Archive for the ‘Articles’ category

The Beer Finder

December 17th, 2009

During our recent site updates, I rewrote some of the code in the Beer Finder’s “Similar Beers” engine to spit out more accurate results. It ain’t perfect, but it does a good job of leading you down the right path. Think of it more like a beer compass instead of a beer GPS: you may not get turn by turn directions, but you’ll know which direction is North. You also might get lost along the way, but you’ll have a great trip!

Imagine this: Winter is just around the corner and you’re dreaming of Barleywines. You remember that delicious Old Tavern Rat you had at New Old Lompoc and you’re wondering what else is out there. Simple. Click on the Beer Finder and select New Old Lompoc from the brewery drop down list. Find Old Tavern Rat in the list and click on Show Details. You’ll notice that the bottom says that there are 7 other similar beers. Click on that to start your journey.

Now, these beers aren’t hand-picked matches (we’re not made of free time). We’ve hired monkeys to roll some dice and then flip some levers. Actually, they’re retired space-monkeys, so they’ve got a little bit of smarts: they’ll match beer style and point you toward a range of IBUs, and ABVs (as well as fiddling with some other beer-related variables). Again, it’s not an exact science, but it’s meant to be more of a pondering experiment where the result leads you to beers you might not have thought of before.

As with everything else on the site, these tools are here to help you discover the great world of Portland beer. Comments, suggestions, and lambasting welcome!

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Posted in Articles, Authors, Matt Wiater

Tags: Website Features

Holiday Ale Festival 2009: Pretty Great

December 3rd, 2009

In years past I have taken the Holiday Ale Festival for granted. Sure, it has always had a phenomenal selection of beers and I always enjoy myself, but for some reason in my mind it was always overshadowed by the plethora of summer festivals. I have often unfairly equated “summer” with “better” and this notion probably stems from my school days when summer actually meant something. Hundred degree temperatures and hay fever did not matter much as long as school was not in session. However, now that I am firmly planted in adult life, summer is just that hot period that makes my back stick to things and when I feel a deep loathing toward children. Luckily, with my season bias out of the way, this year I was able to enjoy the Holiday Ale Festival more than I ever have before. After attending Wednesday, I can honestly say this may be the most satisfying beer festival Portland has to offer.

I began to enjoy myself from the moment I arrived. Entering the giant tent in Pioneer Courthouse Square was like entering into that scene from The Muppet Christmas Carol where the creepy Ghost of Christmas Past takes Michael Caine to the fun and mildly wacky Christmas party being thrown by a bear. Except there were no ghosts, bears, Muppets or Michael Caine. And it wasn’t the Victorian Era. Plus, the tent at the festival was heated with gas and in The Muppet Christmas Carol there were wood fires burning to keep the festivities heated. Actually, aside from the holiday party feel of the festival, the Holiday Ale Festival shares minimal similarities to The Muppet Christmas Carol, or any other version of A Christmas Carol. Well, unless there is a version of a Christmas Carol I don’t know about where a ghost takes Scrooge to a beer festival in the middle of present day Portland where he is able to sample over 45 big, warming beers from December 2nd to December 5th which, I am sure we can all agree, would be the best Christmas Carol ever. In short, it was a festive atmosphere, something that is often missing from many festivals.

Wednesday evening crowd.

What else is often missing from festivals, beer festivals that is, is the emphasis on the beer. Luckily, the Holiday Ale Festival does not forget the “ale” in in the middle of it’s name. Not only does it not forget it, it puts it on a pedestal made of diamonds and magic. Those 45+ big, cold weather-thwarting beers our hypothetical Scrooge could try as he walked up and down the aisles range from Imperial Reds to Stouts to Barleywines to American Strong Ales, all of which are artfully crafted and none of which pander to the masses. Everything seems to be special. For example of this beer specialness, Cascade has created magic with their “Sang Noir 2009″, described as a “barrel aged sour ale” but should actually be described as a “seven barrel blend of awesome with a cherry finish that should have you thanking the lord that this beer exists”. For another example, Full Sail has taken their Wassail, which is normally a fairly standard Winter Warmer, and combined it with their Imperial Porter aged for nine months in Makers Mark casks. If you need a third example, this time one that completely embodies the words “holiday” and “ale” all at once, Fort George has brought North III to the Fest, a beer that was made using actual sugar plums, a fruit I assumed was made up entirely for The Nutcracker that I now know is very real. North III is sweet, rich, and hits you in the face with holiday cheer.

