I wish I had more to say about Lompoc Brewing’s 8 Malty Nights, but last year’s inaugural release completely passed me by and I didn’t even get a sip. If you got the chance to sample this the last time around, please post your thoughts in the comments section. I’ve had a lot of beer in my life, but I don’t think I can yet check the box that says Whiskey Barrel Aged Chocolate Rye Porter. Yet. This year, it might be a little easier to get you hands on it when it’s released 22 ounce bottles.

No release dates yet announced by the breweries, but we should be seeing these as we creep toward the winter months.

Dustin Kellner, Laurelwood Brewing Company. This is one of the first photos I took at a brewery.  Just over three years ago, I talked to the Paul Bergeman at Laurelwood Brewery  on NE 40th Avenue to see if he’d mind if I came in to shoot the brewery on a brew day.   No one else knew I was coming, so imagine showing up to work at 7:00am to find a strange guy following you around with a camera while you work.  For hours.  That’s the situation Dustin found himself in that morning.  Sorry buddy!

I quickly learned to be splashed, singed, deafened, and grain-dusted on these shoots.  But it’s all worth it since I usually get to sample off of the tanks by 9am!

Laurelwood’s Workhorse IPA.  One of the best IPAs in Portland is now available in bottles.   Ever since we added the ability to rate the beers in our database, this beer has sat at the top of the list.   Check the home page for current rankings.  This feature is open to the public, but for now, you have to request a login through our contact form.

In the Northwest, beers that showcase hops usually come in the form of  Pales, IPAs, or Imperial IPAs.  Once upon a time, a brewer pondered, “Just how many hops can I fit into a beer?”  Throw in high alpha hops for bitterness, big citrus hops for flavor, and tons of dry hops for a huge floral nose, and you’ll end up with some of big hop bombs known around Portland.

Brewer Paul Bergeman of Laurelwood Brewing Company loves hops as much as the next person, but decided to carry out a different type of hop experiment: the Single Hop Red Series.  Paul chooses one hop variety and uses it for all of the hopping stages in a Red Ale: bittering, flavor, and aroma.  The idea is simple, yet multi-faceted in it’s payoff.  First of all, we get to try great new beers–the best benefit of all!  Second, the person with the pint in front of them gets an education on different hop profiles.  Doesn’t it feel good to get smarter as you drink?  And third, brewers that push themselves are ultimately going to make better beers through experimentation and self-education.  Again, a win for those of us bellied up to the bar or walking out with a growler.

I asked Paul why he started the program and why he chose Red Ales.  “The program was developed to give people a better understanding of each hop variety’s components in beer as well as to utilize and identify each hop variety’s bitterness, flavor, and aroma qualities,” Paul stated.  “Generally, people are given beers and assume that because of it’s color, it’s going to a have a certain profile.  Whereas with Reds, each one you taste is almost always different.  The idea is that people don’t think right off that bat that it is going to be either extreme, it will be in the middle.  People believe that Pale’s are going to be hoppy, and Browns are going to malty.  With Reds it can go to either side of the spectrum or land right in the middle.”

If you’re new to this series, you’ve already missed out on a big chunk of Paul’s experiment.  He has already crafted single hop Red Ales with: CTZ, Magnum, Cascade, Centennial, Liberty, Saaz, Ahtanum, Simcoe, Summit, Northern Brewer, Nugget, Crystal, Amarillo…  Here are the descriptions and stats of a few of his creations:

• El Rojo: ”Red ales have become quite the thing since we first brewed our flagship Free Range Red years ago. This style now encompasses such a wide range of flavors from malty to hoppy that we thought we’d showcase another side red ales. El Rojo is a brilliant ruby colored heavily hopped beer. Using only Amarillo hops, this beer acknowledges the malty side of the style, then kicks it aside and gets all kinds of hoppy.” (IBU: 75 Plato: 15 ABV: 6)
• Gayle: ”Alright, hop nerds. Here’s our latest single hop beer- with a little something for all you that like both kinds of music- Country and Western. Gayle was brewed exclusively with Crystal hops. These low bitterness hops are similar to Mt. Hood and Liberty varieties. Pungent, Oregon-grown hops, Crystals are used primarily for their aroma qualities.” (IBU: 57 Plato: 16 ABV: 6)
• Le Rouge: ”Number six in our series of single hop Red Ales, Le Rouge brings us the wonders of the Ahtanum hop. Also used in our Boss IPA and Stout, Ahtanum hops are a fairly low bittering variety known mainly for their similarity to cascade hops. This beer is hopped like an American Pale Ale, with medium bitterness and a bit of dry hop aroma.” (IBU: 44 Plato: 14 ABV: 6)
• Liberty Red Single Hopped Ale: ”The seventh beer in our series of single hop Red Ales, Liberty Red brings us the wonders of the Liberty hop. Liberty hops are the American version of the German Hallertau and are known for their aromatic properties and mild bitterness. This beer features a nice citrus flavor with subtle earthy tones. Liberty Red is hopped like an American Pale Ale, with medium bitterness and a bit of dry hop aroma.” (IBU: 48 Plato: 14 ABV: 6)
• Saaz Single Hop Red: ”Another in our series of beers brewed with just one hop variety. This time we’ve looked to one of the greatest brewing countries and selected the Czech Saaz hop. Saaz hops are known for their spicy, herbal quality. Typically used in lagers, we’ve found they make great ales too.” (IBU: 35 Plato: 15 ABV: 6)

