Do you remember Olympia Beer? Falstaff? Hamms? ("The beer refreshing...Hamms!") How about Stroh's? Or Rainier? Pabst Blue Ribbon?

I do.

Oly was the beer of choice in my house & my first taste - when I was 10 & my Mother was out of the house. I had always wanted to know what the big deal was about Dad having a beer when he got home from work.

As I grew older, I came to realize that all those beers -- ALL of them -- tasted exactly alike.

Now, some of the labels are still around, still being brewed but not by the original companies. One thing is the same however...they still all taste exactly the same. Just like any other pale yellow lager that everybody else buys thinking that's the way beer is supposed to taste.

Change comes slow to the public and to affect change, business must be aggressive in their marketing. Just ask the folks at Anheuser-Busch. Their advertising juggernaut convinced us all how beer should taste...and we keep buying it.

But in little Airway Heights, about 5 miles south of Spokane, in an non-descript red building with no sign, lies the seeds of change.

Here, Graydon Brown & Bernie Duenwald are brewing beers of a different nature; full-bodied, golden and brown and amber colored, rich in hops and taste and all lagers. But not like any lagers you've ever tasted. These, you would swear, are ales because they're full of malts and spices and yield up tangy, tart and sweet flavors with aromas that range from bread to tobacco to honey and make you feel as though you're sitting in a luxurious leather chair in some gentleman's club smoking a fine cigar.

Graduates of the Siebold Institute where they met, Graydon has brewed at Anderson Valley and Anheuser-Busch as well as helping to establish breweries in several third world countries. He & Bernie are committed to brewing the best lagers they can, dropping in the hops early in the mix so they can stew thereby giving the beers plenty of hoppiness but not perceived as such; no god-awful bitterness here. Just rich, robust taste.

Craft brewers, I believe, are just as guilty as the big boys when it comes to manipulating the public. Here in the Pacific Northwest, we've somehow got ourselves involved in a hop competition; who can brew the most bitter beer and call it an IPA or a Red or a Pale Ale? When did it become fashionable to sacrifice taste, flavor, refreshment and satisfaction to mo' bitter? But that's what education is all about isn't it? And consider, if the pioneers of craft brewing had listened back in the 1980's when everyone said no one wants a beer that actually tastes like something...where would the industry be? An industry, by the way, that showed a more than 10 percent rise during last year's tough economic slow-down at the same time big brewers, wine and liquor all showed increases of 2 and 4 percent.

Golden Hills intends to market their product in cans; white with distinctive oval labels because it's cheaper (and therefore less expensive to the consumer) and keeps the beer as fresh as bottles. Plus cans are easier recycled. That's still about a year away. If you want to sample these brews now, a trip to Spokane is necessary. Many of the beers are in various taverns and restaurants in and around the area. However, a taproom is already in the works. The city, in fact, is demanding one.

So next time you want something cold and refreshing; a beer that you can really enjoy AND get all the satisfaction and taste you think you get from one of "those" lagers you drink now, take a chance and order up a Clem's Gold or Lizzy's Lager.

You will echo these words to the heavens; I have never tasted anything like this before.

reviewed on: 2009-09-09 17:26:44