Our last stop of the day was Oakshire Brewing, in an industrial section of Northwest Eugene.  While it’s not an easy walk from downtown, it’s definitely worth the trip to check out their offerings.  It’s currently only open on Saturdays for samples, but they have plans to expand your experience.  From their website: “Oakshire Brewing’s tasting room is open every Saturday from 12-4pm for tastings and tours. We currently are only able to offer samples during our tasting rooms hours but will soon be able to sell full pints as well! Some great plans are on the horizon to add some picnic tables outside and maybe even bring in some live music as the weather continues to improve.”  UPDATE: I grabbed the above from their website, but Matt Van Wyk informed me that they are currently serving pints and up to seven different Oakshire beers on draft.

Oakshire Brewing was founded in 2006 by brothers Jeff and Chris Althouse with a 4 barrel brewing system and 8 barrel fermenters.  For everyone that can do the math: yep, a lot of double batches to fill up those conicals.  They have recently expanded to a 15 barrel brewing system and added much larger fermenters, taking as many as five batches to fill up the largest.  Their current capacity is now 7500-800 barrels You can see the effects of the new capacity on the their production timeline:

• 2006: 6 barrels
• 2007: about 300 barrels
• 2008: about 1100 barrels
• 2009: about 2000 barrels
• 2010: about 3600 barrels (expected)

Oakshire Brewing.

Their flagship beers are the Watershed IPA and Espresso Stout, making up 50% of their total production.  Estimates on current bottle and draft production fall into the 88% draft, 12% bottles.

March 30th 2009 was the official start date for brewer Matt Van Wyk, who took over the brewing helm at Oakshire after an impressive and award winning career at Flossmoor Station in Illinois.  We toured the facility with Matt and tasted some beers from the fermenters.  Most surprising was their latest creation: O’Dark:30, a Cascadian Dark Ale.  With only two days in the fermenter, it already tasted quite good.  Usually, beer this young can taste very unfinished since it’s still in the middle of the fermentation process.  The O’Dark:30 still had a bit to go, but one sip of this creation easily pointed to the beginnings of a great beer. Portland will be able to taste the finished product when bottles and draft start hitting the shelves and taps this week.

So, keep your eye out for the Oakshire name on tap handles and bottles in your area.  Below is a summary list of their offerings.  Check out their website for the full list and more details on their year round and seasonal and single batch offerings.

Year Round Beers:

• Oakshire Amber – ABV: 5.4% / IBUs: 30 / OG: 12.8° Plato
• Watershed IPA – ABV: 7.1% / IBUs: 75 / OG: 16.1° Plato
• Overcast Espresso Stout – ABV: 5.8% / IBUs: 37 / OG: 14.5° Plato

Seasonals and Single Batch Beers:

• Cornucopia Frog’s Wort Pale Ale – ABV: / IBUs: / OG: ° Plato
• Smokin’ Bagpipes Strong Scotch Ale – ABV: 7.0% / IBUs: 12 / OG: 16.5° Plato
• Very Ill Tempered Gnome Winter – Ale ABV: 9.7% / IBUs: 100 / OG: 18.8° Plato
• Ill Tempered Gnome Winter Ale – ABV: 6.8% / IBUs: 65 / OG: 15.5° Plato
• Red Nugget American Red Ale – Fresh Hop Series
• Harvest Ale – Fresh Hop Series
• Cascade Conundrum Black Pale Ale – Fresh Hop Series
• Line Dry Rye – ABV: 5.5% / IBUs: 35 / OG: 12.0° Plato
• Perfect Storm Imperial IPA – ABV: 10.0% / IBUs: 100+ / OG: 19.9° Plato
• Glen’s Hop Vice Imperial IPA – ABV: 9.1% / IBUs: 100+ / OG: 20.3° Plato
• Oakshire Hindsight ESB Spring Seasonal – ABV: 5.8% / IBUs: 50
• Oakshire Sasquatch Stonge Ale – ABV: 9.3% / IBUs: 78 / OG: 19.8° Plato
• O’Dark:30 – ABV: 6.3% / IBUs: 70 / OG: 15° Plato

Check out the rest of the photos here.

