PORTLAND, Ore. (April 24, 2012) More than 1,600 beer fans attended the 2012 Portland’s Cheers to Belgian Beers festival at Metalcraft Fabrication on Saturday, April 21. More than 679 ballots were cast, and fans selected Logsdon Organic Farmhouse Ales’ Cerasus as the “People’s Choice” champion. As the winner of the 2012 competition, Logsdon Organic Farmhouse Ales has earned the right to select the yeast strain for next year’s event.

“The event continues to grow, and each year is a greater success,” says Oregon Brewers Guild Executive Director, Brian Butenschoen. “Forty breweries participated this year and contributed some delicious and innovative variations on the Canadian/Belgian Ale and Roeselare Ale Blend yeast strains.”

This is the second time Logsdon Organic Farmhouse Ales has tasted “People’s Choice” victory; the brewery also took home the coveted prize at the 2011 festival. Other top voter favorites were Block 15 Brewing Company, Occidental Brewing Co., Cascade Brewing Barrel House, The Commons Brewery, Breakside Brewery and Double Mountain Brewery.

The Portland’s Cheers to Belgian Beers festival started in 2007 as a celebration of Belgian style beers. Participating breweries were required to produce beers from the same two strains of yeast and add their own creative spin. This year, the 40 participating breweries created 45 unique brews, 39 of which were brewed using the chosen yeast strains. Visit www.oregonbeer.org for more details

Oregon Garden Brewfest
April 27th – 28th
Noon – 11pm
Grand Hall at The Oregon Garden

As Portlanders emerge from the gray winter, our entire routines change: we go from drinking beer inside to drinking beer outside. Starting in Spring, we’ve got at least 16 annual beer festivals and events that get people outside and socializing around great beer.

The Oregon Garden Brewfest is just two weeks away and it promises to be a great event. There are over 90 beers and ciders along with two stages of music throughout the festival. Most of the beers are from Oregon, and all but a few are West Coast offerings. If you’re lucky enough to have Friday off and make it to the festival at the noon opening, there will be brewers and reps on hand through 2pm to talk beer or answer any questions you might have. The full beer list is below.

This year, the festival has added the inaugural Brewer’s Tasting Dinner: “The first annual Brewer’s Tasting Dinner will take place on the eve of the festival, April 26 at 7 p.m. This six-course tasting will be attended by participating brewers and industry insiders. Each course will be a small plate paired with a beer tasting from one of six area breweries. There are a limited number of tickets available to the public for $40 apiece.” Check out the list of food and beer pairings below.

Admission: A one-day advance tasting package cost $15 and includes admission for one day, a tasting mug, 7 tasting tickets, and express entry. A two-day advance tasting package costs $25 and includes admission both days, a tasting mug, 14 tasting tickets, and express entry. Tickets at the door cost the same, but include only 5 tasting tickets for one day, 10 tasting tickets for both days, and no express entry. A full mug of beer costs 4 tickets, a taster costs 1 ticket. Additional tasting tickets may be purchased at $1 apiece. Minors are welcome on Saturday only until 3PM. Tickets are available at www.oregongardenbrewfest.blogspot.com.

So get out to the Oregon Garden Brewfest and enjoy some great beer, music, and Silverton scenery!

Oregon Garden Brewfest—Brewer’s Tasting Dinner: April 26 at 7pm

First Course – Cheese
Paired with Logsdon Farmhouse Ales – Barrel Age Seizoen Bretta
4-yr-old cheddar, herbed chevre and smoked Gouda paired with crostini

Second Course – Appetizer
Paired with GoodLife Brewing – Traditions Pale Ale
Belgian Endive filled with a blend of olives, capers, roasted red pepper and caramelized onions

Third Course – Salad
Paired with Seven Brides Brewing – Rose’s Imperial Pilsner
Warm potato salad with blue cheese, new red and Yukon gold potatoes tossed with sweet bacon dressing

Fourth Course – Pasta
Paired with Widmer Bros. Brewing – Marionberry Hibiscus Gose
Portabella ravioli set atop hazelnut sauce

