#straightouttabeta
January 1, 2015
by Matt Wiater
Whew. What started out as an idea for a few updates for portlandbeer.org turned into a yearlong quest to figure out the right way to get current, accurate, and useful information about the Portland beer scene into your hands. The way people use websites is also changing due to the proliferation of devices like smartphones, tablets, and everything in between. While desktop and laptop users may take more time digging through the site, mobile users... Read More »
Benefit For Angelo: A Cause for A Worthy Friend
October 15, 2013
by Matt Wiater
Benefit for Angelo De Ieso II Fundly Thursday, October 17th 5pm-10pm The Commons Brewery 1810 SE 10th Avenue Portland, OR Beer is an excellent perk, but I got into this business because of the (mostly) unassuming people and the knowledgeable PDX beer community. Raising a pint with friends—especially Portland beer lovers—is a special experience for me. Instant and lasting friendships can emerge in a brewery or taproom. My site has never turned a profit, and after almost 10 years,... Read More »
Lagerfest 2013
August 18, 2013
by Matt Wiater
Over 40 breweries will participate and each will provide their own sophisticated take on the classic lager beer. The twenty dollar entrance fee includes ten free tastings, a Lagerfest beer drinking mug, and one epicly good time! Killer food provided by Eastside Deli and White Owl Social Club! Go to the Mercury Stranger Tickets online to buy now in advance at a discounted price. Be sure to plan on dancing some of those empty calories... Read More »
Beer + Food Carts + Bands = The Awesome Deschutes Street Fare!
It's back, it's awesome, and it kicks off at 5pm tonight! Details from the press release are below, plus some of my favorite images from years past. I'll be there are usual, weighed down with camera gear, so stop by and say hi! A benefit for the Meals on Wheels People, Street Fare will feature some of Portland’s most popular food carts. These well-known vendors will pair their delicious dishes to match perfectly with Deschutes Brewery’s beers,... Read More »
Portland Beer Week 2013
Portland Beer Week June 6-16 Events Calendar It's great to be a beer drinker in Portland. When the sun begins to drive the rain out, Portland starts throwing huge beer parties: hundreds of thousands come to our festivals, there are month long events, week long events, and sporadically sprinkled day parties throughout the spring and summer. Not to undervalue our amazing cold and wet weather events, but Portland really goes crazy (and goes outside) for... Read More »
Near Beer: Events not to Miss in and Around Portland
April 25, 2013
by Matt Wiater
There's a lot of beer being poured this weekend around Portland and the surrounding areas. Get it while you can, these are once-a-year events. In the case of John Harris's new brewery, get the details on this anticipated operation way, way, way before a single beer is poured. Oregon Garden Brewfest » Friday, Saturday, Sunday Portland is awesome. I love it and drink as much Portland brewed beer as possible. Not for myself, of course, but rather... Read More »
2013 Lucky Lab Big Beer and Barleywine Tastival
Lucky Lab Big Beer and Barleywine Tastival Fri. 3/8 - Sat. 3/9 12pm - 10pm Lucky Lab Beer Hall 1945 NW Quimby If you think the title of this post is tongue-twisting, wait until you try some of these beers! Cold and rainy March in Portland begs for big warming beers and every year the Lucky Labrador delivers with their Big Beer and Barleywine Tastival. This year will mark my 7th year in a row... Read More »
Double Mountain Brewery: 6th Anniversary Party
From Double Mountain Brewery: It’s that time of year again when we toss up the big tent, fill the taps with all we’ve got and throw a shindig to thank all our friends for another great year. The Double Mountain Anniversary Party has become a Northwest institution, and this year’s 6 th Anniversary gig will carry the fun even higher. The all-day party will culminate with the awesome musical stylings of Hell’s Belles, the all-... Read More »
Fermented Photo: War Elephant Double IPA from Columbia River Brewing
Columbia River Brewing 1728 NE 40th Ave Portland, OR War Elephant Double IPA from Columbia River Brewing weighs in at 8.5% ABV, making it a "lighter" alternative to some of the 10 percent monsters out there. This means that the beer can still be somewhat delicate since it doesn't have to pull off a crazy balancing with a full ton of malt and hops that can make some beers of this style fall apart. This... Read More »
The 2013 Malt Ball
2013 Malt Ball Saturday, Feb. 2nd 2pm - Midnight (2 sessions) The Wonder Ballroom Tickets You know something big is coming when things are set on fire in the promo video. Put together by the Portland Mercury and the Oregon Brewers Guild, this year's Malt Ball looks pretty damn great. In fact, the most expensive ticket—for both sessions—is $25 and includes 8 tasting tokens, a commemorative mug, and a heap 'o live music: 12 bands... Read More »