Related posts:

1. South of Portland: Hop Valley Brewing Company in Eugene
2. South of Portland: Ninkasi Brewing Company in Eugene
3. Oakshire Brewing Expands, Adds Brewmaster

Well, I don’t need to tell you that Ninkasi (www.ninkasibrewing.com) is a brewing company in Eugene. If you haven’t heard of them or tried their beers, then you don’t live in the Northwest.  With beers like Total Domination, Sleigh’r, and Tricerahops, the company is anything but shy about their brewery or their beer.

Started in 2006, Jamie Floyd and business partner Nikos Ridge began contract brewing in the space that Hop Valley Brewing now occupies in Springfield (formerly Spencer’s Restaurant and Brewhouse followed by Sofia’s Restaurant and Bavarian Brewery).  Quickly reaching their maximum production levels, Jamie and Nikos moved into their own space in the Whiteaker neighborhood of Eugene.  And they didn’t stop growing.

Jamie must have closed his eyes and covered his ears, ignoring the recent and devastating recession.  In the last two years, the company has grown from 2 employees to 37, now including benefits (and a 1 barrel brewing system for the employees to “play with”).  The maximum production at their contract space was 1600 Barrels per year in 2006 and the output at the end of 2010 is estimated to be 32,000 Barrels.  But that’s not enough for Ninkasi, whose current brewery remodeling will raise the capacity to 90,000 Barrels annually.  The expansion also includes a new Krones bottling line capable of filling 240 bottles per minute.

Currently, Ninkasi’s flagship is their Total Domination IPA (6.7% ABV, 65 IBUs), which makes up about 60% of their total bottle production.  Other standards include:

• Tricerahops Double IPA: 8.8% ABV, 100+ IBUs.
• Believer Double Red: 6.9% ABV, 60 IBUs.
• Quantum Pale Ale: 5.6% ABV, 35 IBUs.
• Oatis Oatmeal Stout: 7.5% ABV, 45 IBUs.

And seasonals:

• Radiant Summer Ale: 6%% ABV, 40 IBUs.
• Spring Reign: 6% ABV, 38 IBUs.
• Sleigh’R: 7.2% ABV, 50 IBUs.
• Maiden the Shade

Ninkasi beer is beginning to appear all over the Northwest and beyond in bottles and draft.  But this outward distribution growth into other regions isn’t a reflection of their core principal of local community.  While wider distribution helps pay the bills, the focus of Jamie and Nikos, and by extension the company, is focused very locally.  No matter what their size, Jamie will always see Ninkasi as the village brewery and an integral part of their community.  By concentrating on regional sourcing as well as supporting local arts and direct community activism, the brewery and the employees are living out this philosophy.  One promoted idea at Zwickelmania is upcycling.  Where recycling is grinding everything down into a uniform substance of lesser value to be used as a new base material, upcycling is getting to the products sooner and trying to turn them into something of more value.  ”Upcycling refers to reusing an object in a new way without degrading the material it is made from, as opposed to recycling which generally involves breaking down the original material and making it into something else, using more energy,” (from Trash or Treasure? Upcycling becomes growing green trend on Reuters).

Philosophy, education, and community: the ingredients in every Ninkasi beer.

Check out the rest of the photos here.

Related posts:

1. South of Portland: Oakshire Brewing in Eugene
2. South of Portland: Hop Valley Brewing Company in Eugene
3. South of Portland: Beers in Eugene and Corvallis

Our first stop of the day was at Hop Valley Brewing, 11:00am on Saturday. I usually don’t drink beer this early in the day, so I just keep telling myself that this is work.  Justifications come easy to me.

We meet with brew master and partner Trevor Howard who walks around their 15bbl brewing facility.  Trevor started his career at Rogue in Newport six years ago.  He moved back to Eugene and became brew master at Rogue’s Eugene City Brewery before becoming a partner at Hop Valley Brewing in 2008.