While all of the above were absolutely fantastic, the highlight for me so far this year has been the 2009 Jim, a collaboration between Preston Weesner (that fellow who organizes the festival) and Hair of the Dog’s Alan Sprints. Jim is a blended beer made with Hair of the Dog’s Fred From the Wood, Doggie Claws and Blue Dot IPA mixed with a German bock, an English brown ale and an American strong ale. What makes Jim all the more special, and what made it the favorite in my eyes, was the amount of effort and love that went into this tribute to the late Jim Kennedy. If you ever have the opportunity to hear Preston (that fellow who organizes the festival) speak about this beer and the man to whom this beer is a tribute, I suggest you listen. I was lucky enough to have such an opportunity and am an thankful for it. I would attempt to summarize his remarks on Jim, both the man and the beer, but I am just not that good of a writer. All I can say is that Jim, the beer, is big on Doggie Claws and Blue Dot but sweet enough to fight the chill in the air. If you were cold before tasting Jim, I can assure you that feeling will not last.

Sip, write, sip. Sip, write, sip.

The only thing that pulled me away from the festival was this article’s deadline, because I want to be back Thursday promptly at 11:00 am to get my hands on yet another Cascade beer. Unlike the Sang Noir 2009, this Cascade is a Baltic Porter and will only be pouring in limited quantities beginning at 11:00 am Thursday. It is probably amazing and will only be pouring at the Holiday Ale Festival. This is far from the only limited release beer at the festival. Thursday’s specials include a barrel of Bayern Face Plant, a dark wheat bock, Da Grind Buzz Kona Coffee Imperial Stout and Ho Ho Homo Erectus, which is Walking Man’s imperial IPA aged in rum barrels. For specials on following days you will have to subscribe to The Holiday Ale Festival’s feeds on either Twitter or Facebook which is where they will be announcing what will be tapping and when. So for all of you who secretly wanted a Facebook account but pretended like you didn’t, here is your chance to get one and save face. Seriously, do it, we can play FarmVille together.

Check out the rest of the photos here.

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Posted in Articles, Ian Seniff

Tags: Holiday Ale Festival

A Night at Bailey’s Taproom

November 17th, 2009

Occasionally my job is horrible. It is high stress and low pay and I often find myself wishing I had gotten a degree in something that would have given me a job inside a cubicle, locked away from the public who I increasingly disdain with every passing hour. As my feet ache more and more from the constant standing and my capacity for dealing with inane questions reaches its breaking point, I am able to take solace in two things. One, I have a job which is good for providing me the ability to pay for food and shelter and the occasional decorative plate set. Two, Bailey’s Taproom exists and soon I will be there.

I have been frequenting Bailey’s for a little over a year now, about half as long as they have been open. What began with casual once a month visits has blossomed to a twice a week love affair that shows no signs of going stagnant. During the summer on Thursday evenings I was sure to be found sitting outside promptly at 4:00pm when they opened, book in hand enjoying a damn fine beer. Now my perch has shifted inside but the frequency of my visits remains. The only reason I have hesitated to even write this post is because I felt I wanted to keep Bailey’s as my own and I have ego issues that led me to believe I held any sort of influence on whether or not people would attend based on my writings—phenomenally informative and persuasive as they may be.

For those who do not yet know about Bailey’s, here is a little of what you can expect. First and most obvious of all; the beer selection is fantastic. With a heavy focus on Oregon and North West delights, Bailey’s never disappoints with their representation of numerous styles on their 20 taps and one beer engine. Seeming never to repeat itself, the diverse selection lends itself to experimental sampling. Just last Thursday I had a Gose from Cascade Brewing, a Vesuvius from Full Sail, followed by a Scottish Ale from Big Horse, capped off with a bourbon aged red from Roots. I had never even heard of a Gose before, let alone tried one. It was enjoyable but I had regrets about getting the 20oz. If you are unable to find something appealing on tap which is essentially impossible (and only mentioned so that I can bring up their great bottle selection) Bailey’s has a great bottle selection.

A typical Wednesday night sight.

