Category: Beer

Beer of the Week: Fremont Brewing Cherry Almond Dark Star

By Iron Chef Leftovers

I really like Fremont Brewing – they have great beers, a dedicated mission to reduce their carbon footprint and a really great tasting room located just a couple miles from the Iron Chef abode. One of the benefits of their tasting room is that they carry some one off beers on cask. The downside of this is that they tend to be very small production and are gone almost as quickly as they show up. A recent trip to the tasting room yielded a Cherry and Almond version of their very tasty Dark Star Imperial Oatmeal Stout. It was a blustery day when I visited so something dark was in order and how could I pass up a beer with two of my favorite things – cherry and almonds.

I couldn’t find any info on the beer online, so here is what the regular Dark Star is described as:

Roasty, chocolate tones swirled with oatmeal smoothness and dark as the night. The Dark Star crashes, pouring its light into ashes, so follow as the Lady of Velvet in the nights of goodbye. This one is too smooth…and at 8.0% ABV, dangerous.
Down & Dirty: 2-Row, Roast Barley, Crystal-60, Chocolate, & Carafa-2 malts with Flaked Oats and Magnum, Wilamette & Cascade hops. 8.0% ABV
Availability: Year-Round

This beer pours jet black with the faintest hint of cream on the head, and was served at room temperature. There is lots of roasted malt and grain on the nose with a background of almonds, so subtle that you may not notice it if you were not looking for it. Taking a sip of this beer is an experience – lots of malt and roasting coffee initially, giving way to almonds, chocolate and dried cherries in a very long and lingering finish, which is good, since this beer is a bit boozy and a couple will do you in. There was also a bit of bitterness in the initial few sips, which might be off putting to some, but I thought was a nice balance to all of the flavors that were in the beer, and the bitterness did eventually disappear. There is a pleasantly mild residual almond flavor that lingers on the tongue between sips, and overall the beer makes me think of an unsweetened cherry almond dark chocolate bar – so much so that I could actually imagine it in a solid form.

This version of Dark Star was a very fun drinking experience and wish it was more widely available. My only complaint is that I would have liked a bit more cherry flavor on the finish, but that is a personal preference as I love the combination of cherry and stout. Other than that, this was a great beer and you should rush down to the Fremont tap room if it does make another appearance.

Cherry Almond Dark Star pulls is a heavy 4 gravity wells out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Elysian Brewing Maelstrom Blood Orange Ale

By Iron Chef Leftovers

In celebration of the potential end of the world (according to the Mayans), Elysian Brewing introduced their 12 Beers of the Apocalypse series – a monthly release of a really off the wall beer. The story from the Elysian website:

In a year-long run-up to the end of all time (according to the Mayan calendar), Elysian Brewing Company and Fantagraphics Books, both of Seattle, are releasing a series of twelve beers, issued on the 21st of each month in 2012 and featuring the label artwork of Charles Burns taken from his weirdly apocalyptic work “Black Hole.” The “Twelve Beers of the Apocalypse” will feature the creativity and unusual ingredients for which Elysian’s brewing team is known. What twelve beers would you brew (and drink) if you knew they would be your last?

The August release was the Maelstrom Blood Orange Ale. I love blood orange, so I had to try this one. The description from Elysian:

Down, down, down Maelstrom will go, pulling the hapless beer enthusiast in with a beguiling blend of blood orange, Northwest hops and sweet orange peel. Stray to close and you may not escape the currents of this tender trap. Blood orange provides tartness and the blush of a brazen sea, Citra and amarillo hops from the Yakima Valley offer bite and aroma, and orange peel suggests a little something else on the wind. Maelstrom is brewed with pale, Munich and Dextri-pils malts bittered with German Northern Brewer and finished and dry-hopped with Citra and Amarillo.

The beer comes in at a hefty 7.25% and is available in a limited release in both 22 oz. bottles for around $7and on tap. I poured mine from a bottle.

