Fresh Hop Alert: King Cone

By Frank James

I stopped by the Deschutes Brewery in Portland’s Pearl District and was lucky enough to get a taste of their new fresh hop ale, the King Cone. This fresh hop ale was brewed right there on site at the Portland brewery.

According to the bartender, it’s only been on tap for two days.

This is a truly exquisite beer, with an almost overwhelming sensation of freshness.

It’s brewed with Centennial hops that were added to the boil less than two hours after being picked. Three types of Crystal malts provide balance. A beer drinker experiences that really nice pine aroma, a very pleasant hint of citrus, that unmistakable flavor of fresh hops and an extremely well-balanced and drinkable beer. And the beer has much more substance than you’d imagine from a beer that comes in at 40 IBUs and 5.4 ABV.

This beer makes waiting for the fresh hop season worthwhile, and it’s certainly worth a trip to the pub, just for a sample.

The bartender also hinted that something special, another fresh hop ale, would be coming on tap later this week. Though he didn’t offer any other specifics, if the coming attractions are anywhere near as tasty as the King Cone, it’ll be well worth a stop by the Pearl District to try a pint before it’s gone.