(SpoCOOL) A Spokane Blog

How many beers does Elysian release a year? Or month for that matter? Hell, one could probably start looking at their weekly schedule. I seem to find a new beer from them every time I go to the store.

That's not a bad thing, mind you, as the diversity of their beer is pretty impressive, and the quality is more often than not at least pretty good.

Superfuzz is just that: pretty good, or even quite good depending on your point of view. It's a blood orange pale running in at a session-y 5.4% ABV with 45 IBUs. A mild ale and one that, as the Blood Orange part of the name suggests, screams summer.

I quite liked it, but wish there was a bit more of a blood orange flavor to it. I certainly can understand why Elysian would want to keep it balanced, but just a liiiittle bit more of a kick would have sealed the deal for me.

It does have the traits one would expect from a blood orange ale, of course. The color is deep orange, bordering on red, topped by a good white head. Give it a whiff, and the orange hits well, flanked by malts and hops. The latter comes off as something one would expect from a standard pale.

Then, the flavor... I like it, but, as already mentioned, I wish the blood orange was just a liiiittle more pronounced. The standard pale backbone is not bad, but also not insanely exciting. Had the blood orange been just a liiiittle more flavor forward, I'd say this would have been a perfect summer ale.

All in all I might be too hard on the Superfuzz. I liked it. I think my opinion will be more positive when we approach the eighty degree mark, and the beer is sipped as a summer seasonal. Either way the Superfuzz is one worth trying. It is at least pretty good.

Fountain Café -- the Riverfront Park café located by, surprise-surprise, the fountain -- has opened its doors, probably not coincidentally in time for Bloomsday. Head on down to marvel at a perfectly mismatched logo and building. Then shake it off, and enjoy some local beverages at a choice spot. Opening hours are 11 am - 8 pm, daily; check their Facebook page for more, including a menu.

Friday, that's tomorrow, 5 pm will be your last chance in a while to check out Veraci at the Hop Shop. We were going to say it'll be the last chance to have their pizza coupled with awesome beer too, but as the Lantern has changed from being a (way too small) tavern to an actual tap house, you can keep the tradition rolling from May 16th, when South Perry's Thursday Market starts up. (Though you probably can't enjoy the two at the same time, as the Lantern now serves food.)

For something completely different: With Google Reader being unceremoniously shut down in a few months, we recommend Feedbin as a replacement. It'll cost you $2 a month, which might seem like a bad deal, but then, how far did the free Google Reader really get you? It also integrated wonderfully with the Reeder iPhone app.

How does one look at Hop Jack's after eating there? You could take the "glass half empty" approach, but that would bring back a lot of memories you in all likelihood had repressed. Therefore it seems appropriate for us to go the "glass half full" route. Some might call that denial, and some might be right, but... Well, let's just get on with this:

As you approach the Northside strip mall park where Hop Jack's resides, you know you are in for something special. These monuments, these testaments to human achievement, can only be compared to Sagrada Familia. The Old City of Jerusalem. And, dare we say it? The Hanging Gardens of Babylon.

Guiding your way through these architectural marvels is a generously wide road, one where any Hummer should feel comfortable navigating through.

Then, the goal, nay, the destination: Hop Jack's.

You are warmly greeted by a sign proclaiming the restaurant to be "a neighborhood gathering place". This brings forth memories of another favorite, namely Applebee's. Remember their old slogan? "Eating good in the neighborhood"? Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, and we are stoked Hop Jack's is taking on such a venerable spot. That takes gusto.

After taking our seats in an ever so comfortable booth, we pick up the menu, and gasp at the selection of dishes worthy of a king. Granted, we would usually be a bit miffed when a server rips the menu out of our hands, but here it certainly made sense. With a menu as deep as a Grisham novel, we certainly needed some guidance.

Being handheld through the complexities of the dishes, we landed on a buffalo wrap and a teriyaki burger. The service mindedness of Hop Jack's didn't stop there however. When we asked to substitute the meat patty for a black bean one, we were greeted with two thumbs up. The wonders one can do with pre-prepared food never ceases to impress us.

But, we are of course getting ahead of ourselves: The beer here is promised to be the coldest in town, and I'll be darned if that wasn't the case. Thirty. Four. Degrees. Yes, you read right: thirty-four as in 34. Never has No-Li's Crystal Bitter ever tasted more like watered down Coors Light, just like we prefer it!

As we enjoy our frosty beverage, the food arrives in record time. And what a feast it is! The buffalo chicken, expertly tossed in Frank's hot sauce is a sight to behold. Bite into it, and it is perfectly balanced with lettuce and tomatoes. The wrap? Probably picked up from the finest of bakeries: Fred Meyer. Cold on the outside, lukewarm on the inside... Amazing. Just amazing.

However, it didn't stop there. How can one not sing the burger's praises? Was it a black bean burger, or was it made from meat? We don't know! With the generous amount of teriyaki sauce dumped -- and we use that literally here -- on it, there was no way telling. We enjoy a side of mystery with our food, so this was a welcome surprise.

What else is there to say? El Celler de Can Roca was just named the best restaurant in the world, but we can only assume the jury just never tried Hop Jack's. This is a contender, and with six locations, you can enjoy their cuisine wherever you travel in Washington!

Splendid. Magnifique. Magical.

"Corporate Beer Still Sucks" proclaims Elysian's Loser bottle, and well in hand with the bottle's Sub Pop theme it goes. We could start splitting hairs here and mention Warner's ownership of Sub Pop, but whatever. Corporate or not, it doesn't stop Beach House's last album from being good.

Loser is a good beer too, and it's interesting to see the web's split opinions about the beer. I land firmly on the positive side, and I'd say it's one of the better pales I've tried in a while, right up there with Red Chair.

There's nothing to crazy or exciting as far as the look of Loser goes: A vaguely hazy golden orange topped by a foamy white head looks perfectly inviting, just in line with what you'd expect from a pale. The nose has a good mix of malts and citrus, with the hops making themselves known toward the back.

Loser is very, very refreshing flavor wise, which, to me, is the backbone of a good pale. The citrus makes itself known straight away, which goes very well with the dry finish. The malts have a clear presence, yet are balanced out by the hops. A sweet caramel flavor lingers after each sip.

This, then, is certainly a balanced pale. At 7% ABV it might be just a tad on the strong side for being a session beer, though with those refreshing notes... Enjoying a couple of them seems somewhat appropriate.

We could probably discuss back and forth if Loser is quite up there with Red Chair, so it's probably best to try them both side by side. You know, for science.