Beer Broad

Beer: Hop Henge IPA
Brewery: Deschutes Brewery
Location: Bend, OR
Type: IPA
In Three Words: hoppy, bitter, strong

The opening page for the Deschutes Brewery website says “The meek shall inherit, well, some pretty dull beers.” Boy, they aren’t kidding when they live by that as their motto. This beer, their “Hop Henge IPA” as they call it (very witty, indeed) is an intense IPA if I have ever tasted one. Definitely hopped up on on, well, hops, you can taste the bitterness from the moment you hold the glass up to your nose. The aroma hits you and you know you’re in for a big one. But man, does that flavor go far. It’s like a pinch to your cheeks and a wake me up call all in one.

Besides all the intensity in flavor, this is actually quite a light beer and very delicious and easy to drink. There is a fruitiness to it and a light almost floral aroma that swirls around your head as you drink it. Absolutely delicious. It’s very natural and organic tasting, encompassing many different citrus flavors to bring out the hops and also complicate the pallet to allow for an experience.

Not too bubbly, and certainly not boring, this beer opens up an awesome world of what an IPA can be. As someone who doesn’t always fall head over heels in love with the bitterness of  IPAs, this is one beer I can get behind. Because of the additional flavors created by the fruits and sweetness, everything seems to even out into one strong flavorful twist of a beer.

Beer: Jubelale
Brewery: Deschutes Brewery
Location: Bend, OR
Type: Dark ale
In Three Words: dark, malty, smooth

I stopped by a grocery store on the way home in hopes of picking up Snow Day by New Belgium Brewing (will be doing that one later as well thought, with luck). Upon not finding it I asked a guy at the counter for another suggestion and he told me this. Very happy he did, because this is a delicious beer. It is dark without being too strong; it’s smooth and has hints of flavors that all come through really slowly and delicately. This delicateness combined with the bold malty flavor sets a really nice note for easy sipping.

The flavors are pretty abundant. In the first note I could taste fruits, spices, and a hoppiness I hadn’t noticed before in a lot of ales. It all tasted so good put together that I had to take another sip right away, and in that second sip I began to perceive a chicory taste, and the alcohol seemed to come through a bit more. The more I drank it, the more I noticed.

Deschutes, on their website, says of this beer: “To beer lovers, it’s like Yule fire and family”. I don’t feel I will sum it up in a better way. It is warm, rich, interesting, and all around a new favorite of mine for the holidays.

Happy Holidays, from me.