Sampler time @ Bailey’s Taproom (Portland)

Posted on October 29, 2010

Alright. Another mobile post brought to you because I felt impulsive.

A favorite spot of mine in dear Portland is Bailey’s Taproom (www.baileystaproom.com) on SW 8th and Broadway (ish). The place is unique because although they *only* have 20 taps, none of the brew they carry is typical. In fact, the list is so unique that I’ve seen half of the beers within the course of the day switch to something else entirely. That is to say that most of their beers are unique, atypical seasonals from local(ish) breweries. We’re going to sample five:

* Jackalope Pumpkin Porter from Beer Valley
* XXXXX Stout from Pike
* Midnight Harvest Fresh Hop ESB from Vertigo
* Oktoberfest from Fanno Creek
* Fusion III Imperial Stout from Lagunitas

Let’s get going.

Jackalope Pumpkin Porter –
Pours a rich chocolate brown, persistent khaki head. Notes of some serious fall spices with the backdrop of your favorite halloween squash and subtle toasted malt. A marvelous, relatively high level of carbonation keeps this beer from being too heavy on the palate, but the beer remains just a bit too uninteresting to really pull me in.
79/100

* Pike XXXXX Stout
Pours rich obsdian w a light brown soapy head. Very little on the nose. A mouthful of bitter roasted malt w the lingering of cacao on the palate gives stout lovers, especially ones of coffee stouts, exactly what they are looking for. Not overly heavy, but extremely rich mouthfeel reminds me of some excellent classics i ‘ve had. One I could get used to.
86/100

* Midnight Harvest VSB
A gorgeous deep honey amber w a thin head. While most beers are brewed with dried hops, the Northwest, along with other hop-producing regions in the world, is known for beers hopped with fresh hops. Although brewing with this method requires as much as 10x the amount of hops, the style, depending on the beer to be hopped, lends itself to a rich, earthy, oily experience with the beer. This ESB is no exception, being somewhat on the low side of the carbonation scale, which highlights the citrusy, grassy characteristic of the hop flower. Mild notes of cinnamon and honey balance it out – this beer is quite exceptional.
92/100

* Fanno Creek Oktoberfest
Classic fall style here, with a classic amberish appearance. Thin, non-existent head. On the palate, the small-producer vibe is readily apparent with toasted walnuts and a touch of licorice. Almost nothing on the finish, which makes this an enjoyable, highly quaffable version of the classic style from Munich.
87/100

* Lagunitas Fusion III
Definitely can’t see through this one, like a good imperial stout. While I haven’t done any research on this beer, I’m going to stab in the dark by saying this is a blend of a few different things, hence ‘fusion.’ Mouthfeel is almost hot like whiskey, combined with classic gritty toasted chocolate malt. Super full-bodied. Despite the borderline offensive initial first impression, the beer transforms on the palate and goes down in an incredibly smooth fashion with just the slightest lingering of delicious sweetness. Love this one.
93\100

So there we go. Excuse my typos