Populuxe Brewing

Populuxe Brewing  25Jun2017

On the hottest day of the year, so far, I decided to walk the 1.4 miles down to Populuxe Brewing. I went as early as I could (they open at 1 pm on Sunday) and stuck to the shade. I was still pretty sweaty when I got there, so the re-hydration and electrolyte replenishment were welcome.

Populuxe - just as blue as ever

Populuxe is located in the Ballard Brewery District (no, it’s not official) a neighborhood that can’t decide if it is industrial or residential. The brewery is in what looks to be a re-purposed house between a couple of warehouses. Populuxe is currently expanding into one of the adjacent warehouses with the construction currently in progress at the time of this writing. 

The front entrance pops you into the tiny tasting room 

The taproom viewed from just inside the front door

with the bar to the right of the door and the tap list chalked on the wall behind the bar. 

The tap list behind the bar

To the right as you walk past the bar is additional indoor seating and the large outdoor seating area, which is very pleasant on a dry day.

The outdoor seating area. To the left rear near the truck, port-a-potty and caution tape is the construction area

Tasters of four ounces are available with no limit as well as pints and growlers. I ordered 4 tasters and adjourned to an indoor table that was nonetheless well lit with sunshine. So intense was the light that in the space it took me to taste, take notes, and finish, the Citra Red became slightly light struck.

l to r Burke-Gilman Bitter, Beer Snob Brown, Saison, and Citra Red

Tasting Notes:

Beer Snob Brown (5.1%, 28IBU): Clear brown. Roast malt aroma. Dry and malty with a little residual sweetness and late bitterness. Full body. Bitter-sweet finish with roast.

Saison (7.0%): Hazy yellow gold. Citrus and phenolic aroma. Sweet malt and the flavors match the aromas. The citrus is a pleasant mild lemon and the beer is full bodied and dry. Very slight bitter finish.

Burke-Gilman Bitter (4.9%, 35 IBU): Hazy orange-gold. Esters and English hop aromas. Malt and bitterness are balanced and the hop flavor is characteristically English. Sweet malt and a slight fruitiness. Bitter finish. 

Citra Red (5.5%, 65 IBU): Clear dark red. Fruity hops and bready malt aromas mixed with a little onion. Bitter with full bodied malt presence. Bitter finish. The bitterness is not as intense as 65 IBU would indicate.

This place has been around long enough and had enough success that they can expand. I have always enjoyed the funky little tasting room and the out-of-the-way setting of the neighborhood. The outdoor seating is popular as well. The greeting when you come in is friendly and helpful with a handful of regulars often seated at the bar engaged in good beer related conversation. The beer here as in other small breweries in Seattle has been steadily improving, and I have long enjoyed the brewer’s English style beers. He often has a mild or a bitter on tap and they are usually top notch. Today I enjoyed the Beer Snob Brown and the Burke-Gilman Bitter the most.

As I commenced my walk home I noted that the temperature had started to climb. Feeling the need to keep rested and rehydrated, plus needing some stamps in my WABL passport, I planned some stops along the way. I stopped first at Stoup 

Stoup - not that crowded

to refresh my palate and my memory about the German Pils (5.1%, 40 IBU). 

German Pils - brilliantly clear

It’s a clear yellow gold with a combined noble hop, sulfury yeast, and bready malt aroma. The flavor is crisp malt with some residual sweetness and firm noble hop bitterness. The finish is sweet-bitter. Quite crushable on a hot day.

Refreshed, I sauntered on to Reuben’s 

Reuben's - also not that crowded

where the Altbier (5.1%, 36 IBU) looked attractive. 

Altbier - a pretty beer

The beer is a clear red brown with a roast malt aroma with a hint of sulfur. The initial flavor is noble hop bitterness with full bodied sweet roasted malt right behind. The hop flavor is slightly spicy and though I asked, I could not find out what hops were used.

Thoroughly rehydrated and rested I finished walking (with the mad dogs and Englishmen) to my home to hide from the heat.

Hellbent Brewing Company

Hellbent Brewing Company  16Jun2017

I find myself on another ride on the brewery bus, the 40 to Northgate. At the Northgate Transit Center I picked up the 41 to Lake City, which travels in the vicinity of Hellbent Brewing Company.

