Just curious if the quality has completely fallen off. I got to try some Homo Erectus for the first time in a few years today and it was a total malt bomb. The last time I stopped in at the pub in Stevenson almost everything I tried was completely forgettable. I would have once put them as my favorite WA brewery but since about the time Jacob left their stuff seems to have gone down hill in drastic fashion. So for those who have more frequent access to their brews ... is it me or is the magic gone?
I had Homo Errectus in 2010 and it was awesome. Had it again last year at Uber and it was really bad. Not sure what's up.
I don't know. One of the reasons I don't know, is that I almost never see their beer around town anymore. The horse brass still has the cherry stout on tap most of the time, but that's about the only place I know where I can be sure of finding a Walking Man beer on tap. Knuckle Dragger was one of the better pale ales, back in the day, and you could pretty much always find it on tap at Claudia's and Concordia Alehouse. I don't remember the last time I saw it in PDX. We actually got some kegs of HE down here in Eugene some months back, and I remember getting a sample size glass, just for old times sake. I wasn't tempted to get a full glass after the sampler.
They went through a rough spot, but their new brewer seems to be dialing things back in again. I had a Homo Erectus a few days ago from what I was told was a brand new batch, and it was delicious. In other news, they're going to start bottling soon. From what I was told, HE and Black Cherry Stout will be the only year rounders, and they'll squeeze in a seasonal or one off when they have room in the production schedule.
That's good to hear. In their time, beers like Perambulator and Sonambulator were a couple of the best domestic doppelbocks and weizenbocs I ever tasted. The high road scotch and jaywalker were always excellent as well, and I got a kick out of some of the HE variaitons (RIP my big phat homo). During my first stint in PDX (04 to 07), I would regularly drive out to Stevenson (despite the wacky hours at the pub), because the beers there were THAT good.
When it's on, it's awesome, but I wish they could be more consistent with the cherry juice or whatever they add. At it's best there's a nice cherry/chocolate thing going on, but half the time it just tastes like cough syrup.
James told me they are now using cherry extract along with cherry juice to keep up with production....so I'm guessing they haven't quite yet zeroed-in on the ratio(?).
The beers really were that good. And the homo variations were fantastic (I loved My Old Kentucky Homo) and Rumrunner was delicious too. So much good beer came out of that place. I'm still not convinced the beers have taken a turn for the better. I saw Homo Erectus was on tap at Chuck's and swung by for a growler. Thankfully I didn't buy it blindly (I actually made that mistake two years ago when passing through Stevenson). It was ridiculously malty so I ended up leaving with Old Schoolhouse Ruud Awakening instead. I really hope they get back on the right track.
Yeah, he (Jacob Leonard) was a former brewer at Walking Man. He left and went to Widmer and last I heard he was at Breakside. He's definitely a talented brewer.
So Walking Man bottles have been released. Anyone try it? I had a bottle of Homo Erectus last night and ... well, I don't want to be too negative but it wasn't the Homo I know. I really would love for them to get it dialed in again.