Fermented Photo: The Royale from Gigantic Brewing
The Royale from Gigantic Brewing: now available in our downloads section. Well, the photographic version. I haven't figured out how to make real downloadable beer available to you yet. Yet. Read More »
Fermented Photo: Pig War IPA from Hopworks Urban Brewery
This is a great IPA from Hopworks! I'm sipping the one pictured above as I type. Despite the IBUs at 80, the finish on this is not overly bitter, allowing the lush fruit flavors from the hops shine through. With wheat in the malt bill, the mouthfeel is silky. On tap this year, it was remarkable. This bottled version comes in a notch lower at fantastic—only because the hops are bit more muted in both the aroma and the... Read More »
Breakside Brewery presents the Winter Formal
Winter Formal Saturday, Dec. 15th, 7:30pm Melody Ballroom 615 Southeast Alder Street Buy Tickets Sure, you could site on a barstool and drink great beer. Or, you could find a date, grab your dancing shoes, and compete for prizes—all while drinking beer from some fantastic Portland breweries! Over ten Portland beers on tap from Breakside Brewery, Burnside Brewing, and the Commons Brewery. Rare barrel-aged beers will also be tapped throughout the evening. Check out the... Read More »
Holiday Ale Festival 2012: What You Need to Know
Holiday Ale Festival Wednesday, Nov. 28th: 12pm-10pm Thursday - Saturday: 11am-10pm Sunday, Dec. 2nd: 11am-5pm The 2012 Holiday Ale Festival is upon us once again—for its 17th year! This will be our 10th year attending the festival, so we can provide you with some details on how to make the best use of your time while attending this great festival. According to festival manager Preston Weesner, "It's really special to be able to hold this event... Read More »
Taste the Holiday Spirit at Lompoc Brewing
Lompoc Holiday Beer Extravaganza November 27th, 4p-10p Lompoc Sidebar 3901a N. Williams Ave Brewers Bryan Keilty, Irena Bierzynski and Josh Merrick have been hard at work to stuff your stockings with seven holiday seasonals! On Tuesday November 27th, these beers will be available at the Sidebar at the annual Lompoc Holiday Beer Extravaganza. Complimentary appetizers and sampler trays will be ready for consumption starting at 4pm. Last week, some of the local beer media were... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Hopworks Urban Brewery Abominable Winter Ale
Abominable Winter Ale from Hopworks Urban Brewery brings us one step closer to winter. Catch this beer in cans, bottles, and on draft. During special occasions, it can be found under the name Kentucky Christmas for the awesome barrel-aged version. Available now in Oregon and Washington. From the Hopworks website: Abominable Winter Ale: 17 Plato | 70 IBU | 7.3% ABV "A-Bomb features a floral, spicy and citrus hop aroma backed up by a subtle,... Read More »
Over the Top: A Fort George Tap Takeover at Roscoe's
Over the Top Fort George Tap Takeover Roscoe's 4pm, Saturday, Nov. 17th Fort George Brewery is sending delegates and beer to Portland—the most beer they've ever had on tap outside of their brewery. This Saturday at Roscoe's, Fort George Brewery is taking over the taps with some kick-ass beers. "This could be the last appearance of Bourbon Barrel Cavatica Stout, Flanders Nut Red Ale, and South," said Fort George's Brian Bovenizer. I was going to pick... Read More »
Brewvana Connoisseur Tour with Sean Burke
November 12, 2012
by Matt Wiater
The folks over at BREWVANA have announced a great upcoming connoisseur tour, hosted by Commons Brewing's Sean Burke. Explore European influenced breweries like The Commons Brewery, Upright Brewery, and Occidental Brewing, with a stop for lunch at Old Town Pizza and Brewing. More details including pricing and ticket info below in the official press release: The November installment of BREWVANA’s monthly Connoisseur Tour series takes Sean Burke, brewer for The Commons Brewery, on the bus where he... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Base Camp Brewing India Pale Lager
Base Camp Brewing 930 SE Oak St., Portland, OR 97214 Facebook / Twitter Beer List » Out now in aluminum 22 ounce bottlecans and on draft is Base Camp's flagship beer: In-Tents India Pale Lager (IPL). In the previous article, I quickly talked about the oddly classified beers of Base Camp. The five beers I tried at their grand opening were solid, well-thought out, and covered a fairly wide spectrum of styles. My favorite is... Read More »
The Bigger Picture: Deschutes Brewery and the Deschutes River Recordings
November 4, 2012
by Matt Wiater
"Welcome to the riverside high wire: live, unadorned, far from a studio safety net." "Brew, drink, repeat" has been our mantra for the past 8 years. It's a simple, closed, beer-filled circle. It's a very high level view of the craft brewing and drinking community, so we're going to dig a little deeper. Beer is, at it's core, a business. Simply stated, if a brewery can't support itself through beer sales, it will inevitably cease... Read More »