Transit Center with entertaining landscaping.

Hellbent is only blocks away from Elliott Bay Brewing but has a completely different vibe. 

Great setting for the brewery. The surrounding shrubbery obscures the signs and building from the road.

Hellbent is beer only and 21+, while Elliott Bay has a restaurant. Hellbent owns its building, a renovated former office space on Lake City Way near the Fred Meyer. You enter off the street or off the patio if approaching from the parking lot. 

Back patio.

The food trucks sit by the patio. The bar is visible from both entrances and a digital display hosts the beer list. 

The bar as seen from the front entrance. Beer list and brew kit are visible.

The digitally displayed beer list.

The printed beer list is also available at the bar. The brew kit is visible through glass behind the bar. The greeting is friendly from behind the bar.

A well-used beer list.

Flights of 4 four ounce tasters are available as well as pints and growlers. I studied the beer list and settled on four with the intention of ordering a pint of something else later.

Flight of tasters l to r: Warm Fuzzies, Northwest Pilsner, DANG! Citra IPA, Mystic Lamb Lavender Saison.

Bonus pint of Vienna Lager.

Tasting Notes:

Warm Fuzzies (9.5%, ~25IBU): Cloudy orange. Fruity aroma (peach) and some fruity hop. Sweet and slightly sour, with some bite. Late slight bitterness. Sweet sour finish.

Northwest Pilsner (5.6%, 35 IBU): Slightly hazy yellow gold. Northwest hop citrus aroma. Dry, soft malt followed by bitter hop flavors. Hop flavors are noble hops with just a touch of Northwest dank. Bitter finish.

DANG! Citra IPA (7.1%, 60 IBU): Hazy gold. Dankish (complex fruit, pine, and funk) hop aroma. Sweet malt, bitterness with fruity, piney hop flavor. Bitter-sweet finish.

Mystic Lamb Lavender Saison (4.9%, 22 IBU): Slightly hazy yellow gold. Lemony lavender and saison aromas. Lavender, malt, and late bitter flavors. The lavender is almost overpowering. Flowery finish.

Vienna Lager (5.5%, 28 IBU): Clear red amber. Malt aroma with slight hop funk. Sweet cracker malt, noble hop flavor, and late bitterness all in pleasant combination. Bitter finish. My pick of today's group.

My drinking companion. The dog hangs out on this rug. I just happened to be at the end of the bar.

The people at Hellbent have transformed a mundane office and restaurant space into an open and airy venue for beer appreciation and they are serving beers that can be appreciated. The beers were all well-made, even if the lavender saison was overpowered by flowers and the NW Pilsner tasted odd with NW hop flavors. The brewery just celebrated its second anniversary and will continue to improve and perfect their beers in time. Meanwhile the experiments are well worth trying. The clientele are mostly drawn from the neighborhood and the atmosphere in the taproom, at least on this Friday, is open and friendly. Two people struck up conversations with me as I sat at the bar sipping and taking notes. The friendly nature in the taproom flows from the community involvement of Hellbent and their desire to get to know the neighborhood.

Hellbent just expanded their hours to commence serving at noon with a deal on pints at lunch time, $3 when you purchase a lunch from the truck of the day.

My ride home could not have been better. The 41 to Northgate appeared within minutes after I hit the bus stop and the transfer at the Transit Center went off flawlessly. All my walking to and fro netted about 100 calories off the damage done by all the beer and the food truck lunch I consumed.

Perihelion Brewery

Perihelion Brewery  11Jun2017

I hopped on the D-Line bus headed for the bus tunnel downtown and picked up the Link Light Rail headed south. I arrived at the Beacon Hill stop and rode the elevator to street level. Perihelion sits on 16^th S, and I found it after making a couple of wrong turns. If I had just headed across Beacon from the light rail stop, I would have been right there.

Perihelion is in a nice residential setting with a few trees around.

Perihelion sits about a block off of Beacon, which puts it smack in the middle of a residential area, a very inviting setting. The outdoor seating area was in full use this day as the sun was out and the temperature was moderate but felt warm in the direct sunlight. I had to wind around the outside table area to get inside then walk to the front of the taproom to find the bar.

