New Arrivals for 9.15.09 - The Better Late Than Never Edition

Well, 09.09.09 has already come and gone, but Stone's latest Vertical Epic release didn't arrive until today. Such is the way of things I guess. Today's delivery brought a few other things besides the VE, so scroll down the list and see what catches your fancy.

New Beers:

• Stone - Vertical Epic 09.09.09: This year's twist in the story line brings us down a dark alley haunted by mysterious aromas of tangerine and vanilla. At 8.5% it begs for a snifter and your complete attention.
  
• Stone/BrewDog/Cambridge - Juxtaposition Black Pilsner: Ignore the fact that "black pilsner" is just another way of saying "schwarzbier" because this brew bears absolutely no resemblance to pilsner, black or otherwise. It's dry, roasty, and pushing a double digit abvmore which makes it more akin to an imperial stout fermented with lager yeast. It's really tasty, just don't go in expecting any sort of classic lager.
  
• He'Brew - Rejewvenator: I haven't had this one yet, but the label says, "Half Doppelbock, Half Belgian-style Dubbel" and it's brewed with date concentrate, which definitely sounds interesting. With Rosh Hashanah beginning Friday, it's worth noting that the entire He'Brew line is Kosher Certified. In addition to the Rejewvenator we have their Genesis Pale Ale, Messiah Bold (a flavorful brown ale), and Bittersweet Lenny's Rye IPA. L'Chaim!
  
• Alaskan - Baltic Porter: This brew sold out quick last year, and as delicious as it is I'm really not surprised. Cherries, vanilla beans, and French oak add dimension and complexity to this classic style. Get it while it lasts.
  
• Kona - Pipeline Porter: This tasty little porter is brewed with real Kona coffee to give it an extra little kick.
  
• Blue Moon - Harvest Moon: Nothing fancy from the house of Coors; just an unpretentious amber ale with pumpkin and spice flavors.
  
• Hopworks - Bike Beer IPA: Whoa, another hoppy beer from HUB!?! Seriously though, this one is a little less astringent and a little more fruity than their regular IPA. I'd have to bust open one of each and do a side by side comparison to nail down any other differences...
  
• Baron - Oktoberfest: Classic "festbier" lager from Seattle. Flavors of caramel and nutty malt compliment the clean, crisp hopping in the finish...
  
• New Old Lompoc - Monster Mash: Despite what the angry jack-o-lantern on the label would have you believe, this is an Imperial Porter and not a pumpkin beer. This should be around for at least a couple of months, but if it sells faster than the Heaven's Helles did it could be gone in a couple weeks, so don't delay.
  
• Midnight Sun - Obliteration V: The fifth beer in the Obliteration IPA series is an 8.2% double IPA brewed with Tomahawk and Magnum hops. I haven't had this one yet, but based on the hop selection I would expect it to lean more towards pungent and piney rather than a typical west coast citrus bomb.
  
• Elysian - Night Owl: The northwest's most popular pumpkin ale is back.
  
• Great Divide - Tripel: Great Divide's take on the trappist mainstay is a little sweeter than the classic Belgian examples, but all in all I think they did a great job on this one.
  
• Great Divide - Hoss Lager: This is becoming a favorite around the shop, and "Hoss" is well on it's way to becoming a slang term for rugged and/or manly. For example, Patrick Swayze's character in Road House was definitely "Hoss." Anyway, come and grab some Hoss before Jimmy and Lucas drink it all.
  
• Hales - Super Goose Imperial IPA: One person at the shop decreed that the Super Goose is superior to Russian River Pliny the Elder. Debatable perhaps, but at less than $5 per 22oz bottle it's certainly worth buying one of each and conducting your own experiments.
  
• Coney Island - Freaktoberfest: It smells and tastes like an oktoberfest beer, but the bloody red color might throw you off a bit. Buy some to freak out your Halloween party guests.
  
• Crispin - Honey Crisp: This seasonal cider from Crispin is only roughly filtered which results in a very cloudy cider (with a color reminiscent of dirty dish water), and the tartness of the apples is smoothed out with an addition of organic honey. Speaking of Crispin, we're hosting a tasting with them this evening, so stop in from 5-8pm and you can sample this for free along with the rest of the Crispin line.

That's all for now; keep your eyes peeled for the stream of fresh hop beers coming out in the next 2-4 weeks. Most of them are truly delicious, but the season is painfully short.

