Liquid Solutions

Deschutes Bond Hop Henge 22oz:

Ummmm, hop-o-licious. Who cares what this thing looks like; the first thing to hit you as you pour this baby is the resinious, cirtusy pine aroma. It smells like walking into a hop storage cooler. But after that you will notice a big head comes rolling out but does not stay long. The color is deep amber with a brown tint. Now as the more volatile aromas boil off you can notice a fruity orange component as well a hint of crystal malt. The aroma is superb, in fact I am delaying trying a taste just so I can full appreciate its beautiful aroma. The flavors are all about the hops as well. Medium body with a bit grapefruit hop flavor and as that hop hit dies down the flavor moves into a fruity orange and woody hop mélange. Although this has a good hop bitterness it is not overpowering; the malting is just enough to balance the bitterness but not so much as to detract from this awesome hop flavor. For a hop driven beer to get my A+ two thumbs up rating, it has to be complex, balanced, and drinkable. Hop Henge is all that and more.

Not too sure how long this will last this year. I have to fight for quantities with some of the large chain store here in Portland. The found out how good it was last year and now are doing up 30 case displays in each of their stores. I"ll do what I can to get you your Henge but the supply may end abruptly.

Labels: alaskan, amber, Barley Wine, Beer, deschutes, ipa, Liquid, Liquid Solutions, Moose Drool, Solutions

Fish Tale 10 Squared 22oz 22oz:

I am happy to report that Fish has done another batch of their awesome 10 squared. This time in 22oz bottles. If you did not get any last time please don’t miss out. Fish makes some of THE best specialty brews and this one does not disappoint.
This extreme IPA (or is it a barley wine) is the 10th anniversary beer from Fish Tale. With 10 different hops and 100 IBUs (thus the name) and enough malt to back it all up, this beer has more of everything you want in a beer. A tone of upfront hop flavor that moves into the richer brown malt tones and finishes with substantial hop bitterness. With a good body and a nice head this beer has something to offer just about every beer drinker.

Labels: Barley Wine, Beer, ipa

Stone Old Guardian 22oz:

Yet another fine vintage of Stone’s “Old Guardian” barleywine. Big and malty up front with a hop character you expect from Stone, that is piney, citrusy and bitter. Great now with the bright hops and will mellow nicely with age.

Labels: Barley Wine, Beer, Stone Brewing

*** Vintage Auction ***
Starting January 19th Liquid Solutions will be holding auctions for some great vintage beer. Every Friday we will be putting up a few lots of some spectacular beers. The bidding will run through the weekend and end at 12:00 noon (Pacific Time) on the following Monday. Just to tease you with the caliber of beer that will be offered at these auctions, here is a list of the first three lots that will be offered on the 19th….

Lot #1
One bottle of Chimay Grand Reserve Vintage 1994

Lot #2
A six-year vertical of Sierra Nevada Bigfoot
One Bigfoot 1997
One Bigfoot 1998
One Bigfoot 1999
One Bigfoot 2000
One Bigfoot 2001
One Bigfoot 2002

Lot #3
One Eldridge Pope Thomas Hardy’s Ale Vintage 1996

We plan to start the auction on Friday January 19th barring any unforeseen software difficulties. These purchases will be shipped immediately after payment has been verified.

Moylans Hopsickle Imperial Ale 22oz:

If you ARE looking for a hop monster, this is it. This 9.2% behemoth is so loaded with hops that it makes your saliva glands kick into high gear. This gives the beer a weird (but very pleasant) juiciness you don’t usually find in a beer. It pours a deep copper with a large head. Its aroma is piney with a hint of grapefruit. The flavor is of tart fruity hops with the pine backing it up. There is malt in there someplace but for the life of me I can’t really pin it down due to the overwhelming assault from the hops. Great stuff but I was only able to get 5 cases.

Moylans Imperial Stout 22oz:

Moylan’s “Ryon O’Sullivan’s Imperial Stout”:
This Imperial pours deep mahogany / black with a tight tan head. Espresso and molasses flavors up front, dark cherry / prune and bittersweet chocolate peak around all of the roastiness. It finishes with a nice resin / pine hop flavor. 10% ABV

Moylans Barley Wine 22oz:

Moylan’s “Old Blarney”:
Moylan’s barley wine starts off with the aroma of sweet caramel malt and citrusy hop. Toffee, fruity, sweet malty, with a herbal, piney hop. The 10% alcohol asserts it self within this complex mix. All in all it’s a tasty, complex barley wine.

Moylans Double IPA 22 oz:

This brew has won many awards including the prestigious “Alpha King” award (in 2001 and 2002) as well as “World Beer” and “North American Brewers Association” medals. It pours copper/amber in color and has a good head on its shoulders. The floral grassy hops dominate the aroma but there is a hint of caramel. The flavor is hoppy up front with a solid malting in the middle and finishes with plenty of bitterness

Oregon Trail Bourbon Porter 22oz:

This brown porter has a nice up front fruit hop tone that will move into a chocolate / caramel maltiness and finish with strong but not over powering bourbon flavor. Now as this beer warms up the fruity character takes a back seat and the roasty and chocolate tones come forward and that wonderful bourbon finish is still there. Not as inky and thick as the Fullsail Black Gold which is not a bad thing. This is a beer you can finish by yourself (unlike the Black Gold).

Roots Woody Organic IPA 22oz:

This is the first bottling from Roots brewery. All of us beer geeks here in the Portland area have followed Craig Nichols around town as he has taken brewing jobs working for other people. We were all happy the day he got his own place, which means he finally got to brew what ever he wanted. He not only brews organic beers but his brewing style is such that he always goes a little further or a little off center to come up with brews that have enough character to set themselves apart from the rest. Case in point his Heather Ale, Toasted Coconut Porter, Island Red (with oats) and this “Woody Organic IPA” that has been dry hopped with Magnums. http://www.rootsorganicbrewing.com/index.htm

This IPA has a NW flare, plenty of bitterness, a grassy slightly fruity hop flavor along with all of its Magnum goodness. The malting is dry and slightly nutty. It all pulls together in one heck of a brew.

Rogue Monk Madness 22 oz:

Rogue “Monks Madness”
A NW version of a Belgian Double. The malting is what one would expect out of a double, Special B, Melonoidin, and amber malt but it is the hops that give it its NW flare. With Chinook, Centennial, Summit, and Amarillos. The aroma is piney / grassy from the hop. The head is ample dense and persistent with a definite lace ring for each sip. At 68 IBUs no other Belgian double comes close to that level of hops. It all works very well together as the assertive brown malts help keep the hops in check. I think this beer will age quite well for at least 4 to 5 years, with the hops mellowing and the malt getting more intense.

Eel River Organic Extra Pale 12oz:

This beer is golden in color and has a soft round malt profile just like a good pale should. Floral hops and a ever so slight hop bitterness makes this beer have a gentle texture and fine aroma.

Eel River Organic IPA 12oz:

A deep amber beer that has a bigger malt than most and a well accompanying hop that balances it well and finishes lightly bitter and dry.

Eel River Organic Porter 12oz:

This lighter style of porter pours a beep brown with tints of garnet. The aroma is of coffee and caramel. The flavor is lightly roasty with mild hop bitterness at the end. A perfect porter for when you are drinking more than one. It is easy, not heavy and tasty.

Eel River Organic Amber 12oz:

A deep amber beer that has a bigger malt than most and a well accompanying hop that balances it well and finishes lightly bitter and dry.