Iwate Kura Bakushu Oyster Stout

For this blog I decided to take a little beer excursion across the world's largest ocean. I have hopped the pond to bring you an entry from the land of Godzilla, and awkward tv game shows. This blog is about a beer brewed in Iwate Japan. I do not know much about this area, only that it lies in Northern Japan. Anyone with more knowledge, especially brewery related, on this area feel free to yell a couple more facts about me. Anyway I had been wanting to do one on some of the emerging craft beers coming from our neighbors across the Pacific, and I did not want it to be Sapporro either sorry if your fan, but quite frankly it's the Carona of Japan. This beer from Iwate Kura Bakushu is much more flavorful by far, and the best oyster stout I've had as well. It has a pleasent stout aroma to it, with a slight hint of smokiness to it. The taste is a nice dry stout, that has a small sweet chocolate taste to it. If you savor it in your mouth for a little while it is easy to start picking up a hint of a smoked flavor, but just slightly different. I do not have a ton of info on this beer but I am guessing it was made with smoked oysters, which lent it self perfectly to the beer as a whole. There are many flavors in this particular stout, but they are all slight hints, which makes the a very subtle, yet flavorful type of brew. It is also incredibly drinkable, and what I believe makes this such a great beer is that no one taste is overpowering. It is another prime example of how using the the proper ingredients in the right proportion can create an incredibly balanced beer. The beer appears to be a great stout as it is, but the slight sweetness, and oyster taste works perfectly in balance with how the beer is created. An example to give perspective is another oyster stout is one I drank made in Ireland, and blagh! It was horrible, it tasted like they plucked an oyster right out of the ocean and included in the brewing process. The beer was so briny it tasted like a mixture half beer half brine. For all you nasty beer salters, that may be the perfect beer for you pre-salted, but for all normal beer drinkers just nasty. Now I don't know how easy it is to find this particular one, but I found mine out of 99 bottles in Des Moines, and I don't really recall seeing it anywhere else. There may however be alot of these style beers popping up more frequently as I know many NW breweries are starting to brew these in an increased frequency. It's definitely different, and as this beer proves, can be quite flavorful as well. I highly recommend it, and say bravo to Japan this beer is about 20 times more exciting than a godzilla movie.

High Five Hefe

I have waited a while for this one. As far as hefeweizen beers go I have received nothing but praise, and raves about this particular version. I love this one as well! It is a another great ale that has pumping out quality ales since it's inception in the tiny little college town of Ellensburg, WA. For those of you who do not know of the brewerey with which I speak it is Ironhorse Brewery in Ellensburg, and they make one of the best sweet stouts I have ever had the pleasure of attaching to the taste glands of my tongue. This review however is of the their hefeweizen, which is one of the most flavorful entries I've encountered in quite some time. For starters I consider Pyramid Hefeweizen the benchmark by which all other Hefeweizens should be measured. In it's pure for it is the perfect mark of what a German style Wheat beer should be. This one gooses that genre, then sends it streaking into the atmosphere. I have yet to meet a person who does not agree that this is a great beer. It is a perfect summer beer, eary to drink, full of flavor, and not to heavy. Everything most people (including myself look for in a beer come summertime). Just like their Irish Death, Ironhorse combines the perfect amount of ginger and honey to create an incredibly flavorful beer. The odor spells out exactly what the beer is, in a snifter the sweet smell, combine with ginger and wheat base beer is extremely pungent. The flavor, well the wheat taste of a good hefeweizen is immediately apparent. Instead of adding a lemon during the inviving process, this one has added flavor during the brewing process. It comes out great the ginger and the honey combine to add a sweetness to the wheat beer that is almost seemless. The impressive part of this beer is that no flavor really overpowers the other, creating a complex beer with a highly desirable flavor, and smell. For lighter wheat beers the bar has been set, as this ale fit to finish creates a new standard of flavor and drinkability. This beer is easy to get in trouble with, I bought a case at the brewery, and a bottle is so easy that you forget that it is near 7% alchol what you are drinking! This beer is easily accesible from the brewery which is just off of I90 for those of you traveling, and has started to pop up at the specialty beer stores (99 bottles, Beer Junction, etc.). If you happen to catch it at your local grocery store, I highly recommend, neh demand you pick it up. Despite differing tastes in beers, every friend I have talked to, or given a bottle to, has come back blown away by just how smooth, balanced, and flavorful this light ale is! Ironhorse is central WA's great white hope, and they are starting to pummel the competition. I highly endorse getting to know one of our state's best kept secrets, and probably the best damn wheat beer on the mirco market. High Five is a leap forward that I didn't even say coming, bravo Ironhorse, bravo!

