Quaffed at Portland’s Morningstar Café, quince-wafted medium-to-full body with dark amber tone brings lingered piney hop resin to grapefruit peel bittering countering sweet apple-orange tang. Minor wood lacquering upended by wheat-honeyed caramel malting.
FULL SAIL I.P.A.
Fine burgundy-hued ruby red-highlighted medium body with fruity zing and piney nose retains zesty apple-apricot-peach-cherry tang and bittersweet fig-plum-date tartness above mild grapefruit peel bittering. Peat-smoked caramel-whiskey malts bring butterscotch, almond, and macadamia illusions to the party for well-balanced fruity dazzler.
(FISH) LEAVENWORTH DUNKELWEIZEN
Problematic ‘Alpine-style dark wheat ale’ sustains sour-malted rye-pumpernickel blandness, phenol dried fruiting and dismal nuttiness. Though never catching fire, red grape-fig-date tartness and banana bread illusions nearly save the day.
CHUCKANUT PILS
Adequate yellow-fruited, corn-malted, cereal-grained pilsner brings herbal-tinged lemon spoilage to the fore. But German-styled moderation’s murky orange-grapefruit meander needs better thrust.
CASCADE LAKES ‘20’-INCH BROWN
Generous perfumed hop spicing embeds nutty pinewood bitterness and dried fig-date souring of medium-bodied amber-browned ale. Grain-roasted macadamia, hazelnut, and peanut oil nuances suffice, bringing further depth to brown-sugared raw-honeyed mocha malting.
CASCADE KRIEK ALE
One of brewers’ most popular and well-integrated sour ales, remarkable Belgian-styled Flanders red ale retains soft-flowing tannic grape bitterness as well as sweet fruited tartness and fermented lactic acidity. Oak barrel-aged cherry sourness retrieves musty Sauvignon-Cabernet warmth and vanilla-spiced cranberry-raspberry wisp crowding loud carbolic fizz. Sweet cider and rhubarb cherry pie illusions fill the middle as grassy horse-blanket earthiness parches vinegary white grape pucker at the backend. Wispy nutmeg-clove spicing adds depth and overall acidity never overwhelms.
(RUSSIAN RIVER) PLINY THE ELDER
Revelatory golden-hued medium-bodied Imperial IPA, named after naturalist philosopher, maintains silken flow despite creamy thrust. Cotton-candied caramel-crystal malts align with lemon-sugared red apple, brown pear, purple grape, apricot, and tangerine fruiting as well as pineapple, mango and passion fruit tropicalia. Mild grapefruit peel bittering illuminates pine needled floral hops securing perfectly balanced, highly celebrated West Coaster.
(GORDASH) HOLY MACKERAL SPECIAL GOLDEN ALE
Heady Belgian-styled golden-hazed medium body (brewed for Florida’s Gordash Beer Company in South Carolina) brings vanilla malt creaminess to fungi-soured Belgian yeast endurance. At midst, peppery Saaz hop bitterness and musty barnyard funk counter durable cotton-candied butterscotch rummage, wavered apple-apricot-pear fruiting and clove-coriander-spiced banana bubblegum whim. Delightful maraschino cherry ripeness, zippy cinnamon-gingerbread dalliance, and supple Cognac finish prove affirmative. Busy mix never falters. On tap at Plantation’s Hurricane Grill & Wings, sweeter honey-fruited thrust receives herbal twinge.
(SHIPYARD) THE ELEVEN BROWN ALE
Inviting thin-headed brown-hazed ‘smooth dark ale’ brings expressive nuttiness to roasted caramel alleviation. Oily hop-charred peanut-shelled walnut bittering counters meandering macadamia-hazelnut sweetness above cocoa-dried mocha malting. Ashy peat recess and metallic twinge obstruct nebulous vanilla-sarsaparilla spell.
(GORDASH) HOLY MACKERAL MACK IN BLACK IMPERIAL BLACK ALE
Interesting Schwarzbier-like Black Ale (brewed for Gordash Beer Company) adds inconspicuous pomegranate juice to sticky anise plunge, sour fig-prune surge, and grain-roasted stove-burnt coffee swell. Black cherry, dried fig, and purple grape nuances prompt Muscat or port wine appeal. Smoked mocha malts permit cola nut, walnut, and Brazil nut illusions to enter the 8% alcohol fray. On tap, deeper coffee-burnt licorice resilience is felt.
(INDIAN RIVER) NATIVE LAGER
Astringent citric-hopped phenol-spiced straw-hued light lager gets watery fast. Diluted candy-soured orange rind and lemon peel bittering tops sullen grain tepidity and corn-oiled gloom. Parched lime-like acidity and skunked vegetal waft overwhelm frail finish.
BARON SCHWARZBIER BLACK LAGER
Murky cocoa-soured astringency, lousy compost waft, and nasty vegetal spell ruin dried prune-fig souring as well as Muscat wine appeal. Mired in nebulous day-old black bread funk, this warbled German-styled brew seems unbalanced, spreading inconclusive black grape, fennel, and pumpernickel illusions across rotted bock-like variance to phenol finish.