Base Camp Brewing: Pre-Grand Opening
Today is the second day of Base Camp Brewing's grand opening celebration. I stopped by for a few beers on Thursday night as part of their pre-grand opening industry night. I'm not sure what the real percentage is, but the place looks about 95% complete, with only a few things like the presence of scrap wood out front and the lack of finished bases on a table or two. The Base Camp crew has been... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Base Camp Brewing
Base Camp Brewing Grand Opening Friday and Saturday 11am-11pm 930 SE Oak St., Portland, OR 97214 Please help me welcome Base Camp Brewing (Facebook / Twitter) to the Portland beer scene! The official grand opening weekend party/extravaganza starts today at 11:00am. Last night at a pre-opening gathering, they were pouring five great beers: Paölschienbier, In-Tents India Pale Lager, Out-of-Bounds Brown, S'more Stout (garnished with a marshmallow), and Hoptastic Voyage Fresh Hop IPA. The In-Tents India... Read More »
Embrace the Darkness 2012 at Apex
Beers are getting a bit darker and stronger as winter approaches. But why take baby steps to get to the huge, dark, rich behemoths that we all love? Apex Bar is skipping the middle beers and going right for the pitch black darkness. And huge is not an exaggeration, the beers—as tweeted below—have an average ABV of 10.3%! As the press release states, do not drive to this event: find a ride, take a cab,... Read More »
Winter Beer Releases from Widmer Brothers Brewing
“As we head into fall and winter, our brewers start thinking about rich, complex beers that warm from within,” said Rob Widmer Halloween seems to be the tipping point around Portland when the rain becomes constant and the colder temperatures start to creep in. Beer drinkers in the Northwest also welcome in the maltier, more warming winter brews from Portland breweries. Widmer Brothers Brewing is no exception as you'll see four new releases from them... Read More »
Commons Wild Night
Commons Wild Night Thursday October, 25, 2012 5-9PM The Commons Brewery 1810 SE 10th Ave, Portland, OR To announce their expanded tasting room hours, The Commons Brewery is filling their taps with sour and wild ales. Stop by on Thursday evening to check out a fantastic beer line up and help them celebrate their new Thursday hours! New Tasting Room Hours Thursday 5-9PM Friday 5-9PM Saturday 2-9PM Commons Wild Night Taplist Berliner Weisse Tart German... Read More »
Fresh Hop Beer Season Closes Soon: Get 'em while you can!
As many times as I give Otto treats and take photos of him, he now thinks that the camera is the treat dispenser. Case in point: brush off the table, set up the camera, get the bottle. Once I walk to the camera to take the shot, he's on the table looking for handouts. Oh well, you can barely see him. As do most of you, Otto wants to be around as many fresh hop... Read More »
3rd Annual Night of the Living Ales Giveaway
Night of the Living Ales Friday, October 26th 8pm - 1am, 21+ 7th & E. Burnside You read this site for the beer, so let's see what's pouring at the 3rd Annual Night of the Living Ales. While the taplist may not be long, there are some potentially great, rare beers on it: Almond Joy from Burnside Brewing: a London-style Porter brewed with dark Belgian Chocolate, toasted almonds and toasted coconut. Vanilla Jack from Oakshire... Read More »
October on the Brewvana Bus
October, as every month in Portland, is full of beer. You're gonna drink it, but sometimes you want something different. When the words "CLOSED TOE SHOES REQUIRED ON THIS TOUR" appear on the tour description, you know you're going to get a great look at the inner workings of a brewery. On Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, you can relax and let the Brewvana team cart you around from beer to beer. They'll do almost everything... Read More »
Brewpublic's Killer Beer Week 2012
Take a Sharpie, find a wall calendar, and mark October 21st though October 28th as BUSY. Brewpublic's Killer Beer Week is back for its fourth installment with a list of great events: summits, parties, mini-fests, and a 5 course beer-paired brunch to end the week! Plus, you might get to hang out with Brewpublic's Angelo (pictured). This week-long event even comes with its own hashtag, so follow and tweet here: #KBW12. Check out the complete... Read More »
2012 Occidental Brewing Oktoberfest
Nestled way up by the St. John's Bridge, Occidental Brewing Company is quietly pumping out some great beers. Occidental's focus is on "continental" beers. Rather than the big, bold, boozy American styles, they are focusing on traditional German style beers like Bavarian-style Hefeweizen, Kölsch, Altbier, and Dunkel. Of course "continental" also includes Belgian styles, so keep an eye out for their Voorjaar Tripel. No matter the style, Occidental promotes the subtler malt and hop flavors... Read More »
Portland Beer Photos Hit 500,000 Views!