A Conspiracy is Brewing in the Northwest

Release Parties Scheduled in Portland, OR

Portland, Oregon • 14 March 2007 — The Pelican Pub & Brewery (Pacific City, OR) and Midnight Sun Brewing (Anchorage, AK) are inviting beer fans to join them in their Conspiracy:

Conspiracy is a collaboration brew between Midnight Sun Brewing and Pelican Pub & Brewery. During a trip to Alaska for the Great Alaskan Beer & Barley Wine Fest, Ben Love of Pelican conspired with Gabe Fletcher and Ben Johnson of Midnight Sun to brew a Belgian-Style Black Beer. Conspiracy features a rich, spicy aroma with hints of dark fruit, raisin, roast and caramel. A toasted and slightly roasty flavor lead into caramel and a super smooth finish. Debittered black malt was used to get the jet-black color and tan head without adding significant roast flavor. The brewers also added Belgian candi sugar and Mexican Piloncillo sugar (a maple-sugar-like brown sugar) to increase fermentability and depth of flavor. Conspiracy comes in at 8.5 percent ABV and 25 IBUs.

"We had a great time brewing Conspiracy in Alaska, and I’m really looking forward to hosting Gabe here in Oregon,” said brewer Ben Love.

A release party is scheduled for Thursday, April 5 at 7 p.m. at the Horse Brass Pub, 4534 SE Belmont St. Gabe Fletcher (Head brewer at Midnight Sun) is making the trip to Portland for the release party and is also bringing along kegs of Midnight Sun's Envy Imperial Pils (9% ABV), Gluttony Triple IPA (11%) and FH Double IPA (9%). This will be a one-time-only chance to try these beers on draft outside of Alaska. All the beers will be tapped at 7pm. Conspiracy and Envy will be available at $3.50/glass & FH will cost $5/pint.

There will also be a bottle release event on Friday, April 6 from 5-7 p.m. in the new café at Belmont Station. Gabe Fletcher & Ben Love will be there to pour and talk about Conspiracy. Guests will be able to purchase a 4oz taster or a bottle to enjoy there or take home.

Bottled Conspiracy will be available in limited edition 22oz bottles. The bottles will be available at selected bottle shops in Oregon and Alaska.

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New Beer for Tuesday March 13, 2007

Greetings beer lovers!

We only got a couple new beers in today, but when they're this good who can complain?

Alesmith IPA - That's right, the rare and elusive hop-bomb from San Diego is making an appearance here in PDX. As is often the case with AleSmith there's no telling when we'll run out or when we'll be able to get more, so don't hesitate on this one. As the label states, "Its Pretty Awesome!"

Alaskan IPA - This tasty, straw-colored concoction has been popular in Alaska for a while, and now us mainlanders get to enjoy it too. At under $9 per 6 pack it seems like it'll be a welcome addition to our cooler. Look for the neon green label, it's pretty hard to miss.

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In other news, the cafe is progressing nicely. All the equipment and furniture is in place and a manager was hired yesterday. All that remains is a couple weeks of training (plus some last minute stuff) and we should be open the first weekend in April.

On that note, Friday April 6th we'll be hosting our first of many "Meet the Brewer/Beer" events. The first one will feature Ben Love (formerly of Pelican, soon to be head brewer at H.U.B.) and the brewers/owners from Midnight Sun. They've teamed up to create a collaborative beer (more details on the brew later) and they'll be bringing the first batch here for you to sample. Beer specials and pricing are still being worked out, but at least you can save the date.

The Silence of the Blog

I apologize for the lack of posts recently but it has been incredibly busy (and chaotic) in my little corner of the beer world.

We've gotten a few new beers this week as well as a handful of returning favorites:

Local:
Alameda - Beaumont Bock

U.S. Micros:
Midnight Sun - Arctic Devil Barleywine
Midnight Sun - Arctic Rhino Coffee Porter
Hale's Ales - Nut Brown Ale
Bayern - Killarnny Red Irish Lager
Avery - Maharaja Imperial IPA
Boulder - Mojo Risin Imperial IPA
Marin - Tripel Dipsea (Belgian-style tripel)
Dogfish Head Pangaea (funky hybrid) and Fort (18%abv raspberry beer)

Imports:
St. Louis Framboise
Delirium Tremens returns after a long absence

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