Fun and Games on Tap at Hawthorne Hophouse IPA Tasting

A lot of beer geek types traipse around town on beer tasting missions. You eventually get to the point where you identify with beer based on things that sometimes don't have all that much to do with how they taste. There's a comfort zone knowing what a beer is.

If you want to shake things up a bit, head on over to the Hawthorne Hophouse this month and participate in the blind IPA tasting they've got going on. You'll get to pick your choice as the top beer from among 12 on the tasting platter, all brewed in Oregon. The top overall choice will earn a place on their tap list for all of 2015.

This isn't the first time they've run this event. What's different this year is they aren't telling you which beer is which on the tray. In the past, patrons would pick their favorite from a tray in which they knew which beers were which. That's not the best way to do it if you want objective opinions because, as noted, voters can be swayed by names and labels.

The beers on the tray are some good ones, including the past two GABF gold medal winners in the American IPA category:

• Barley Brown's Pallet Jack
• Boneyard RPM
• Breakside IPA
• Crux Outcast
• Double Mountain Hop Lava
• Fort George Vortex
• Gigantic IPA
• Goodlife Descender
• Hop Valley Alphadelic
• Laurelwood Workhorse
• Migration Luscious Lupulin
• Ninkasi Total Domination

As I chewed through the tray of beers ($12 for the set), I was searching for familiar aromas and flavors. They weren't easy to find. The tiny taster glasses are not very good at spreading aroma. And the beers when initially delivered were too cold to provide full flavor. The key is to let the beers warm up and open up for a few minutes. Then you start to get a better bead on the flavors. Aroma remains a problem with these glasses.

I won't say which beer I chose. That's something I don't think they would normally share, but the barkeep told me which I had chosen and which ones I marked as being short on this or that. I was actually somewhat shocked by my pick (and what I didn't pick) because it's a beer I haven't had much faith in of late. Oh well. It's nothing to lose sleep over.

Check this little contest out for the rest of the month. When it's over they'll send you an email with the winning beer and, I assume, the list of beers by number so you'll know which one you chose. Good luck and good times.

Update: Please be advised that these folks are also running this tasting competition at their 15th Avenue location. That was not clear to me when I wrote the piece.

Gluten-free IPA added to Omission Line

Building on the success of the Omission brand, launched last spring in the form of a gluten-free pale ale and lager, the Craft Brew Alliance has introduced Omission IPA. They held a launch party Wednesday evening at the Hawthorne Hophouse to celebrate the occasion. The beer began showing up on shelves in Oregon on April 1. National distribution is set for early August.

Like Omission Pale Ale and Lager, the IPA is brewed with traditional ingredients. Brewers then use a proprietary process that reduces gluten to well below the CODEX standard of 20 parts per million (ppm) for food and beverage. Every batch of Omission beer is tested by an independent lab for adherence to the standard.

The CBA is positioning Omission IPA as the first gluten-free IPA brewed with authentic ingredients. There are certainly other gluten-free IPAs out there...such as Harvester IPA. But the base of that beer is made with roasted chestnuts, gluten free oats and tapioca maltodextrin. Not exactly standard, obviously, and apparently common with gluten-free beers.

In case you're wondering, Omission IPA is pretty good. It pours light copper in color with a lovely head that doesn't linger quite as long as I might like. Brewed in the style of a Northwest IPA, it leans on Cascade and Summit hops. I found the aroma drifted away rather quickly, leaving a beer that is crisp and mildly bitter with nice citrus notes.

The PR gals who were greeting everyone came up with the idea of tasting Omission IPA next to a standard IPA. They chose Boneyard RPM, an interesting choice, I think. The two beers have close to the same stats...6.6% ABV and 50 IBU for RPM; 6.7% ABV and 65 IBU for Omission IPA. RPM clearly has more body, aroma and flavor, courtesy of aggressive dry-hopping. But the Omission held up pretty well, I thought. The more informative test would be to taste Omission IPA next to some of Widmer's Rotator IPAs. That's an appropriate comparison and I think the Omission would do fine.

I am not gluten-intolerant, so I do not have to seek out Omission or other gluten-free beers. The question you always have to ask in this situation is: Would I drink this beer if I didn't have to? The answer hinges largely on price. If I'm choosing between O'Ryely IPA at $8.99 a six-pack and Omission at $9.99 a six-pack, I'll take the O'Ryely. However, for people who can't choose the O'Ryely, the Omission is a nice option.

As noted at the top, Omission IPA is currently available only in Oregon. Production will ramp up to support a national release through the CBA's partner, Anheuser-Busch, in August. There's no mention of it in the media materials, but I assume Omission is the first gluten-free brand in national release. The IPA is a nice addition, given the popularity of the style. My only question is what's next? Gluten-free ESB? Gluten-free Hefeweizen. Inquiring minds, you know.