You have to run the gauntlet of outdoor seating to get inside.

The beer list is chalked up above the taps and clearly lists the beers and their ABV while no bitterness indicators are given.

Beer list and food offerings are above the bar and the open kitchen area is to the left in this picture.

Tasters (5 ounce), pints and growler fills are available. I studied the beer list and ordered eight tasters and then retired to a tall stool at a counter to sip, note, read, and study the neighborhood.

l to r Apogee Dark Belgian Strong, Daedalus Rye Saison, Singularity Stout, Mango Sour, and The Milky Way IPA. Sensing a galactic theme?

l to r Summer Kolsch, Matrix Maibock, and Icarus Saison.

Tasting Notes:

Summer Kolsch (6.3%): Slightly hazy gold. Bready malt aroma with slight noble hop. Sturdy bitterness and rich malt with a full body but pleasantly dry. Bitter finish. Odd flavor like some of the saison yeast snuck into the mix.

Matrix Maibock (5.5%): Clear red copper. Faint malt aroma. Sweet malt with a little roast and assertive (not aggressive) bitter flavors. Crisp dry malt. Bitter sweet finish.

Mango Sour (5.4%): Slightly hazy orange. Fruity mango aroma. Sweet and sour mango. No detectable bitterness. Quick finish with some lingering sourness.

Singularity Stout (5.9%): Opaque black with no highlights. Roast malt and coffee aroma. Roast malt (burnt), sweet malt, and bitter hop flavors. Full body. Sweet bitter finish.

Icarus Saison (7.9%): Clear gold. Perfumed aroma with peppery phenols. Medicinal and Band-Aid like phenols, bitter hop, sweet malt. Very full body. Bitter finish.

Daedalus Rye Saison (8.1%): Clear red copper. Malty phenolic aroma. Band-Aid like phenols (like the Icarus), sweet malt, some bitterness (less than Icarus). Bitter finish.

Apogee Dark Belgian Strong (9.2): Dark brown with red highlights. Fruity plum and malt aroma is very inviting. Sweet and fruity plum and cherry. Late, slight bitterness. Full body. Sweet finish and more late bitterness.

The Milky Way IPA (5.6%): Murky red orange. Piney and citrus hop aroma. Sweet malt and hop (piney and fruity) flavors, medium bitterness. Sweet bitter finish. Some minerality.

Perihelion is in a very pleasant area in a residential neighborhood, which should make it a natural local watering hole. A constant stream of pedestrians passes heading to or from errands on Beacon and trekking to the Red Apple Market. The greeting at the bar is neighborly and friendly. It’s still a new brewery and some of the beers need work, which makes the selections hit or miss. I would order second pints of the Apogee, if I didn’t have to drive, and the IPA. I didn’t try any of the food, so I have no opinion there. I didn’t finish the two saisons and the Kolsch had an odd un-Kolsch-like flavor.

My walk back to the light rail stop was much more direct than my walk to the brewery. Line of sight dead reckoning is something I can do. Light rail to the D-Line and back home to stagger around the kitchen making dinner.

Cloudburst Brewing

Cloudburst Brewing  09Jun2017

A little threatening weather this day as some thundershowers were in the prediction. No rain fell during my trip, but the clouds were spectacular. No cloudburst while visiting Cloudburst. I hopped the D-Line to downtown and made a short walk to Western and Lenora.

Not much here to stand out from the surrounding buildings. Easy to walk right past.

Cloudburst sits in a warehouse-like building near the Public Market with a garage door opening to lead you into the inky shadows. 

The ramp into the inky shadows. Come on in.

Tables face the opening on what was formerly the ramp into the warehouse. To the back is the bar on the right and a view of the brew kit on the left. The beer list is above the bar and is clearly marked. 

The bar with the minimal beer list posted above. More detailed beer descriptions are available at the bar.

Clipboards with the beer list and descriptions are available at the bar. Cloudburst offers 10-ounce schooners, 16-ounce pints, and growler fills  – no flights or smaller tasters. I ordered four schooners from the beer list figuring that I should be able to survive 40 oz. of beer and still get home on the bus without bursting.

l to r Nut Burst Tropical Lager, Happy Little Clouds Dry Hop Pils, High End Portfolio IPA, Refracted Light IPA.