Fifth Course – Entrée
Paired with Gigantic Brewing – The City Never Sleeps Black Saison
Braised beef short rib slow roasted with a rich root vegetable demi-glace

Sixth Course – Dessert
Paired with Hopworks Urban Brewery – Galactic Imperial Red
Poached pear with a mascarpone cheese filling

Oregon Garden Brewfest—Beer List

Hood River, Or –  In 2008 Full Sail Brewing created their small batch Brewer’s Share series as an opportunity for each of their individual brewers to express their creations to be shared on tap exclusively in their pub. Since their crew came up with so many great beers, they decided to share a selection of them with beer lovers everywhere. The second beer in the series is “Phil’s Existential Alt,” developed by Brewer Phil Roche, and will be released in 22oz. bottles and on draft in March.

“As an independent and employee owned brewery, you know that we put our hearts and souls into every drop. With Brewer’s Share we’re proud to showcase the people behind our award winning brews by introducing our individual brewers by name and beer,” said Irene Firmat, Full Sail’s CEO and Founder.

When asked what his inspiration was for Phil’s Existential Alt, Roche replied, “Altbier is indigenous to Dusseldorf and Neanderthal man is indigenous to Dusseldorf. The ancient Germans thought a lot about their existence. Early myths contain some 200 verses about the creation of the world. The ancient Germans thought even more about beer, with 400 verses about beer making. “Phil’s Existential Alt” celebrates our existence through our most celebrated beverage…beer!”

According to Phil, a generous amount of Munich and Vienna malts give this beer its copper color and toasty-caramel aroma. German noble hops provide complimentary bitterness and a clean, dry finish. The beer has been cold-conditioned for six weeks and goes down smooth. ABV 5.1%, IBU 43

The inspiration for the name “Brewer’s Share” came from that mysterious portion that vanishes from a barrel during aging that brewers refer to as the “angel’s share,” and that led to “Brewer’s Share,” an equally mysterious offering that appears during inspiration. Brewer’s Share can also mean a unit of ownership, as in stock. Consider this program to be an Initial Pub Offering (IPO). Whenever you purchase a Brewer’s Share you get a unit of ownership – one share of the batch.  As a shareholder you have the right to consume the beverage. In doing so you will also be investing in the public good – as each brewer not only chooses the recipe, they choose a local charity or organization that will benefit from each bottle sold – which can bring an excellent Return on Ingestion (ROI).

Full Sail’s Brewer’s Share small batch offerings will be available in 22oz. bottles and on draft.  The other beers in the 2012 line-up include Extra Special Barney (ESB), Chris’s Summer Delight Berliner Weiss and Big Daddy J’s Malt Liquor. Full Sail will release one Brewer’s Share at a time and a new beer will be released for each season.

With each Brewer’s Share series beer, Full Sail picks a local charity or organization to receive a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the beer. Phil has chosen to support Friends of the Children, so every barrel of his Existential Alt benefits this organization. Friends of the Children (FOTC) is a revolutionary mentoring program that provides paid professional mentors, called Friends, to the community’s most vulnerable children. FOTC selects youth in kindergarten and mentors them through high school graduation (12 ½ years). Through the support ofFriends, children are learning the skills to become healthy members of our community.

Brewvana Brewery Tours announces a new tour with a homebrew twist: The Intro to Homebrewing Tour. You’ll find more info about Brewvana in an upcoming article covering our recent ride with Ashley and Brewvana.

From the official press release: It’s clear that Portland residents love drinking craft beer! Given that, what’s the next logical step? Learning how to brew, of course! BREWVANA Brewery Tours is hosting an Intro to Homebrewing Tour for beer lovers interested in learning more about the brewing process or taking up homebrewing. The tour is scheduled for Sunday, March 25th, from 12 – 5 p.m. and will feature five brewing facilities that support the local homebrewer, two of which are also homebrew supply shops and led by a homebrewer that is active in the local community.

“Making the jump from beer lover to brewer was an important step in my appreciation for beer and knowledge of the brewing process. Something inside of you changes when you add your hops to the boil, and again when you taste those hops in the final product and make the connection. There are so many beer lovers in Portland that have yet to make that step. On this tour, we give them the opportunity to do just that!” says BREWVANA founder Ashley Rose Salvitti.

