Where I Want To Go: Stammtisch

I want a Grevensteiner. It’s an unfiltered lager and I don’t know anything about that! How does that impact the beer? I need to know.

At the Stammtisch, because it’s hot as hell in Portland and a place that tilts towards serving German lagers seems like a Pretty Good Idea. It’s pleasantly cool in here and very busy, although on a hot day like this? How could it not be. Wouldn’t you rather go down to any bar instead of be at home, in heat like this? On top of all that, I brewed today, which means my home is humid from the wort boil I did, in addition to the heat so let’s get out of dodge!

It’s been a lame 24 hours. Mot awful but definitely not good. Under the circumstances though, what else is there to do but continue to do the work? Go out, get beer, write. If the work is available to me, doing it may be the only way to get out of the headspace I am in.

The nice thing about German is that words pretty much pronounce as they appear on the page. Even if I’m doing it wrong, I’m still kind of doing it right. Unless I’m in Germany, in which case things are very different.

The lager comes in a mug. I like that it has a handle to keep people from touching the cold glass. A hint of breadiness from the thick head, but nothing very intense. As I raise it to my lips, the scent gets a little funky, more yeasty instead of bread.

But it is sweet and tasty. The finish is very clean, with just an elbow nudge of hops, likely Saaz but I’m not enough of an expert to say.

What I do like is the body of this beer. My tongue can roll it around my mouth just a little, instead of swishing through it like I might with a lighter beer. Nothing heavy about it, not at all; better to say that this beer actually has density, where a straight up lager might not.

I’m not sure how comfortable this table is, though. Everything is flat and angular in this place, except for the curved metal designs in the light fixtures and chandeliers. I am not sure how human that is, although perhaps it’s traditional? Plus, I feel like I’m sitting an awkward distance from the table. Maybe it’s an accommodation for the larger bellied amongst us?

Feels strange, that’s for certain. Perhaps I should’ve chosen to sit at the bar, except the stools seem as if they are quite high. Like slouching might be a good way to relax at the bar. Maybe it is.

I should ride the rail again soon. You see things at the front lines of the bar differently than you do at a table. Nature of the beast, perspective is. Let’s get some.