Eric C.
Yelp
Propolis is next to west marine and some big motel, you must walk around back in a gravel parking lot. Inside on a sunny Thursday evening in September are fancy antique couches, probably 5 people reading, very quiet like a library. There's a fridge of bottles at one wall and a long bar with taps.
Ask bartender what is good: he hands us a beer list and says it depends what we like, that they're 'all good.' Suggests we order the flight. I'm sort of intrinsically against 'flights' because usually there's a bunch of bad mixed in with the good. But... They have a short and long flight. After reading the menu we have no clue at all, these words that describe the various beers. We opt for the long flight for $35, which is about 3 pints of 7% beer-figure wed better get a full opinion. The long flight includes the more unusual aged beers.
We sit outside alone with dog. About 5 minutes later the bartender and a woman carry out a tray of full glasses, explain the order, how to pour, to map glasses to menu, and go back inside.
My wife and I spent the next hour tasting one amazing creation after another. Wife says sour beers taste like toilet cleaner but she liked the one sour that was included in our flight.
Every single beer was worthy of contemplation, like sit back with eyes closed. New combinations of flavors, really really exceptional. I've had one or two beers in my life that compare with these, maybe the best day at holy mountain, but never so many different but great beers at once.
When we went to pay I asked the bartender where all this beer came from, he says it's all brewed here. Who brews it? 'I do.', omg: this bartender is the actual brewer, the genius that made this stuff, he says he's self taught.
I am a bit worried that I just experienced a perfect storm of greatness and will be disappointed on my next visit.
I'd recommend everyone visit this place soon because it can't be so great forever.
As a comparison, I was recently in bend and visited Ale Apothecary. Similar type of beer but... AA had only 4 beers available, and all beer was $4/4oz, $8/8oz, etc, so the 4 beer flight was $16. Not only much more expensive than Propolis but the beer there, while good, didn't touch the crazy variety of flavors available at Propolis.