With Trevor at the helm, Hop Valley currently brews six standard styles:

• Stepchild Red (NW Red Ale): 15.5° Plato, 80 IBUs, 6.1% ABV
• Double D Blonde (Blonde Ale): 12° Plato, 20 IBUs, 4.9% ABV
• Alphaholic IPA (NW IPA — will hit the streets as Alphadelic IPA): 16° Plato, 90 IBUs, 6.5% ABV
• Impeller Pale (Pale Ale): 14° Plato, 50 IBUs, 5.6% ABV
• Vanilla Porter (Porter): 15° Plato, 50 IBUs, 5.9% ABV
• The Heff (American Hefeweizen): 11.5° Plato, 15 IBUs, 4.9% ABV
• Seasonals: Many other styles, including: Natty Red (Imperial Red Ale), and Alpha Centauri (Imperial IPA) which the First Place People’s Choice Award at that weekend’s KLCC Microbrew Festival.

Since it was Zwickelmania, what else could we do but zwickel?  While the word is strange, the meaning is simple: tasting beer directly from the tanks.  Depending on the style of beer, these samples can taste vastly different from the finished product.  In its earliest stages, beer is called wort. It’s the state of the beer before the yeast hits it in the fermenter. For first time samplers, it can be very difficult to draw the connection between the sweet, unfermented, uncarbonated wort and the final beer.  At this stage, it’s merely tasting levels of sweetness and bitterness, both of which will drastically change through fermentation.

Fermentation is the next stage, and that’s when “beer” becomes beer.  The yeast metabolizes the sugars from the wort into alcohol and CO2 and the beer begins to take a more familiar shape.  Of course, the beer is still warm from active fermentation and there is the residual sweetness of the unburned sugar, but tasting at this point is all about appreciating the progress of the beer. Though young, these beers are a very good indicator of what the they will be like when released to the public.

Education comes in many forms, but the best way to learn is usually hands on experience.  Talking to the brewers, spending time in the brewery, and sampling beer at different stages is a perfect way to spend a Saturday—and you’ll get smarter with every sip! Thanks to Trevor Howard for taking the time to walk us through his domain and show us where the magic happens.  Keep an eye out for Hop Vally’s beers by visiting them in Eugene, or finding them on draft or in 22oz bottles.

Check out the rest of the photos here.

Related posts:

1. South of Portland: Oakshire Brewing in Eugene
2. South of Portland: Ninkasi Brewing Company in Eugene
3. South of Portland: Beers in Eugene and Corvallis

Down to Eugene.

I was invited by Travel Lane County, Visit Corvallis, and Travel Oregon to go on a trip last weekend to Eugene and Corvallis to visit six breweries over the weekend.  You know the routine: meet the brewer, drink and talk beer, and shoot some photos.  Well, a lot of photos.  I came back with over 10GB.

What’s the idea behind this trip?  Well, some of the Oregon Tourism sites like what we bloggers do in Portland, so we get invited to other areas so they can show off their goods as well.  In this case, luckily for us, their goods are beer.  While we do get a hotel room for the weekend, we don’t get paid for this trip and we don’t get paid to write any articles.  In fact, it’s mostly about having a good time, exploring the different beer scenes, and meeting the people that make it all come together.  Technically, I don’t have to write a single word or publish a photograph, but this wouldn’t be much of a website if I just drank beer and didn’t post anything.  It would kind of look like this.

Also on the trip with me were noted Portland beer celebrities, so check with them for their take on the events that unfolded:

• Abram Goldman-Armstrong (Northwest Brewing News, The Beerman Show, certified BJCP judge at the age of 21, and on and on…)
• Dave Selden and Bruce Kehe (BS Brewing)
• John Foyston (The Beer Here)
• Lisa “Beer Goddess” Morrison (Blog, Twitter, Beer O’Clock)

We were scheduled to hit three breweries in Eugene on Saturday and three in Corvallis on Sunday.  Both days were from about 11-4 with many samples served before we even thought about lunch.  Due to Saturday’s Zwickelmania, both days were completely different.  Saturday was busy, some large crowds, and a lot of celebrating at Hop Valley Brewing, Ninkasi Brewing, and Oakshire Brewing.  Sunday, on the other hand, was much more subdued and private as our small group hung out with the brewers and of course, drank more samples at Oregon Trail Brewing, Flat Tail Brewing, and Block 15 Brewing.

