April is my birthday month and I am lucky enough to have good friends and family who love me. Sometimes people show their love and/or friendship in different ways. Some give kisses, some hugs, some bring the hard rocking. I am here to say nothing says love like the gift of beer. Frosty delivered a surprise package of three Ninkasi point twos (thanks to Liddell I know what that means). I’ve enjoyed the three distinct brews over the last few days.

In part one I’ll cover my favorite of the three; the Ninkasi Tricerahops Double IPA. But first, a little background on Ninkasi and my introduction to it.

I first heard of Ninkasi at John Barleycorn’s tavern in Tigard. I sat at the local McMenaman’s with my friend Ken listening to him, a fellow beer connoisseur, rant about how mediocre McMenaman’s beer is. Personally, I’ve never had a problem with a nice Rubinator (Terminator and Ruby) but I have encountered some interesting flavors in the past. In the end, I respect Ken’s opinion and like him, will continue to drink the swill the McMenemin brothers are serving.

As we were talking, Ken motioned to a nearby table interested in the conversation taking place. Evidently, the table guests were made up of some McMeniman’s big-wigs and the brewmaster from Ninkasi. Ken wondered what they could be talking about and pondered who it would be better for, McMenemin’s or Ninkasi. After a few minutes Jamie Floyd, Ninkasi brewmaster and owner, came over and said hi to Ken. Being fellow Eugenians they had met before. I was struck by how Jamie talked about his brews. He described them the way an artist talks about a series of paintings. He described them with beauty and vision. I had to try his beer. Its taken a few months and an especially painful close call at the Ship (in Multnohmah Village) but Frosty delivered Ninkasi to my doorstep.

So how does it taste damn it! Tricerahops Double IPA doesn’t disappoint. The first thing that took me was the complexity of the flavor. Hops for sure, but not just hops. Many brewers think they can create a great IPA  just by doubling or tripling the hops. Lagunitas and Rogue have been able to do it successfully but most fail with thundering cheek-smash.

Ninkasi Tricerahops Double IPA is a work of art.

This is Chris McGowen. Everyday that you go to work and your computer doesn’t die a horrible death from viruses and botnets (assuming you use McAfee), you should be thanking Chris.

Personally, every time I’m thirsty and am looking for solid alcoholic beverage to chill with on the patio, I thank Chris. Cause by golly, does this guy brew some tasty beer. Not just tasty, but in a true nod to the comfort in his manliness, a fruity beer. Very fruity, and perfect for a warm evening BBQ, or for boozing up your lady for a night of lovin’.

Chris’s entry was a tasty ruby ale that we at the Goodness have name “Ruby McGowen”. The name makes me think of one of those waitresses you’d order pie from in a Texas diner. Sweet, but with a hint of sharpness if you push her. In this case, Ruby had a cool, sharp flavor on first sip, then went down with a mellow fruitiness.

And unlike some fruity beers I’ve had, it had no sugary aftertaste to sicken the palette. (McMenamins!!) All in all a worthy brew that I hope I can con Chris into giving me some more of.

As an aside, I would like to acknowledge my restraint on not making a joke after I wrote the words “went down with a mellow fruitiness”, as well as give a mild taunt to the one called “Jilot”. Mr Packer, along with Chris himself, claimed that Ruby was overly “heady”. Well my friends, take a look at the picture of this pour. I call it skill. Or perhaps a testament to how much I drink…

Welcome folks to the first installment of a new series here on Frosty Goodness, the “He brews beer” collection. Quite a few of our fellow drunkards have begun brewing beer of their own, and we would be remiss if we didn’t highlight the ups and downs of their foray into garage speakeasies. So without further ado, lets begin.

This is Doug Boyer. Doug is a great guy, and when not coming up with ways to make our livers swim, is actually in charge of shaping our future as a big wig at a local school. Doug’s submission into the always dangerous hands of Frosty Goodness was a dark and tasty porter that we at the Goodness have officially named “Boyer Bathroom Porter“. (More on the name later)

Many of you no doubt know that I am no real fan of porters. They tend to have this “gristle” taste to them, as if someone just shoved a bunch of junk in a pot and cooked it until it stopped wiggling. I have had in my day, a few good ones. But until I sat on an empty stomach in Doug’s kitchen and drank 20 or so ounces of this beer, it had been really shaky. Kudos to Doug then for curing my fear of the dark yummy roast. BBB as we’ll call it for short, was super drinkable, had a yummy “toasty” flavor, and gave me a wicked buzz that carried all the way up to me putting my swooning head to bed. Luckily for me, if not for my liver, I walked away with “one for the road”.

In revisiting from above, why the name “Boyer Bathroom Porter”? Well, I really hope it had it’s brown color before the fermentation process. Because as it turns out, Doug did his fermenting in the downstairs family bathroom. Which as I told him, is a statement that is really a joke in itself.