The beer pours a cloudy light orange in color with a white head, very reminiscent of a hefe. Hints of hops, blood orange peel and malt dominate the ones on this beer – if you did not know what you were drinking, you might think it was a funky IPA. The initial sip yielded very little character (it may have been a touch too cold) with a hint of grain and a hint of hops, but subsequent sips build up, first with a slightly sweet, orange juice punch, turning into slightly bitter orange peel which lingers for a few seconds before fading. The finish is a bit tannic but very interesting with a lasting bitterness of orange peel and hops that linger well after the sip. The bitterness becomes slightly more pronounced as the beer warms, but it is more enhancing rather than detracting from the overall experience.

One thing that I did try with this beer was pairing it with a classic flavor combination to orange – chocolate. Paired with a single origin Tanzania, 72% chocolate (it had a fruity flavor profile), the beer is enhanced to pack an incredible orange punch and becoming very IPA like with significant presence of hops and notes of bitterness. The chocolate really enhanced many of the flavors that I loved about this beer.

Assuming the world does not end, I would love to see Elysian bring back this beer. It was fantastic; definitely one that I would want to drink if I knew that it was going to be my last one.

Maelstrom Blood Orange Ale gets a sacred 4 blood sacrifices out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Logsdon Farmhouse Ales Kili Wit

By Iron Chef Leftovers

Logsdon Organic Farmhouse Ales is a small brewery located in the hills above Hood River, Oregon and they are dedicated to producing farmhouse ales using traditional methods and organic ingredients and they donate some of their profits to social programs.

Their Kili Wit (Kili referring to Mt. Kilimanjaro), is a white beer coming in at 5.5% ABV. From the Logsdon website:

Our Kili Wit is a traditionally brewed white beer with refreshing flavors and creamy smoothness. This is a 100% certified organic beer brewed with local organic barley malt, wheat and oats along with whole cone Oregon hops and African spice. This beer is made with a portion of the proceeds going to the K2 Adventures Foundation that provides community service, medical and educational enrichment for African children.

The beer has recently become available in Seattle, and can be found in 750ml bottles for around $10 at both Bottleworks and Chucks Hop Shop.

The beer pours very cloudy and yellow. There is lots of yeast and grain on the nose with slight notes of orange, spice and coriander with the subtlest notes of hops. When the beer is first poured at around 45 degrees, lemon and yeast dominate the palate hints of very mild spice and coriander, leading to a short, but intense finish. As the beer warms, it becomes drier with notes of banana chips, orange, citrus peel, lemon and coriander. Not the most complex Wit I have ever had, but it would be more than satisfying on a warm day lounging under a tree.

Overall, Kili Wit is an enjoyable experience, just one that you probably can’t afford on a regular basis because of the price. I really like this beer, but at $10 for a 750ml bottle, it is more of a special occasion beer than a regular drinking one, slightly more frequently if you like their social mission.

Kili Wit explodes on the scene with a respectable 3 stratovolcanoes out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Pelican Pub and Brewery Kiwanda Cream Ale

By Iron Chef Leftovers

The Pelican Pub and Brewery is located in beautiful Pacific City, OR, and has been around for 15 years, although there beers are just starting to show up in the Seattle market. We sampled the Kiwanda Cream Ale from a 22 oz. bottle. Kiwanda clocks in at 5.4% ABV and 25 IBU. From the Pelican website:

Inspired by one of America’s traditional 19th century beer styles, Kiwanda Cream Ale is pale gold with a fruity, floral hop aroma. A sweet malty flavor and a smooth snappy finish round out this tasty, refreshing brew!

Kiwanda shows as very pale in color with very little head. There was almost nothing on the nose – a minimal amount of grain, but that was about it, which was very disappointing. The first few sips were drier than I was expecting from a Cream Ale; almost to the point of being tannic. There were hints of cream and barley but it was subtle and you almost had to go searching for it. I kept hoping that the flavor would develop as consumption progressed, but it never really developed beyond subtle hints. We even tried some food to coax flavor out of this beer, to no avail. I kept hoping for a Boddington’s but got something closer to a Bud.

