Beer and More America!

Beer #205 India Red Ale / Double Mountain Brewery, Hood River, OR

Ah, a day off of work and life is good.  Today's review is the India Red Ale from Double Mountain, which came on draft at the bar attached to our hotel in Portland.  If I haven't mentioned it earlier, we stayed at the Courtyard downtown, which I was assuming would be exactly like the 100 other Courtyards I've stayed at in my travels.  Nice enough, but nothing terribly interesting.  However, this one was actually very cool - much more of a stylish boutique hotel look and feel.

Anyway, this beer poured a ruby sort of amber color, with a thin white head.  You get an aroma of pine and bread on the nose, and when you drink it you pick up a lot of hops up front, with malt and a little toffee sweetness along the way, with a clean dry finish.  It's a cross between a red ale and an IPA, and I think they've picked up the best of both worlds.  Very drinkable and enjoyable at 6.8% ABV.  If you're on the West Coast, track this one down if you want something besides an IPA.

Double Mountain has been brewing since 2007, and they have a taproom on site in their Hood River location.  Good to know.

Thing to Think About Today:
We're keeping the theme rolling here.  More America, please!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRUjr8EVgBg

Beer 196: Double Mountain IPA and Farewell to the West Coast

First night in Portland wound down with what I was told was a hoppy Irish red. Turns out it was a straight up IPA. (Insert Marci frowny face here.). The Double Mountain IPA poured a hazy chestnut color with a tan head that disappeared quickly. It smelled like cured meat and kind of sweet. I also thought it was poured entirely too cold. It took quite awhile for it to smell anything other than cold.

The bartender did not lie about the level of hops. There was a citrus, resin-y flavor throughout. There was some light malt flavor. Pretty good beer!



As I sit here waiting to board my flight home, I realized I learned a lot on this trip. For today, I'll share that the Pacific Northwest grows some crazy flavorful hops. And they brew beer that shows off those hops. At the very least I think I'm returning home with a new found appreciation of IPAs, American pale ales and anything brewed in the northwest. Cheers!