New Beers for Spring

New Beers for Spring
By Gary CorbinHonorary Beer Scribe for Guest on Tap

The heavy beers of winter are about to make way for the lighter, livelier beers more fitting for longer days and warmer weather of spring. Once again, there are fewer spring seasonals this year than last, which in turn had fewer than the year before. The market — that’s you and me, folks — hasn’t supported the beers, saleswise. At least in the bottle market.But there is an intrepid cadre of brewers that continues to introduce new beers, particularly on draft. Here are a few to look for. Rogue has released “Brew 10,000,” John Maier’s 10,000th batch for Rogue. Not brewed to any style, this big, dark brew (22 Plato, 60 IBU, 30 Lovibond) will be available in 750 mL black swing-top ceramic bottles. On the lighter side, Rogue is releasing Kells Irish Style Lager (12 Plato, 28 IBU, 9.8L, 6 percent ABV) for St. Patrick’s Day, a beer “perfect for floating Guinness,” Maier says. It will be available both on draft and in 22-ounce bottles. Also celebrating with the Irish, Laurelwood releases Brigid’s Irish Red in March. This Irish red ale was brewed in honor of Ireland’s patron saint of brewers, St. Brigid (457 to 525 A.D.). Mellow and malty with a deep red color, with caramel sweetness and a light hop flavor (15 IBU), Brigid’s surprisingly high alcohol content (6.5 percent) may make its drinkability dangerous. Roots Brewing is celebrating the first day of spring — and the brewery’s second anniversary — with the new East Side Abbey, a Belgian Dubbel. Craig Nicholls fermented Roots’ Red ale with an Abbey yeast. The release party is on the spring equinox (March 21) starting at 6 p.m., and will feature live music as well as their usual food and grub. Widmer’s ’07 Summit Pale Ale should be familiar to most Portland beer connoisseurs by now. Named for the Summit Hops that give the beer a citrusy, tangerine character, it drinks much smoother than its 36 IBU’s might lead you to believe. The Lucky Lab will release three new beers this spring. The first is Rose City Organic Red, an Irish-style session beer (4.2 percent ABV, 28 IBU) made with four different malts and Summit Hops. The second beer, due March 17, is a Belgian ale brewed with the Wyeast 1762 Abbey II yeast, which sports some oats and rye in the grist and somehow managed to absorb a full box of candi sugar in the brewery’s 7-BBL system. It was fermented warm (75 degrees) to maximize esters, so this should be a fruity one; brewer Dave Fleming predicts “hints of apricots with a warm, yet dry finish.” Also, the Lucky Lab’s Maibock returns later this spring. Bayern Brewing’s Killarney Irish Red is a mix of three worlds — an Irish-style ale made with German malts and American (Cascade) hops. It’s available only on draft, but be careful drinking this low-hop beer — its 5.7 percent ABV will sneak up on you. By contrast, it’ll be easier to drive after some of Dick’s Brewing’s Irish Red Ale (4.5 percent ABV). Melanoidin malt gives this beer a toasty flavor and that lovely red color. English-style hops and yeast make for a smooth finish. The big news — and biggest source of new beers — is the upcoming, long-awaited opening of Max’s Fanno Creek Brew Pub in Tigard. Max’s will open with an IPA, a Vanilla Cream Porter, a Scottish-style amber, a Golden Ale, and two Belgians — his “Farmer’s Daughter” Saison and a Wit. In addition, from Max’s aged-beer cellar, he’ll roll out a three-year-old barleywine, a two-year-old Imperial Stout, a one-year-old Tripel, a smoked Marzen, and a Dubbels, Kriek, and Frambois, all aged in French oak barrels. Probst!