The tour will visit Portland U-Brew & Pub, Uptown Market, The Green Dragon, Coalition Brewing and Widmer Brothers Brewing. Tour participants will gain a number of homebrewing insights as well as information that will help ease their venture into the amazing world of homebrewing. Topics include:

1. WHY you should brew your own beer
2. WHO can help you: clubs, forums, classes and other resources
3. WHAT equipment you’ll need
4. WHERE you can go to brew your own, or purchase supplies
5. HOW to brew!

Jeremie Landers from the Oregon Brew Crew Oregon’s oldest homebrewing club will be leading the tour. Jeremie has been homebrewing for years, volunteers at almost every beer event in town and even got married inside the Widmer Brothers brewery! He will be informing the group of future homebrewers about the ins & outs of homebrewing, answering questions and sharing resources, tips and tricks.

Tickets for the Intro to Homebrewing Tour are $79 per person and include beer, food and fun! Tickets are available at BREWVANA’s website: http://www.experiencebrewvana.com/register/?regevent_action=register&event_id=301. Seating is limited and reservations must be made in advance. Pick-up times and locations for the tour are 11:30 a.m. at SW Salmon Springs Fountain (SW Naito Pkwy. & SW Salmon St.) and 11:45 a.m. at the Oregon Convention Center (NE MLK Jr. Blvd. & NE Oregon St.).

Brewvana’s got a great tour this Sunday with 11 seats left. Check out the details in the official press release:

BREWVANA Brewery Tours is hosting a Connoisseur Tour for local craft beer enthusiasts. The tour features Mike Branes, Migration Brewery’s head brewer, who will be leading the tour to two breweries, a public house and an English- style pub. Taking place this Sunday, February 12th from 1-5pm, the tour is $69/ person and is all inclusive.

The tour begins with a beer sampling at Migration Brewery and a tour of the facility, where Mike will introduce his brewery and discuss the beers that he brews. The next stop is the NW Lucky Lab where head brewer Ben Flerchinger will give a tour of his brewery and participants will taste their beers. Lunch and beer will be served at East Burn, a public house that focuses on craft beers with 16 rotating taps. The final stop will be the infamous Horse Brass Pub featuring over 50 different local, regional and international varieties of beer in a traditional English-style pub.

Ticket’s for BREWVANA’s Connoisseur Tour with Mike Branes are $69 per person and are all inclusive, consisting of the tours, beer tastings, and lunch. Register online or call BREWVANA @ 503.729.6804. Seating is limited and reservations must be made in advance.

Mike Branes started his career at Barley John’s in Minnesota where he learned and was inspired by head brewer and owner John Moore. There he cleaned kegs, and other brewery tasks in his 3-year internship, receiving a wealth of knowledge as his payment for these laborious tasks. Mike took this knowledge and harnessed his craft for the next 8 years as a home brewer, while working as a pubster for the Lucky Labrador and distributing for Mt. People’s organic beer and wine distribution. In 2008 Mike took the leap of faith and trust in his ability to become the head brewer and partner of Migration Brewing Co.

Each month, Brewvana’s Connoisseur Tour gives a different local brewer the opportunity to showcase the beers that they live to brew and create their own tour based on their favorite places around town. It is their chance to share their knowledge of beer with their community.

BREWVANA is the Ultimate Beer Tour Experience, committed to embracing the history and culture of the craft brewing industry in Portland, Oregon. Transportation is provided on a 14-passenger bus equipped with cup holders, a beer inspired mural and the Beeriodic Table for reference.

Hood River, Oregon – This month Full Sail Brewing will release a new beer in their Brewer’s Share Experimental line up: “Dan’s Satin Stout” crafted by Assistant Operations Manager Dan Nakamura. Intrigued by the complexity of dark beer, Dan brewed a sweet, dark stout with a very smooth, satiny finish.

