Go ahead and take offense, Coloradans. Sure, you might have more small-batch breweries. But for Montana's tiny population, it has a staggering amount of homegrown brews, covering the full spectrum of the brewing world. Missoula, Helena, Polson, Hamilton, Belt, Bozeman, Belgrade ...I drank beer from every town in this here land.
For the most part, I stuck with sessions beers. The state's brewers seemed to have a better grasp of styles often disregarded by America's extreme beer movement. Enjoy double IPAs and smoke Russian Imperial stouts all you want, but you can't drink that stuff and hang for the long haul; it's worse than whiskey. By keeping alcohol content to 8 percent or less, I could consume copious amounts of ale and lager yet never go to sleep more than slighly tipsy.
Seventeen beers in eight days might sounds like a meager amount, but only a few were singles - most came as six-packs and one case had to get finished before I boarded an eastbound airplane on Sept. 20.
The only IPA I sampled came from Oregon (Deschutes Inversion IPA), part of a conscious decision to sample different styles to see how well I could fare with lagers, ESBs and Belgian whites.
Once I sipped the last of the four I stuffed into my suitcase – a Big Hole Mystic White – it was time for this massive log of beer experience to go electronic. We’ll go from the top…
Cold Smoke Scotch Ale
Kettlehouse Brewery, Missoula, MT
Sampled: Sept. 13 and Sept. 19, 2009 (16 oz. can and pint at the Pour House)
This brew serves up a little biscuit crispness before hitting the Highlands. The malty richness tosses out molasses, coffee and chocolate before the finish gives a little flowery herbal display with spearmint emerging from the pack. Whether from can (don’t let it scare you) or the tap, Kettlehouse pretty much nailed the style.
Rating: 8/10
Plum Street Porter Bozeman
Bozeman Brewing Co., Bozeman, MT
Sampled: Step. 14, Montana AleWorks
Once I got over my initial disappointment that this wasn’t a plum porter – somebody, please brew one, I’m curious – I realized Bozeman produced one of the state’s few porters, and a good one at that. Plum Street Porter has a luxurious, velvety paired with the nuttiness of roasted malt. Finishes very clean as the roasted character fades into a molasses finished embellished by some welcome cherry. Not a world changer, but Plum Street Porter definitely works for a session or three.
Rating: 7/10
Beltian White
Harvest Moon Brewing Company, Belt, MT
Sampled: Sept. 14, Montana AleWorks
Wow, Celis White has a fresh competitor brewed just outside of Great Falls. The banana-clove I expected mingle adeptly with round licorice. Better yet, the licorice evolves into a splendid finish of plum (Yeah, Belt) and blueberry. I was ready to disregard this brewery thanks to the unfortunate name of flagship brew (Pig’s Ass Porter) but Beltian White talked me down. In face, it made me a convert. One of the best Belgian whites not made with Belgian hands.
Rating: 8.5/10
Hippy Highway Oatmeal Stout
Lone Peak Brewing, Big Sky, MT
Sampled: Sept. 14, Montana AleWorks
While the only oatmeal stout I sampled on the trip,Hippy Highway came off as over-the-top as its name. With a creamy oat-chocolate nose, the flavor goes a bit overboard, turning out an American version of the classic British style. Its highly bitter finish has a slight hop assertion amid of mountain of expresso. While it hits all the oatmeal stout milestones, amped-up American versions have become a bit too commonplace. Worthy of a try, but stick with Plum Street if you crave a dark session ale.
Rating: 6.5/10
Alaskan White
Alaskan Brewing Co., Juneau, AK
Sampled: Sept 15, Aero Inn, Kalispell
While not a Montana native, those of us east of the
Rating: 7.5/10
Dancing Trout
Bayern Brewing Co., Missoula, MT
Sampled: Sept. 13-17
Any beer bold enough to go with a label depicting a fly fisherman waltzing with a giant trout starts in the right place. Caramel and pilsner malts dominate the nose but leave enough leg room for an herbal bouquet of chamomile and lemon. This filtered wheat ale develops a complex, drinkable nature unlike most other sessions beers. Adding wheat malt turns a simple golden ale into a more rewarding brew; the crisp biscuit notes stack up well against the wheat.
Filtering the beer drastically departs from the witbier or hefe-weizen standards, but here it works to great effect.An estery finish, strengthened by orange and lemon zest, reels it all in. By sticking with . the Bavarian Purity Law, Bayern Dancing Trout never hems itself in. In fact, this filtered wheat ale enters territory few ales of any stripes bother to tread. If Dancing Trout ever migrated to Tennessee, it could easily become my daily ale.
Rating: 9/10
Bozone Hefeweizen
Bozeman, MT
Sampled Sept. 16, McKenzie River Pizza Co.
Almost opaque rusty orange, the Bozone has me worried with its muted banana-clove opening; I don’t have time for Blue Moon copycats, and the alcoholic orange juice start left me shaking my head. Luckily, I had time to let the beer warm, and it opened up with a delightful thrust of wheat malt. The other flavors sharpen as wel, and it finishes with a clean citrus bite. While not on par with Alaskan White or St. Wilbur Weizen, the Bozone clearly leapfrogs most domestic craft hefeweizens, so along as it is allowed to warm slightly.
Rating: 7/10
Blue Collar English Special Bitter
Blackfoot River Brewing, Helena
Sampled: Sept. 17, Montana AleWorks (sensing a pattern yet?)