With such a wide range of frequently rotating beers, you would think it forgivable if the server came up less than knowledgeable on a beer here or there. Luckily for me, a man who is incapable of forgiveness, the staff at Bailey’s is top notch in their beer knowledge. They are also top notch in every other aspect of service. I have never waited longer than 3 minutes to get a drink and I have never been met with anything other than a welcome greeting. While my experience with efficient service may be because I have never been in on a busy Saturday night, I am sure even then the welcome attitude remains despite a wait that may exceed 3 minutes. Friendly, knowledgeable, fast and happy to give samples, Bailey’s staff gives you the best service in town.

The service is complimented with a pleasantly simple atmosphere in which to enjoy your recently poured beverage. The corner location at SW Ankeny and Broadway gives Bailey’s a unique floor plan which goes well with their minimalist design scheme. The beer is poured from unadorned tap handles and the tap list is written on a dry erase board right behind them. You can enjoy your beer from a table for two, table for more, love seat or chair surrounded by huge windows adorned at the bottom with an impressive bottle collection. All of this creates a comfortable and enjoyable setting unmatched by other beer bars. It is like your living room if your living room wasn’t filled with sadness and scabies. That’s right, you have scabies.

The only bad thing is there is essentially no food at Bailey’s. Basically there are chips and one time I think I saw someone with some olives or other tiny circular edibles. However this is one of those bad things that is actually a good thing, like when your arm falls off and you find out there was gold inside your arm and you use the gold money to buy an awesome new cyborg arm. You see, the fantastically marvelous Mexican restaurant Santeria will deliver their fantastically marvelous Mexican food right to your table at Bailey’s. I suggest the pastor nachos as long as you have two friends with you who also enjoy nachos due to nacho largeness. When not in the mood for massive stomach expansion, the tacos topped with pickled onions provide an excellent alternative. With the outsourcing of food I am guessing that this keeps the service efficiency high as well as keeping drink prices fairly low ($4.50 for most 20oz glasses and 2.50 for most 10oz glasses). That sounds possible right?

By now you get the picture: I like Bailey’s. When people want to grab a drink somewhere, I suggest here first. When I see that “In PDX for the weekend” post on the BeerAdvocate forums, I tell people to go here. When I just want to sit and read a book and have a great beer, I go here. Try it for yourself. If you haven’t yet and I am sure you will agree…unless you are a Communist.

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Posted in Articles, Ian Seniff

Tags: Bailey's Taproom

Rating Beer at portlandbeer.org

November 15th, 2009

Beer Ratings System.

In order to personalize your experience at our site, we’re investigating the world of beer rating. There are plenty of sites that let you review and rate beer, but we want to do something a little different. Most sites will compile ratings and offer them to the world at large to keep a current tally on worldwide beer tastes. It’s great for the history books, but as selfless as you might be, wouldn’t you like a little something in return?

We’d like to take our site one step further and have it feel like a tailor made suit. Our rating system will simply act as a trigger for certain events. Do you have twenty-three five star beers on your list? Well, every time any of those beers are re-released, we’ll let you know. Ever wander the streets and wonder how close your four or five star beers are? You rate the beers, set the threshold, and we’ll let you know. Simple as that. Well, simple for you once we go through the painstaking process of implementing these features.

There is also some benefit to the cloud of combined data. If one hundred locals give a beer a five star rating, and you haven’t tried it, wouldn’t you like to know? We think that is a beneficial aspect to the data we collect, so we’ll turn that over as well. Your ratings will always remain private to you, except where they are anonymously featured as part of the bigger ratings cloud. So, we’ll be working on ways to make this aspect beneficial as well.

So, we’re looking for Beta testers for this new ratings feature. If you’re interested in lending a hand, please get in touch with us through our contact form and let us know you’d like to help. As always, we rely on your suggestions to keep us growing in the right direction.

Cheers!
Matt

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Posted in Articles, Matt Wiater

Tags: Beer Rating Website Features

Portlandbeer.org: Past, Present, and Future

November 4th, 2009

A notebook, a list, and a couple of beers.

Five years ago, this site started out as an idea on a napkin. We’ve gone from tracking a few beer releases between friends in town, to serving over 150,000 pages each year to users all over the world (96 countries in the last few months, according to a quick glance at the stats).