Dan’s Satin Stout is a creamy, dark beer with a soft and smooth finish and is complemented with the subtly sweet notes of chocolate and a hint of honey. A blend of pale, Munich, caramel, chocolate malt, and roast barley give Satin Stout its deep darkness and complex palate. Willamette and Mt. Hood hops provide just enough bitter to balance the sweet malitness; their slightly spicy aromas complement the floral notes from the addition of wildflower honey. Nitrogen conditioning is the final finishing touch providing a luscious satiny smoothness. 5.2% ABV 36 IBU

“I feel so fortunate to have a job I love in the place I grew up. I started my career at Full Sail as a keg washer over 21 years ago and have had the opportunity to move through many jobs at the brewery. In the process I have really gained a passion for great beer and a deep respect for the brewing art. When the opportunity to brew my own beer came up, I jumped at the chance to follow a long line of very talented Full Sail brewers. I sincerely hope that you enjoy this beer as much as I enjoyed brewing it. Cheers!” said Dan Nakamura.

Full Sail has scheduled a “Meet the Brewer and the Beer” event to showcase this new beer. The event will be at Full Sail Tasting Room and Pub in Hood River, on Thursday, February 16th from 5:00 to 6:30PM. Join the Full Sail crew to celebrate and toast with a pint of this special brew.

Dan’s Satin Stout will also be featured at Full Sail’s Zwickelmania brewery open house. On Saturday, February 18th, dozens of Oregon breweries and brewpubs will open their doors to visitors for the state’s 4th annual Zwickelmania. Hosted by the Oregon Brewers Guild (OBG), Zwickelmania is a free statewide event that offers visitors a chance to tour Oregon breweries, meet the brewers and sample their favorite beers. Full Sail Brewing will offer guided brewery tours at 11, 12, 1, 2, 3 and 4pm and will be offering samples of Dan’s Satin Stout paired with artisan chocolate. Tours and tasting are free of charge and each tour participant will receive a complimentary pint glass. Full Sail’s Brewery at Riverplace in Portland will also be open for tours.

With each Brewer’s Share series beer, Full Sail picks a local charity to receive a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the beer. Dan has chosen to support Hospice of the Gorge so every keg of Dan’s Satin Stout benefits this organization whose mission is to compassionately support patients and families through the end of life process.

The Brewer’s Share Experimental series is a line-up of small batch draft beers where each Full Sail brewer takes a turn hand-crafting their own single batch recipe. A portion of the proceeds benefit a local charity or organization of their choice. Full Sail’s Brewer’s Share Experimental beers will only be available on tap at Full Sail’s Tasting Room and Pub in Hood River, Oregon, and at Full Sail’s Brewery at Riverplace, in Portland, Oregon. Growlers to go are available. The next Brewer’s Share Experimental will be brewed by Lead Lab Tech, Joshua Allman and is planned for spring.

Tired of seeing heart shaped boxes full of chocolate? Sick of sales on roses? Or maybe you just need a good excuse to drink great Portland beer on a Tuesday. Brewvana Portland Brewery Tours feels the same way! They’ve created a great package which includes beer, dinner (and more beer), and a movie (and more beer)! Check out the details from the official press release:

BREWVANA Portland Brewery Tours is hosting a Valentine’s Day BEER LOVE Tour for beer lovers in Portland. Taking place on Tuesday, February 14th from 5:30 – 9:30 p.m., the tour will feature two breweries and a screening of “The Love of Beer,” a documentary about women in the craft beer industry.

“For many of us, beer is what we love unconditionally day in and day out,” proudly states BREWVANA founder Ashley Rose Salvitti. “Turning Valentine’s Day into a celebration of beer is the perfect way to embrace the liquid that we love with the people that we love.”

The tour will begin at Cascade Barrel House for their weekly Tap it Tuesday event where a barrel is tapped in front of the crowd. Cascade specializes in very unique barrel-aged and sour beers. Tour participants will sample beer and get a behind-the-scenes tour of the brewery and barrel room with Preston Weesner, Cascade’s Barrel Tender & Blender.

The second stop will feature dinner and a sampling of several beers at Breakside Brewery. Releasing 92 different beers in 2011, Breakside produces more beer on their small seven-barrel system than any other brewery in Oregon.

