NW Beer Excursion-Pt 3
Written by Jeff Barber
So after a pretty relaxing few days in Spokane, it was time to start the long drive back to Roseville. Leaving at 7:30AM, we figured our best bet for another beer stop was going to be dinner in Klamath Falls, OR (home of Klamath Basin Brewing). Klamath Basin won several awards at the West Coast Brewfest in 2008 and wowed several of us judging with their beers. After not seeing them at the 09 event, I looked forward to stopping in.
Being a lover of beers on nitro, I went right to their special Butt Crack Brown in nitro. With a noticeable nutty toffee flavor from the malt and an incredible creaminess from the nitro, this was a truly great beer. I also tasted the Crystal Springs IPA which was good but almost too balanced. I would like to have seen a more noticeable hop presence. My son in law loves Hefeweizens (Blue Frog is his favorite). He felt the Hogsback Hefe at Klamath Basin was excellent and really noticed the clove and banana notes, typical of the German style. My daughter had the Drop Dead Red. Also very enjoyable, this beer had a good malt base with a hop kick. She also noticed a slight fruitiness.
I would have liked to spend more time here and try more beers but we had to get back on the road again. Hopefully we’ll see Klamath Basin at this year’s California Brewfest. If not, the next time you are in Klamath Falls sop by the brewery. It’s worth the stop.
