Rogue Farms GYO Beers

Rogue Farms Growing by the Glass

Rogue Farms are now producing every ingredient of their new GYO line of beers. I had the chance tonight to attend a free beer tasting and to hear more about them. It's amazing that a brewery set off to control their entire production from ground to glass as they call it. They not only grow the malt, rye, and hops but, also the spices and teas they add to their beers as well. Their mead is now made from the honey that their own bees produce. I am impressed.

The first beer we tasted tonight was Single Malt Ale. This was an excellent well balance beer for easy drinking. It was lightly floral with just a very slight hint of hops.  Good beer for a hot afternoon.

The second was Good Chit Pilsner and it really was good. In fact this might now be at the top of my list of Pilsners. It was sweet but not overly malty, almost no trace of hops, and no after taste. I can picture drinking this beer with some watermelon after mowing the lawn.

Third in line was Dirtoir Black Lager. I know they are calling this a lager but I'm going to call it a porter. Sure they used a lager yeast but if you tasted it and weren't told, you would swear that it was a excellently brewed porter. It was very malty with great hints of smoke and chocolate malts. This would be better suited for the end of a rainy day than the middle of a sunny one but good nonetheless.

The fourth beer was ORegasmic Ale, a very nicely hopped IPA. It was well balanced with a sweet malt taste, full mouthfeel, and bite of their Freedom and Liberty hops. I can see drinking this with some chips and sour cream  and chive dip. Makes me think about long hot summer days.

Fifth in line was a Mead.....it was a mead, not bad but still a mead....next

The sixth and final beer was Roguenbeir Rye Ale, my favorite of the group and the one I bought to take home. It was smoky, malty, very smooth, with a light mouthfeel. I drank this with a avocado hamburger fresh off the grill and they matched perfect. I'd suggest avoiding any smoked foods as the beer is smoky enough. Maybe a grilled chicken salad with garden fresh tomatoes and a balsamic vinaigrette  dressing.

As a quick side note, if you get a chance to attend one of their beer tastings do it, they gave us free pint glasses, bumper stickers, and wrist bands on top of sampling all the great beers.