No visit is ever complete without a visit to Descutes in downtown Portland. Yeah, the food is crappy bar food but the beer usually makes up for it.

I happened to be in Portland for work (tough job, I know!) and I was able to convince my friend to go with me after a few work meetings that day. It was really hot so all I wanted was an IPA.

So I ordered the Fresh Squeezed IPA on cask. It  is 6.5% and 60 IBU’s. Sounds good, right? Wrong. It tastes like citrus hops then rotten feet. Like a homeless man’s feet. It was really bad. Seems like the cask was old…It was so bad I returned it. The waitress told me it was much better last year and that a lot of people returned this beer. But with the rotten feet aspect, it was probably more likely that there cask of this beer had turned.

So I then opted for what I should have gotten in the first place: Hop Henge Batch 8. 2010 Concordia Cup Winner. It is 8.7% and 90 IBU’s. It pours a deep orange amber with a touch if head. It smells like fresh juicy hops! ( this should be called the Fresh Squeezed IPA) the other should  just be called ‘no thank you‘. It tastes like fresh citrus, pine forest, grapefruit skin and a nice dry piney skin ending. Delish.

Next, I tried my friend’s Alma NWPA on cask. This beer is named after the birthing center, Alma Midwifery since many Deschutes employees give
birth there. This beer is 5.8% and 50 IBU’s. It made with 5 specialty malts, loads of Centennial and a touch of Cascade hops. It pours a touch cloudy teak. It smells like slightly sweet and juicy mango and  slight pine. It smells a tad hoppier than expected. It tastes like mild pine with a touch of wheat and a hint of a citrus ending. Pretty light but semi flavorful. I was expecting more. But it is nice for them to make a beer for their Descutes ladies.