Holiday Ale Festival, 2006

This weekend is the Holiday Ale Festival in Portland, OR. They throw up a giant heated tent in the center of Pioneer Square and we drink.

Here's the beer list and participating breweries:

Brewery (City): Beer Name (Style)
Alameda Brewhouse (Portland, OR): Papa Noel's Olde Ale (Olde Ale)
Alaskan Brewing Co (Juneau, AK): Alaskan Spruce Tip Winter Ale (Olde English)
Anchor Brewing Co (San Francisco): Old Foghorn (Barleywine)
Big Horn Brewing Co (Salem, OR): Freeride Winter Ale (Strong Ale)
Big Sky Brewing Co (Missoula, MT): Powder Hound Winter Ale (Winter Ale)
Brasserie Dubuisson (Wallonia, Belgium): Scaldis - 12% alc! (Strong Ale)
Brasserie St. Feuillien (Le Roeulx, Belgium): St. Feuillien Cuvée de Noël (Strong Ale)
Brauerei Schloss Eggenberg (Vorchdorf, Austria): Samichlaus (Strong Lager)
BridgePort Brewing Co (Portland, OR): Ebenezer Ale (Winter Warmer)
Cascade Brewing Co (Portland, OR): Defroster Winter Ale (Scottish Ale)
Chimay (Chimay, Belgium): Chimay Triple (Belgian Triple)
Collaborator (Portland, OR): Sled Crasher (Winter Warmer)
Deschutes Brewery (Bend, OR): Jubelale (Strong Ale)
Eel River Brewing Co (Fortuna, CA): Triple Exultation (Strong Ale)
Fearless Brewing Co (Estacada, OR): Fearless Strong Scotch Ale (Strong Scotch Ale)
Full Sail Brewing Co (Hood River, OR): Wassail (Strong Ale)
Golden Valley Brewery (McMinnville, OR): Tannen Bomb (Winter Warmer)
Hair of the Dog (Portland, OR): Jim K (Specialty Blend)
Hazel Dell Brewpub (Vancouver, WA): Weihnachten Fest Bier (Christmas Ale)
Klamath Basin Brewing Co (Klamath Falls, OR): Cabin Fever Stout (Stout)
Lagunitas Brewing Co (Petaluma, CA): Brown Shugga (Strong Ale)
Laurelwood Brewing Co (Portland, OR): Olde Reliable (Barley Wine)
Lompoc Brewing Co (Portland,OR): Lompoc Holiday Ale (Golden Ale)
Mad River Brewing Co (Blue Lake): Steelhead Double IPA (Double IPA)
McMenamins Crystal Brewery (Portland, OR): Liquid Cheer (Tripel)
New Belgium (Fort Collins, CO): 2 Below Winter Ale (Winter Warmer)
Ninkasi Brewing Co (new brewery! Eugene, OR): Believer (Winter Ale)
Off the Rail Brewing Co (Forest Grove, OR): Blizzard of Ozz (Belgian Specialty)
Pelican Pub & Brewery (Pacific City, OR): Full House Ale (Imperial American Brown)
Pike Brewing Co (Seattle, WA): Monks Uncle Tripel (Belgian Tripel)
Pyramid Breweries (Portland, OR): Snow Cap Ale (Winter Warmer)
Redhook Ale Brewery (Woodinville, WA): Winterhook (Winter Ale)
Rock Bottom Brewery (Portland, OR): Blitzen (Belgian Style Tripel)
Rogue Ales (Newport, OR): Santa's Private Reserve (Double Hopped Strong Ale)
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co (Chico, CA): Celebration Ale (Holiday Ale)
Walking Man Brewing (Stevenson, WA): Ho Ho Homo Erectus (Imperial double IPA
-- aged in rum barrels!)
Widmer Brothers Brewing Co (Portland, OR): Regifted Red, Northwest Red


As you can see from the list, there are a lot of strong ales this year. Here are the beers I'm most excited to try:

On my list to try:
1. Walking Man Brewing (Stevenson, WA): Ho Ho Homo Erectus (Imperial double IPA). They aged it in rum barrels! Yes, please.

2. Rogue Ales (Newport, OR): Santa's Private Reserve (Double Hopped Strong Ale). I love Rogues beers and try to taste all the stuff they make. I have rarely been disappointed.

3. Hair of the Dog (Portland, OR): Jim K (Specialty Blend). Hair of the Dog is the pate of beer lovers. It is fancy, exclusive beer and HotD has obtained this massive cult following with everyone fussing about how great they are. That said, we rarely see HotD at beer fests for the common folk -- I don't remember them at the Oregon Brewer's Fest (at least in the past two years) nor have they been to the previous two Holiday Ale Festivals either. So if they don't come to us, we go to them. Ken and I went to their warehouse sale where you got to taste and buy cases of their beer on sale. Sounds good, right? What if I told you that at 11 in the morning, the line was out the door. And a case of beer (on sale) was $45-60. Seriously? It was good, but not $60 good. But here they are at the beer fest with a beer I haven't had. Move over, pate beer lovers, my elbows are sharp.

4. Collaborator (Portland, OR): Sled Crasher (Winter Warmer). Every year, a group of home brewers get together to make a beer which has been, imo, excellent. I love trying whatever they bring.

5. Brauerei Schloss Eggenberg (Vorchdorf, Austria): Samichlaus (Strong Lager). I have never had a strong lager before. This will change.

6. Ninkasi Brewing Co (Eugene, OR): Believer (Winter Ale). The newest brewery in Oregon! From the Oregonian (11/28/06):

Jamie Floyd's Ninkasi Brewing Co. is one of Oregon's newest breweries, but it's already brewing great beer and a lot of buzz. Floyd was brewmaster at Eugene's Steelhead Brewing and Cafe before he started Ninkasi, which is named after the Sumerian goddess of brewing. His winter beer is a hoppy ale called Believer.

So those are my top six, but I'll likely be tasting (many) more. Any requests for beers you'd like me to try? I will be happy to whore out my tastebuds for the sake of you all.