Paul Bergeman.

It’s not fair to the other hops if you pick a favorite, but when posed the question:  ”My stand alone favorite for personal taste would have to be the Centennial hop because of it’s sharp bitterness and it’s floral aroma.  However, my fall back—and most consistent hop—would have to be the Cascade hop because of it’s versatile use.  Cascades can be used in anything from an IPA for it’s clean bitterness and citrus like smell, to a Porter because it has hidden qualities that give the beer a hint of hoppiness but doesn’t take away from the maltiness that people prefer to enjoy in the darker beers.”

You can find El Rojo on tap at the NE 40th Avenue location—if you hurry.  And keep an eye out for the next beer in the Single Hop Red Series when Paul hopes to use Sorachi-Ace hops:  “I am excited to use this because I have yet to brew with this variety.  This hop comes from Japan and is said to have a lemon/citrus like characteristic.”

Another year is upon us, and that means another Annual New Year’s Day Tasting for my family.  Overall, the tasting went great, but there were a few mistakes made that we can look forward to cleaning up next year.  In this article, we’re going to talk a little bit about cellaring beer–the whats, whens, and whys.  First though, let’s go through this years tasting list:

• Abyss (2007), Deschutes Brewing, Barrel Aged Imperial Stout
• Abyss (2008), Deschutes Brewing, Barrel Aged Imperial Stout
• Abyss (2009), Deschutes Brewing, Barrel Aged Imperial Stout
• Auld Battle Axe, Laurelwood Brewing Co., Scotch Ale
• Black Butte XX, Deschutes Brewing, Bourbon Barrel Aged Porter
• Black Butte XXI, Deschutes Brewing, Bourbon Barrel Aged Porter
• Black Xantus, Nectar Ales, Barrel Aged Russian Imperial Stout
• Bourbon Barrel Belgian-Style Quad, Boulavard Brewing, Barrel Aged Quadrupel
• Dark Horizon II, Nogne o, Unclassified
• Double Alt (25th Anniversary), Widmer Brothers Brewing Co.Double Alt
• Mirror Mirror, Deschutes Brewery, Barleywine
• Moose and Squirrel, Laurelwood Brewing, Russian Imperial Stout
• Old Boardhead (2007), Full Sail Brewing, Barleywine Style Ale
• Old Rasputin XII, North Coast Brewing, Russian Imperial Stout
• Olde Reliable, Laurelwood Brewing, Barleywine
• Paradox (Speyside), BrewDog, Barrel Aged Imperial Stout
• 2008 Stormwatchers, Pelican Brewery, Barleywine
• XII, Firestone Walker, Barrel Aged Blend
• XIII, Firestone Walker, Barrel Aged Blend
• Yeti Oak Aged Espresso, Great Divide Brewing Co., Imperial Stout

Malty beers with a low hop profile and a high ABV are best for aging, so it’s no surprise that this list is populated by some heavy, malty beers.  Hops are used for three primary purposes in beer: bitterness, flavor, and aroma.  If a beer is based on its hop profile, all of this resiny goodness will disappear over time, leaving you with a strange mess.  Imagine your favorite Imperial IPA.  Now imagine it with no hops.  Since beers like Stouts and Porters are low on the flavor and aroma hop scale, they make good aging candidates because this loss of hops does not adversely change the character of the beer.  However, since hops are used for bittering as well, an aged beer will lose a little bit of this bitter bite, causing the final product to reside on the sweeter side.

