Hops & Barley Tasting Potpourri

Beer Luvvas,

Things have been crazy busy for ASG as of late, so I haven't been able to keep you up to speed on my latest beer adventures. So here's a potpourri of beer tastings to catch you up on what I've been sampling recently:

'09 Widmir Okto: Dis-a-point-ing. Now I'm the first to admit that I'm not a huge fan of the Martzen style, but this year's Okto puts the blah in blaze. If I found it overly sweet, I think folks who are fans of the style would say that this is a good beer. But I'm guessing that they won't.

'09 Deschutes Jubilale: Well the weather outside isn't anywhere near frightful yet - at least in PDX, OR - but this year's first available winter ale was mighty tasty. Gone is '08's overly piny flavor. This year's version brings a touch of sweet to the standard winter ale malt, which gives great balance, and will produce even better results a year or two down the road.

Old Market Brewery & Pub: Freebird and I met some friends for Happy Hour last night at Old Market, and I must say that they have one of the best Happy Hour value menus around. My bowl of chili, and Freebird's soup of the day (some sort of potato/bacon/roasted pepper combo) were both filling enough for a meal, and at under $3 bucks a HUGE value! Not to mention they have great beer: Mr. Toad's Wild Red (one of Freebird's favs), Rat Dog ESB (not as B as it could be, but still a fine quaff), and "The Name Escapes Me" IPA - not too floral, not too citrus-y. Goldilocks would call this IPA, "Just Right."

John's Marketplace: A staple for the Westside beer/wine crowd, John's Marketplace has one of the widest selections of bottled beer, and kegs around. Freebird and I finally got our "loaner" kegerator cleaned up - really Freebird, I've been uninvolved to date - so we stopped by John's to pick up our first keg. We chose a 1/6 barrel of Anderson Valley Hop Ottin IPA since we are the only two in the house, and we have few plans beyond hosting my family for dinner on Sunday. I've had a couple draws on the keg so far, and it's a fine, fine IPA - as most of you know. I can say that having great beer on tap 5 feet from the flat screen is very, very fine indeed.

I'll try to be a little more diligent as we head into the rainy, beer drinking season, but new role at work is kinda taking up a lot of my time. Click on an ad or two to help me escape from The Man.

Prost to Hop Ottin on Tap at Home!