What beer are you drinking now? (December 2019)

Celebrating the Seahawks being in first place in the NFC West (via a 9ers loss to the Ravens) by indulging in a six pack of Great Divide Titan. I really think GD was trying to replicate a Sam Smith's IPA type feel with this one.

 

Just a heads up...New Seasons has 20% off all barrel aged beers ending today. Notables are the Dark Star Varients, Abyss, Varients, among others.

I grabbed Nevermore, BBA Night Howler, and and Abyss.

 

I don't like Sundays.

I do like this Trade War Export Stout from Bend Brewing. It's delicious.



Happy December, my friends.

 

Oh shit! Just found this pic cleaning out my hard drive.

Over the summer wifey and I went to Yakima to visit my family. My dad's side are three generations deep in the Yakima/Moxee area. Yes, that Bale Breaker's hops, yes that road is named after my family and YES Bale Breaker makes some killer brews. Watch for Sown and Grown being released.

https://www.balebreaker.com/beer/sown-and-grown-1#

https://imgur.com/83B1Gh1

 

I love the props Trade War is getting with NW BAs (along with Lucubrator, Folkvangr, and other exceptional beers in under-appreciated styles). I’m feeling like, as your Bend correspondent, I did not sound the bell early enough on this one, and vow to be louder earlier on worthwhile packaged product from Bend (the town, not just BBC).

 

Matchless and Trapdoor down south did that IPA collab. Anybody have the 411 on that?

 

Looks like it’s called Serenity Someday.

“Two yeast pitch team up with Trap Door to deliver an INSANE amount of Dry Hopping. Brewed with Galaxy, Wakatu, H. Blanc, Topaz, & Vic Secret. It may satisfy that craving for IPA, but may not lower your blood pressure. Then again neither will yelling Serenity Now! Someday we will solve that problem.”

According to another site, it appears to be available in the wild in Western WA.

https://untappd.com/b/matchless-brewing-serenity-someday/3538006

I’m generally not into hazies, but I’ll probably try a single of that one, for science.

Tonight, I’m drinking a pint can of House Saison from Tin Dog Brewing. They make lovely saisons, but this can is either old or something went wrong with the crimp.

Also, Son Of A Baptist by Epic Brewing. Absolutely delicious coffee stout.

 

Enjoyed a Little Beast Folkvangr earlier. Now finishing up a Rogue Red Panda IPA that I 90% bought for the red panda on the label. Solid classic west coast IPA.

 

I remember back in the mid to late aughts, when pumpkin beers were BIG and there was none bigger than Elysian and the variety they had. At the time, I was living on the east coast and trading for them was a bit of a pain(as we are now, PNW BAs at the time were more content being lazy rather than trading). Now, I finally get around to my first Elysian pumpkin beer, Night Owl and it's tasty. And it just so happens I'm reading Watchmen and am at the part where the origin of Nite Owl is being presented.

Next up will be a New Holland Dragon's Milk. I haven't had that beer in 10 years. I wonder how it will be.

 

Seeing out the long holiday weekend with a sleeping cat on my lap, and Ex Novo's new batch of Nevermore in my glass.



Also listening to some new heavy gothic weirdness from French doom-mongers Öxxö Xööx. Might as well. Monday's coming and I can't stop it.

 

Heater Allen Sandy Paws Baltic porter to go with dessert tonight.

 

As a sugar fiend, I am very jealous of your dessert plate.

 

Seems like a good spot to share my thoughts on the beers consumed during my jaunt through Central Europe...

Hungary - There's a great beer scene in Budapest with a ton of local and regional craft breweries available in most bars. Mostly IPAs (and a lot of hazy ones) but Monyo from Budapest is doing saisons and barrel aged wild ales.

Slovakia - I was only in Kosice and the High Tatras Mountains, so maybe things are different in Bratislava, but from what I encountered Slovakia is behind the curve. Lots of fantastic macro pilsners and there were some craft breweries, again doing IPAs, but they still need some work.

Poland - Poland knows what they're doing and makes solid beer, some of the stuff I had would compare very well to beers from Oregon and Washington. Again, mostly craft IPAs and pales, some breweries experimenting with fruited sours. Some really awesome craft pilsners and Baltic porters, too. Definitely the most developed craft beer scene of the three countries I visited.

I also drank a ton of Pilsner Urquell on draft which is always a good thing.

 

Pizza Port 'Swami's' IPA, my last one.

https://imgur.com/YAIG2Ko

 

Happy December all. Finishing the stragglers from Thanksgiving with this bomber of Oakshire, Big Black Jack. Might be @beertunes worst nightmare.

Mine too.

 

No coffee in there, which tells me it's possible for that nightmare to get worse for @beertunes .

Elysian's Punkuccino comes to mind.

 

Right now Three Magnets Dig Your Grave, to be followed by The Black Forest..16 oz both $1 from Roth's Salem close out