HOPPY HOLIDALE

Oh, the holiday season. I guess its been officially upon us since Halloween. But it wasn't until I was at the Wal Mart in Temecula, CA when I heard my first bad syrupy muzak Christmas song, that I realized that I hadn't had my first holiday seasonal beer. I don't know how I missed it, but I immediately set out to remedy that situation. And thanks to Deschutes Brewery, I was able to put an end to what was almost a tragedy.

My first holiday beer of the year was Deschutes 2008 Jubelale, "a festive winter ale." And to my surprise, I found out that this beer was the first beer ever to be bottled by Deschutes. I expected this beer to be much sweeter, but upon tasting it, this beer is dry and piney with toasty, roasty notes and a touch of tobacco. Its got a great balance with a light body and a quick finish for its 6.7% abv. It's a nice break from some winter seasonals that have a tendency to become a bit cloying.

This beer is only available October through December, so if you see some, make sure to nab it up. It would make a perfect accompaniment to Thanksgiving turkey, roasted parsnips or mashed turnips.

I hope you enjoy this beer as much as I did/do, and may I be the first person this year to wish you Hoppy Holidales.

P.S. Every year Deschutes Brewery selects a Northwest artist to create an image evocative of the season's festive atmosphere. In 2008, Pam Jersey Bird, who lives in Sisters, Oregon, painted a winding, abstract river running through the open spaces of Central Oregon's desert, surrounded by fluttering snowfall. More of Pam's work can be viewed at www.pamjerseybird.com.

Written by The Beer Chick, November 16, 2008

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FOR THE NEWLY HATCHED BEER CHICK

During a very interesting 3 hour discussion with one of my best friends today, the topic of beer came up. Imagine that. Kind of like that conversation you have with your friends about the first time you did it, we started discussing the first time we ever had a craft brew, and why we started drinking it in the first place.

The first microbrew my friend remembers drinking was Fat Tire from New Belgium. (This was several years ago!) He said that he started drinking it, not so much for the taste, but more for the fact that it made him seem different, like he wasn't just going along with what the commercials aimed at his demographic told him that he should be drinking. The first artisanal beer that I loved was Lost Coast Great White. I drank that one, because, at the time I hated bitter beers (My, how things change.)

We came up with a list of five American craft beers that we thought would make great starter beers for those of you who are new to the world of craft beer. These are baby steps into the world of great beer that you can safely take when you feel like differentiating yourself but not getting too extreme.


Lost Coast Great White, Eureka, CA:
I mentioned before that this was my first starter beer! This is a Belgian style white ale. It's a wheat beer that is fermented with lemongrass. I've talked about this beer before, because it's delicious, refreshing and will introduce your palate to new flavors in beer. Light and bright mouthfeel, this beer is the bees knees.
4.8% ABV.

Victory Prima Pils, Downingtown, PA:
This is an effing great beer. Light in color and body, crisp and dry. This beer has good hops, but has a good balance. Just the right amount of bitterness with some herbaceous notes. Its a totally drinkable, clean beer. You'll be starting on a high note with this one.
5.3% ABV.

Rogue Dead Guy Ale, Newport, OR:
This beer sounds scarier than it is. If you are looking for something that may be a little bit on the sweeter side, this is your starter beer. This is a delicious dopplebock style beer with hints of caramel and toffee. Still light-bodied enough to avoid being cloying, I've turned several women on to beer with this recommendation!
6.5% ABV

Deschutes Mirror Pond, Bend, OR: This beer is a nice, decent American Pale Ale. Its got a bit of grapefruit rind citrus on the nose that's balanced out by some woody, toasty dryness. This actually reminds me more of an ESB and finished with a touch of honey. It's a simple, well-balanced, easy to drink beer.
5.5% ABV.

Allagash White Portland, ME:
This is a complex beer - but the neophyte can get it too. Like the Great White, this beer is a Belgian style white ale or witbier brewed with wheat. But this one sticks to tradition brewing with coriander and curacao bitter orange peel. This beer is delicious and has a beginning, a distinct middle and a fabulous finish.
5.0% ABV.

Written by The Beer Chick, September 7, 2008

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This Beer is Turning Me Green

So, I love the environment as much as anyone else, but I'm generally not the hugest fan of organic beer. It's not that some of it isn't good, its just that "Green" and "Organic" are sometimes turned into marketing terms to sell beer to the Inconvenient Truth fans of the world. To me, the real environmental impact of beer comes from the shipping and distribution. So, its never made much sense to me to buy an organic beer for environmental reasons and then have it shipped from the UK, you know?

That being said, I loved this new beer from Deschutes Brewery out of Bend, Oregon called Green Lakes Organic Ale. Do I like it because its organic? No, I like it because it's a damn good beer.

It pours a pretty orange / amber with some citrus on the nose with touches of rose petal and plum. The first taste is tart with toasty pecans in the middle followed by a nice hop bitterness and dry finish. My first thought was that I liked this beer better than their flagship beer Mirror Pond, and my second thought was that this was a great session beer. At 5.2% abv, I could drink a lot of these!

Now for the organic part. After working with Oregon Tilth, a nonprofit research and education membership organization dedicated to biologically sound and socially equitable agriculture, Deschutes received organic certification for its 50 barrel brew house and can now brew organic ales year-round.

This award winning beer (Gold Medal at the 2008 World Beer Championships) was brewed with five types of 100% organic malted barley and balanced with Liberty and Salmon-Safe Sterling hops. The way these flavorful, rich hops are grown makes sure that streams are shaded and there is not runoff to nearby waterways. That way the rivers stay cool and clean for migrating salmon.

That's pretty cool. Its good to be kind to the fishies. Am I becoming green? This beer is definitely helping me get there.