The final stop will be at Saraveza’s Bad Habit Room for an 8 p.m. screening of “The Love of Beer”, a documentary about women in the craft beer industry filmed in Oregon. Donations will be accepted and BREWVANA will be raffling off T-shirts to raise money for the film’s producer.

Tickets for BREWVANVA’s BEER LOVE Tour are $69 per person and are all inclusive, consisting of the tour of Cascade, the dinner at Breakside, the screening of “The Love of Beer”, and beer at each location. Tickets are available at BREWVANA’s website.

Seating is limited and reservations must be made in advance. Pick-up locations and times for the tour are 5 p.m. at SW Salmon Springs Fountain, 5:15 p.m. at the Oregon Convention Center and 5:20 p.m. at APEX, a beer bar located at 1216 SE Division. Drop-off at the same locations at the conclusion of the tour.

Mo chairdean choir (my dear friends), it’s Scottish Beer Week at the Barrel House, and as a toast to your good health, we’ll be serving up a variety of Scottish beers all week long!

Join us for

• Mc Shagger Strong Scotch, a seasonal offering from the brewers designed to cut the chill and warm from within. Sweet malts with hints of chocolate and smoked peat greet you in the nose. Dark malts and hints of molasses and chocolate on the palate lead to a creamy finish with notes of peat and whiskey (7.9% ABV, $5 teardrop);
• Lil’ Bo Peat, a peated Scotch blonde that features light sweet malts and grains that greet you in the nose. Soft grasses and grains lend a creaminess to the palate that leads to a light, sweet crisp finish with notes of hop spice (5.6% ABV, $4.5 Imperial pint);
• Black Sheep Stout, an easy drinking stout designed to shepherd you at any time on your beer journey, be that breakfast, lunch or supper. Sweet chocolate and roasted malts greet you in the nose. Smooth round notes of coffee and roasted barley on the palate lead to a creamy dark malt finish with a slight spiced hop bite that lingers like fog in the Highlands (5.8% ABV, $4.5 Imperial pint); and
• Scottish IPA, an off-kilter seasonal from the brewers that’s a showcase for Calypso, Citra and Sorachi Ace hops. Dark citrus, hop spice and caramel malts greet you in the nose. Light peppery notes and a slight hop burn on the palate lead to a lingering hop presence that leaves you wanting more, much like a bagpiper’s last note (6.8 % ABV, $4.50 Imperial pint).

In keeping with the theme, tomorrow’s Tap It Tuesday at 6 pm is Soured Mc Shagger, a Northwest style sour Scottish ale that was barrel aged for 12 months in French oak. Smoke, peat and caramel malts greet you in the nose. Rich dark caramel, dark breads, peat and a hint of smoke on the palate are followed by a sweet dark candy finish that ends with a crisp dryness that lends itself to another sip for further contemplation (8.9% ABV, $6.50 glass).

Chef Troy has created some delicious specials for this week to pair with our Scottish beers, including: Lamb Shepherd’s Pie featuring braised lamb, celery, onion, carrot, mushroom, peas & corn in a rich red wine sauce and topped with creamy mashed potatoes ($5.5); Scottish Egg Deconstructed – breaded pork sausage topped with a barrel-brined hard boiled egg, whole grain mustard hollandaise & sweet roasted beet relish ($4.5); and Mixed Berry Irish Cream Trifle, a layered individual dessert with Irish cream-soaked pound cake, vanilla custard, tart mixed berry jelly & whipped cream ($4). Soup of the week is Chicken Leek. We’ll also be offering white & dark chocolate nibs for $1.

Slàinte mhòr agus a h-uile beannachd duibh (Great health and every good blessing to you)!

The Art of Beer
Opening Night: Friday, Jan. 6th, 6pm
Show runs through the month of January
at Burnside Brewing
701 E. Burnside
Portland, OR 97214

Beginning on Friday January 6th, my beer photography will be on display and for sale at Burnside Brewing for the month of January. I’ll be at the brewery to talk beer, photography, or anything else from 6pm-8pm, so come out and have a beer!