I wound up with two lagers and two IPAs, but I would have liked to taste the other offerings, which were varied.

Tasting Notes:

Nut Burst Tropical Lager (5.3%, 30 IBU): Clear gold. Fruity hop aroma. Bitterness first then earthy malt. Dry with pronounced hop flavor. Somehow the New Zealand and Australian hops were rendered to taste like Yakima hops. Quick bitter finish. A collaboration with Chuckanut Brewing.

Happy Little Clouds Dry Hop Pils (5.1%, 32 IBU): Clear pale gold. German hop aroma with a perfume note. Taste is rich biscuit malt dry followed by bitterness from which the hop flavor pops. Bitter sweet finish with lingering hops and malt. As fine a pils as I have had in the city. And, yes, it’s a Bob Ross reference.

High End Portfolio IPA (7.2%, 55 IBU): Hazy red-gold. Fruity and citrus hop aroma. Sweet and juicy, then bitter hop on the tongue and hop flavor of fruit and citrus. Bitter finish and lingering bitterness.

Refracted Light IPA (7.4%, 58 IBU): Hazy red gold. Earthy and fruity hop aroma. Flavors follow on from sweet malt, juicy hops, bitter hop on the tongue, and finally earthy, fruity hop flavors. Sweet and lingering bitter woody finish.

I drank up my IPAs saving the Happy Little Clouds Pils for last. Even though my taste was probably dulled by the hoppy beers, the Pils was still full of malt and hop flavors. It’s not a wimpy beer at all. I didn’t finish the Nut Burst. The warehouse setting feels homey and the greeting from behind the bar is Seattle friendly, polite and restrained. The taproom was full of Canadians, since the Blue Jays are in town to play the Mariners. In other words the crowd was very pleasant and polite. Cloudburst has been in business since January of 2016 and has really dialed in their brewing process. All the beers I tried were well made even if some of the flavors were not to my liking.

The ride home on the bus was without incident and I was able to stagger into the kitchen to prepare dinner.

Elysian Tangletown

Elysian Tangletown  21May2017

Such a beautiful day today after a really foggy morning run. My wife decided to join me at Elysian Tangletown for a little lunch. 

Streets come into the intersection every which way but the pub is unmistakable.

I am visiting as part of my quest to visit every brewery in Seattle. As I found out today Elysian is not currently brewing at Tangletown but intends to start in June. Jeff Allworth points out that 10 Barrel does not really exist; it’s just a line-item in AB InBevs’ budget. https://www.beervanablog.com/beervana/2017/5/2/10-barrels-tenth-anniversary-there-is-no-10-barrel Elysian is in the same boat. So this is an exercise in a silly self-imposed goal. I am not sure that Tangletown qualifies as a brewery or that it even exists. Were the food and beer just illusions? If so, they were strangely satisfying.

Elysian Tangletown sits at the intersection of 5 streets in the tangled up neighborhood of Tangletown. We usually find it by driving north on Meridian from 50^th Street. The orange building and the signage make the place stand out. In warm weather the garage doors open up and people can sit at a few outdoor tables. As you walk in the main entrance you can see the dining area in front of you 

The dining area as you enter with the kitchen to the back.

and the bar to the right. 

The bar with a fair amount of booze.

I am not sure that Tangletown puts up a formal beer list but a menu and beer list are set out at each table.

The beer list. If you enlarge it, it might just be readable.

I looked over the beer list after asking our server what beers were actually brewed on site. I ordered a flight of 5 four ounce tasters. I wound up with a lot of IPA.

The flight from l to r: Savant IPA, Cedrela Oderata IPA, Superfuzz Blood Orange Pale, Chroma-key Oak-Aged Imperial IPA, and Raconteur Dark Lager.

Tasting Notes:

Superfuzz Blood Orange Pale (6.4%): Cloudy orange. Citrus and piney hop aroma and fruit ester aroma Sweet orange juice and bitter hops with piney fruity hop flavor. Bitter finish.

