Beer Review(s) - Outlander Brewing - Federal Defenestration Irish Red and Dasein, Confused Hefeweizen

Fun Fact About the Brewery: 

I attended Outlander Brewing's grand opening in Fremont last night with Cassie, my aforementioned buddy Jim and his wife Andrea, joined later by a gaggle of other hooligans. The Outlander is setting out to specialize in small batch, experimental brews, which I'm a huge fan of. The brewpub is in a converted old house, right on the main drag in Fremont. The inside is nice and charming complete with old antique furniture. Looks like a perfect kind of place to hang out on a cold winter night. Luckily, since it's summer, they have an awesome patio, too, where you can sit and watch the wacky Fremont nightlife unfold in front of you.

The owners, sporting a deer in headlights look on their faces as they served a larger than expected crowd, were friendly and gracious. They were already out of their first 3 brews by the time we got there. Unfortunately, we missed the peanut butter chocolate beer, but I'm sure they'll make more soon. The two Outlander brews that I got to try were quite good, though, so here's the reviews:

Name: Federal Defenestration

Style: Irish Red ale

ABV: 7%

Thoughts: 

The name had me scratching my head, but Jim quickly pointed out that defenestration is the act of throwing something out of a window. I immediately called bullshit, but the internet quickly proved Jim correct. Jim's vocabulary 1, Eric 0. Anyways, this is a great take on the Irish Red style. It's a bit stronger than most Irish Reds, but it's well-rounded and doesn't overpower. It has that nice, warming red malt with just a slight bite to it, complete with a traditional dry finish. Nothing too fancy, but it's a unique style that you don't see very often from small breweries.

Rating: 3.75/5

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Nothing like the warm glow of a 7/11 to a give a lil' suburban ambiance, right?

Name: Dasein, Confused

Style: Hefeweizen

ABV: 5.2%

Thoughts:

Hefeweizens, like blonde ales, are typically seen like the wimpy lil' girly beers of the craft beer world because they're so easy to drink and usually lighter on alcohol content. Hefs, with their high wheat content, are particularly smooth. The literal translation of the German word dasein is "being there." I dig the creative names these Outlander guys are coming up with for their beers. Anyways, I'm not a big hef fan at all, but this was one of the best hefs I've had. Lots of fruitiness in the mix to liven up the cloudy wheat malt. Very refreshing and perfect for a warm summer night.

Rating: 4/5

Overall, Outlander Brewing is a fantastic addition to the Seattle craft beer community and I'll definitely be back.