Did you know we have a local company that makes hot sauces? We didn't, but apparently we do: Fletcher's Sauce Co is located in Mead, and their products are starting to appear around town.
We tried their Gourmet Hot Sauce at the Two Seven along with a chicken caesar soft taco, and I gotta say... Great suggestion on the server's part. This is not a bad hot sauce at all, one that is plenty different from, say, Frank's.
It's hot, certainly, and the heat lingers, but never to the point where it burns your tongue off. There's a very gentle smokiness toward the back that gives the overall flavor a bit of character, and, importantly, I did not notice much of a sweetness. That's one thing that bugs me about hot sauces -- that artificial sweetness they so often have.
There are plenty of Fletcher's sauces to try, and you can find their bottles at Rosauers stores among other places. We like these guys, and we also like the logo which reminds us of Jonah Hex. (Original, mind you, not the Josh Brolin version.)
Anyway!
Check Fletcher's out. The Gourmet Hot Sauce is one of the better hot sauces we've tried lately.
Remember SpoCUP? Of course you do! The inaugural coffee crawl takes place October 20th with proceeds going to Big Table, and... Well, just re-read our introductory post if you need a reminder -- SpoCUP will be a lot of fun.
The signup page is now open at Big Table, so if you want to be a sensible, early registrant, you can sign up for $20 right now. And of course, for those $20 you will get some loot, and who doesn't like loot? The communists, that's who.
For SpoCUP you will get a t-shirt and a commemorative Passport, with graphics designed by the always imitable Karli Ingersoll. To give you an idea what you can expect, take a look at the event poster...
... and just imagine yourself with something in that style on your chest. You'll be totally hip.
And of course, the $20 will also get you into the raffle -- every spot you visit will add a ticket to the bucket.
T-shirt, Passport, a chance to assist Big Table, while joining a bunch of awesome people drinking coffee and other libations at five great spots around town? How can you go wrong? Run and register now for $20; $30 at the day of the event. Good times and good coffee supporting a good cause make for a good combination
We tried Dogfish Head's Punkin Ale up at ye olde Manito this weekend -- more about their mac and cheese later -- and let it be said, this is an excellent beer on tap. (And not bad on bottle either.) Most pumpkin ales are a bit too heavy on the artificial flavor, but Dogfish Head really has nailed the recipe down for their fall seasonal.
The golden amber color has a hue reminiscent of a pumpkin. Granted, many others try to do the same, but the Punkin actually succeeds. Contrasting it is a crisp, white head, about half a finger's worth, with minimal lacing.
Smelling it, and it's like being transported into The Great Pumpkin -- I'm sure you remember Linus in the patch. The smell of pumpkin lies on top, flanked by hints of nutmeg. A bit of maltiness can be found if you really look for it.
Sip, and the flavor is surprisingly mellow, but not in a bad way. The gentle notes of pumpkin plays quite well with a malty backbone, and there's just a sweetness of brown sugar partnering up with nutmeg quite brilliantly.
That the ale is 7% on the ABV scale is a bit surprising. The flavors are nicely mellow, and you'd think this would be a 5% drink, so go easy. The Punkin is rather deceiving in that sense.
So here we are again. It's September, the thermometer is hovering around eighty, and Deschutes has released its winter seasonal. I don't get it. Or rather, I do get it: It's all about the mad race of getting the seasonal out there first. I get it, but I don't understand the need to do that. Jubelale is an excellent beer, technically speaking, but I'm not sure how much anyone really can enjoy it when it's warmer than it was when this year's summer seasonals debuted...
That's not to say people haven't tried: The always elusive Doxey suggested drinking it in a cooler, pretending it was winter. That was only slightly more extreme than Brad's idea of drinking the beer at 7am, when the temperature would be more agreeable.
But I digress. This is a very good beer; similar to last year, though different enough to still be interesting. The color is a deep, dark copper, with winter-like scents of spices and caramel emitting from the glass.
So, really, same as last year as far as look and smell go, but the flavor seems to have been slightly altered. The 2012 feels even maltier than previous years, which is pretty impressive if you're into the malty stuff. Flanking the familiar notes of spices -- cloves in particular -- and caramel is a somewhat odd aftertaste of banana. It's not unpleasant, but unexpected.
In that sense Jubelale is a more extreme version of its previous selves. It weighs in at 6.7% ABV with a medium body, and there's a lot of flavor here.
Really, it'll be a great drink come cooler times. Right now, though? I'm not so sure.