Kiwanda was a real disappointment as I tend to like Pelican’s beers. This beer had absolutely nothing going on and really wasn’t something I have any inclination to go back and try again. Pelican Brewery’s Kiwanda Cream Ale flies out of here with just 1 Pelecanus erythrorhynchos out of 5.

The Ballard Beer Revolution

By Iron Chef Leftovers

Holy hops, Batman! Ballard is really becoming a hotspot for beer. I saw this on myballard.com, yet another brewery opening soon. That means when Peddler Brewing opens, we will have the following breweries in a 1 mile radius:

Hale’s Ales
Maritime Pacific
NW Peaks
Hilliard’s
Reuben’s
Populuxe (if they ever get their act together and finally open)
Peddler

I am not surprised that a brewery moved into the old Maritime space. I think it is a good location for a small operation.

If beer is not your thing, there you can always visit my friend Jason at the fun tasting room of Domanico Winery. Now if we could just get a distillery….

Beer of the Week: Driftwood Brewery White Bark Ale

By Iron Chef Leftovers

Driftwood Brewery is a small brewery out of Victoria BC, founded in 2008. A couple of years ago, they started bottling their beers and they were showing up in the Seattle area.  Always looking to try something new and local, I picked up a 22 oz. bottle of the Driftwood White Bark Ale at Chuck’s for $7.50. The Driftwood website is a little vague in its description of White Bark:

This traditional Belgian-style wheat ale is brewed with the addition of freshly ground coriander and curacao orange peel. Hops are outshone by the wonderful floral aromas that dominate the nose of this dry and quaffable beer.

White Bark comes in at 5% ABV and is light straw in color. The beer hits the olfactory senses with lots of spice, coriander and orange peel; a very classic Belgian white nose and reminded me of one of my all-time favorite wits – Celis White. White Bark is very light on the palate with some spice that slowly builds, an increasing background of orange peel and notes of coriander and yeast at the very end of a long finish. I did not find much hop character, but it really was not necessary. A very solid and easily drinkable either on its own or with food, becoming ever so slightly sweet as it warms, enhancing the orange flavor without becoming overly bitter. I pared this with a pesto risotto and halibut cheeks and the beer stood out even with the food.

I really liked this beer and the price point, while a little high, is certainly affordable for something that drinks so well. Considering that it reminded me of the long departed Celis White, I will certainly be heading back for another few White Bark Ales.

Driftwood Brewery White Bark Ale gets 4 Betula papyrifera out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Reuben’s Brews Pumpkin Ale

By Iron Chef Leftovers

I love the fall when it comes to beers – you get the return of fresh hop beers, and you get the return of pumpkin beers, probably my favorite seasonal style. The newish Ballard brewery, Reuben’s Brews, tossed their hat in the ring with their pumpkin offering – a pumpkin rye. This beer comes in at 5.4% ABV and 32 IBU and is their rye beer brewed with the inclusion of pumpkin puree, toasted pumpkin seeds, spices, sugar and bourbon.

The beer pours a hazy yellow, almost golden hue. There are definite notes of pumpkin with hints of spice and rye hiding in the background. The palate is initially dominated by pumpkin pie spice, but not overpoweringly so, and it gives way to pumpkin puree, toasted pumpkin seeds and light notes of rye. The finish is short, with the pumpkin seeds fading after a short stay, but the flavor does stick around longer the further into the glass you dive – it reminded me of eating fresh roasted pumpkin seeds on a cool fall day and had me looking for a bucket to spit out the shells into. The beer is remarkably balanced with enough use of spice to remind you it is a fall beer, complimented with a dominant pumpkin flavor that stands out and reminds you that this is a pumpkin beer. The hints of rye add a little something that you can’t quite put your finger on, but server to enhance the finish product in a good way. This beer is definitely not the one you want if you are looking to drink something that is liquid pumpkin pie, but is one to order if you want to enjoy the flavor of pumpkin complimented by the inclusion of spice.

The rye base makes this a very different beer than many of the pumpkins out on the market and I would classify this one in my top 5 pumpkin beers.