Sunday’s site relaunch was implemented for several reasons. We wanted to make sure that the content was easy to find, especially in cases where there is a lot of data. So, beers are now easier to find, sort, and compare; maps are a bit more interactive; and the blog is much more organized. There are also a lot of behind the scenes features that were added to make it easier for us to get the content up and delivered to all of the areas of the site as well as to the users subscribing to our feeds. This makes our overall process much easier, allowing us to focus on the content, and not trying to unravel the ever-growing technology infrastructure.

We are also going to be experimenting with different advertising options. We will keep these as out of the way as possible, but as the site and traffic grow, we need this to offset our costs. This site is a labor of love, and we’ve never made a cent from running it. But we do incur costs to keep it up and running and those costs grow as the site grows. We’ve never intended to turn this into a money making machine, but we also never intended on investing so much money into it. So, these ads are just a simple way of offsetting these costs. Our primary goal is getting Portland beer information out to you, so if you ever feel that our advertising is intrusive, please let us know.

As for the future, well, we’re going to need some help. We’d like to bring on a few more contributors to make sure that we’re not missing anything. Nope, we don’t pay. However, you get media access to some of the events, you get to propose and write your own stories, you get a better excuse for drinking so much beer, and glorious local fame. If you see yourself as a lover of beer, a writer of tall tales, and a self-motivator, get in touch. Use our contact form to let us know you’re interested and we’ll give you more details.

Of course, many of these changes were made because of suggestions by you—so if you have any other ideas, get in touch. Cheers!

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Posted in Articles, Matt Wiater

Tags: Website Features

Portlandbeer.org Relaunch

November 1st, 2009

Over the years, we’ve had to make our website has bigger, better, faster, and stronger. This is because the owners have become older, slower, and lazier–and something had to make up for that! We’ll talk about some of the new features and some of our future plans in upcoming posts, but for now, we’re just going to breathe a sigh of relief and switch into bug fixing mode.

We’ve done our best to make this a smooth transition, but there are a few things that still need to be finished. Rather than delaying the launch (again), we’re finally pushing it live so that we can regroup and make sure that we’re getting back to the content side of things. This is the best time to let us know if something needs to be fixed, or if you just want to see something that we don’t have.

So, take a peek around and let us know what you think!

Cheers!

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Posted in Articles, Matt Wiater

Tags: Website Features

Brothers’ Reserve: Cherry Oak Doppelbock

September 23rd, 2009

Widmer Brothers Reserve Series Release Party

Brothers’ Reserve: Cherry Oak Doppelbock.

Last night, Widmer Brothers Brewing held a media dinner for the release of their new Brothers’ Reserve series. This series is a semi-annual, limited release, that will alternate between recipes from Kurt and Rob. The inaugural release was created by Kurt: a Doppelbock, fermented with local dark cherries, and aged in bourbon barrels for three months–aptly named Cherry Oak Doppelbock.

It is a complex beer: a nice cherry nose, and tastes that included dark chocolate, slight tartness from the cherries, wood from the barrel, and strong malts to support the 9% abv. Where all of that alcohol was kept is a secret–it is definitely a gentle giant, drinking much more like a 6% beer. Kurt Widmer admitted to the beer being served a little too cold and about 15 minutes later, a warmer temperature revealed the subtleties of the beer.

Widmer sent out about 2200 case of this beer, to be released on October 1st. The retail price should be about $8.99 – $9.99. Squeezing in under the $10 mark makes this beer a great value, and I’ll snatch up a few more when they hit the shelves. There is also a limited amount that will go on draft at the Gasthaus, on October 1st as well.

Kurt Widmer.

Reserve series are becoming more popular with larger breweries, which seems to be a back-to-roots direction and departure from churning out cash-cow styles and brands. Any experiments with styles and recipes is a learning experience for the brewers-and often consumers-who go outside of their comfort zone to bring us unique beers.

Oh, and if you don’t catch this one when it comes out, you’ll never see it again. Kurt promised two things for the reserve series: they will do their best to create great beers, and they won’t be brewed twice.

Check out the rest of the photos here.

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Posted in Articles, Matt Wiater

Tags: Beer Release Widmer Brothers Brewing

Shine a Light: Art and Beer in One Convenient Package

September 17th, 2009

How do you make a night of local music, printmaking demonstrations, inanimate works of art being serenaded by minstrels, video installation viewing and endangered language preservation better? Well, much like everything else, you add beer. The answer of “adding dinosaur boxing” would have also been acceptable.

