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Any industry looks forward to seasons of peak sales, but this year brewers, who've seen things stay stagnant for months, are especially excited to see summer on the horizon. Beer sales reach their highest point during the lawn-mower months, even for heavier craft-brewed beer. In preparation for the season, three breweries are in the process of rolling out new products--or modifying versions of current labels--in hopes of solidifying brand recognition or retooling slower sellers. In the first case, Deschutes Brewing is reworking a classic. Bachelor ESB began filtering into stores around the first of April, sporting a close facsimile of its predecessor Bachelor Bitter's label. Inside the bottle, the recipe is a tweaked version of the original, featuring a more hoppy palate consistent with the upgrade to ESB. As owner Gary Fish described the new beer, "It's everything that Bachelor Bitter is, but more so." In a side-by-side comparison, the principal taste of the ESB is hoppy. Though it has more malt than the bitter did, the hops mask the flavor, and the result is a less malty-tasting beer. The new product is an excellent beer, and the extra hops are in line with the brewery's image as a producer of distinctive and hoppy ales; still, the old Bachelor Bitter was one of the truly fine session beers, and I'll miss it. Fortunately, Deschutes will continue to serve it on tap at the brewery, saving it from utter extinction. One more reason to visit Bend. Next, BridgePort Amber will begin to appear on shelves sometime in April. You will recall that the amber was originally envisioned as a replacement for Blue Heron. Now it will be used to complete the oval-labeled BridgePort family, leaving Blue Heron to go off and become (in the words of brewmaster Karl Ockert) its own "whimsical, fun brand." A final version of the amber isn't available yet, but Ockert offers this description: "If [BridgePort] IPA is for hopheads, Amber is for maltheads." Expect it to be sweetly malty with only a hint of hops. Meanwhile, Blue Heron will go through a slight change as well, coming out with new packaging and a new recipe. Again, there is no final version, but the goal is to produce a pale, floral-citrusy (though not bitter) ale. It will be something of a return to its roots for the beer once called pale ale. |
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The most extensive changes are coming from the brothers Widmer, who will complete their new-look product line by retiring Vienna and Blackbier and launching Hopjack Pale Ale, Ray's Amber Lager and Big Ben Porter. Since its introduction, Vienna has been plagued by consumer confusion. The beer style named for the Austrian city is an amber-to-red malty lager; Widmer Vienna was a pale ale. In its place are Hopjack Pale Ale (already on shelves) and Ray's Amber Lager (due the middle of April). In Hopjack, the brewery has realized what it intended for Vienna: a quaffable, hoppy-citrusy ale. In Ray's, they offer something for Vienna's namesake: a sweetish, malty lager. In the past few weeks, I've been visiting the brewery to sample test batches proffered by a patient Ron Ryan, one of the people responsible for developing new recipes for Widmer. The final versions were ready for tasting this week, and the results are promising. The Hopjack does have a more pronounced hop signature than did the Vienna and is unfiltered to retain some of the delicate hop essence. In the glass, the aromatic tang of citrus greets the nose; hop bitterness is the first note on the tongue and is balanced by a mild maltiness with a dry finish. Ray's, named for Kurt and Rob Widmer's father, is a tasty mid-range lager with almost no hop palate. It is slightly sweet and will probably complement a variety of foods. After sampling the final product, Ray Widmer was said to have paused and then said, "Good beer!" You can be the judge. The soon-to-be-replaced Blackbier suffered from a similar kind of recognition problem as Vienna; to make the point clearly, it will be replaced by Big Ben Porter. Big Ben features a recipe including licorice and molasses (medium molasses, a grade more refined than blackstrap). On tap, there isn't an enormous difference between the porter and Blackbier. When I tasted them, they were both creamy and had thick mouthfeel, though in the bottle, the Blackbier is decidedly thinner. And, except for a slightly earthy, rootlike quality, I had difficulty identifying the molasses and licorice. Look for a final change sometime this summer, when a kölsh will be introduced as the new, and final, seasonal in the brewery's rotation. Spring Beer Fest Finally, the fourth-annual Spring Beer Fest features 35 breweries and 70 beers, including the above-mentioned Hopjack and Bachelor ESB. Among other breweries in attendance will be New Glarus Brewing of Wisconsin. Returning with the world-renowned Wisconsin Belgian Red, the brewery will also introduce Oregon to its newest product, another Belgian-style ale called Raspberry Tart. It will be a good time to sample bocks, with at least eight on tap for comparison. An estimated 10,000 folks are expected at this year's fest, and the event crew is ready for rain or shine. I can't think of a better way to welcome the new season. |
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