Maine’s newest brewery will be introducing its first beer at Harvest on the Harbor at Ocean Gateway in Portland on Saturday.

Bull Jagger Brewing Co. is going to specialize in lagers, and its first offering will be Portland Lager.

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Bull Jagger Brewing Co. will introduce Portland Lager at Harvest on the Harbor in Portland on Saturday. Courtesy photo

“This is a Helles lager, a traditional German beer from Bavaria,” said Allan Jagger, the entrepreneur part of the brewing partnership. “It is an easy-drinking beer, a little bread-y, the next step up from a Pilsener. It follows the German purity laws. No adjuncts, no sugar, no corn syrup — and we mill our own grain.”

The grains and hops — Tettnang hops for the Portland Lager — come from Germany.

And there’s more to come.

“The next one will be a Pilsener, which is a little lighter but a bit more hoppy than the Helles,” Jagger said. “Next summer, we hope to do a Maarzen style, which people call an Oktoberfest.”

Jagger’s partner is Tom Bull, who grew up in Bath and has worked at Gritty McDuff’s and the former Stone Coast brew pub in Portland. He helped set up the Liberal Cup brewery in Hallowell.

Jagger is from Waterville and had been in the vintage wood business, taking wood from barns that were being demolished. He met Bull about 2 1/2 years ago. Jagger began tasting some of the beers Bull was making at his home, and they decided to go into business.

“We are going to stick with lager because we are the only dedicated lager brewer in Maine,” Jagger said. “But more importantly, Tom and I both really love lager.”

Brewing lager takes longer than most ales because it has to be aged at cold temperatures, which is part of the reason most Maine brewers specialize in ales. Sebago Brewing Co. in Portland has just done its first true lager, an Oktoberfest, and Atlantic Brewing Co. in Bar Harbor has its Logger Lager, but those are the only two I can think of.

Bull Jagger Brewing Co. is located on Evergreen Drive in the Portland Industrial Park, adding to the brewers row that includes Geary’s, Allagash, Maine Beer Co. and Rising Tide.

“We are in a small space and can do about eight barrels a week in our cellar, which is a little over 1,800 bottles,” Jagger said. “We are going to use a 16.9-ounce bottle, the 500-milliliter European bottle. Everything we do is manual, with Tom and I filling the bottles.”

Jagger said almost all of the beer will be sold in bottles. Specialty-beer bars such as Novare Rez and the Great Lost Bear will occasionally get kegs.

Jagger hopes that Downeast Beverage on Commercial Street could have some bottles of Portland Lager on Friday, before the introduction at Harvest on the Harbor.

Portland Lager shares a name — but nothing else — with a beer created by Jonathan Bove and sold locally but brewed out of state just before Geary’s was founded 25 years ago.

BAXTER BREWING CO. in Lewiston is scheduled to release its third beer as of Nov. 1. Amber Road is described as a malt-forward ale with 5.5 percent alcohol. The company sent its first two beers, Pamola Xtra Pale Ale and Stowaway IPA, to market in January, and the amber ale will complement those two beers, which I like quite a bit.

WHEN I COMPLAINED that Boston Beer Co. did not conduct a Samuel Adams Beer Lover’s Choice event at Lakes Brew Fest, family friend and neighbor Steven Hill said he would get me some of the beers. His son Patrick has gone to work as a lawyer for the company, so he has an in.

The two beers this year are an Oaked Ale and a Maple Pecan Porter. I liked the porter best. It has a thick, tan head, a wonderfully malty aroma with just a hint of maple, and a vague nuttiness from the pecan. It has a smooth and silky mouthfeel, and I liked it quite a bit.

The Oaked Ale was fairly good, but it had a slightly metallic aftertaste that didn’t sit well.

Tom Atwell can be contacted at 791-6362 or at: tatwell@pressherald.com

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