This Saturday (9/19) the Portland Art Museum will host a unique event entitled Shine a Light. From 6pm until midnight, for the cost of only 12 American dollars, you can experience all those things listed about and sample 3 art-inspired brews from Laurelwood, New Old Lompoc and Lucky Lab. And just to clarify what that means, brewmasters from each of the breweries were given a tour of the Portland Art Museum. During the tour they each selected a work of art to “inspire” the creation of a new brew. Then they will bring that beer to the Portland Art Museum where you will be able to taste it while witnessing children dressed like Erskine Wood walking around. Seriously, children will be dressed like Erskine Wood. Your guess is as good as mine on this one.

So on Saturday come to the Portland Art Museum, have a drink and feel free to say “hello” to yours truly. I will be the sad security guard who is unable to have fun or partake in art beer. Yep, I am a security guard.

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Posted in Articles, Ian Seniff

Supporting Oregon Beer by Drinking Oregon Beer

July 28th, 2009

First stop at the Oregon Brewers Guild Dinner: Tickets and glasses.

I always lump the Oregon Brewers Guild Dinner in with the Oregon Brewers Festival. For those attending the dinner, it’s a great way to kick off the Oregon Brewers Festival (OBF). In reality, with all of the great beer and food (see below), it’s a great event with or without the festival. This is the first of three events I attended during festival week, so check back here for the next two installments.

For those that think it is merely an extension of the festival, please, think again. As everything in Portland in July is about beer, so is this event: there are 26 beers available that are not at the OBF. In fact, most are rare one-off brews that are pretty damn hard to find outside of this event. Many breweries know that this event is a beer geek’s paradise and are not afraid to experiment, showing off styles such as Krieks, Wits, Saisons, Pils’, Lagers, and Doppelbocks. Living in Portland, in the heart of the IPA, IIPA, IIIPA, DHIPA, ETC, these styles are a great way for breweries to express their creativity.

So, at $50 a ticket, is it worth it? Yes. And also, hell yes. For one, you get great beer. You also can meet the glitterati of the Portland beer scene: brewers from Full Sail, New Old Lompoc, Laurelwood, Widmer, Lucky Labrador, Hopworks, Oakshire, Rock Bottom, and many others–all with smiles on their faces and other brewery’s beer in their hands. Then, there’s the food. Don’t think that just because this event is about beer that they skimp on the food, it is incredible. Lastly, but definitely not leastly, this event is a fund raiser for the Oregon Brewers Guild. They do so much to promote Oregon Beer to make sure that you have a great pint sitting in front of you wherever you are in the state. They are a big reason why Oregon beer is as good as it is, please support them.

Beer, delicious beer.

And, of course, you can support the OBG by coming to these events, meeting great people, and drinking great beer:

10 Barrel Brewing: S1NIST0R Black Ale
BridgePort Brewing Co.: Hop Czar Imperial IPA
Cascade Brewing Co.: Lipsmacker Gose
Deschutes Brewery: Bourbon Barrel Quad
Double Mountain: Sour Organic Amber
Full Sail Brewing: Session Black
Golden Valley Brewery: French Prairie Blanche
Hopworks Urban Brewery: Firkin Diablito Belgian
Laurelwood Brewing: Organic Deranger Imperial Red
Lompoc Brewing: Summer Saison
Lucky Labrador: Crystalweizen Wheat
MacTarnahan’s: Lip Stinger Farmhouse
Ninkasi: Dry Hopped Tricerahops Imperial IPA
Oakshire Brewing: Glen’s Hop Vice Imperial IPA
Old Market Brewery: Kriek
Oregon Trail: Brown
Pelican Brewery: Heiferweizen Wit
Pyramid Breweries: Thunderhead IPA
Ram Brewery: Pauliny Pils
Rock Bottom Brewery: Duc De Guise Sour Dark Belgian Style
Rogue Ales: Maierfest Lager
Terminal Gravity Brewing: Tripel Strong Ale
Track Town Ales: Triple Jump Pale
Upright Brewing: Flora Rustica Saison
Wakonda Brewing: Sneaker Wave Imperial Pilsner
Widmer Brothers: Cherry Oak Doppelbock

For those inclined to eat (highly recommended!)