Reuben’s did a fantastic job with the Pumpkin Ale, which is why they are getting an outstanding 5 Cucurbita maxima out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Ninkasi Imperiale Stout

By Iron Chef Leftovers

Ninkasi Brewing is located in lovely Eugene, Oregon and makes a wide range of beers, including a couple of pretty stellar IPA’s. The Imperiale Stout is a special release available in 22 oz. bottles and on tap; we consumed the beer in a bottle, and, as I didn’t purchase the bottle, I am not sure what the beer ran price wise. According to Ninkasi’s website, Imperiale is:

 

Strong, dark and brooding, Imperial Stouts were originally crafted by the British to survive the long journey to Russia through rain, sleet, and snow. Full bodied and surprisingly smooth, Imperiale Stout has a big roast hit up front, and rich, dark malt flavors balanced by ample hop bitterness.

  • Statistics
  • First      Brewed: 2011
  • Starting      Gravity: 1090
  • Bitterness:      70 IBUs
  • Alcohol      %: 9.1
  • Malt:      2 Row Pale Malt, Munich Malt, Crystal Malt, Carapils Malt, Flaked Barley,      Roasted Barley, Black Malt, Carafa Malt
  • Hops:      Nugget

 

This is a big beer, perfectly suited for a cold winter’s day. The beer pours jet black with a brown head. As you would expect, there are tons of roasted malt and chocolate on the nose. The initial taste yielded a beer that was more subtle than the nose suggested – very dry with hints of chocolate and roasted malt on the front of the palate, fading quickly into a smooth, milk chocolate like finish, that unfortunately disappeared more quickly than I would have liked. The beer stayed pretty consistent as it warmed, with some notes of toffee starting to show up at around 50 degrees. The beer lacked any real alcohol burn for being over 9% and lacked any real hop personality despite its 70 IBU. I actually had no idea the IBU was that high until I looked up the stats for this review; they are just about completely lost in roasted chocolate depths of this beer.

Impreiale was not an unpleasant experience – if you are looking for something dark and roasted, I would definitely give this one a shot. If you are looking for dark and hoppy, look elsewhere.

Imperiale generates a rating of 3 Sumerians out of 5.

 

 

 

Beer of the Week: Ommegang Seduction

By Iron Chef Leftovers

Ommegang is a Belgian style brewery nestled in the hills of Cooperstown, NY. They make some pretty fantastic beers, my favorite being Three Philosophers. On this occasion, we cracked a bottle of Seduction, which the Ommegang website describes as:

…is lovingly brewed with six dark malts. Chocolatier Callebut provides the chocolate, while Liefmans brings the cherries. This international romance is consummated with a full body, alluring aromas and flavors of Belgian chocolate, and tart cherries. Seduction is an ale to be lovingly embraced.

Beautiful, rich and smooth, roasty and malty throughout, Seduction offers balanced chocolate-cherry notes, a bit of caramel sweetness, and a long, slow finish. Seduction is welcoming and warm-hearted, gently hopped and harbors no bitterness, leaving only a lingering glow.

6.8% AB

This beer pours jet black with a cream colored head. The nose is dominated by coffee, caramel and toffee, and there is a hit of cocoa there if you look for it. The initial taste yields flavors of chicory, licorice, cloves and spices (predominately cinnamon) with overtones of dark chocolate providing a long, lingering finish (think hot cocoa) and some slight bitterness. There are supposed to be some cherries in the beer, but I didn’t really get any until half way through the glass before hints of cherries started appearing on the finish. We started this beer out at 55 degrees, so I am not sure if there would have been a big difference at 45 degrees on this one.

Seduction will definitely put you under its spell if you like heavily roasted or chocolaty beers. I really enjoyed seduction, but my one issue with it is its price – it runs about $13 for a 750 ml bottle, so it is more of a special occasion beer rather than something to enjoy regularly. I did factor that into my scoring decision. While I enjoyed the beer, I don’t know that it was significantly better than a number of other chocolate beers I enjoy to justify the added cost.

That being said, Ommegang Seduction gets 3 romantic rendezvous out of 5.