Raconteur Dark Lager (4.8%): Clear dark red brown. Roast malt aroma with fruity esters (for a lager?). Sweet roast malt. Very low bitterness late. Sweet roast finish.

Savant IPA (6.3%, 66 IBU): Clear gold. Juicy Nelson Sauvin hop aroma. Bitter and sweet up front with characteristic Nelson Sauvin hop flavor. Bitter finish.

Cedrela Oderata IPA (6.8%): Cloudy red gold. Lumber yard aroma. Cedar, hops, and sweet malt flavor all at once. Like walking into a cedar closet. Bitterness seems restrained by the wood. Bitter woody finish.

Chroma-key Oak-Aged Imperial IPA (8.0): Clear brownish amber. Little aroma. Sweet and bitter with little hop flavor. Woody. Oak and Vanilla. Lingering bitter finish. This beer tastes just the way you would want a barrel aged IPA to taste.

Tangletown is an outpost of the mega-brewer that controls 30% of the world beer market and it is disguised as a friendly local neighborhood brewery. I would like to say that neighborhood people walk in to visit but most people approach from the sides as if they just parked in the neighborhood after having driven in. We breathed in the fresh air flowing through the open garage doors and bathed in the Sun – my wife read her book patiently while I tasted beer. We watched foot and car traffic, both ate salmon sandwiches, 

The hefty salmon sandwich with side salad.

and finished off lunch with some sorbet. The food was good and the beer was well made (except the lager), which is what you would expect from a giant brewing concern. 

Afterward we drove around Ballard looking at flowering trees so my gardener wife could identify those that I saw on my morning run. Then home.

Bad Jimmy’s Brewery Co.

Bad Jimmy’s Brewery Co.  19May2017

After putting in a few miles on the elliptical and doing a couple of hours of light yard work I decided to ride the 40 down to Bad Jimmy’s. I just wasn’t ready for the 1.5 mile walk and the bus stop at 8^th and Leary is just a couple of blocks from the brewery.

Bad Jimmy’s is set back from Leary with the main drive way leading off Bright Street NW. 

The brewery as seen from the Bright Street entrance.

As you walk up the driveway the open garage door leads you into the seating and bar area. 

The seating area and bar as you enter through the garage door. The beer list (not visible) is to the left.

The brew kit is to the right and the rear of the seating area. Additional seating is present in an upstairs area above the restrooms. As you approach the bar you can see the taps and to the left is the chalked beer list. The flights are unlimited tasters of 5 ounce volume. Most of the beers were above 5% ABV so I limited myself to six tasters.

From l to r IPA, Habanero Amber, Cocoa Vanilla Porter, Girl Scout Drop Out, Hyper Squirrel Nut Brown, and Strawberry Hef.

Tasting Notes:

Strawberry Mango Hef (6.2%, 12 IBU): Cloudy beige with pink. Fruit ester aroma. Sweet fruit esters with subtle mango and strawberry flavors. Sweet almost bitter finish.

Girl Scout Drop Out (7.4%, 9 IBU): A clear red blonde. Ester aroma with some chocolate. Sweet malt, creamy body, semi-dry (not cloying). Esters. Slightly astringent finish. The brewer added caramel, chocolate, and coconut to this blond ale. Caveat: I have a difficult time tasting coconut in beer.

Habanero Amber (6.8%, 22 IBU): Clear amber. Peppery ester and roast malt aromas. Heat, malt and phenols (?). Lingering spicy heat finish.

Cocoa Vanilla Porter (6.5%, 17 IBU): Opaque black with red highlights. Chocolate, vanilla and roast malt aromas. Vanilla and chocolate sweet and roasted malt flavors. Sweet finish.

Hyper Squirrel Nut Brown (6.1%, 27 IBU): Clear dark brown. Ester and roast malt aroma. Sweet, esters, hop aroma, brown malt roast. Bitter sweet finish. The brewer added white coffee and hazelnuts to this brew.

IPA (8.0%, 80 IBU): Clear red gold. Piney hop aroma. Sweet malt quickly over-ridden with bitterness and piney hop flavor. Lingering bitter finish.