Don't forget: We've got a selection of free photos for you in our downloads selection. I just checked the stats and noticed this amazing number: 503,329! Photos in the Portlandbeer.org Flickr account have been viewed over 500,000 times! Inside my mind, I'm breakdancing like the guy in the photo above from this year's BiKETOBEERFEST. Outside my mind, everything is normal: just me sitting at a computer, eating baby carrot sticks, typing away and doing as... Read More »
Portlandbeer.org Puts the Focus on Mobile
Beer and technology are two passions of mine. During the day, I'm a programmer. At night, most weekends, holidays, and some mornings, I run portlandbeer.org. If you're one of the 10,000 people that have visited the site in the past two weeks, you probably noticed a drastic change to the way portlandbeer.org looks. I relaunched the site without publicly saying too much in order to quietly fix any lingering issues before calling out to the masses. The... Read More »
Fresh Hop Bottle Releases from Double Mountain Brewery
Double Mountain Brewery is going to make sure that you leave with some bottled fresh hop goodness when you leave this year's Hood River Hops Fest. You can get your hands on these two beers starting at 11:00am on Saturday September 29th. Since fresh hop beers are meant to be consumed as, well fresh as possible, these are a limited run and are only available at the Hood River taproom. These new bottles join the... Read More »
9th Annual Hood River Hops Fest: The Beer List
Hood River Hops Fest Saturday September 29th Noon- 9pm 20 and under free until 5:30 p.m. 21 and up from 6p-9p 21 and over $6.00, includes tasting stein $4.00 for wine drinkers and designated drivers Tokens are $1 each. 4 tokens = a full beer, or 1 token = a taste. #hrhops12 Fresh hop beers are on their way to Hood River for the 9th Annual Hood River Hops Fest. 51 fresh hop beers will... Read More »
Seven Days Left to Hop in the Saddle
September 13, 2012
by Matt Wiater
Separate a Portlander from their bike and their beer any you have: a tourist. Bikes and beer are not only important to the economic health of Portland, they our the city's heartbeat. For some, even spirituality. Separate a Portlander from their bike and their beer any you have: a tourist. Hop in the Saddle hopes to be the definitive two-wheeled guide to Portland's craft beer scene. The proposed authors of the book have started a... Read More »
Lompoc Beer and Cheese Pairing
Lompoc Beer and Cheese Pairing Sept. 12th, 4pm to 10pm Lompoc Sidebar 3901 N Williams Ave Next Wednesday, the kind folks from Lompoc Brewing and The Cheese Bar do what they do best: cheese and beer! Brewer Bryan Kielty and cheesemonger Steve Jones will be on hand from 7p to 9p to answer any questions you may have about the night's offerings. For those of you that made it to the inaugural Portland Beer and... Read More »
Brewvana Connoisseur Tour with Jason McAdam from Burnside Brewing
A new Brewvana Connoisseur Tour was just announced, and this one looks great: Breweries, pubs, beer, and whiskey! $85 will get you a seat on the bus, lunch, and beverages along the way. Plus, you get to hang out with one of Portland's beer personalities: Burnside Brewing's Jason McAdam. Check out the official press release below: BREWVANA Brewery Tours is hosting a Connoisseur Tour for local craft beer enthusiasts. The tour features Jason McAdam, head brewer... Read More »
2012 Jubelale from Deschutes Brewery
Jubelale hits the shelves for the 25th year this October. Deschutes Brewery is now covering 16 US states, so those of us lucky enough to get this will see it in bottles and on draft through December. As usual, the artwork for the bottle is fantastic. In fact, this year's artwork is a design comprised solely of previous years label art through collaging bits and pieces together to form an entirely new piece. Bend Artist Kaycee Anseth Townsend said,... Read More »
Go East PDXers: Hit the Little Woody Festival by Bus
Barrels, barrels, barrels! The aptly named Little Woody Festival in Bend features beer aged in barrels on Friday and Saturday. This year, featured beers have been aged in six types of barrels: Brandy barrels, whiskey barrels, Pinot Noir barrels, Chardonnay barrels, French Oak barrels, and Syrah barrels. From Stouts and Baltic Porters to IPAs and Summer ales, brewers match their beers with the different flavors gained from the barrel aging process. A quick look at... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Okto Festival Ale from Widmer Brothers Brewing
"We've been brewing OKTO Festival Ale for 26 years, and there is a reason that it’s a seasonal favorite: it’s the perfect beer for the transition from summer to fall," said Rob Widmer This week's Fermented Photo subject comes from Widmer Brothers Brewing: Okto Festival Ale in the 2012 Widmer Brothers Oktoberfest stein. Okto Festival Ale is released around Oktoberfest time every year. You'll probably already find it on a few shelves and will stick... Read More »
Upright Brewer’s Dinner at Wildwood Restaurant & Bar
