By Elliot Boswell Staff Writer
Portland is a city with more microbreweries than any other metropolitan area in the world, a fact that is perhaps unsurprising given its DIY mentality and pretty much everybody's love for beer. On-the-rise breweries like Widmer's and BridgePort recently contributed to the local haul of eight medals at the 2008 World Beer Cup, a sign that maybe this renaissance is for real, and that small-time brewers are as serious or more about their craft as big names like Budweiser and Heineken. The Beacon's Elliot Boswell and Jeff Trousdale start with some well-known regional flavors in their quest to become beer connoisseurs. (Note: our objectivity became skewed as time went on).
Full Sail: Amber
The Amber is a local classic, first brewed in 1989 by Hood River's Full Sail Brewing Co. but left relatively unchanged since then. It's still an incredibly well-balanced drink, quite fruity but not so much as to overpower the hops. It finishes just as smooth as it begins, with just the faintest hint of... caramel? A great beer to spend all night with - the difference really is drinkability.
Deschutes: Cascade Ale
Cascade Ale has fallen slightly out of fashion among other Deschutes beers, a Bend brewery, and you can see why. It's brewed in the IPA tradition, more citrusy than most, with a fair balance between the malt and hops elements and finishes with a lemony zing. Although it got old fast, it gave the impression of being a potentially great summertime drink.
BridgePort: IPA
This Portland brew house's signature IPA was awarded the Gold Medal at the 2008 World Beer Championships, held in Portland. Not too much malt, not too much hops, but more bitter than sweet, like many IPAs, and just as citrusy, if not more so. This particular strand of pale ale is more modest than many of its peers, maybe to the point of being a little thin, so it's very possible to start the night with it.
Ninkasi: Total Domination IPA
We saved this until we felt like being totally dominated, and we weren't disappointed. As advertised, the Total Domination comes on strong, with a hops element that borders on overpowering in its bitterness. It was quite difficult to discern any hint of fruitiness as the flavor doesn't really linger, but goes almost as quickly as it comes. It was certainly adjustable, but not the ideal session beer: better to move on to something sweeter immediately after.
Rogue: Dead Guy Ale
Another local favorite, the Dead Guy is one of the flagship ales of Portland-based Rogue Brews. It starts with a strong, complex flavor of primarily honey, then moves on to a fruity stage, before finishing with a little spice. Thick, with a malty sweetness, and more body than Salma Hayek. Depending on your tastes, it's easy to see how someone could drink this brew all day.
Deschutes: Black Butte Porter
The brewery touts this porter as the best reason for visiting Bend, which, rest assured, says more about the beer than it does about the town, and its my personal favorite Deschutes brew. It brings a ton of flavor, but it was sometimes difficult to distinguish the exact order: coffee and chocolate are probably the two most dominant, though there was a rather thick fruitiness that lingered on my palate for a while. Almost obscenely smooth for such a dark beer (probably attributable to its relative thinness), the Black Butte phenomenon can be aptly summarized in this nugget of conversation between Jeff and a third tester:
"I know a guy who named his dog after it."
"What, Black or Butte?"
"No, Porter."
BridgePort: Raven Mad Imperial Porter
Supposedly, the Raven Mad Porter is brewed with a combination of porter, bourbon, and wine, and it shows: At first taste, we thought someone might have spiked the bottle. It had a very smoky flavor, with an almost heavy sweetness followed by a bitterer aftertaste. A little malt-y throughout, but a beer that means business nonetheless.
Deschutes: Inversion IPA
We ended with another Deschutes offering, this time their Inversion IPA. I read a rumor that they recently added more hops to this, and sure enough, it was almost harsh, comparable with Pyramid's Thundercap brew, though not as fatiguing; it bites the palate at the beginning, smoothens with some mild citrus and bites again at the finish. Probably the strongest beer we tasted all night, the Inversion is quite drinkable nonetheless.