Why age a beer in the first place?  Complex beers have many layers attained from several parts of the beer making process.  From roasted malts and intricate grain bills, to variations in yeast type or fermentation with fruit, beers can become complex in the brewing phase alone.  Add on barrel aging or blending, and the final product can be a multi-layered showpiece.  When some of these beers are released, they can be rather untamed: too bitter, overpowering alcohol, overwhelming bourbon flavor.  It’s possible that any of the beers aspects are out of proportion with the rest of the beer.  This does not mean that the beer is bad, but people may describe it as too young, too hot, or that it simply needs some age.  Aging a beer like this can transform it immensely.  The biggest change you’ll see is that these beers mellow with some time, softening the sharp edges, creating a subtler beer.  The hotness of the alcohol dies down, fresh bitterness softens, and that overwhelming smack of bourbon now resides softly in the mix.

Aging beer is not complicated, but it depends on three things:

1. Darkness: keep beer away from sunlight.  Put the beer bottle in a (clean) sock.  Put the (clean) sock in a closed box.  Put the box under a black towel.  Put that box somewhere dark (basement, a closet, or that room with no windows that your neighbor doesn’t know about).  Well, it doesn’t have to be that drastic, but light is terrible for beer and will devastate your aging process, turning your masterpiece into a drain pour.
2. Cellar Temperature: 55 °F is ideal.  Fluctuating temperature does not do a beer any favors.  A small difference through the seasons isn’t that big of a deal, but you’ll want to stay away from repeating anything near several fridge to room temperature cycles.
3. Self control: if you ain’t got it, your beers won’t make it to the cellar.

With a total of 20 beers for our tasting, most weighing in around 12%, we had a lot of work to do. We paired the verticals up, and tried to weave in a couple of different styles along the way. The tasting was divided into 4 rounds of 5 beers over two days. We thought about squeezing into one day, but everyone was scared by that idea. Really scared. In the end, we had an odd mix of styles that didn’t always reflect well on the beer. For example, after the three year Abyss vertical, we decided on the Bourbon Barrel Quad as a “palette cleanser” before hitting the Old Rasputin XII. Well, this wasn’t as much a decision as it was a forced hand. We had so many giant beers and mismatching styles, that a perfect solution was hard to come by. I highly anticipated tasting this Quad, but sandwiched in between a whole bunch of barrel aged Imperial Stouts was not the way to showcase its qualities. A little more forethought into the tasting groups would have helped, but sitting there in front of all those bottles, we couldn’t delay any longer.

• For the ’07/’08/’09 Abyss vertical, the 2008 was the favorite.  The blend of oak, licorice, chocolate, roasted malts, and bitterness struck a delicious balance, while the 2007 had faded into obscurity with all aspects falling on the far side of subtle.  It wasn’t that the ’07 was bad, it was just lifeless next to its brethren.  While I like the 2009 right now, next to the 2008 it did seem a little young.
• The same was true for the ’08/’09 Black Butte Reserve: The older beer achieved a phenomenal balance and smoothed out over time.  The ’09, while immensely drinkable (I was only able to cellar 2 out of 12), was a bit rougher around the edges.
• Barleywines: We didn’t make it to the Stormwatchers, but the whole table loved 2007 Old Boardhead and 2007 Olde Reliable.  The affects of aging was most prevalent with these beers.  Barleywines tend to polarize people into the “love it” or “hate it” camps.  They are big, sweet, often taste of dark fruits, and can be very un-beer like.  These tastes were still noticeable in the aged beers, but they were more refined and quiet, turning everyone at the table into Barleywine fans.  This was especially surprising from my father, who usually finds this style too overpowering.
• Another favorite was the Moose and Squirrel.  After almost two years and at only 8% ABV, I wasn’t sure how this one would hold up.  In fact, I liked this beer so much at release time, I drank them all.  Luckily, my brother had stashed one away.  Again, same story: the aging had smoothed out the rough edges.

As indicated on the list above, two beers didn’t make it to the table: Stormwatchers and Auld Battle Axe.  We had to throw in the towel before prying these open.  It was a simple matter of too many beers and too little time.  The Stormwatchers made it back to Portland, but only briefly.  This was another of my highly anticipated beers and I had the choice of hiding it back in the cellar for another day or finally getting a chance to drink it.  It’s not in the cellar.  I’m sure I’ll think back at next years tasting and wonder what it would have been like with another year on it, but self-control doesn’t always win out for me.

Check out the rest of the photos here.