Upright Brewer's Dinner Wildwood Restaurant & Bar Friday, September 7, 6:30pm $75/person includes food, beer, gratuity Reservations: Shelly@wildwoodrestaurant.com 503.225.0130 Wildwood Sous Chef Paul Kasten is at it again. This time he's hosting Alex Ganum of Upright brewing and pairing some rare and vintage Upright beers with an amazing 6 course meal! Each course was specifically designed to pair perfectly with the corresponding beer. You probably have your favorite beer and dinner pairing at home, but... Read More »
Scenes from the 2012 Deschutes Brewery Street Fare
Check out the rest of the photos here » Read More »
The Commons Brewery Releases its Second Beetje Series Beer: Eidolon
August 17, 2012
by Matt Wiater
I'm late on posting this, which by my watch, makes you an hour past release kickoff! Go visit the guys over at the Commons Brewery tonight and get your hands on some Eidolon! From the official press release: The Commons Brewery will be releasing their second beer from the Beetje Series Friday August, 17th at 5:00pm, at the brewery. Eidolon is a sour, barrel aged amber farmhouse brewed with meyer lemon peel, jasmine green tea,... Read More »
Scenes from the Hopworks Urban Brewery BiKETOBEERFEST
BiKETOBEERFEST was a blast again this year! Here are some of my favorite moments from this year's action: Check out the rest of the photos here » Read More »
Figaro Live Pours Tonight at the Barrel House, Lands in Bottles Next Week
The highly touted Figaro is finally here. From the description, it sounds great—and you already know what cascade does with complex barrel aged beers. In fact, Cascade Brewing beers are taking up 8 of the top 20 spots on our Top 20 beer list, as voted by you! It's been a long wait, but Figaro is tapping tonight at 6pm at the weekly Tap It Tuesday event at the Barrel House. Bottles will be available... Read More »
The Inaugural Vancouver Brewfest
Vancouver Brewfest August 10th-11th 2012 Esther Short Park Downtown Vancouver Tickets: $21 ($16 in adv.) Does anything really happen outside of the Portland beer scene? Apparently so. This Friday and Saturday is the inaugural Vancouver Brewfest on the other side of the Columbia River. They've got 25 breweries lined up to pour beer and the weekend weather outlook is great! As you'd expect, you'll get food, beer, music—and this is a benefit for local charities. This is... Read More »
Black Butte Reserve from Deschutes Brewery Returns to Celebrate 24 Years!
For those of you that know Black Butte Reserve XXIV from Deschutes Brewery, you've probably already got a few in your cellar. For those that don't know this beer, or only treat yourself to one each year, keep reading. The annual Black Butte Reserve beer is one of the most complex beers that leaves Bend Oregon. With its myriad of enticing ingredients, and its high-viscosity body, it almost defies description. Black Butte XXIV is layer upon... Read More »
Ice Axe India Pale Ale Bottled For First Time, Available At Zupan's Markets
Another addition to the ever-expanding IPA market segment in Portland, Ice Axe IPA from Mt. Hood Brewing comes down of the mountain in bottles for the first time. However, this beer won't be competing for shelf space in your local Fred Meyer or Safeway. You'll only be able to find this beer at Zupan's Markets and Made in Oregon stores. I recently received a sample of the beer and as you can see in the... Read More »
2012 Street Fare
It's back! The 2012 Street Fare is on of my favorite events of the year. It boils down to beer, food, and music—all for a good cause. This year, the event is in support of Loaves & Fishes Center on Thursday August 15th, 5p-9p. $10 gets you in the gate, plus one token which can be used for a food and beer pairing (or a full beer). Extra tokens are $4 each. You can buy tickets ahead... Read More »
Summer Beers from Widmer Brothers Brewing
July 27, 2012
by Matt Wiater
Summer is here and Widmer Brothers Brewing has a great lineup of beers that reflect the hot, dry season. The only one out of the four beers below that's not in the photo is the Marionberry Hibiscus Gose: it didn't last long enough for the photo shoot. Finally, it turned too hot to drink anything heavier and I broke the rest of these out. If your habits trend toward lighter beers in Summer, definitely check... Read More »
2012 SessionFest in Seattle
Session Fest Brewers Night Thursday July 26th, 7:00 PM Session Fest 2012 Friday July 27th-29th, 'Open' to Close Naked City Taphouse [Map] Seattle, WA In general, beers in the Northwest start out strong. In Portland, out of 542 beers surveyed, the mean ABV is 6.61%—up from last year—with a standard deviation of 1.72. In fact, it's pretty rare to find a beer under 5% ABV in town. In the UK however, when I... Read More »
Bailey's Week Long 5th Anniversary Celebration
Week Long 5th Anniversary Celebration Bailey's Taproom 213 SW Broadway Bailey's Taproom turns 5 this year! Congrats! But what if you can't squeeze all of the excitement into one day? Well, just make a grand week-long celebration with some amazing drafts, rare beers, and great verticals. But it doesn't stop there. Capping off the week is a Barrel-Aged beer festival on Saturday and VIP After Party on Sunday featuring 5 special vintage beers! Monday, July... Read More »
Fire Recovery Benefit at Laurelwood Brewing Co.