Check back as this is only the kickoff—I’ll be detailing the trip in future posts.

Related posts:

1. South of Portland: Oakshire Brewing in Eugene
2. South of Portland: Hop Valley Brewing Company in Eugene
3. South of Portland: Flat Tail Brewing in Corvallis

PORTLAND, Ore. – Jan. 18, 2010 – Breweries across the state will host open houses and special tastings on Saturday, February 13, from 11:00a.m. to 4:00p.m., as part of the Oregon Brewers Guild’s second annual Zwickelmania Oregon Brewery Tour.  Zwickelmania is patterned after the open houses held by Oregon wineries over Memorial Day and Thanksgiving weekends and is presented by the Oregon Brewers Guild (OBG).  The Presidents’ Day weekend event offers visitors a chance to tour dozens of Oregon breweries, meet the brewers and sample their favorite beers.

“Last year we had more than 10,000 visitors from across the state participate in Zwickelmania,” says Oregon Brewers Guild Executive Director Brian Butenschoen.  “This year we have extended the hours to make the experience more enjoyable and allow participants to experience more breweries.”

Zwickelmania takes its name from the zwickel, or sample valve which is mounted on the outside of fermentation or conditioning tanks and allows brewers to take samples for quality assurance and control.  Zwickelmania offers a unique opportunity to go behind the scenes and taste beers where they are produced and meet the brewers who craft them.

Admission to all Zwickelmania events is free, with some breweries offering complimentary sample tastings, food pairings and other activities. Additionally, the Oregon Brewers Guild will provide buses in Portland and Eugene to help shuttle visitors among multiple breweries throughout the city.  Close-toed shoes will be required for any visitors entering brewing facilities. For a complete list of Oregon breweries participating in Zwicklemania and sample itineraries, please visit http://oregonbeer.org/zwickelmania/.

Participating OBG members include:

