Friday, September 15, 2006
Beer In Review: Otter Creek Turns 15
Update 3/24/11: Otter Creek's website is all Flash now so I don't
have any bottle images for you anymore. Sorry!
Otter Creek Brewery turned 15
last month so a belated "Happy Birthday" goes out to them. They're located in
Middlebury, VT, right next to their namesake stream. They're owned by the
Wolaver family and thus the Wolaver organic beer line is made right there.
Organic beer? Yes, hops and barley can be organically grown. When you
think about it, all beer was organic until about a century ago. But anyway,
today I'm here to write about two of Otter Creek beers: the Otter Summer
Ale and Stovepipe Porter.
I realize that summer unofficially ended Labor Day Weekend, and the cooler than
average temps have reinforced that argument, but too bad. I'm just getting
around to reviewing this one. The Otter Summer Ale is a straw colored,
light bodied beer. Kinda what you'd expect from summer fare. But this wheat ale
isn't sweet like the fruity ales that I've been reviewing this summer. In fact,
it's quite tart, almost bitter. The citrus-like finish the web page talks about
is there, but I found it to be subtle. I didn't even notice it in the first
bottle. And I didn't find it "refreshing". It seemed a bit dry. And it didn't
seem to complement anything that I've eaten it with, even seafood, so that's was
a big minus. With so many summer ales out there, I'll opt for something else
next year.
A beer that Otter Creek got right, in my opinion anyway, is their Stovepipe
Porter. It's a robust, well hopped dark beer. If served in a glass in a
well lit room, a rich red hue will be revealed beneath the blackness. And
there's just enough chocolatey goodness in the malt (chocolate, crystal, and
roasted) to please the palate. If you're lucky enough to find a bar that serves
it on tap, grab a pint right away. It's even better in a keg!
Otter Creek's beers can be found throughout the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic
states and down the east coast to North Carolina. As one heads west, one can
find it in Ohio, Illinois, and Wisconsin.
Now that the cooler weather has arrived, it's safe for porters and stouts to
return. I'll mourn the stupidity of that other Vermont brewery that sacrificed
the Ravell and Heart of Darkness as I walk past their stacks of
redundant, lame pale ales. Yeah, technically it's
Oktoberfest. I'll try to
get a couple of those in too. But don't wait on me. Go find an Oktoberfest
celebration near you and relish the return of Autumn.
\_/
DED
1 Comment:
 Alan P. said...
-
Hi Ded,
I kinda went off the deep end last week. Deleted my blog on a
whim, later regretted it because some people still had links I sent them that
they didn't get to read. Anyway, I contacted blogger and they resurrected it
for me. Not a bad service from a free site, eh? I don't recommend you try it,
though. I will leave it up from now on, I may even post something new next week.
Thanks for stopping in, sorry to be such a flake. Later dude.
-Mort-
- 9/16/2006 1:16 AM
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About Me
Name: DED
Location: United States
I'm a stay-at-home Dad who survived dotcom burnout and a
chemical engineering career that fizzled. While the kids are in school,
I'm free to write stories.
I'm a rational environmentalist, science and technology enthusiast, who leans
libertarian, reads and watches sci-fi, drinks and brews beer, and listens to
metal.
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