Eel River Porter
Eel River Brewing Co., Scotia, Calif.
www.eelriverbrewing.com
5.5 percent ABV
The event is not some full-blown bacchanalia of barley madness, but rather a simple weekend gathering of several homebrewers. Cabin owner Dave bought more than a hundred acres of land a couple of decades ago, built his cabin and has held his beer camp annually for about 15 years.
We enjoyed quite a few very good beers, including Odyssey Weizenbock and Ryezome Red from the Blue Heron Brewpub in nearby Marshfield, some Billy’s Chilies from Colorado’s Twisted Pine and Eel River Porter and Raven’s Eye Imperial Stout.
Eel River claims to be the first organic-certified brewery in the United States. The certification comes from the California Certified Organic Farmers organization, which inspects applicants on a yearly basis.
There is nothing magical in the flavor of organic beers that occurs because of their growing methods — they are either well made beers or not.
Eel River Porter is a tasty concoction that boasts a bold roasted flavor with highlights of chocolate, coffee and malt in the dark-brown body, which has that creamy, almost oily character that I usually only find in porters made in England.
Although the porter came in a 12-ounce bottle, the Eel River Raven’s Eye Imperial Stout comes in a 25-ounce bomber and clocks in at 9.5 percent ABV. It shares some of the same qualities as the porter, but with much more malt and hops coming through, a bit more chocolate flavor and a dark fruit background.
The body was heavy, like it should be for the style, but not syrupy or sweet. It also had an interesting wine-like tanginess toward the end that helped balance out the heavy malt.
Eel River beers are available in about half the U.S. states; the company’s distribution link is at www.eelriverbrewing.com/distribution.html. The beers I’ve had from the brewery so far shows that it stands out, even in the highly competitive California market.
Beer Man sez: No slippery claims here — Eel River Porter and Imperial Stout are quality beers.
