Beer of the Week: Populuxe Cask Citra Pale Ale

By Iron Chef Leftovers

One of the best things about Thursday nights is cask night at Populuxe Brewing. They have had a nice variety of cask options from the strange (Smoked tea bitter) to the nice and approachable (Pale Ales and IPA). Pale ales make for really fun casks – they allow you to really give a base for what individual hop varieties taste like and you get a real appreciation for what it is about certain hop varieties that you might like. A recent cask of the Populuxe Pale with Citra really illustrated what I like about citra hops. This beer clocked in at just 4.8% ABV.

The beer pours hazy yellow-orange in color with light notes of citrus and grain on the nose with very mild notes of sugar. The beer starts off slowly with a nice grain beginning accompanied by a mild sweetness, followed by a touch of very pleasant bitterness before moving to a slightly dry finish that smacks you with a burst of citrus. Very easy drinking and well balanced – there are no dominant flavors but the beer is layered and distinct and you can really appreciate the subtle flavors of both the beer and the hops. With well integrated flavors and low alcohol, this is easily a 3-4 pint beer and a good beer to introduce someone to the wonderful experience that is craft beer.

Populuxe Cask Citra Pale Ale rolls out 4 barrels out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Heavy Seas The Great’er Pumpkin

By Iron Chef Leftovers

My love of pumpkin beers is unabashed and I have a particular soft spot for ones that are of a darker style. I feel that pumpkin marries well with the roasted notes in dark beers and there is less of a need to overly spice the beer, so you get more pumpkin flavor out of them. I also like imperial pumpkin beers since they tend to fall into the same category and you can really appreciate the subtleties of flavor in the beer. During a recent bottle swap, a bottle of the Heavy Seas The Great’er Pumpkin was thrown in because my trading partner knew of my love of pumpkin beers. I thought this was a nice gesture (and has since been reciprocated with a couple of stellar IPA’s back to him) so I was excited to try this beer in an impromptu beer tasting with the rest of the CSE gang (i.e. Blaidd Drwg, Coltrane, Annie S. and Seattle Author). The beer came in 22oz. bottles and runs about $10, but alas, is not available in Seattle, but is available from plenty of places on the East Coast that will ship.

From the Heavy Seas website:

In the most worthy of pumpkin patches and during the silence of the midnight hour, the Greater Pumpkin raises up and pours a rich deep and burnished orange color. Heady aromas of bourbon, cinnamon, ginger, allspice and clove linger seductively over the thick white head of this tremendous brew. Its love at first sip as the full malt body, dominated by British crystal malt, brown sugar and pumpkin, slowly washes over your tongue. Bourbon barrel aging rounds out the flavors with notes of oak, vanilla, and bourbon. Pairs well with crisp autumn weather, crunchy fallen leaves, and the knowledge that your kids will be asleep soon so you can raid their Halloween candy bags.

The beer pours deep orange in color with a creamy head and shows strong notes of bourbon with backing notes of roasted pumpkin and spice – it smells like a pumpkin pie with bourbon added. The beer starts out on the palate with strong notes of roasted pumpkin with mild backing notes of pumpkin pie spices and roasted pumpkin seeds. These flavors linger and are joined at the end by a slightly sweet caramel note and a touch of vanilla from the bourbon barrel without imparting any really heavy bourbon notes. The finish is extremely long and pleasant, making you want to take your time and savor between sips, but without any really harsh notes from the barrel or alcohol, making this a smooth, balanced and easy to drink beverage for such a high alcohol beer, with incredible depth of pumpkin and just a pleasant backing note of spice.

I may have found my new favorite pumpkin beer; I will definitely be shipping some to Seattle in the fall.

Heavy Seas The Great’er Pumpkin raises a massive 5 storm warnings out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Reuben’s Brews Blimey That’s Bitter

By Iron Chef Leftovers

A bunch of Seattle breweries got together this winter and decided to go one the road with something they are calling the Hop Mob Road Show (coming to Naked City on March 13^th). Each brewery decided to produce a Triple or Imperial IPA. What makes it a Triple you might ask? Well, basically it is a high alcohol (9.5% +), highly hopped IPA, probably made most famous by Pliny the Younger. If I remember correctly (I really need to write these things down), the beer was dry hopped 4 times during the process of making it and clocks in at 10.5% ABV and 80+ IBU. The beer was available (very limited) in 22 oz. bottles, on tap and on cask. This review is for the tap version.