I’ve been covering the Portland beer scene for the last five years, documenting everything from brewing to beer festivals. This show will focus on the brewing process and the equipment through black and white photography. You can take a look at some of my work here.

So, stop by Friday and say hello! Of course, you’ll also be able to grab a pint and some delicious food to kick off your Friday night!

Great beer and a great cause: this Thursday night, 5p-8p at the Hop & Vine.  Check out the official press release:

Celebrate the Holidays and *Christmakuh with Sierra Nevada and The Hop & Vine this December 15th with a unique opportunity to taste a vast array of unique beers to benefit a good cause. The Hop & Vine and Sierra Nevada representatives will have 8 special limited beers on draft and a free Ovila chalice when you bring a new toy for the Portland Metro Toy Drive.

The entrance fee is one non-perishable food item or $1 to get in going towards the Oregon Food Bank in this time of need. The incredible lineup of brews on tap include many seasonals and rarities including offerings from SN’s Beer Camp line of beers and the complete Trappist collaboration Ovila series of 4 beers available in a flight for only $7.

Beer List:

• Life & Limb: The brainchild of Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. and Dogfish Head Craft Brewery. Life & Limb is a 10% ABV strong, dark beer that defies style characteristics- brewed with pure maple syrup from the Calagione family farm in Massachusetts and estate barley grown on the Grossman “farm” at the brewery in Chico, CA. The beer is alive with yeast-a blend of both breweries’ house strains-bottle conditioned for added complexity and shelf life, and naturally carbonated with birch syrup fresh from Alaska.
• Foam Pilsner: Foam is a German-style Pilsner, light bodied and easy drinking, yet loaded With flavor. Brewed With a miX of European and American malts, balanced by a spicy, and herbal hop kick. Brewed in honor of Phish, Foam is a crisp and refreshing traditional pale gold lager beer. In the Words of Phish-‘Tfn looking through, And it all would be, So crystal clear, If it Wasn’t for the foam.” Great music, great beer, and good times.
• Celebration: The long, cold nights of winter are a little brighter with Celebration^® Ale. Wonderfully robust and rich, Celebration^® Ale is dry-hopped for a lively, intense aroma. Brewed especially for the holidays, it is perfect for a festive gathering or for a quiet evening at home.
• Black Hop Rising: This unusual beer ís an anomaly-a rowdy blend of beer styles old and new It has the clean medium-bodied smoothness of a classic German black lager (Schwarz bier) and the aggressive resíny-bold hop flavors of an American black IPA. Black Hop Rising features a silky body With hints of black coffee maltiness, contrasted by intense grapefruit, pine, and tropical fruit Ílavors from the heavy-handed dose of Simcoe, Citra, and Crystal hops.
• Blackaliscious (aka Snowed in Stout): Base Camp beer #45 is an Imperial Oatmeal Stout. No other details available.
• Ovila: Dubbel: Brewed in the abbey tradition, and perfect for the re-birth of spring. Clear and deep copper in color, this Abbey Dubbel has a complex and rich malty sweetness with hints of caramelized sugar. The aroma is a heady and layered mix of fruit and spice, with hints of clove, raisin, and black pepper from the use of an abbey style yeast
• Ovila: Saison: For centuries, the monastic tradition has followed the Rule of St. Benedict – Ora et Labora (prayer and work.)  This Saison farmhouse ale is in honor of the noble labor in which the monks engage.  Hazy blonde in color, these rustic ales are designed to be complex and contemplative but also refreshing and drinkable after a day in the fields.  With earthy and spicy faint citrus tang.  The body is light and layered with fruit and spice accents and dry, peppery, and refreshing finish.
• Ovila: Quad: As winter approaches, anticipation begins for Christmas.  This full and sultry ale is sure to warm the soul and welcome the season.  This silky ale is rich, mahogany brown in color with a velvety malt aroma, spiked with hints of dried cherry, fig, raisin, and plum notes.  A full and creamy body offers layers of flavor including a perfume-like maltiness.  Rich and warming, this complex ale should be shared among friends in the true spirit of the season.