The guys behind the bar at Bad Jimmy’s are friendly and try to get out from behind the bar and mingle. Mingling was a bit of a stretch on this Friday afternoon as the crowd was a little thin with just an old beer geek at the bar writing tasting notes and a mother and son playing mouse trap at one of the tables. This brewery was new in December 2013 and was the penultimate stop on the annual pub crawl that year. The Habanero beer was on offer that night and it was good then and better now. Like many Seattle breweries time and competition has helped improve their brewing practices. I liked all the beers, which were all well brewed, and I especially enjoyed the Cocoa Vanilla Porter because I’m a sucker for chocolate beers. The bar tender said that they aim for subtlety in their more exotic additions while the base beers are not always so subtle – take the IPA for instance.

The beer must have numbed my legs or the coffee laced Hyper Squirrel restored my energy because the walk home didn’t seem as daunting even though it’s mainly up hill. 

Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant

Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant  17May2017

I rode the D-Line downtown to run errands. For instance, I needed new notebooks in which to record my scintillating tasting notes. Once I was done I stopped into Gordon Biersch to try some lagers.

Gordon Biersch store front with awnings, sidewalk tables, and French doors.

Gordon Biersch is on the top floor of Pacific Place at 6^th and Pike. The presentation is as if the brewery is on a ground floor with a sidewalk on which to place a few tables. The place is visible once you reach the top floor. As you approach you see awnings, huge openings framed by French doors, and a fenced off seating area to simulate being outdoors. As you walk in the main opening you can see the bar to your left with the brew kit behind and the main restaurant seating area to the rear and to your right. 

The view as you enter with the bar on the right and the main dining area toward the rear.

The beer list is on paper and presented along with a menu when you sit down. I studied the beer list and ordered a flight of 6 four ounce tasters.

The beer list. I hope you can read it. 

The flight (r to l) Märzen, Maibock, 7th and Pine IPA, Belgian IPA, Czech Pilsner, and Irish Dry Stout

Tasting Notes:

Märzen (5.7%, 18 IBU): Clear amber. Lager yeast and malt aroma. Sweet and malty with caramel or very slight roast. Sweet finish with a touch of bitter late.

Maibock (7.5%, 25 IBU): Slightly hazy red-gold. Yeast and malt aroma with some hops. Sweet, yeast, bitter noble hops. Sweet bitter finish.

Czech Pilsner (5.6%, 36 IBU): Clear gold. Saaz hop aroma. Bitter, semi-dry malt, with perfume of hops. Bitter sweet finish. If you gravitate toward hoppy ales, this is your lager.

7^th and Pine IPA (7.1%, 65 IBU): Clear red-gold. Piney citrus aroma. Sweet malt, very bitter, with citrus and pine hop flavors. Sweet finish then lingering bitterness.

Belgian IPA (7.1%, 65 IBU): Clear red-gold. Piney floral hop aroma (dusty?). Sweet, bitter, esters, perfumed hops. Garlic? Lingering bitter finish. The Belgian yeast seems to have diminished the fruity nature of the hops.

Irish Dry Stout (4.1%, 35 IBU): Opaque black with red highlights. Roast malt (coffee) aroma. Sweet roast malt flavor with late bitterness. Full body. Sour bitter finish. Mineral?

Pacific Place is an indoor mall full of stores. I sat at a table in the simulated outdoors under the bright sky light so I could watch the mall walkers. This brewery restaurant has plenty of room, which was more than adequate on a mid-week afternoon – pretty quiet. Gordon Biersch specializes in lagers and does them well. The Märzen and the Maibock were sweet or malt forward with that sulfur-y lager yeast aroma and flavor. The IPAs and the stout were well made but seemed a little out of place here. I didn’t try any of the Belgian style offerings. The Czech Pilsner was dry with challenging bitterness and a beautiful hop aroma. 

A 0.25 liter (about 12 oz) serving of the Czech Pilsner. My treacherous camera decided to focus on the floor.

I ordered a 12 ounce pour of the pils after I finished the tasters and read my book in peace and quiet.

I braved the bus stop scene in front of Mickey D’s on 3^rd Avenue to catch the D-Line back to Ballard.