Now that I think about it, I wonder if the name Blimey That’s Bitter might be a play on the name of that Russian River beer…

The beer pours golden orange in color with significant citrus and hop resin on the nose combined with slightly floral hints and subtle grain. A hop monster on the palate, the beer quickly shows tons of citrus and citrus peel up front with just a touch of sweetness before the bitterness sets in. There are big bitter notes, but in a balanced, not palate blowing way, with touches of resin. The beer finishes incredibly long with juicy citrus and major citrus peel with a lingering bitterness and an ever so slight alcohol burn at the very end, not surprising for a beer this big – it is there but barely noticeable and not unpleasant and brings just a touch of heat to the party, cutting the tremendous hop character of this beer. This beer was amazing, making me joke that maybe this should be renamed “Blimey, That’s Fantastic.”

Hopefully you will still have a chance to try Blimey before it goes away until next year.

Reuben’s Blimey That’s Bitter drives on the wrong side of the street and picks you up with 5 black cabs out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Laughing Dog De Achtste Hond

By Iron Chef Leftovers

It is easy to be an underrated brewery in the Northwest, since there are just so many great breweries. It is even easier to fly under the radar when you are located outside of the Seattle/Portland corridor, since that is where most of the beer drinkers tend to reside. Laughing Dog falls into the underrated category being located way out in Ponderay, Idaho. Fortunately for us, they do bottle and are readily available. I follow them on FB and I was bummed when they announced they were brewing a special sour beer for their 8^th anniversary, which was only going to be in kegs. Unfortunately for us, kegs from Laughing Dog generally means we don’t get the beer in Seattle. Fortunately, Chuck’s Hop Shop came to the rescue and managed to get their hands on De Achtste Hond – the 8^th dog.

From the Laughing Dog Website:

…our anniversary beer De Achtste Hond” ( the eighth Dog) Belgian Sour Ale

Our first ever sour ale 7.2% abv aged for 1 month in new oak Crisp and Dry with a tartness to it.

The beer pours very orange in color with light floral notes and hints of citrus with just a hint of funk and Belgian yeast. The beer starts off more tangy than sour, almost like a tangerine chard candy, with just a hint of funkiness before moving into dry, crisp apples and just a note of sweetness and Belgian character. The finish is long and clean, mild tart sour flavors linger forever with hints of citrus, banana and apple. Very well balanced and sour enough to remind you that this is definitely a sour beer, but not so sour that it will make your lips pucker. Definitely not one to try if you don’t enjoy sour beers, but if you do, you might find yourself going back for a second without feeling like you won’t be able to drink it.

Laughing Dog De Achtste Hond grabs its leash and goes out for 5 long walks out of 5.

Beer of the Week: NW Peaks Black Berlinerweiss

By Iron Chef Leftovers

What can I say, I am sucker for sour beers. Mind you I do have my limits – if it tastes like you make pickles, I really don’t enjoy that flavor in my beer. Give me something with a hint of tartness and some complexity beyond that and I can almost guarantee that you will get me to try it. NW Peaks is back at it with their berlinerweiss, this time putting out a black version of the classic German sour, which is truly something that I had not seen before. I was excited to try it, but it meant that I was going to have to find some other folks to drink the beer with me, since my regular Mountainbeer friends are not much in the way of sour drinkers. Luckily, I know a couple beer people who were happy to share.

Unfortunately, NW Peaks didn’t put anything on their website describing the beer, but it I do remember it being something really low in alcohol (somewhere in the 3-4% range).