Alaskan Double Black IPA

Okay I know, I know Alaska doesn't always make the fanciest, or best tasting brews around. In fact with the mass prevelance of Alaskan Amber out there it almost seems as common place as Coors Light in any NW bar. There are however some shimmering examples that show their proficiency at forging premium brews, their barleywine for example is one of the smoothest around. It is for this reason that I chose a new Alaskan brew for this rant. The Alaskan Double Black IPA, this is the first example of an imperial black IPA I've sampled so far. For a good example of a Black IPA, or Cascadian Ale as it is also known, Deschutes Hop in the Dark, and Cascadian dark from Airways Brewing have all been stellar examples of what I believe this genre should taste like. Both those ales have a dark malt taste, but the same bitter, sharp hoppiness people come to expect from an IPA. With a double black IPA then one would expect an increase in these flavors, something stronger, and a might sweeter perhaps. The smell was sort of the first sign of what was to come when I tried this ale, it had that dark malt smell to it, and suprisingly still kind of yeasty as well, which I normally don't get with any kind of beer in the IPA genre so far that I've sampled. Finally the taste, it is unique, but I'm afraid while trying to hit that delicate balance that makes a dark IPA, Alaska may have floated a little to far towards the dark side. Yup this ale is practically hugging darth vader (a little treat for any Star Wars geeks who may be reading). This ale tastes like a slightly hoppy stout. Which isn't suprising considering the fact that the ale is trying to balance out the right amount of dark malt, with the amount of hops being added for the bittering effect. When one is trying to create something a little stronger, it naturally gets a little sweeter, and that is how this ale kind of became lost in a sea of darkness. If your looking for a smooth example of a stout with some slight hoppiness to it, then this is your beer. The fit and finish is well done, the ale is exceedingly smooth, and always a plus on my account is definitely not overcarbonated. It is a great ale, and I always appreciate when a brewery takes a jab at trying to create a new exteme beverage for us to have a go at. Fit and finish this is a well done ale, but if your looking for a truer example of a dark IPA this isn't your bird (sorry I'm feeling punnish for those who glanced at the Edgar Allen Poe motif of the bottle). It's definitely worth a try, and who knows a couple different batches and Alaska may really be on to something, but for now I'd have to say back to the drawing board.

Death Match Rocket Dog Rye IPA vs. He'Brew R.I.P.A. on Rye

Okay I'm just going to start by saying that this is now the second time I will be writing this due to an error occurring deleting this whole massive blog I just finished, in a word frustrating. Still I press on with a tit for tat battle of two very different Rye style IPAs. First off a little background for all those who may not be totally up to speed on all things rye. It is a grain, and when brewing it in beer it takes the place of some of the barley involved in the brewing process. Typically these ales leave a dry, grainy after taste, that have on more than a couple of occasions given me a wicked case of dry mouth. It also doesn't hurt that they are extremely hoppy, and bitter most of the time weighing in at healthy amounts of alcohol.
The first competitor is He'brew (Conney Island, NY) R.I.P.A. on rye. He'Brew typically makes alot of unique one of a kind beers, so they like to try a lot of new stuff. This particular Rye IPA has been aged in rye whiskey barrels as well, and created in a doulbe IPA style. The double IPA was to be expected the, the rye whiskey barrel aged not so much. What it does though is give this beer an awesomely smooth texture typical with alot of barrel aged beers. It also seems to taken out a lot of the dry flavor that usually comes from a Rye IPA. This one has been created so that it is not a knock you down kind of hop stength, but actually starting to lean more towards the sweet side approaching near barleywine, which is no real suprise with some of the stronger IPAs as they climb the alcohol percentage ladder. R.I.P.A. is definitely in that category listed at a nice hefty 10%, so pretty strong.
While our first competitor is dressed in nothing but class, our next competitor is coming in with cut off sleeves. Rocket Dog Rye IPA from Laughing Dog(Ponderay, ID) is what I've come to expect when reaching for a Rye IPA. Now Laughing Dog is a brewery that excells in all things IPA. They have a couple of different variations of imperial IPAs, all beers usually hoppy, usually bitter. This Rye IPA follows right along with that tradition. It has a very raw hoppy taste that leaves a real bitterness inside your mouth. The while having a very dry exposed feel to it, almost as if you skipped the brewery and just stuffed hops in your mouth! It smells hoppy of course, but with some overtones of that rye finish definitely present. After one sip your throat is drier, and that wonderful rye aftertaste has clung to every last tastebud on your tongue refusing to let you forget what just traveled down your esophogus. Bottom line is the Rocket Dog is the exact definition of what a Rye IPA should be in my opinion, a raw very unapolgetically strong flavor about it. That's not to say the He'Brew R.I.P.A. is bad, distinctively not, just very different from what I've come to look for when trying a rye IPA. It's smooth sweetness oozes class, but doesn't scream out in raw unbridled fury like the Rocket Dog does for this type of ale. I give my edge to the Rocket Dog, because it's exactly that strong distinct flavor I prefer when drinking this type of ale. Either way you really can't go wrong, so tip back one, the other, or both either way it's all golden.

