Beer of the Week Blast from the Past: Oregon Original Beers

The Oregon Ale and Beer Company made this beers a couple of decades back. They were eventually bought out by the Sam Adams folks, but these beers no longer exist today. Such a shame. So many good beers have come and gone over the years.

Oregon Original Honey Ale

Beer score: 7.6

This would have been a good beer for novice beer snobs to start with because it was smooth with a good taste and texture without being too heavy. The touch of sweetness was just right, not enough to be annoying.

Oregon Original India Pale Ale

Beer score: 8.0

I often don't like IPAs because they sometimes have a slight sour aftertaste, but that wasn't the case here. This was quite easily one of the best IPAs I'd ever had. Very wet and frothy with a smooth bitterness. It got sweeter as you drank it.

Oregon Original Nut Brown Ale

Beer score: 7.9

This brew had an excellent bitter taste and went down wet and smooth. One of the best nut brown ales I've ever tasted.

Beer of the Week: Schaefer Light

Beer score: 0.8

Company: Pabst
ABU: 3.8
IBU: NA

I know it's hard to believe, but there is even less taste in this liquid than there is in the non-light version, and much more carbonation.

Yeah, it pours golden, as can be expected. There are hints of grain and corn in the smell.

I've tasted better used ashtrays.

A few different companies have brewed this monstrosity over the years, but most recently it seems to be Pabst.

Is there anything good I can say about this stuff? Sure. It's cheap. It can get you drunk But that's about it.

Perhaps the lowest ranking I've ever given a beer. I suppose I could have gone lower, but I can imagine worse.

Books read in 2025: No. 34 -- A Question of Time

by Fred Saberhagen

Started: August 23

Finished: August 30

Notes: I've read pretty much all Saberhagen's fantasy literature (at least all of which I'm aware), and I recently read one of his sci-fi novels, but he also wrote a series of novels based upon Dracula, the original novel and the character. This is my first time reading one of those.

Mini review: A girl from a wealthy family goes missing near the Grand Canyon. Investigators are called in after law enforcement proves ineffectual. Vampires are involved. Time Travel. And more strange stuff. Not exactly horror fiction, but definitely fiction of the weird variety. A nice change of pace.

Beer of the Week: Alpenglow Hazy IPA

Beer score: 6.3

Company: Mother Earth Brewing
ABU: 7.2
IBU: NA

Pours cloudy and orange with touches of gold. Has a decent head, but not the biggest I've seen (stop laughing). Gives off some citrus scents, but that's fairly faint.

In the mouth, this one is medium bodied, and there's more of that citrus. However, there's not much of the sourness I've experience in other IPAs, but there is a fair amount of bitterness that tastes something like orange rind. That bitterness lingers on the back of the tongue for a good while, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

I can't call this a new favorite, and I can't even say it's the best IPA I've tasted in the last few weeks, but something about this one grows on me. Hell, maybe I'm becoming an IPA fan, but I find that difficult to fathom. Or maybe brewers are just making better IPAs.

Beer of the Week: Long Weekend India Pale Ale

Beer score: 6.3

Company: Mother Earth Brewing
ABU: 6.5
IBU: 13

For somebody who doesn't love IPAs, I've spent a lot of time drinking them this Summer. Maybe I'm making a turnaround, or maybe I'm just trying to be thorough.

Either way, there's some cloudiness in all that gold when you pour it, but I've seen cloudier. The head is foamy and thick with decent lacing on the glass. On the nose, there's a light, fizzy citrus smell.

The citrus sourness I find common to a lot of IPAs is here, and that's not an aspect of which I approve, but apparently I'm in the minority. Still, that sourness doesn't destroy this brew, for there's plenty of citrus rind flavors that keep this one a pretty good IPA. Fans of lemon and grapefruit might like this one.

In the aftertaste, there is some bitterness, but it's not all that strong, slowly dwindling away after a few minutes. And perhaps oddly, I rather enjoy this aspect of this beer, not something I usually pay much attention to.

Books read in 2025: No. 33 -- Sunshine

by Robin McKinley

Started: August 14

Finished: August 22

Notes: I've been trying to read more horror of late, and to tell the truth, I'm not sure this is horror, though the back cover copy does mention a vampire. In fact, I'm not sure why I picked this novel up in the first place. Did I hear good things about it? Was it a gift? Did someone suggest it? I don't know, but I'll give it a try.

Mini review: Turns out, not exactly horror, but in the general direction. Almost vampire romance, but not quite. Anyway, in a world much like our own, vampires and werewolves and sorcerers and magic are known to exist, but they're not extremely common, at least for the day-to-day individual. As background, 10 years in the past there was a war between humans and vampires, and the humans won, sort of. The vamps basically went into hiding but are still out there stirring up trouble. The protagonist here is a young woman who is a baker, her specialty being cinnamon rolls, and as the story unfolds, she has something of an unusual family line. I'll not go into more so as not to spoil anything, but I do have to say this one was written quite well; in fact, there were times I had a hard time putting this one down, which is unusual for me. My one drawback was the climax, which felt too ... hmm, I'm not sure of the word ... maybe "cerebral" or "emotion-based" ... but those don't feel accurate; basically, there's a huge confrontation that includes a lot of action, but nearly all the action is left to the reader's imagination. Still, good book all the way around.

Beer of the Week: Reef Keeper India Pale Ale

Beer score: 6.0

Company: Mother Earth Brewing
ABU: 6.5
IBU: 35

As anyone who reads this blog regularly (both of you) knows, I'm not a big IPA fan despite their popularity. That being said, I always try to give a fair shake to any beer I've not tried before, such as this one from North Carolina.

This one pours a very cloudy, almost solid gold color while giving off a little sour grapefruit smell and a mix of bitter and sweet.

On the tongue, this is a fairly heavy brew, so if you prefer something light, yeah, this might not be for you. The taste has some lemon rind bitterness and a little more of that grapefruit. The sourness is not overly strong, but it is there. However, the bitterness grows and grows the more you drink, and lingers on the tongue a good while after your last swallow.

Those who enjoy a solid, hearty brew will like this one, especially if you're already an IPA fan. Probably one of the more sturdy IPAs I've tasted.