Little Man Salted Oreo Stout by WeldWerks Brewing Company (Greeley, CO) - Pastry Stout
Roasted malts, chocolate, lactose, marshmallows and salt bring a flavor not unlike liquid oreos but before it gets too much into sweet area a healthy dose of long lingering bitterness in the finish really brings it back. Very well balanced pastry stout.
Puff the Magic Hydra by Mortalis Brewing Company (Avon, NY) and Tripping Animals Brewing Company (Doral, FL) - Smoothie Sour
Another fantastic smoothie sour from Mortalis out of their Hydra “series” - tons of black- and raspberry flavors but not overly sweet instead the natural tartness of the fruits nicely wirk together with the tartness of the sour. The marshmallow and especially the coconut add an unexpected flavor in the end which really brings the sour together.
Wizard Hand of Evil by Cellarmaker Brewing Company (Oakland, CA) - IPA
Good example of a NEIPA which doesn’t cover too much the overly sweet profile but still has plenty of juiciness. Good flavors of pineapple and orange give way to some notes of grassy flavors (which are never too much present). Relatively strong malt backbone and a dry, low-to-medium bitter finish.
Roach Clip by Great Notion Brewing (Portland, OR) - NEIPA
Very fruit-forward NEIPA with tons of ripe peach, orange, honeydew and relatively high sweetness. There is some resinous dank in the second half of the sip but quite moderate. The sweetness from the start reappears towards the finish which has low-to-medium bitterness. Interesting hazy IPA which is close to the tipping point of overly sweet (but still it is hard to stop drinking it)
Gretel by Foundation Brewing Company (Portland, ME) - Maerzen
The bready biscuit smell transfers to the taste which also involves some slight caramel sweetness. Some additional grassy, earthy flavors lead to a very dry and quite bitter finish. Overall a robust Oktoberfest Maerzen with less sweetness and more bitterness and higher carbonation than most others
Pavia by Fair Isle Brewing (Seattle, WA) - Saison
Quite complex saison which initially starts with peach and grape flavors but quite fast adds this typical goaty taste of many saison with plenty of funk but also some lighter notes of vanilla from the oak. The second half of the sip gets some stronger tartness and a very dry, quite bitter finish with some citrus notes.
3-Way IPA (2025) by Fort George Brewery (Astoria, OR), Sunriver Brewing Company (Sunriver, OR), Mirage (Seattle, WA) - Hazy IPA
Very well done collaboration NEIPA with well balanced flavor profile - citrus (tangerine) and tropical (honeydew, peach, mango) flavors dominate before some grassy notes add to the flavor. Dry, low-to-medium bitter finish. Very smooth mouthfeel and highly drinkable
Gemini (Strawberry, Kiwi, Starburst) by Mortalis Brewing Company (Avon, NY) - Smoothie Sour
The Gemini series is a kind of playground for sours at Mortalis where they try out small batches of unusual combination. This one worked quite well with strawberry and kiwi having some sweetness but also inherited tartness whereas the starburst gives an interesting background flavor. Everything is balanced by the tartness of the sour even though the sourness could have been a bit higher.
Fresh Hop Bayside Mosaic (2025) by Breakside Brewery (Portland, OR) - IPA
Lots of stone fruit, melon and citrus upfront before long grassy, piney flavors come through. Quite strong bisquity, dought malt backbone and a very dry, medium bitter finish. Very clean tasting fresh hop IPA
Fresh Pierogi by Fort George Brewery (Astoria, OR) and Hop Butcher for the World (Chicago, IL) - Double Hazy IPA
Starts with a short burst of sweet mango, melon and grapefruit before it gets really, really dank and piney with a dry, high bitterness finish which lasts for a long time. Quite bold hazy IPA
Fresh Wanderlust - Cascade by Breakside Brewery (Portland, OR) - IPA
Quite melon forward flavors upfront with notes of grapefruit before it turns really towards piney, resiny, dank flavors. Dry, medium bitter finish. Well balanced and smooth and the best fresh hop IPA so far this year
Brooklyn Post Road Pumpkin Ale on draft. A golden ale brewed with nutmeg and real pumpkin. The spices and pumpkin taste was very subtle; to me, this was a regular golden ale with a hint of sweetness. A winner if you don’t like the spice bombs that many pumpkin beers are.
Fresh IPA by Fort George Brewery (Astoria, OR) - IPA
Touch of fruit (mainly citrus variations) upfront, followed by a quite floral flavor with some piney notes more on the background. Very dry, medium bitter finish which lingers for a very long time and still has some of the floral notes.
Field of Green (Fresh Chinook 2025) by Fort George Brewing - Hazy IPA
Very bright but yet balanced hazy IPA with pineapple and grapefruit fruit notes (without too much sweetness), followed by piney, slightly grassy flavors (without getting very dank). Dry, medium bitter finish. Very crushable and balanced.
