Now or Never

The school term kicked off last week and I and fellow PintHead Lucas decided that we needed to get another brew going post haste or we'd be too distracted by educational obligations. So we got together on Sunday afternoon and concocted an IPA-style beer. I broke down and bought a new boiling pot. The last one was on its last legs and this new one is a bit smaller, perfect for 5 gallons of extract brewing, which fits nicely with my current brew set up.

The ingredients are as follows: 3 lbs Amber malt extract, 3.3 lbs Coopers amber dry malt extract (a first for me), 1lb Munich, 1lb 2-row, 1lb 10L Crystal, 2oz Centennial hops for the boil, 3oz Cascade hops for the finish and an American Ale Yeast. We are also dry hopping with the Cascade hops, so I am fully intending this brew to be uber-hoppy just the way I like it. This is the first time I've tried an IPA, the OG was 1.060. The Beer Traveler has had much success in the area of the IPA, so I'll run it under his nose upon completion to see if it passes muster. Check the countdown clock at right to see when this batch will be ready.

Cheers,

Alex

Beer on the Coast

We were stuck in Corvallis for the holidays thanks to the weather, but that didn't mean we had to be stuck in the house. As soon as the weather cleared up enough we grabbed our cameras and headed out to the coast, Newport is directly west of Corvallis so that seemed like a logical final destination. For more details on the full trip see Kelly's blog. I'm gonna focus on the beer aspect of the trip, a visit to the Rogue Brewery.

The beer was up to its typically high standards. I had a taster to start, just because that's what you have to do when you go to the Rogue Brewery. The atmosphere was really busy, I'm not sure if there was something going on or if that's the typical crowd for the Saturday after Christmas, but the wait crew seemed a bit distracted and it was a challenge to get service. Then when my taster came out they had substituted a Honey Orange Wheat from the Eugene City Brewery when I had asked for a Track Town IPA. She said that I had only written down Track Town (which was true) and that I hadn't said which Track Town I wanted, but as far as I know Track Town IPA is the only one that has "Track Town" for a short name. Oh well, the Honey Orange Wheat wasn't bad, just not what I wanted. I rounded out the taster with an Imperial Pilsner, Dead Guy (cliche, I know) and a Frosty Frog seasonal from the Issaquah group. The Imperial Pilsner was quite interesting, a very robust flavor. I can imagine it would go nice with an order of sushi. I finished the trip with a pint of 100 Meter Ale from the Eugene City Brewery (I was in a sentimental mood for Eugene). Perhaps the best part of the night was the "garage sale" they had going. I scored a new sweatshirt, ski cap, and pint glass, but the best part was the 24 pack of Santa's Private Reserve for $15 and 12 pack of 22oz 100 Meter Ale's for $26, a nice way to close out the trip. I would always recommend a trip out to the brewery if you find yourself in Newport. The facilities themselves are relatively open and there are tours daily at 3pm, which we just missed. But the experience of beer from the source is enough to make the trip worth while.


Cheers,

Alex