Fire Recovery Benefit Tuesday July 17th Laurelwood Public House & Brewery 5115 NE Sandy Blvd Event on Facebook Being part of the Portland beer scene is not only about beer. It's also about community. Whether it's meeting friends out for a pint, enjoying one of a hundred Portland beer events, or lending a hand to a friend in need. On Tuesday, July 17th, 20% of all sales at Laurelwood Brewing Co. on 51st Ave will... Read More »
Fermented Photo: The HUB Organic IPA, Canned
What better way to get ready for the Fourth of July than a test run of the grill. Of course, the grill worked fine last weekend, so this is just another excuse to grill more food. And what test run would be complete without beer? For today's test-fire, I chose a newly canned Hopworks Urban Brewery IPA. Dark golden color with citrus (orange, grapefruit, mild lemon) and pine hop flavors, slight sweetness from the malt,... Read More »
2012 Puckerfest Lineup
Here is the official lineup for Belmont Station's much loved Puckerfest! I'd write something awesomely insightful right here, but I know everyone's already left to peruse the list below. On with it: Friday July 13 | 5–8pm | Oakshire & Flat Tail Puckerfest July 13th - 18th Belmont Station 4500 SE Stark CASH ONLY Oakshire Brewmaster Matt van Wyk and Flat Tail Brewmaster Dave Marliave team up to kick off Puckerfest with some special treats!... Read More »
Sour News from Cascade Brewing Barrel House
Tonight's Tap It Tuesday at the Cascade Brewing Barrel House is a preview of their fantastic Kriek: an oak barrel aged sour red ale fermented on cherries. Straight out of the barrel and into the glass, these live tappings are a great piece of the Portland beer scene. While the spectacle of someone from the crowd tapping the barrel can be a fun (and wet) event, surely it's the beer that makes this a great... Read More »
Scenes from the 2012 Barrel Aged Beer Seminar
June 14, 2012
by Matt Wiater
Last night, I attended the Barrel Aged Beer Seminar and Tasting, part of a lineup of events for Portland Beer Week. The event centered around 11 different barrel aged beers from four different breweries, with a panel member representing each brewery: Ben Edmunds from Breakside Brewery, Mitch Steele from Stone Brewing, Matt Van Wyk from Oaksire Brewing, and Doug Rehberg from Widmer Brothers Brewing. Like last year, it was a casual event with Ben Edmunds... Read More »
Pints and Prints: Art and Beer at Bottles
Prints & Pints Bottles 5105 NE Freemont As a photographer, I like to mix beer and art. In fact, I like to mix beer in art with drinking beer. More importantly, I like to talk about beer in art while drinking... Ok, I'm going a bit too far down the rabbit hole. Mixing beer and art is what Bottles is all about starting Thursday June 14th with Prints and Pints: "Beer-inspired art prints from 14... Read More »
2012 North American Organic Brewers Festival Beer List
.beer-entry:hover { background-color: #efefef; } North American Organic Brewers Festival June 29th-July 1st Overlook Park Alright, here are the beers for the 2012 North American Organic Brewers Festival! This year, you can read about the organic classification and certifications for the beers as well. Don't forget, you can win a $50 entry package (a pair of tickets and 38 tokens!) in our June contest! Yellow Wolves of Thailand/Imperial IPA Alameda Brewing Co. Portland, OR www.alamedabrewing.com... Read More »
Portland Beer Week Kickoff Party Tomorrow
Portland Beer Week Spirit of 77 500 NE Martin Luther King Jr 6p-10p Portland Beer Week kicks off tomorrow at Spirit of 77. Be the first to drink the official 2012 Portland Beer Week beer (India Red Lager collaboration from Hopworks Urban Brewery and Deschutes Brewery), party with Portland brewers, and hang out with Lisa Morrison: MC Beer Goddess! Details are below in the official press release: Portland Beer Week kicks off with the first... Read More »
2012 Portland Fruit Beer Festival's Rare and Rotating Taplist Announced
The rare and rotating taplist for the 2012 Portland Fruit Beer Festival has just been announced: 29 more beers! From the official press release: "These beers range in size from 5 gallon kegs to 15.5 gallon 1/2 barrels but there is only one keg of each and they will be tapped 4 at a time on our dedicated rotating draft lines off of a small draft trailer located on NE 7th street by Couch. Kegs... Read More »
