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Style: Kölsch / ABV: 5.5 percent
It's tough to find the perfect concert beer in Portland.
Delicate flavor is essential. You want to drink something exciting, but not feel forced to stop after one because of a quick and heavy buzz.
It should also come in a can. Sure, it may not have the same strong aroma as a beer poured in a plastic cup, but nobody likes spilling a pint down a Tinder date's backside when elbows bump on the dance floor.
Culmination's Green Room Kölsch—a special, black lime-infused seasonal dreamed up specifically for the Doug Fir Lounge—checks all the boxes.
The clear, bready beer has just enough citrus bite to dry your palate after each sip. Plus, at 5.5 percent ABV with a $4.50 price tag (about a dollar less than the draft offerings at the log-lined venue), it's a frugal choice.
The best beer to dance with in Portland started as a play on Tecate and lime.
"Instead of a bartender shoving a piece of citrus in your can," says former head brewer Conrad Andrus, "we thought, 'What would be the ideal amount of citrus aroma and flavor to put in the can?'"
Andrus, sales director Paul Francis, and the team from Doug Fir got to brainstorming, eventually settling on an infusion of Middle Eastern lime leaves and zest in Kölsch—a light, German style from Cologne that closely resembles the golden lagers of Bavaria (except for the fact that it uses ale yeast).
They crafted a four-color recyclable label—each a collage of Doug Fir album posters—to ensure the cans were as sustainable as possible at the end of the night.
Canned beer is also easier on the venue's floors.
"There's often a 20 percent beer loss when drinking craft beer in a venue," says Francis. "You're going to end up with some on your shoes or your shirt."
Next time you're at Doug Fir in summer, save your kicks and order a can of Green Room. You're sure to savor every drop.