• Amnesia Brewing Company – 832 N Beech, Portland 11a.m.- 4p.m.
• BridgePort Brewing Co. – 1313 NW Marshall, Portland 11a.m.- 4p.m.  – $2.75 pints and brewery tours on the hour.
• Caldera Brewing – 540 Clover Lane, Ashland 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Case specials at $20, shirts and hats $15 each and Hoodies $35 each. Cash only.
• Deschutes Brewery Portland Pub – 210 NW 11th Ave., Portland  30-minute tours of the brew house, every 15 minutes between 11a.m. and 4p.m on this day only.
• Deschutes Brewery – 901 SW Simpson Ave., Bend Noon – 5pm – Guided brewery tours, samples of 2009 Super Jubel and a brewer on hand to answer questions.
• Double Mountain Brewery Taproom – 8 Fourth St., Hood River 11a.m.- 4p.m.
• Eugene City Brewery – 844 Olive St., Eugene 11a.m.- 4p.m.  – Tours on the hour.  Bathroom tours all day, mass swearing in to the Rogue Nation at 4p.m.
• Full Sail Brewing Co. at Riverplace - 0307 SW Montgomery, Portland 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Take a tour and sample a pairing of the latest Brewers Share Beer “Collin’s Dark Secret” and artisian chocolate, a great Valentine’s weekend treat. Guided Brewery Tours at 12, 1, 2, 3 and 4p.m.
• Full Sail Tasting Room and Pub – 506 Columbia St., Hood River 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Take a tour and sample a pairing of the latest Brewers Share Beer “Collin’s Dark Secret” and artisian chocolate, a great Valentine’s weekend treat. Guided Brewery Tours at 12, 1, 2, 3 and 4p.m.
• Green Dragon – 928 SE 9th Ave., Portland 11a.m.- 4p.m.  – Tours on the hour.
• Hop Valley Brewing Co. – 980 Kruse Way, Springfield  11a.m.- 4p.m.
• Hopworks Urban Brewery – 2944 SE Powell Blvd., Portland 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Washoes, brewery tours and one fantastic zwickelbier on tap in the cooler.
• Laurelwood Public House and Brewery – 5115 NE Sandy Blvd., Portland 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Tours and beer samples paired with food samples.
• Lompoc Brewing Co. 5th Quadrant – 3901-B N Williams, Portland 11a.m. – 5p.m. – Special beers available in the brewery, 2 brewers on hand for tours and questions and fresh zwickel pulls off the bright tanks. Sidebar will also be open with 6 taps pouring and special food available.
• Lompoc Brewing Co. New Old Lompoc Brewery – 1616 NW 23rd, Portland 11a.m. – 5p.m. – Will have some special beers in the brewery and in the pub. Two brewers will be available for tours and zwickle tastes. The pub will have special food available.
• Lucky Labrador Beer Hall – 1945 NW Quimby, Portland Tours from 11a.m. – 4p.m.
• McMenamins Crystal Brewery – 1332 W. Burnside St. 2nd Floor, Portland 11a.m.- 4p.m.
• McMenamins High Street Brewery – 1243 High Street, Eugene 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Brewery open to public. Brewer on site with tastings.
• Ninkasi Brewing Co. – 272 Van Buren St., Eugene 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Will be open to the public and be doing tours of the plant, tasting room and offering tastes of some hard to find beers.
• Oakshire Brewing – 1055 Madera St., Eugene 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Tours on the hour, TEN different beers available.  Devour will be on site selling grilled sandwiches, soup and tater tots.
• Pelican Pub and Brewery – 33180 Cape Kiwanda Dr., Pacific City 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Meet 3 brewers who will be offering brewery tours and beer samples from the fermenter.
• Philadelphia’s Steaks & Hoagies - 6410 SE Milwaukee Ave., Portland 11a.m. – 4p.m. – Free samples of beer all day with brewery tours.
• Pyramid Breweries – Mac Tarnahan’s Taproom – 2730 NW 31st Ave., Portland 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Beer samples, scheduled brewery tours and meet the brewers.
• Raccoon Lodge & Brew Pub – 7424 Southwest Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway, Portland 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Sampling beer from the Zwickel and beers from the barrel.
• Rock Bottom Brewery – 206 SW Morrison St., Portland 11a.m.- 4p.m. – Brewery open house with beer tastings and a zwickel tasting of beer from FV1.
• Rogue Ales – Brewer’s on the Bay – 2320 OSU Drive, Newport 11a.m.- 4p.m.  – Tours on the hour.
• Rogue Distillery and Public House – 1339 NW Flanders St., Portland 11a.m. – 4p.m. -  Tours hourly, bathroom tours all day, mass swearing in to the Rogue Nation at 4p.m.
• Southern Oregon Brewing Co. – 1922 United Way, Medford 3p.m. – 5p.m. with the pub open until 9p.m. – Tour and complimentary flight of tasters for people who take the tour at 4p.m.
• Three Creeks Brewing – 721 Desperado Ct., Sisters 11:30a.m. – 4p.m. – Brewery tours on the hour and the brewer will be on-site with tastings and beer discussion all day.
• Vertigo Brewing – 21420 NW Nicholas Ct. Suite D-7, Hillsboro 11a.m.- 4p.m.
• Widmer Brothers Brewing Co. – 924 N. Russell St., Portland  11a.m.- 4p.m. -  Free tours of their state-of-the-art brewing facility, complimentary tastings and appetizers paired with the beers. They will offer special release beers not available anywhere else along with their standard beers. Kurt and Rob and their brewing staff will be on site giving tours. They will have t-shirts, pint glasses, and other gear for sale.

About the Oregon Brewers Guild:
The Oregon Brewers Guild is Oregon’s non-profit trade association for the state’s craft breweries. The Guild, which receives no state funding, is comprised of 64 brewing companies, 27 Associate or Supplier members, and nearly 2,700 enthusiast members or S.N.O.Bs (Supporters of Native Oregon Beer). For more information, visit www.oregonbeer.org.

Related posts:

1. Oregon Brewers Break Record Production Numbers