Pork Tenderloin
Smoked Pacific Salmon
Roasted Potato and Veggie Medley
Roll and Butter
Shakespeare Stout Brownie

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Posted in Articles, Matt Wiater

Beer Adventure in Astoria Oregon: Part Four–Wrap Up

June 17th, 2009

View from Rogue Ales Public House.

Yep, this last post is seriously late. But I got a new job, had to pay some bills, and that’s what happens. As soon as you start sending me big checks, I can do this full time and be at your service. Until then, you’ll have to accept my apologies for running a bit behind. Just so you’re not too worried about me, I have been keeping up with my drinking, just not my writing…

Well, sometimes there’s good luck and sometimes there’s bad luck. Other times, a situation presents itself as a wash: Even-Steven, as they say. With more alcohol than blood in my body, I’m not sure how to evaluate either.

My last stop for the day is Rogue Ales Public House. Right now, I’m simply concentrating: “right foot, left foot, right foot, left foot.” I see a seagull and get distracted and forget which foot I’m on. Oh well, I am moving forward-ish, I’ll just let momentum take over from here. As I aim for the front door to the building, I get my first piece of bad news: the foot I’ve been calling my right is actually my left.

I set my bag and notebook down on the bar and let the head waitress know that I’m here for my meeting. She gives me a confused look and I assume that it’s because my eyes are pointing in two different directions. She disappears into the back and the bartender offers me a beer. Before I can make the inevitable decision to have yet another beer, the waitress appears and let’s me know that there has been a mixup. Some crossed wires prevailed and my meeting was not to be. My body let out a sigh of relief as I realized that maybe this was a bit of luck–maybe I didn’t actually need more beer. Maybe.

Inside Rogue Ales Public House.

Instead, the waitress offered me a tour of the building and said she’d be happy to answer any questions for me. My first questions was “Can I have a glass of water?”

Looking around, I get the feeling that I’ve been here before. Well, if you’ve been to other Rogue Ales Public Houses, you know what to expect: walls scattered with Rogue wear, cases of beer stacked up around the restaurant, and other reminders to spend a little extra on your way out the door.

When I moved out to Oregon, Rogue Ales was responsible for shattering my expectations about beer. I did as much beer experimentation as possible in South Carolina, but the possibilities there were extremely limited. I can still remember sitting down at Rogue Ales Public House in Portland for the first time and being dumbstruck by the 16 different Rogue beers on tap. A few samplers later and I knew that my world had changed in a very dramatic way. That was a long time ago, but things haven’t changed at Rogue: they are still offering a phenomenal amount of draft beer styles with a few seasonals on the board as well.

Inside the Captain’s Suite.

Rogue has been around for 21 years in Oregon. Along with their massive draft lineup, they’ve built up a small empire of Public Houses: ten in Oregon and one in San Fransisco. Rogue also has very wide distribution for kegs and bottled beers. I’m not sure about the reach, but I used to be able to find it in SC–not quite the beer mecca of the US.

Having seen a Rogue Ales Public house before, we don’t spend much time in the bar or restaurant. The waitress mentions that there are some cool rooms to stay in at the back of the pier. We head out of the restaurant into the 130+ year old Hanthorne Cannery space, and then up into a back building that houses a few rooms called the Fisherman’s Suites. Our first stop is the Captain’s Suite. Wow. Rain or shine, the views from this room are outstanding with walls of floor to ceiling windows facing both North and West. The fully remodeled interior has a complete kitchen and is fully stocked with comfortable furniture, while maintaining an open floor plan. The first thing I think about is hosting a party. At $475 a night, it’s a little out of my price range for a romantic getaway, but I’ll definitely try and figure out a way to stay here over night. There are also two other rooms that aren’t quite as big (or expensive), but they’re newly remodeled and have great views as well. For more information, check out pier39-astoria.com.

Astoria’s waterfront walkway.

And that is the end of my trip. Four articles stretching over months, just to cover one day in Astoria–and almost completely revolving around beer! Is it worth the trip? Definitely. Astoria is prepared for you: museums, restaurants, hotels and bed and breakfasts, the waterfront walkway (or trolley ride), and plenty of other things to do in town. I recommend an overnight stay as there is plenty of beer to discover and it’s a four hour round trip–if you don’t stop along the way. And, while there’s plenty of beer to entertain you now, rumors of a third brewery are floating around the city! But go now, before that happens, so that you can say “I was in Astoria back in the day when there were only two breweries…”

Check out the rest of the photos here.