Now, it would be pointless to try and recap every festival, tasting or beer release that happened this year. I did not attend every beer related event in Portland, nor did I try every beer released this year by Portland breweries. To do so would take more effort and more money than I am able to invest in my craft brew hobby. Gaping holes would fill my year end review due to my inability to be there for everything that was reviewable. What I can bank on though, is the fact that the majority of you reading this drank quite a bit of Portland beer and attended many beer-centric events in this fair city and amongst all of us, every event was attended and every beer sampled. So, in hope that no favorite is left unmentioned, I pose to you, faithful portlandbeer.org reader, these four questions:

1. What was your favorite Portland beer of 2009?
2. What was your favorite beer related event of 2009?
3. Which Portland brewery most impressed you in 2009?
4. What was your favorite beer based memory of 2009?

Answer one or answer them all. One of the best parts about drinking beer is discussing beer and any input on what impressed you this year is welcome to the discussion. To get things started, here are the answers to these four questions from two fellows named Matt and one named Ian. The one named Ian is me.

Matt Wiater (portlandbeer.org show runner, often wears a hat)

Moose and Squirrel Russian Imperial Stout.

What was your favorite Portland beer of 2009?
2007 Bourbon Barrel Cask Moose and Squirrel from Laurelwood. Technically, this beer was released in 2009, so I hope I can get away with this answer. Patience is the ultimate respect you can pay to the right beer. Letting it sit for two years in a barrel, in plain view, every day, takes a lot of willpower. In conjunction with varying amounts and types of malt, hops, and yeast, aging is another dynamic that can take a beer in a much different direction over time. Fading hops, blending malt flavors, and wood flavors leached from the barrel, can all add to a complex yet smooth creation. A surprise and quiet release of this aged beer on cask is just one example of what lurks in the dark corners of Portland.

What was your favorite beer related event of 2009?
Holiday Ale Festival. A mixture of different (mostly strong) beer styles, as well as a mixture of different (mostly strong) personalities makes for a great afternoon under a tent on a cold, rainy day in Portland. The early afternoon crowds consist of a lot of beer geeks using up a vacation day to drink and talk beer. All of the beers aren’t for everyone, but if you can’t find several outstanding offerings, you may want to ask yourself if you like beer at all.

Which Portland brewery most impressed you in 2009?
Cascade Brewing. Ron Gansberg and Curtis Bain have been somewhat quietly doing their own thing just over the West Hills. During the great onslaught of IPAs and DIPAs and other floral monsters making Portland synonymous with hoppy beers, Cascade Brewing was quite content at creating a mixture of fruit beers, sours, belgian-style beers, and barrel-aged beers. Well, not I guess they weren’t too content, since many of these beers were used in immensely complex blends such as Cuvee Du Jongleur, Bourbonic Plague, and Drie Zwarte Pieten. Cascade Brewing is always inventive and releases great beers all year long.

Baltic Porter Tasting at Upright Brewing.

What was your favorite beer based memory of 2009?
Baltic Porter Tasting at Upright Brewing. Beer is social. Hanging out with other people involved with the Portland beer scene–from drinkers, to writers, to brewers–is almost always a good time. Spending time in a newly opened Upright Brewing, tasting Baltic Porters from around the world, and hanging out with people who enjoy beer, is a great experience, not to be taken for granted.

Matthew DiTullo (Guy who makes videos about beer for BREWPUBLIC, wears hats less frequently)

What was your favorite Portland beer of 2009?
Bourbon Fred from the Wood. This year seemed to contain a lot of big releases from Hair of the Dog. Michael, Matt, Bob, and a handful of one offs (which may make their way into bottles). During Oregon Craft Beer Month, Alan Sprints hosted an open house at the Hair of the Dog Brewery. Portland was introduced to the “Four Freds.” The two standards, Fred and Fred From the Wood, as well as Bourbon Fred From the Wood and a Fred Flanders aged with a high bacteria yeast. The Bourbon Fred From the Wood was not only one of my favorite beers of 2009, but one of the best bourbon aged beers I’ve had. The Fred base seemed to mesh well with the oaky, vanilla, smooth and warming alcohol notes that the barrel aging applied. Man, would I kill to sip on another Bourbon Fred during these colder months.

What was your favorite beer related event of 2009?
Holiday Ale Festival. As with every year, I always look forward to the Holiday Ale Fest. I love big brews and this is one of the best showcases in the Northwest. You’ll find many great and unique Barleywines, Sours, Barrel Aged Beers, Imperial IPAs, Baltic Porters and more; all usually made especially for this event. You can’t beet the good company of fellow beer drinkers under the city lights and lit Christmas tree protected by a heated, cozy tent with some of your favorite brews.

Alex Ganum, Upright Brewing.