Rye Deathmatch Rocket Dog Rye IPA vs. R.I.P.A. on Rye

All great artists much branch out into the fields of variety, man the ego is in overdrive tonight. There is a meaning behind my words, for this blog I will be reviewing two beers. Both a Rye IPA, and both done by accomplished breweries from very different areas. A little background information on Rye IPAs, which are made Rye added to the mix of barley during the brewing process. And to get even more basic Rye is simply another type of grain. Typically Rye IPAs have a very hoppy flavor that leaves a nice bitter aftertaste that is typically dry in feel. After about one beer I've had times where I'm tettering on cotton mouth with these types of beers. I guess is doesn't hurt that both are typically higher on the alcohol scale. Now let's get this blood match started and measure out the competitors. First we have Laughing Dog (Pendorey, ID) which does a ton of IPA varieties, and usually does them very strong, extemely sharp and very hoppy. The competitor is He'Brew (Conney Island, NY) which does a variety of strong unique flavored beers across the spectrum.
The He'Brew R.I.P.A. is listed in at about 10% alcohol, and it has the sweeter taste to back it up. The full description on the bottle calls it a rye double ipa aged in rye whiskey barrels. This beer definitely has the smooth, wet finish that typically comes with barrel aged ales. It had the sweeter flavor and nice finish that come with some stronger IPAs which fit right in line with description of the ale. If you let it linger in your mouth it eventually starts to let some stronger hoppy flavors in, but barrel aging is to smooth to let the strong flavor of the rye really grab ahold of the drinker.
That is where Rocket Dog's area to shine lies. This has the full bitter, extremely dry, hoppy taste that are typical of many of these west coast style rye IPAs. Now for my part I'm sure a bias is in here given these were the initial style rye IPAs I grew to become familiar with. But this beer dotted all the Is and crossed all the Ts. It gave me the real dry taste, that almost feels like you simply dumped the bushel of hops right in your mouth and skipped the whole brewing process. Although it doesn't say the strength, the was a very raw, dry, style IPA and I would say it to is probably close to 10% alcohol area. The one thing I was really looking for with R.I.P.A. hit me immediately with the Rocket Dog. That rye grain aftertaste that lingers on the tongue after you drink it. The R.I.P.A. was simply to smooth, while the Rocket Dog wanted to stick to each and every taste bud possible all the way down. It lingers till the last possible minute within the confines of your mouth. It's that combination of these that make me declare it the truer version of an intense, raw, hoppy, dry IPA. It is in my opinion the definition of what this ale should taste like. Don't get me wrong though R.I.P.A. is also a wonderful ale, but just in a completely different way. I fully recommend it in fact, just be aware it's not going to have that raw nature to it, the beer is simply to classy for it. So either way you can't lose, but if you want that truly intense IPA taste of a Rye IPA stick with the Rocket Dog!