Great Notion

Back in Portland for a weekend and finally got to hit Great Notion. Gotta say, based on this thread, people in Portland do not realize how good they have it. ;-)

I love that the northwest keeps it real and doesn't go apeshit with the hype, but there's much more complaint here about Great Notion than appreciation which on the balance of my experience surprises me.

First, beers. Had a flight. The coffee cream ale was tasty but lacked depth. A bit watery. Zest, the berliner, was basic but not complex. Fine but not something I'd seek out; interested to see what the amphorae do to the sour stuff. Ripe and Juice Jr. were great. Slightly preferred Juice due to the less pure fruity nature of it. I don't see the comparison to Trillium or Tree House as a disservice. The quality is good and Great Notion is young; I'd expect things to move improve. I really enjoyed Double Stack as well. Kind of reminded me of a less artificial tasting MBCP, sans the smokey notes from bacon. The aroma wasn't as over the top, but there was a more lingering sticky flavor.

The service was a bit slow.

The food was really solid; zacatecan pork with plantains. Much better than brewpub fare you get at most places.

All told ... I think I paid $25 bucks for a flight, food, and tip. I certainly didn't feel that was crazy.

Sadly, I didn't get to hit Culmination or Labrewtory. But based on my visit, I have to say they're one of the more ambitious new spots in Portland, trying to do something that isn't currently represented. That seems worth a bit more positivity. Look at all the other places opening and how many are doing something new, unrepresented in PDX? Not many. That price is dominating when we're talking a difference of $3 - $5 seems silly to me. Note that prices on crowlers are a bit high and then move on to something more substantial?

 

So you liked 3/5 beers, service was slow, and food was "solid". Not exactly a rave review. Anyway, the price difference is substantial and fair game for discussion. $5-6 per 32oz of takeout beer is about 55% more expensive than the most expensive TIPA in town in the same format (Notorious @ $11/32oz). That to me, deserves an explanation.

 

I've really enjoyed all your IPA's, so keep doing what you're doing. It's always nice to see a new brewery doing something different than the mainstream.

 

I understand what you are saying, but it's still odd because everything they release appeals to the current hype

 

If you read back to the first response from Great Notion, or have read anything about them before they opened, they mention they brews styles that they are interested in and would want to drink.

I went back Saturday and had lunch on the patio. I have to say I really enjoyed the Fried Plantains, Pork and beans dish. Also I tried Ripe for the second time and I swear there's a little bit of bitterness present that was missing the first time I tried the beer. Regardless, I love what this brewery is doing!

 

Yeah, but what they're doing is totally different for the PNW. Smart move on their part. They could have brewed the old style IPA and no one would be talking about them like the hundreds of other breweries out here. Just find it funny how they really struck a nerve with the hardcore old school IPA fans.

 

I liked 5/5 beers, thought 3 of 5 were really good. 60% "really good" is a nice average, particularly for a place this new. "Solid" is the word you choose when I say "much better than the brewpub fare you get at most places"?

You can have your vendetta but please don't selectively edit my post to reflect your opinion. Any impartial reader would call that a positive review; "people don't realize how good they have it", "one of the more ambitious new places", etc. Yeah, I impartially noted the service needs some work. I'd hope that improves when they're more than a few months old.

This is how movie's get their review snippets. "Definitely do not see this and violent film - an unbelievable failure" becomes "Definitely [...] see this film - [...] unbelievable" ;-)

 

For a good laugh check out this guys reviews of GN beers. He even goes as far as saying that all their high praise is being bought by GN. lol

 

From his Double Stack review: "The reviews this place is getting right now are ridiculous. Stop lying and respect beer, please"

and from Juice Jr: "'I'm not sure why or how the first reviews on BA are ranking these guys' beer so highly but I'm immediately suspicious that they are somehow connected to the organization"

Pretty strange to start conspiracy theories and accuse of lying for enjoying a beer that he didn't like instead of, you know... just writing a normal review.

 

Almost as if he went in already hating it. He hated the hype, but kept drinking the beer.

 

That's really weird. Clearly, there's some underlying butthurt going on there. Maybe it's the former owner of the Mash Tun?

I think GN's beers, on the whole, are good to very good. I don't really care about the prices. My only "issue" with their beers, really, is that IMO the IPAs do not fit into the IPA category. The Ripe I had Sunday was better than the first time I had it, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. But if you handed it to me blind and asked what style it was, I seriously doubt I'd guess IPA. I can only imagine a first time IPA drinker trying a Ripe and expecting every IPA to taste that way. What a shock it would be to order a Pallet Jack, Breakside IPA, Workhorse, RPM, etc. after that.

 

I've only had Merry Dankster so far and I don't think I'd identify it as anything other than an IPA. However, it gets too sweet and I just want some more bitterness to balance things out.

 

Maybe he works for another brewery? I think I've heard the phrase "Respect beer" or Beer matters" or something like that somewhere else. Can't quite place it though.

 

Is there already enough hype about this brewery that people are seeking it for trades?

 

A couple people were each buying 20+ crowlers of Juice Box when it was on tap at Growler Guys in SE PDX earlier this year and bragging about it on Great Notion's Facebook page.

Sooo.... yes.

 

Big time butthurt going on. I guess seeing all the happy faces at the grand opening put him in a foul mood.