For may years when I was first discovering “craft” beer, I was lucky enough to travel to Washington state where I discovered a new favorite. The beer was called Mirror Pond and of course it came from Deschutes Brewery in Bend, OR.
Long about 2008, I stumbled across a new beer coming to the Deschutes Reserve Series called The Dissident. The beer was a Flanders-style sour brown ale that was barrel-aged (a relative rarity in 2008), and it immediately became a favorite. Every visit to the Pacific northwest started (and ended) with a search for The Dissident, and every year I managed to find it.
Jump forward to 2023 and I’m more than a bit excited to get a chance to try a new/returning variant of The Dissident that uses Oregon-grown cherries. If you add my love for The Dissident with my love for cherry-based beers, I have a feeling we have a winner here. I’ve sampled the other variants like peach, boysenberry, marionberry and even the Brett version, but I’m excited to see the cherry version return to help celebrate the 15th anniversary of the beer.
Of course I’m excited to taste The Dissident again…so off we go.
Deschutes 2023 The Dissident Classic Cherry Edition
Brewery Description: This ode to the classic Oud Bruin reveals unmatched complexity of flavor, including cherries and oak, with a pleasant, bright acidity. And it is unlike anything else we brew, worthy of the name The Dissident.
ABV: 10.5%
IBU: 16
Style: BA Flanders-style sour brown ale
Packaging: 500ml Bottles
Appearance: Bright bronze red
Aroma: Mild funk, cherries & oak
Mouthfeel: Medium & satisfying
Taste: Fresh sweet cherries, mild funk, caramel malt, subtle oak and bright acidity
Overall: The Dissident has to be not only one of my favorite Oud Bruin-style beers, but also one of the more complex and enjoyable beers to drink and share. The return of the cherry version adds another really enjoyable layer to the already complex set of flavors and overall this continues to be my favorite version of The Dissident. Go buy this beer!
As a bonus, Deschutes was kind enough to send along a bottle of The Dissident 2019 Reserve to do a side-by-side tasting. I’m happy to report that not only did I love them both, but there were surprising differences beyond what I’d call subtle. The 2019 Reserve definitely had a bit more oak and amazing funk flavor to it, but I was surprised how much the cherry flavors had deepened and how they managed to lend further balance to the overall taste of the beer. I can’t pick a winner between the two, but I can say I found a new love for The Dissident and it’s amazing set of complex and enjoyable flavors.
Deschutes The Dissident Classic Cherry Edition is available now in 500ml bottles as part of a specialty limited release, so get out there and try it for yourself. You can thank me later, but when you do try it, be sure to let us know what YOU think. zzubreebym
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