Fall is a good time for beer lovers. The hops have been harvested, yielding new brews, the pumpkin ales are pouring and the big winter beers are waiting in the wings. It's been a crazy few months in the Spokane beer community, so let's get you caught up.
Iron Goat Brewing Co. debuted a trio of excellent fresh hop beers this fall. All of them were on tap at the first-ever Inland Northwest Craft Beer Festival a couple of weeks ago, earning them one of the festival's longer lines. Both the Citra and Centennial fresh hop ales proved aromatic, as a good fresh-hopper should, but even more intriguing was their Spo-Hop. This fresh-hopped ale was created with 60 pounds of hops farmed from around town by local growers, Iron Goat fans and the Iron Goat brewers themselves — a community brewing effort, if you will. These beers were made in seriously small batches, so you'll want to head to the Iron Goat tap room before this stuff is all sucked down.
Something always seems to be in motion over at No-Li Brewhouse. Their latest announcement came this week, revealing their new No Boundaries series. The 22-ounce line features a new brew every two to three months; the first release, a bold winter brew called Winter Warmer at 7.5 percent alcohol, shipped out this week. Expect the next No Boundaries beer in January.
We've been waiting a few months for Spokane's first canned craft brew to hit the market, and it looks like Orlison Brewing is getting mighty close to rolling out their signature lagers. Cans are at the brewery and are being filled — you'll have one in your hands soon.
On the tasting room front, there'll be two more places to sip in Spokane soon, as River City Brewing has plans to open a tap room later this fall. The location at 111 S. Cedar St., formerly occupied by the Whitestone Winery tasting room, is in the same building as River City's brewing facility. Also, Ramblin' Road Beer has plans to open their Gonzaga-district tasting room (730 N. Columbus St.) sometime in November, giving Spokane a taste of their Belgian-style creations. ♦
