldn’t resist! The good news is that 2 Below is every bit as delicious this year as last year. Not too heavy, not too sweet, a little caramely and malty in the finish, a hint of cream soda flavor but not so much that it’s weird. It’s really well balanced, like a crisp fall night with the scent of wood smoke in the air. I could drink this all night long! And I sure won’t waste any on my burned tastebuds tonight.

And of course, there’s Elysian’s Night Owl pumpkin ale. Yum! I don’t even like pumpkin beer, but this one is just so darn good that it surpasses the nature of the style and sets a new standard of deliciousness. That one warrants a review all its own.

I haven’t gotten around to buying any Deschute’s Jubelale yet, but it’s never my favorite seasonal. There’s something too hoppy and floral about it for my palate.

I’ll have more seasonal favorites soon, as fall has just begun and there’s plenty of great beer to try this season.