The beer pours light brown in color with a very light head and shows a complex nose – chocolate and roast are there without being dominating, coupled with notes of sour cherry and (surprisingly) some light notes of raisin make an appearance. All of this is supported with a tinge of floral barnyard character. The beer drinks light also, hints of roast and chocolate start before quickly yielding to a pleasantly mild sour component with hints of dried stone fruit that linger nicely before being joined at the end by light chocolate. The finish is dry and pleasant and the sour is balanced with the roast, making the beer surprisingly complex for both a small beer and a sour beer. There is an almost lightly gritty quality to the beer, giving it a very rustic quality.

If you don’t like sours, you probably won’t like this one, no matter how mild it is, but if you want to try something that is different without being completely bizarre, go for this. NW Peaks serves it in their taproom with a shot of raspberry syrup which does take the edge off the beer, but I honestly think that this one is better and much more interesting on its own without the syrup.

NW Peaks Black Berlinerweiss circles the city with a perfect 5 Alexanderplatz out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Alaskan Imperial Red

By Iron Chef Leftovers

I really love the Alaskan Pilot Series beers – big beers and interesting styles made in small batches. I was excited when they released the Imperial Red for the first time and ran out to pick up a 22 oz. bottle. It wasn’t inexpensive at $9, but Imperial Red isn’t a style that you see much and I figured it was worth a shot. The beer clocked in at 8.5% ABV and 70 IBU.

From the Alaska Website:

Recently made popular by west coast American breweries, Imperial Red ales feature high hop bitterness, full-flavored caramel malt profiles and a higher original gravity. While balance is key, Imperial Red ales are more malt-forward than other hoppy American beer styles.

Alaskan Imperial Red is a full-bodied deep mahogany ale with ruby red highlights. Citrus notes of chamomile, grapefruit and Meyer lemon brighten the aroma. A zesty array of hop flavors from mango and bitter orange to green mint and hibiscus meld with the nutty, roasted caramel and subtle dried fruit flavors of the complex malt profile to create a surprisingly fresh, yet warming example of the style.

Alaskan Imperial Red Ale is made from glacier-fed water, a generous blend of Centennial, Citra, Meridian and Summit hops and premium two-row and specialty malts. Our water originates from the 1,500 square-mile Juneau Ice Field and from the more than 90 inches of rainfall Juneau receives each year.

The beer pours deep amber red in color with notes of caramel, wheat, mild hops and just a small amount of oak and whiskey, which was odd since this beer was not barrel aged. The beer starts out with deep notes of caramel and toffee followed by heavy malt and medium hop profile with just a hint of bitterness. The finish is slightly syrupy and sweet without a great deal of complexity. The balance is slightly better as it warms but it was really lacking direction and focus and I got none of the hop character I was hoping for, especially with the high expectations I usually have with Pilot Series beers. I am wondering if I may have had a bad bottle since I did start to detect notes of wet cardboard toward the end of the beer.

Alaskan Imperial Red casts its pots but hauls up a disappointing 2 Paralithodes camtschaticus out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Populuxe Fresh Hop Chinook Pale Ale

By Iron Chef Leftovers

I will admit that it is a bit odd writing about a fresh hop beer in March, but yes, I still have a backlog of beer notes to get through (it is getting better) so eventually I will catch up and you will be seeing reviews for beers relatively close to their release date. Populuxe did make a couple of fresh hop beers in 2013, one with chinook and one with citra hops. This was the chinook version of the pale which clocked in at 4.8%.

The beer pours light orange in color with a mellow hop character and hints of citrus. The beer starts out on the palate with a nice grain character before quickly becoming more complex and hoppy – orange and grapefruit first make an appearance, giving the beer a slightly sweet character, before heading in a different direction with light notes of citrus peel and spice, medium notes of green hops and a pleasant bitterness. The beer finishing with long notes of pine needles, hops and citrus coupled with a very long mild bitter finish. The beer is layered and complex at the same time being easy drinking and not palate blowing. This was probably my favorite fresh hop beer in 2013.

The Populuxe Fresh Hop Chinook Pale Ale strikes the line and lands a whopping 5 big fish out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Fremont Bonfire Ale

By Iron Chef Leftovers

I sometimes really love Fremont beers and sometimes really don’t, but I do give them a fair shake and will generally try them all. I was a bit skeptical about Bonfire Ale; I have had way too many smoked beers that the smoke just overpowers everything else and made them undrinkable. At $5 for a 22 oz. bottle, I figured that it was worth the risk in trying this beer.

