Wild Ride Brewing Company - Hippy Haze

Wild Ride's Hippy Haze presents a well-hazed golden orange color with a cap of persistent foam that laces as it drops. On the nose, this hazy IPA offers up quite the fruity impression; look for big tropical, citric and floral notes. We picked up prominent pineapple, touches of grapefruit, hints of pine, and herbal spice. We're off to a good start, and thankfully the story continues much the same way on the palate. The flavor offers huge juiciness as grapefruit and orange notes meld with softer pineapple, while a resinous grassy, herbal spice component wells up amidst a moderately firm bitterness that hangs on and lingers in the finish with a clinging, drying note of grapefruit. The malt backbone here is clean, allowing the hops to dominate while still providing plenty of heft, structure, and balance. We'd pair this brew with dishes that play off this IPA's big fruitiness, such as citrus marinated pork, or chicken with grilled pineapple and a spicy teriyaki sauce. Cheers!

Situated in Deschutes County, in Oregon's high desert on the eastern side of the Cascades, sits the small city of Redmond. Just 15 miles north of Bend, Redmond is pretty much smack dab right in the center of Oregon, a state well-known for its exceptional beer. For a group of Redmond natives who were lifelong friends and craft beer lovers, the idea of opening a brewery and tap room downtown turned from a dream into a reality when the first beers of Wild Ride started flowing in May of 2014.

Planning for the brewery began in late 2011. Joining the Redmond natives was Paul Bergeman who brought his 13 years of brewing experience to the team to serve as brewmaster (or Beer Maestro, as they like to say). Paul's brewing experience includes time at Portland's Laurelwood Brewing Co., as well as serving in the position of Brewing Manager at Hawaii's famous Kona Brewing Co. With the right people in place, the next step was finding the right location. In 2013, the team found an old lumber warehouse in downtown Redmond that would be perfect for a brewery, although a ton of work had to be done first. Full utilities were added, including running water and waste water pretreatment. A brand new 20-barrel brewing system was installed, giving them today a total production of just over 9000 barrels per year. Their on-site Tap Room is family friendly and served by multiple local food trucks, so visitors can enjoy good grub along with some awesome local beer. We're very much looking forward to seeing how this Wild Ride evolves over the next few years. In their short existence, they've already garnered a slew of medals and awards from numerous competitions including the North American Beer Awards, US Open Beer Championship, Oregon Beer Awards, Best of Craft Beer Awards, and more. For more info, call 541-516-8544 or visit www.wildridebrew.com.