Portland Beer Week Spills into Ten Days
PDX Beer Week June 7th-17th, 2012 This year, PDX Beer Week brings us: special beer releases and beer release events, mini-festivals, special speakers and panels, seminars, meet the brewer events, blending symposiums, brewers dinners, and on and on! Seriously: on and on. There's actually so much going on for the second annual Portland Beer Week that it's busting at the seams and spilling out into the surrounding weeks. Check out the full list at their... Read More »
Second Annual Amnesia Single Hop Fest
Single Hop Fest Amnesia Brewing [Map] Saturday, June 2nd Noon-10p The Single Hop Fest is back for it's second year over at Amnesia Brewing. The idea is simple: one beer, one hop. For the most part, each participating brewery will bring one beer that showcases the different aspects of their chosen hop. It's a great way display the distinct features of each hop and how it contributes to bitterness, flavor, and aroma. For more information,... Read More »
2012 Portland Fruit Beer Festival
2012 Portland Fruit Beer Festival Website | Twitter | Facebook June 9th and 10th NE Burnside & 7th The 2012 Portland Fruit Beer Festival beer list is out and man, there are some interesting beers! They run the gamut from extremely light Goldens to heavy hitting Porters. All beers include fruit in some manner. While a few will showcase a subtle hint of fruit, others could be a punch in the mouth. Whatever the case,... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Collage from Deschutes Brewery and Hair of the Dog Brewing
Normally, when two competing companies get together in America, they're up to no good: dark rooms, whispering, and talks about screwing the consumer. In the beer industry however, the process and outcome is very different. Collage, for example, is a blend of four vastly different beers from two vastly different breweries. Alan Sprints from Portland's Hair of the Dog brewed batches of Adam and Fred at Deschutes brewery in Bend. In turn, Deschutes Brewery crafted... Read More »
Roscoe's 3rd Annual Belgian Beer Summit
3rd Annual Belgian Beer Summit Roscoe's 8105 SE Stark Street Friday, May 25th, 4pm Another great Roscoe's beer summit is upon us. This time, Roscoe's will be pouring Belgian and Belgian-style beers from around the world. There are a lot of great beers going on tap and you can work your way through the taplist via sampler trays as usual. Some of the beers you'll taste tomorrow: Rodenbach—Grand Cru Double Mountain—2011 Sacre Bleu Corsendork—Apple White... Read More »
Brewvana's Connoisseur Tour with Ben Flerchinger
There are 6 seats left for this Sunday's Brewvana Connoisseur Tour with Lucky Lab brewer Ben Flerchinger. Beer all day, followed by a food and beer pairing dinner? Now that's a Sunday! The official press release: BREWVANA Brewery Tours is hosting a Connoisseur Tour for local craft beer enthusiasts. The tour features Ben Flerchinger, Lucky Lab's head brewer, who will be leading the tour to three breweries, a bottle shop and a upscale dining restaurant. Taking place... Read More »
Tap It Tuesday at Cascade Brewing Barrel House: Cinnamon Quad
Another Tap it Tuesday is upon us, in less than 3 hours! Check out the details from the press release: "Tonight's Tap It Tuesday Live from the Barrel series at 6pm is Cinnamon Quad. This NW style sour ale is a blond quad that was barrel aged with cinnamon and is a blending component used in several projects, including Vlad the Imp Aler. Aromas of cinnamon with a hint of Bourbon are the first to... Read More »
Tap It Tuesday at Cascade Brewing Barrel House: Live Red
Live Red is tomorrow's Tap It Tuesday release at Cascade Brewing Barrel House. Only a mouthful will tell, but I'm intrigued by the flavor profile below, especially the combination of hazelnut, currants, and bourbon barrel! "This week's Tap It Tuesday at 6pm is Live Red, a NW style sour red ale that was aged for four months in Bourbon barrels. Dark red wine, raisins and red grape skin aromas are noticed up front. Sweet red... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Urban Farmhouse and Flemish Kiss from The Commons Brewery
Just a quick note to congratulate The Commons Brewery for their bronze medal in the French & Belgian-Style Saison category at the 2012 World Beer Cup. Their Urban Farmhouse came in 3rd out of 44 entries. Cheers! Read More »
Burnside Brewing Releases Kali-Ma in Bottles and Draft