From the Fremont website:

Bonfire Ale steals from the winter fires its gift of dark barley and gentle hops to provide you, beer drinker, with this delightful winter treat. Fremont set the sky rockets to flight and wrote the book on afternoon delight before waking the night on the wings of a great blue heron to soar below the radar and above the clouds, raining down beer to blow your mind and caress your soul. Light a Bonfire today.

Down & Dirty: 2-Row & White Wheat, Midnight Wheat, Rye, Smoked, & Chocolate Malts with Cascade and Goldings hops. 6% ABV

The beer pours deep brown in color with a dark cream head and presents heavy notes of roasted malt supported by more subtle notes of rye and spice with just a hint of smoke noticeable in the background. The beer starts off on the palate slowly with mild malt before building win to more pronounced notes of roasted grain, chocolate and very mild hops. Up to that point the beer was very enjoyable, but then things went horribly wrong. The finish was astringently smoky, almost too harsh to drink – becoming very off-putting, and felt like someone had just dumped and ashtray into the beer. There was no depth, just burnt wood and ash on the finish, killing what was shaping up to be a very balanced beer (all 3 of the other people I tasted this with had the same opinion of the beer). This beer came so close to me liking it but lost me at the end, although we did discover that it paired better with spicy/fatty food – pepperoni worked well at taming the ashtray qualities while leaving enough of the roast and malt flavors of the beer to make it enjoyable.

Fremont Bonfire Ale is carless with it matches and burn down with 2 forest fires out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Reuben’s Chocolate Orange Imperial Oatmeal Stout Randall

By Iron Chef Leftovers

I love that Reuben’s is doing randalls now – it allows you to infuse some interesting flavors into the beer without having to brew it that way and it means that they can turn a beer into something really complex and different with a minimal effort. A recent trip brought us face to face with an Imperial Oatmeal Stout (already a great beer) infused with cocoa nibs and orange zest. Chocolate, orange and stout? I am there.

The beer pours jet black with a nice brown head. The nose shows very mild notes of chocolate roast and slightly floral orange, surprisingly subtle for a big beer. The beer starts with light lactic notes before the chocolate and roast show with mild sweetness and roast, lingering through the end. The deep flavors are joined by very subtle orange and just a hint of bitterness in a long finish. The orange flavors become slightly more pronounced as the beer warms, but never overpowering and it drinks more like milk chocolate than dark chocolate. Reminds me of a really good chocolate bar and had great layered flavors and complexity without being overpowering with any of the flavors or alcohol.

On a side note Mrs. Iron Chef tried this beer (she dislikes all dark beers) and really liked it, so much that my glass of it disappeared for a while. She described it as a liquid Terry’s Chocolate Orange.

Reuben’s Chocolate Orange Imperial Oatmeal Stout rolls in with a perfect 5 orange groves out of 5.

Beer of the Week: Elysian Trip XV Belgian Buckwheat Ale

By Iron Chef Leftovers

Trip number 15 in the Elysian/New Belgium series brings us a Buckwheat Belgian Ale. It seems like it would be a bit of a strange combination, but I figured what the heck, this is what beer drinking is all about. The beer was from a 22 oz. bottle and clocked in at a healthy 7.5% ABV.

The beer pours deep brown in color with lots of sediment in the glass, producing heavy notes of banana, Belgian yeast, buckwheat and grain on the nose, with subtle notes of dates and raisins. The beer starts out with a hearty and oat profile before moving into deep notes of roasted dates and plums with hints of bitter chocolate before finishing long with a strong sweetness from the Belgian yeast. The beer has some nice bold flavors but some of the more subtle flavors are lost in the mix, causing the beer to be out of balance, especially as it moved through its grain components. Buckwheat is a strong flavor and was complimented nicely with the roasted flavors, but it does produce an oat-like mouth feel and reminded me of a buckwheat pancake with jam.

Elysian Trip 15 Buckwheat Belgian step it up and throws back with 3 O’Tays out of 5.