Blog Author: Ian Lass

The Portland Fruit Beer Festival is interesting in the fact that it is not like any other festival in Portland. This festival is a chance for brewers to create some of the oddest one-off beers many people will ever try without the risk of losing money on a batch that doesn't sell. Because of this, brewers are able to stretch and bend their imaginations and push the limits of what a beer really can be.... Read More »

Today, April 15th, 2013 was not a good day for our nation. A cruel act by a coward or a cowardly group can show how despicable and low humans can get. But, it can also show how amazingly great humans can be. Watching footage today after the bombs went off I watched people running right into the blast zone to help those who were injured, not thinking about their own well being and putting their... Read More »

Gigantic Brewing Facebook @GiganticBrewing 5224 Southeast 26th Avenue Beer List Taxidermy, firearms and bladed weapons. According to owner Van Havig, these are the three things a brewery must have. They of course, have all of these things in the tasting room. They also have an outgoing staff, great atmosphere and really great beer. Gigantic is a brewery/taproom in SE Portland in the industrial district that sets itself apart from every other brewery... and basically sets... Read More »

There are lots of beer festivals in Portland. All of them are different in the fact that they usually serve different beers. Different styles. Different venues. Different breweries. Most of them are awesome, and although I really love trying new beers at beer festivals, I think this beer festival is different in the fact that it really isn't about beer. It's about caring. We go about our lives doing our daily routines and most of... Read More »

Photo © 2012 Ian Lass I remember class field trips to the zoo back when I was in elementary school. The wonder of seeing these foreign creatures so close up, when they had come from so far away and we had only read of them as if they were fictitious creatures in our textbooks. I remember sitting there in the amphitheater watching the zoo staff put on a show with rare and exotic birds while... Read More »

Pints Urban Taproom Grand Opening Party Beer, Music, Sidewalk Grill April 13th, Noon-Close 412 NW 5th Ave If you've spent any considerable amount of time in Old Town Portland then it is most likely that you have meandered your way into Pints Urban Taproom for a coffee in the morning or a pint in the evening. Thing is, it was only a pub and coffee shop then. Starting Friday you will be able to stop... Read More »

Portland U-Brew 6237 SE Milwaukie Ave Website | Twitter The title says it all. But I'll elaborate on the subject. Many many moons ago, or however many moons showed up in the last nine months ago, a homebrewpub opened in the Westmoreland area. It is called Portland U-Brew... and it is awesome. After a long and arduous day at work in northeast Portland, I started my car and pointed it south. I picked up a... Read More »

Two Kilts Brewing Facebook / Twitter 14841 SW Tualatin-Sherwood Rd Suite 501 Sherwood, Oregon 97140 503-625-1700 The first time I visited Two Kilts last Summer, I almost didn't. Not because I was waffling on whether I wanted a tasty brew or that I had suddenly found religion and didn't drink anymore. I almost didn't because I'm terrible at finding places and didn't think to look in the business park across from the DEQ. Two Kilts... Read More »

Disclaimer: These are solely my opinions that have been formed from tons of experience and are absolutely correct in every way, but do not reflect on those opinions of Portlandbeer.org. But if you do have a problem with what I say.. blame Matt. In 2011, I attended numerous beer festivals ranging from the Spring Beer and Wine Festival at the Convention Center to BIKETOBEERFEST and the Holiday Ale Festival, just to name a few. Every... Read More »

Having been raised in a family with strong German roots, I have been to many Oktoberfest's. I love the taste of a good Bratwurst, weisswurst, potato pancakes and spatzel. I love the smell of the German food cooking, the sound of polka playing (only during Oktoberfest) and seeing people dressed in their lederhosen and dirndls laughing, dancing and having a good old Deutsch time. BiKETOBEERFEST isn't that. It's more like the strange second or third... Read More »

Photo ©2011 Ian Lass. If you've spent enough time living here in Portland then odds are that you have made the 3 and a half hour trip southeast to our other beer mecca that is called Bend. If you haven't... well then crawl out from under your rock. Besides offering everything an outdoors enthusiast craves from kayaking, hiking, caving, horseback riding, skiing and snowboarding and many other activities, it goes without saying that Bend offers... Read More »

Photo © 2011 Ian Lass Bier. Beoir. Biru. Ol. Pivo. Cervesa. Beer. No matter what language you speak, there is one thing all craft beer drinkers know and they know when they are drinking great and original beer. The Portland International Beer Festival is a unique experience and a nice change of pace from the usual beer festival that features only local beers. This is a melting pot with nearly every corner of the world... Read More »

Portland breweries are like fine pieces of art. Every one is unique in its own way, created by people who have a love and knowledge for beer attained by few. Like all great artists, the owners of Portland's breweries want their works of art to be original, to be filled with their passion and taste really, really good. Well… maybe the art metaphor doesn't work for that last part but you get my point. Now... Read More »