Arch Rock’s Gold Beach Lager Is Everything a Lager Should Be

“Brewing a lager is probably not a good business decision,” says Smith. “But it’s what I love.”

(Arch Rock, Elizabeth Cheney)

Arch Rock Brewing's Gold Beach Lager isn't immediately exciting. It's made simply with Weyermann Pilsner malt and German Hallertau hops; it's only 5 percent ABV; and it's an obscure substyle called zwickelbier or kellerbier, the terms for unfiltered, cool-cellared German lagers that retain more suspended yeast than their more famous cold-aged compatriots.

But in 2014, Gold Beach Lager won a gold medal in Denver at the Great American Beer Festival in the kellerbier category. Not bad for a tiny spot in Gold Beach, a coastal town of less than 2,500 that's closer to Eureka, Calif., than Portland.

Drink a pint or two—your best bet is North Williams Avenue's Tin Bucket, which has made it something of a house beer—and you'll see why.

In a style so subtle, any misstep would shriek like an air horn. This lager is straw-colored and effervescent. Smell it and get a whiff of Meyer lemon, fresh bread and a hint of coriander. But when it hits the tongue, it's pure lager: biscuity, smooth and buttery. It's not Ritz cracker so much as shortbread, underscored by a kiss of noble-hop bitterness.

Arch Rock's head brewer James Smith was raised in Salt Lake City and started homebrewing in 1999. He went pro in 2005 at Salt Lake's Uinta Brewing, where he learned how to make low-alcohol beers sing under Utah's strict liquor laws. He eventually moved to Victor, Idaho's, Grand Teton Brewing in 2010 to run its cellar program, but he turned down the opportunity to take over as head brewer to set up shop on the southern Oregon coast, where Arch Rock owners Larry and Marjie Brennan put up the money to start a new brewery.

Gold Beach Lager is brewed in the Northern German Pilsner style, for which Smith buys German grains and hops. "When you're brewing 4-percent beer, any defect or flaw comes through," he says.

Not filtering adds another layer of complexity—it's even harder to hide a mistake, and he has to wait six weeks to keg it after lagering, as opposed to a three for a typical pale ale. Tying up the tanks is expensive, especially for a tiny brewery with only 30 barrels of space.

"Brewing a lager is probably not a good business decision," says Smith. "But it's what I love."

Beer_Banner

Welcome to the 2017 Portland Beer Guide

This Year's Guide Is Dedicated to Dean Pottle

Our Top Ten Beers of the Year

Brewery Directory 

Day Sips: Get Out of Town

An Oral History of the Horse Brass

The Best Portland Bars for Hardcore Bar Geeks | Portland's Best Cider Bars | These Are the Bars in Portland Where We Get Our Beer to Go | Where to Get Crowlers in Portland | Big Beer Halls Where You Can Drink With Half of Portland | The Six Best Spots to Take Little Ones For a Little Nip | Warm & Cozy Beer Caves | Portland Spots Where Great Food and Beer Come Together | Tap a Belgian or German at These Portland Bars

Willamette Week’s reporting has concrete impacts that change laws, force action from civic leaders, and drive compromised politicians from public office. Support WW's journalism today.