Lucky Labrador Brew House

Wednesday, 21Jan09
This evening we visited the Lucky Lab brew house in NW Portland.
Atmosphere - a comfortable public house style...nothing too fancy.
Food - Rob and Todd had the pulled pork sandwich which had a nice BBQ sauce. Steve had the knuckle sandwich that hit the spot.
Special Tour - The brewmaster Ben took us on a private tour behind the scenes and brewing at Lucky Lab. Very cool....the details are top secret, sorry.
Sampler glasses - Steve was very impressed with the sampler glasses. The shape and size caught his eye.

Beer Tasting -

1. Recession Session - Very light color and flavors. No bad tastes and probably would make a good summer beer. We assume the recession caused the brewer to go light on the ingredients to save money.
2. Dog Day IPA - Never buy it...flat...bland
3. Triple Threat IPA - More of a common IPA taste. A little bitter with a grapefruit flavor. A lingering after taste made it loose its appeal.
4. Got Hops - A little flat tasting and lacking character for what we expected to be a hoppy beer.
5. Super Dog IPA - All you want in an IPA! Good strong flavor up front and through. At the top of the list so far.
6. Hellraiser ESB - Good ESB. Full of flavor and they're back on track.
7. Crazy Ludwig Alt - Smooth with a little tingle on the tongue. Floral smell and a good flavor.
8. ZingerBeir - Easy to drink and mild. Definitely taste the ginger but probably wouldn't buy a pint.
   
9. Blue Dog Amber - Easy drinking, smooth, full Amber. Rob said he would drink a pitcher!
10. Brown Brown - Full and a little creamy. Drinkable but probably not my first choice.
11. Stumptown Porter - We had high hopes with a great aroma and initial taste...but the finish was a little weak almost watery. Steve calls it a "bad closer" ... which is not good coming from a salesman.
12. Black Lab Stout - Nice and rich. Good flavors. Steve said it was the best of their dark beer and Todd thought it was the best of the bunch. Rob liked it too.
13. ZingerBeir on Nitro - a little creamier and the ginger flavor is more pronounced.
    

The Lucky Lab was a good experience and I'm sure we will be back. The top two beers in the bunch would definitely be the Black Lab Stout and the Super Dog IPA. Both had lots of flavor and rank well above average in their category.

Until next time,
Todd