Drank: Tender Loving Empire (Fort George Brewery)

Fort George's Tender Loving Empire Northwest Pale Ale is named after the venerable Portland indie-pop record label and boutique, and it drinks the way many of the bands on the label sound: pleasant, well-made, unlikely to upset anyone. That might read like faint praise, but a middle-of-the-road pale ale is welcome in an era when craft brewing is trending toward exponentially greater extremes. (Seriously, one of these days I expect to open a can and find nothing but tightly packed hop plants inside.) Sporting an IBU rating of "Just the Right Amount," the Astoria brewery's limited-edition seasonal has a light honey flavor, ideal for porch drinking, though the beer itself is less impressive than the lovely can design, or the four live performance videos accompanying its release (viewable at fortgeorgebrewery.com/tenderlovingempire). Like an Y La Bamba record, the most it will inspire is a polite head nod. But at the right time, in the right mood, it could be exactly what you want. Recommended.

WWeek 2015