Which Portland brewery most impressed you in 2009?
Upright Brewing. Alex Ganum started this brewery at the beginning of the year in the Left Bank Project on NE Broadway. Within his less than a year of running he has established himself well within the beer community. Alex has been producing unique, farmhouse style beers inspired by those from Belgium and northern France. He uses a French Saison yeast that gives his beers a dry, refreshing edge and allows him to stand out from the rest of the hop bombs we find around here. His tasting room is a delight, where you can find one offs that are experimental as well as successful. One of my favorites was the Turkey On Rye, a rye malted saison aged in barrels with chocolate and dried, Turkish peppers.

What was your favorite beer based memory of 2009?
Not remembering the Barleywine and Big Beer Festival. Held during the weekend of my birthday this past March at the Lucky Lab on NW Quimby. Barleywines are my absolute favorite style, so I was super excited this was offered over my birthday. A wonderful variety of Barleywines, both fresh and vintage as well as Imperial Stouts, Belgian Quads and other Strong Ales. To cap it all off, after the fest we did a pub crawl in SE making it from The Morrison Hotel, to The Green Dragon, and ending at Roots Brewing. And to further cap off my birthday weekend a trip to Higgins was in order to enjoy a rare bottle of Hair of the Dog Cherry Adam From the Wood — Yum!

Me (Ian Seniff, portlandbeer.org contributor, enjoys the convenience of wearing hats)

What was your favorite Portland beer of 2009?
Bourbonic Plague. When I saw this on the list at Annibrew 2 at Bailey’s Taproom I was fairly skeptical. A sour porter did not seem like something I would have any interest in. However, after trying it my skepticism turned to elation. This was a huge eye opener for me as to what beers could be. Honestly, like nothing I had ever had before. My tongue had trouble trying to comprehend what was happening. That is why I had several tastings.

2009 Holiday Ale Festival.

What was your favorite beer related event of 2009?
Holiday Ale Festival. I figured I would make it unanimous for HAF. The cheerful setting and excellent big brews made it the perfect end to my beer year. A close second was Annibrew 2 at Bailey’s Taproom but the fact that the Holiday Ale Fest was 5 days long put it on top. I was also lucky enough to attend the Belgian Brunch on the final day and got to try a beer made with weasel poo (Mikkeller’s Beer Geek Brunch Weasel).

Which Portland brewery most impressed you in 2009?
Cascade Brewing. So none of my answers are very creative, so what? Not only is Cascade a great Portland based brewery, but Cascade showed me this year that they are one of the finest breweries in the country. Cuvée Du Jongleur, Sang Royal, Sang Noir II, Vlad the Imp Aler, and Bourbonic Plague are some of the best beers I have ever had and from the looks of things, Cascade seems to have a dynamite 2010 ahead of them as well.

What was your favorite beer based memory of 2009?
Porno Sweatpants Fellow and general people watching at Bailey’s Taproom. Due to Bailey’s location and my desire to sit outside whenever possible, I have seen a variety of strange things this year at Bailey’s. Drifters and people just out of Mary’s Club are frequently enjoyable viewing fodder and the day that the Insane Clown Posse played the Roseland gave me the chance to see a variety of people all ages freakishly painted and in various states of shirtlessness wandering around while I enjoyed a cask conditioned IPA. Some even stopped in for a brew before the festivities. While all of this would be very interesting for a people watcher like myself, Porno Sweatpants Fellow was the ultimate sight to see. It was August 1st and I was in line for Annibrew 2 at Bailey’s. I had arrived about a half hour early in order to get a nice place in line as well as a seat at a table. As my friend and I patiently waited in the summer heat for the tasting to begin a man exited the convenience store across the street and began walking toward us. The man, weighing in at about 240 and no taller than 5’7″, mustachioed and with stubble galore, proceeded to remove his recent purchase from its black plastic home. He then opened it to the center-fold and inserted one hand down his rampantly stained sweatpants. As he passed us, and all 30 or so people in line, he gave a little head nod that suggested that he knew exactly what he was doing and he could care less what this line of beer enthusiasts thought about it. Porno Sweatpants Fellow then headed down Broadway and into our hearts. Good-bye, Porno Sweatpants Fellow. You are remembered fondly.

Laurelwood’s Moose and Squirrel Russian Imperial Stout. I wasn’t able to hold onto these bottles as long as I had hoped. They “disappeared” rather quickly. If you see it, drink it! A little bit of this beer made it’s way into bourbon barrels and then served on cask at the Pizza location–unannounced and quite a delicious surprise!