Rouge Pub – San Francisco

I know Rogue is from Oregon and not San Francisco or even California, but I am rarely able to get their beers on tap so I had to make a stop. You can find the Rogue Pub on Union Street in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco.

My nose was pretty stuffed up when I arrived as the cool weather in SF was wreaking havoc on my sinuses, so my tasting notes are somewhat incomplete. I do what I can, and somebody HAS to taste all the beers in the world so I persist!

I took to the sampler again, actually two this time! Any four Rogue ales from the tap for $8. A good deal by me.

Flight 1

Chamomellow

Golden ale brewed with Chamomile.

Golden color and hazy. Short white head. Chamomile influence is subtle, but having made a wine with it recently I was able to pick it out. Nice and smooth, with a moderately bitter finish. Minimal hop in both the nose and mouth. This didn’t kill it for me, but there was nothing wrong with it.

Dead Guy

Maibock

Gold/orange color, slight haze. Light, sweet malts, gentle dried fruit essence in the mouth. Moderate bitterness with malty, bready finish. This is a full bodied beer with pleasant flavors and serious drinkability.

Buckman Village Brewery Black Saison
Black Saison

Molasses in the nose and mouth. Also a bit of coffee and brown spices. Medium brown color and clear. Very light in body.

Brutal “Bitter” IPA

Imperial Bitter

Huge nose full of hops. Citrus, resin and floral aromas are wrapped together. Medium bodied and moderately bitter with long hop laden finish. I didn’t feel that the word “brutal” in the name fit my impression of the beer, but then again I like hoppy beers!

Flight 2

John-John Whiskey Barrel Aged Dead Guy

Barrel Aged Maibock

Considerable differences from the traditional version. Lots of fruit, a bit sour and more orange in the color. Even more enjoyable in my opinion than the classic.

Hazelnut Brown Nectar

Brown Ale

Lots of hazelnut in the mouth. Starts out a bit sweet, but finishes dry. Low carbonation. The nut flavors swim along the finish which is quite nice.

Shakespeare Oatmeal Stout

Stout

Dark, dark brown and opaque. Smooth and slightly sweet. Nicely balanced with a long clean finish.

Double Chocolate Stout
Stout

Tons of chocolate in the nose. Dark, dark brown and opaque. Sweet malts with balanced bitterness. Long chocolate and coffee finish. Very smooth and clean.

Going Rogue

The barrel aged Dead Guy was my favorite of the lighter beers and the Double Chocolate Stout was inspiring to me for what it helped me understand about what we can do with this style at home. We know we need to work on our chocolate stout and this is pretty good example to work from.

The Rogue Brewery is on my list of places to visit when I am in OR for #WBC12 next August. It is a bit of a ride but that’s what the extra days are for!

Cheers!

Jason