My latest print article is out in the Bend Bulletin—a profile on Deschutes Brewery’s latest beer to join their year-round lineup, Pacific Wonderland Lager.

It’s styled as a dry-hopped American lager, brewed with Pilsner malt and classic German Hallertau hops for bittering and a newer variety, Tettnang Mandarina for finishing flavor and aroma. To find out more, I reached out to Veronica Vega, Deschutes’ brewmaster of product development.

“We kind of found ourselves at this fork in the road, where we started making these hoppy lagers at the pub, and seeing success there,” Vega said. “And the brewers were excited about this type of beer and having it as part of the lineup. When you get the brewers really excited about what they’re making, there’s just love there, so they’re gonna make a good beer.”

As is typical for Deschutes’ recipe development process, iterations of the beer flowed through the pub for customer feedback. In the case of Pacific Wonderland, two different paths evolved: American hoppy lager and traditional German Pilsner. Ultimately, the hoppy lager became the favorite.

Go read the full bit.