At more than 5 percent ABV, Blue Collar feels a little strong for an Extra Special Bitter, and at first, a little too mild. A subdued hop bitterness arrives after it has a minute to warm – ESBs perform best at room temperature. Nose sports a fresh fruit bouquet, with aroms of cherry gently overtaken by apple and lichee nut. Kudoes to Blackfoot for testing this style.
Rating: 7/10
Bayern Pilsner
Missoula, MT
Sampled: Sept. 17, Montana AleWorks
I’m blaming Montana AleWorks on this one, because I detected a an excellent character from malted barley lurking behind this pilsner which the bar served way too cold. There could be something worthwhile here, but I couldn't find it.
Rating 3/10
Bozone Amber
Bozeman Brewing
Sampled: Sept. 18, 18 Miles to the Border
I wouldn’t be as quickly as the Bozeman Brewery to laud this as my flagship ale – they make the far superior Plum Street Porter. Still, this is a Mexican-style amber, not on par with Yazoo Dos Perros in Nashville, but fine where I sampled it, 18 Miles From the Border, a restaurant owned by Nogales transplants. The malt carries fine caramel and toffee notes that get downright mellow on the finish.
Rating: 6/10
Missouri River Steamboat Lager
Blackfoot River Brewing
Sampled: Sept. 18, Montana AleWorks
I still can’t grasp this one, and almost wish I never did in the first place. Steamboat was easily the worst thing sampled on the journey. Whether served too cold or not, this bland lager just misses all marks. Judged on a one-time sample, it’s no more than 3/10, but I am charitable to the effect of cold on lagers, so we’ll leave it at incomplete, but not at all recommneded.
Moose Drool Brown Ale
Big Sky Brewing Co., Missoula, MT
Sampled: Regularly from Sept. 12 to Sept. 18
Stopping at Costco on my first Montana Saturday, I took a chance on the case of Moose Drool. If it flopped, I was stuck with it for the entire vacation. However, this brown ale’s reputation held up. Think of this Big Sky concoction as Newcastle Brown Ale on steroids. A thick wall of chocolate, nuts and toffee coat the palette, never smothering it. The malt strength hangs in until the finish, but never grows obnoxious. Plenty of novelty names decorate subpar craft brews and extreme brews, but Moose Drool’s bold moniker never feels like a letdown.
Rating: 8.5/10
Scapegoat Pale Ale
Big Sky Brewing Co., Missoula, MT
Sampled: Sept. 17-19
What an affable companion to Moose Drool. Scapegoat provides a genuine shock – a pale ale that actually pours pale in color and a delightful, perfume-filled nose. A vibrant, earthy hop bouquet of Kent Goldings and Crystal varieties follows, making Scapegoat all the more quaffable. From the mountains of Missoula comes one of the continent’s best English-style pale ales. While domestic brewers prefer the push the envelope with pale ales, leaving their more delicate progenitor as an afterthought. But Big Sky Brewing excels at session beers. Scapegoat gets its high grade for daring to go light – it only runs 4.7 percent ABV. This is quite possibly Montana’s best session ale.
Rating: 9.5/10
Bayern St. Wilbur Weizen
Missoula, MT
Sampled: Sept. 19
Bayern produced another stellar logo - a St. Bernard attempting to break through the label - and a top-notch hefeweizen. St. Wilbur comes on strong, pouncing with a maltiness more thick and bitter than most hefeweizens. Instead of the upfront banana-clove dominating the nose, the orange produced by the wheat malt wraps those flavors more comfortably into the whole. St. Wilbur finishes neat with a swift kick of lemon zest. Given this brewery's strong German inclinations, it's unsurprising that it churns out the state's best hefe.
Rating: 8.5/10
Big Hole Mystic White
Big Hole Brewwery, Belgrade, MT
Sampled, Sept. 18
The white bison is a rare beast, with major cultural significance for the Plains Indians. This white grand cru quickly demonstrates its own rare qualities. The transparent gold body has a little wheat-driven haze while trending toward rich flavors like toffee and a nice pepperiness which emerges on the finish. At 7 percent ABV, it hits the strength expected of a Belgian grand cru, a nebolous named applied to a brewery's strongest or best. Rather than amping up the alcohol content higher, Big Hole sticks with a strong yet drinkable level.
Big Hole is the only brewery based in the town where I stayed for most of trip (Bozeman "suburb" Belgrade). Its grand cru proved the singlemost unique libation I acquired.
Rating: 9.5/10
Bitterrout Nut Brown Ale and Sawtooth Blonde Ale
Bitterroot Brewing, Hamilton, MT
Sampled: Sept. 14 (Nut Brown) and Sept. 19 (Sawtooth Blonde)
As much as I loved Moose Drool, this bomber bottle-only brew topped it, thanks to a sweetness elbowed against the nutty and baker’s chocolate flavors. Molasses, coffee and other dark malt flavors rise to the surface. My notes are minimal, but my sensory memories tell me not to skip it when back in Montana. With Sawtooth Blonde, Bitterroot comes through again with this crisp blonde ale. Very grainy and with a bone dry finish, it skewers any local stylistic competition. They only sell these in 22-oz. bomber bottles, and the quality shows.
Ratings: 9/10 for Nut Brown, 8/10 for Sawtooth
If you had the patience to read this far, or the brains to just skip ahead, here are my personal Top Five from Montana. Because the mercury reach 80 every day, the choices skew more toward summer fare. Deep winter would likely swap in a few heavier brews
Montana Top Five
Scapegoat Pale Ale
Big Hole Mystic White
Bayern Dancing Trout
Bitterroot Nut Brown Ale
Beltian White
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