Puckerfest kicked off today (July 18, 2019) at Belmont Station in Portland. This is the 13th annual celebration of all things sour at the venerable beer hall and bottleshop. Among the many delightfully puckerlicious things on tap at the event, three sour ales from Double Mountain Brewing in Hood River: Devil’s Kriek, Tahoma Kriek, and Pêche Mode.
Personally, for the past few years, I have looked forward to the annual release of these beers, which usually happens around the third week of July. I am particularly fond of tasting the two krieks side-by-side and not being able to determine which one is my favorite. Seattle area sour beer fans need not make the trek south: keep an eye out for these beers at local bottleshops.
For more information about Puckerfest, visit the event page on Facebook. Puckerfest runs through Monday, July 22.
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Double Mountain Sours
Hood River, Oregon is known for a lot of things, like beer and windsurfing. The micro-region is also recognized as a prolific producer of fruit. When Double Mountain Brewing wants to make a sour beer using local fruit, procuring things like cherries and peaches is easy. In fact, the brewery actually has its own orchards. An estate-grown sour beer? Yep, they got one.
“With excitement, Double Mountain Brewery is releasing the 2017 vintage of the Devil’s and Tahoma Kriek Sour Ales brewed with Cherries, as well as the Pêche Mode Sour Ale brewed with Peaches,” says the annual release notice. “These are some of the most fun, challenging, rewarding, and laborious beers made by Double Mountain. Aside from the cellaring time, the sours take a lot of time, effort, long hours, concentration, and love.”
“Working with agricultural products is wonderful because they differ each year, making replication of the previous production nearly impossible. These vintages sat in the cellars at a slightly elevated temperature to increase the yeast activity in the bottle conditioning. Double Mountain Sours are available in refillable 375 ML bottles and on draft at our Hood River Taproom, SE Portland Taproom in the Woodstock neighborhood, and throughout the Northwest.”
“The Hood River Valley is such a perfect place to make a lambic/fruit style beer,” says owner and brewmaster Matt Swihart. “Combining a great fruit-growing region with dedicated brewmasters makes our valley a destination for sour fruit beers.”
Release Notes:
Devil’s Kriek-2017 Belgian Style Sour Ale with Cherries
9.2 % ABV, 11 BU
Our two house yeast strains share the field with Brettanomyces lambicus and Van and Bing cherries from the Double Mountain Orchards in this Belgian style sour. Resting on the fruit for over a year, time gives way to marionberry, tannic ripe blackberry, and sweet spring strawberry notes, leading through a tart, dry red wine finish.
Tahoma Kriek- 2017 Belgian Style Sour Ale with Rainier Cherries
9.9% ABV, 11 BU
Rainier cherries from the Hood River Valley are harvested and sent to the brewery where they’re crushed, andadded to a strong Belgian blonde base beer. This little gem sat on the fruit with three yeast strains for 13 months in our cellars, surrendering flavors of tart stone fruit, pithy grapefruit, and kumquat.
Pêche Mode- 2017 Belgian Style Sour Ale with Peaches
8.7% ABV, 8 BU
With nearly 500 pounds of peaches, this Belgian Ale ferments on the fruit with our house yeast and Brettanomyces lambicus for nine months. The result is a juicy, paradise. Lightly tart and refreshing, this one drinks easy, with juicy peach and ripe citrus peeking through a farmhouse of funk.
