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A Beer With No Name
What do you do when you're a tiny brewery with thin margins that randomly turns out a bad batch? Well, in the case of Northeast Alberta Street's 6-month-old Great Notion, you try to make some lemonade out of those lemons. For whatever reason, a batch of its standard-bearing Vermont-style Juice Box Double IPA didn't turn out as intended. In an attempt to resuscitate it, the brewers dry-hopped it with Hallertau Blanc hops. The resulting beer is cloudy but lacks the pillowy mouthfeel of its parent. The edges are thin and sharp, and the Mosaic hops give an off note I'm not used to tasting in a Great Notion beer. Yes, this is still better than half the IPAs on tap in Portland, but it's not what you expect from this brewery. Not recommended. MARTIN CIZMAR.
Related: WW's Great Notion Brewing Review
Plump IPA
Plump IPA is plump. It doesn't have the hoppy, almost steamy aromatic wallop of Great Notion's original Ripe recipe. And it doesn't have the single-minded, pulpy-OJ character of its IPAs named after juice. But what it does have is a beautiful roundness—a balance between the alpha-acid bitterness and grapefruit flavors more typical of West Coast IPAs, and the turbid orange-juiciness Great Notion has made its name on. It is a balance struck in part by the addition of bittersweet El Dorado hops alongside tropical Mosaic—the same hop pairing that brings satisfying equilibrium to Breakside's terrific India Golden Ale. And hell, compared to Great Notion's usual IPAs, this one is almost straw-colored. At a mere 6 percent ABV, it's almost a pale, while packing a big-for-Great-Notion 60 IBUs. But the balance feels less like compromise than agreement—it's a damn good beer, and should fare well among West Coast nativists and Vermont separatists alike. Recommended. MATTHEW KORFHAGE.
Related: All 73 Portland IPAs, Ranked
Stash Imperial IPA
I'm not really an Imperial guy. I don't like industrial-strength hop nukes in the first place, and I like them even less when they're used to barely conceal the harsh boozy bite of 10 percent IPA. Just drink vodka, for Pete's sake. Which is why I like the well-rounded flavor of Great Notion's Stash Imperial IPA. By playing it comparatively light at 8.5 percent ABV, Stash doesn't have to lean on hopping of Pine-Sol strength. Despite being described by Great Notion as "dank and resinous," Stash tastes more like a subdued, balanced IPA. The result is a classic if not gently fruity hop flavor on the tongue, giving way to light malt that slips through at the end of a very quaffable but potent imperial IPA. I don't know if Stash is at its heart an IIPA for people who don't like IIPAs, but it's certainly a take on the style that stands out because of its control and drinkability. Recommended. WALKER MACMURDO.
Related: Everyone's Talking about Cloudy IPAs Now
Willamette Week