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About The Bulletin. (Bend, OR) 1963-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 18, 2021)
PAGE 10 • GO! MAGAZINE THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2021 • THE BULLETIN BEER, WINE & MORE bendbulletin.com/godrink Worthy’s Peace and Salinity brewed with Madras malt BY JON ABERNATHY • For The Bulletin W orthy Brewing Company has been busy in the new year, releasing a number of new small batch beers as well as launching a new line of low-calorie hazy IPAs. As might be expected, many of these new beers are hop-forward, but one in particular bucks the trend and stands out with an unusual origin. Peace and Salinity is a lager brewed with lemon zest sea salt — but that’s not the un- usual part. It was brewed with malt from Mecca Grade Estate Malt, located in Ma- dras, which was malted during the Lions- head fire last summer. Smoke from the fire infused the grain, to give it a subtle smokey character typically only found in specialty malts. “The malted barley out of the bag had a subtle yet noticeable aroma, but just through tasting the beer during conditioning, it’s very subdued,” said Worthy brewmaster Dustin Kellner via email, when I asked him One class on February 19, 9 am & 12 pm at Bend Country Inn 62065 SE 27th St., Bend, OR Multi-State: $80.00 Oregon Included No Fee Oregon Only: $45.00 CLASS SIZE LIMITED about the beer. The beer is based on a Dortmunder Ex- port style lager, one of Germany’s pale lager styles inspired by pilsner. It originated in the Dortmund industrial region in Germany in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Dort- mund at the time was one of the country’s most important centers for the coal and steel industry; it was full of thirsty, hardworking men who wanted to drink beer at the end of a long day, which meant crisp, pale lager. Local breweries created their versions of pilsner-inspired lagers, and the popular, stronger “export” style became the dom- inant one for the region. It built upon the malt sweetness of Munich’s helles lager and the hop bitterness of pilsner, was typically stronger than either, and had a hint of sulfur from the local mineral-rich water. Once one of the most popular styles in Germany, particularly after World War II, the style was in decline by the 1970s. I asked Kellner what inspired it for Peace and Sa- linity. “Our brewer Hayden Reynolds had the idea for this beer and wanted to brew a la- ger that was markedly different from the lagers we have been brewing the last year,” he said. “The Dortmunder style was chosen to embrace the higher ‘export’ ABV as well as an opportunity to benefit from the extra body that the (addition of) under modified (Mecca Grade Gateway malt) would pro- vide.” And the lemon zest sea salt? “The lemon zest sea salt is a Jacobsen salt,” said Kellner. “A third of a pound was added to a 5bbl batch, and I think we were all surprised at how much lemon came through, likening it to a lemon cookie.” He provided samples of Peace and Salin- ity to review. The aroma is full of lusciously bready Jon Abernathy/for The Bulletin Worthy Brewing Company’s Peace and Salinity malt, think fresh-baked bread, or crackers, and the smoke is quite subtle, like camp- fire or burning grass. There are hints of the lemon zest essence, which is reminiscent of lemon pound cake. There is a light smokiness in the flavor which evokes German rauchbier (smoked beer), but it’s quite light. A bready malt sweetness brings to mind Grape Nuts cereal, toast and Triscuit-like crackers. I couldn’t really detect any salt and the lemon brings a clean snap to the finish. It’s light and crisp and nicely drinkable. It’s stronger than a typical pale lager, with 7.3% alcohol by volume, and is only avail- able on draft (though you can get cans and growlers filled to go). It’s a limited batch, brewed on Worthy’s five barrel pilot sys- tem for its Heart & Soul series. The brewery used most of the smoky malt to brew Peace and Salinity, so if you’re interested in trying it, don’t delay. e e Jon Abernathy is a beer writer and blogger and launched The Brew Site (www.thebrewsite.com) in 2004. He can be reached at jon@thebrewsite.com.