Stillwater
Client Brewer
in Grand Mound,
Washington,
United States 🇺🇸
Associated Venue: Of Love & Regret - Pub and Provisions
Established in 2010
In 2011, Strumke woke one morning to find himself anointed as one of the top new brewers in the world by Ratebeer.com - a proclamation that would change the trajectory of his life forever. Over the last 10 years, he built and scaled Stillwater® into an international business, capturing broad attention with it’s multidisciplinary approach and award-winning products crafted worldwide.
Formerly known as Stillwater Artisanal. Brian is from Baltimore, MD but has relocated to Seattle. Stillwater was tied to the Brooklyn, NY scene and importer / brewery Twelve Percent. Beers have been brewed at various breweries, but with many coming out of Twelve Percent's North Haven, CT brewery. Now Brian has brought Stillwater to the state of Washington and set down roots. Stillwater beers are brewed at Talking Cedar as of late 2023/early 2024.
A dozen years after pioneering the “nomadic brewing” model, Stillwater® has planted roots in the Pacific Northwest. For the first time, all production of its inventive and style-bending beers is concentrated at one location under founder Brian Strumke’s oversight and control: Grand Mound, Washington’s Talking Cedar. Opened by the Chehalis Tribal Enterprises in 2020, Talking Cedar is a 35,000-square-foot complex that houses a state-of-the-art brewery with a 60-barrel brew house, rows of 120-barrel fermenters, and multiple oak foedres.
Travlr (30173) reviewed Existent from Stillwater 15 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
Cask. Very dark brown, large bubble edge head. Aroma of coffee grounds (in a good way). Taste has chocolate, coffee and a hint of bourbon. Nice.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7
Cask at Max’s. Hazy yellow, scant head. Aroma of fruit, malt,white pepper. Taste is malty, tangy, medium body. Not bad.
Travlr (30173) reviewed Channel Crossing Vol. 2 from Stillwater 15 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8
Draft. Medium brown clor. Aroma of nuts, light spice. Taste is apple skins, nutmeg. Very nice, a step up even from the first volume.
BMan1113VR (8090) reviewed Autumnal from Stillwater 15 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
Bottle. Pours with a murky deep brown body and a large off-white head. Great lace. Aromas of banana, rye, and straw primarily. Rustic, peppery, lightly phenolic, dry, CO2 tinge, buckwheat. Flavors are dry, slightly roasty and slightly metallic. Nuts, coffee grounds, earthy, pepper, lightly vinous finish. Lively bubbles, dry. Chlorophyll. Decent.
Travlr (30173) reviewed A Saison Darkly from Stillwater 15 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6
OK, I like Brian and his beers a lot, and I’ll go far out of my way to try his concoctions, and have not been disappointed. This one, though, misses the mark - the aroma is a bit strange, but maybe just because I’m not used to hibiscus. The taste is a bit plain and underwhelming. Oh well. I’m still looking forward to his next recipe.
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5
Bottle shared by Marcus. Pours hazy orange with a foamy off-white head. Aroma is quite spicey, earthy, and mayhap gingery. Lightly sweet with definite aspects of ginger - perhaps even menthol. Lightly earthy in the finish.
obguthr (12465) reviewed Stateside Saison from Stillwater 15 years ago
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 9.5
Strong pear and funk aroma with grass and peach accents. Hazy amber, effervescent, thick yellowish lacing head. Funky and herbal on the front end with pear at midpalate. Rosemary, thistle, and cedar notes are prevalent throughout. Finishes with pale malt. Alcohol is detectable but nicely complimentary. This is certainly a different kind of saison, but IMVHO, one of the absolute best. Nearly perfect!
caesar (10848) reviewed Stateside Saison from Stillwater 15 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6
Bottled. Hazy golden color, big off-white head. Aroma of soft hop. Bit dry, light cheesy. Hint of tartness. Clean finish.
Boutip (9769) reviewed Stateside Saison from Stillwater 15 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
Bottle: Poured a bright light orangey color ale with a large pure white foamy head with good retention and great lacing. Aroma consists of fruity ester with dry floral notes form the hops with some light funky yeast notes also discernable. Taste is also a nice mix between some funky notes with floral hops and dry aftertaste. I thought the malt bill was great if maybe a tad too sweet for my own taste. Body was full for style with great carbonation and no signs of alcohol. Very well brewed and something I would seek again fro sure.
notalush (7339) reviewed Stateside Saison from Stillwater 15 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
Thanks to JoeMcPhee for the bottle - I have been sitting on this for a while, but I just couldn’t wait any longer to try it - very effervescent pour - hazy straw color - moderate head of large, loose bubbles - dusty, earthy, lightly funky aroma - some dry, biscuity maltiness, spicy hops, light phenols, a little bit of tangy citrus way in the back - carbonation is full in the mouth and a wee bit abrasive - quite dry, flinty, with dusty yeast and crackery malts - a slight tangy, wheaty undercurrent throughout - faint earthy character - the spiciness of the New Zealand hops is very pronounced but works well with the dryness - decent all around, but not the home run I was hoping for - a little rough around the edges.