Kali-Ma Release Burnside Brewing Co. Tuesday May 15th 3pm 701 E. Burnside Portland, OR 97214 UPDATE: There have been some issues surrounding the use of Hindu goddess Kali-Ma on the beer label and in the promotion of the beer. On their Facebook page, Burnside Brewing has been quick to respond: "We at Burnside Brewing Co. aspire to create exceptional craft beer while sustaining an enjoyable, livable workplace for our crew of approximately 20 employees. In... Read More »
Tap It Tuesday at Cascade Brewing Barrel House: High Class Blond
We just got some info on tonight's Tap It Tuesday at Cascade Brewing Barrel House: "Tonight we're living large and stepping out with a High Class Blond. Join us at Tap It Tuesday at 6 pm where we'll tap a live keg of a NW style sour blond ale that was barrel aged for a year in French oak. Tart apple, vanillin and soft oak are present upfront. Hints of green apple and sweet green... Read More »
F.H. Steinbart Co. Participates in AHA Big Brew
F.H. Steinbart Co. 234 SE 12th Ave. Portland, OR 97214 www.fhsteinbart.com Check out the homebrew event tomorrow at F. H. Steinbart. From the official press release: A celebration of National Homebrew Day, known as AHA Big Brew, is now in its 15th year. F.H. Steinbart Co. will host a local site on May 5, 2012. Organized by the American Homebrewers Association (AHA), AHA Big Brew celebrates National Homebrew Day, honored on the first Saturday of... Read More »
2012 Oregon Zoo Brew
Oregon Zoo Brew June 1st, 5pm-10pm UPDATE: This event is now SOLD OUT. No tickets are available at the door: http://www.oregonzoo.org/events/zoo-brew-sold-out ********** The annual Zoo Brew is back for another year! Put your beer drinking to good use and support the mission of the Oregon Zoo. There are a lot of great participating breweries and cideries, activities, workshops, games, and beer-themed prizes. Check out the details below for tickets and participating breweries, check out the... Read More »
Portlandbeer.org's Monthly Contest: Win a Bottle of 2008 Vlad the Imp Aler!
I know two things about the photo above: 1) it's a 2009 bottling of Vlad the Imp Aler and, 2) I drank it last year. Gone, but not forgotten. If your cellar is missing a vintage bottle of Cascade Brewing Barrel House's Vlad the Imp Aler, you now have a chance to win a 2008 bottle from the brewery! Check out the Contest page for details on how to enter. Vlad the Imp Aler: “This... Read More »
Tap It Tuesday: Beck Blossom
Here is the official information on tonight's Tap It Tuesday at Cascade Brewing Barrel House: "Happy May Day! In honor of this spring holiday, we bring you Beck Blossom at tonight's Tap It Tuesday at 6pm. This live NW style sour ale is a wheat beer that was barrel aged for 12 months before additionally aging on noyaux shells for a week. Sweet notes of orchard blossoms and almond aromas are the first to be... Read More »
New Bottle Releases from The Commons Brewery
Stop by The Commons Brewery this weekend during their tasting room hours on Friday 5-9PM and Saturday 4-9PM to check out the newest bottle-conditioned beer releases. This weekend sees the debut of Flemish Kiss and Urban Farmhouse in bottles. Congrats Commons, keep pushing these out! Read More »
Bailey's 2nd Annual GermanFest on Saturday!
2012 GermanFest Bailey's Taproom 213 SW Broadway April 28th 2012 2p-4p: VIP Entry 4p: General Admission 6oz and 12oz pours available What happens when Oregon breweries brew German styles? Well, hopefully Bailey's Taproom gets a hold of a keg and puts it on for their annual GermanFest event! Appearing at this year's event are 19 beers from across Oregon: Bocks, Goses, Alts, Berlinerweisses, Helles, Marzen, and on and on. There are a lot of lager... Read More »
Upright Brewing Tap Takeover at Bottles
Upright Tap Takeover Bottles 5015 NE Fremont Friday, April 27th, 6pm-9pm As usual, you can find upcoming events on our events page. Sometimes events get special mentions here on the blog as well—just so you don't miss 'em. In this case, Alex Ganum from Upright Brewing is bringing eight of his beers to Bottles for a Tap Takeover event. When an imaginative brewer brings his beer to a great location for a meet/greet/drink, we're definitely... Read More »
Logsdon Organic Farmhouse Ales Wins “People’s Choice” Vote at Cheers to Belgian Beers
People have been asking about the "People's Choice" winner at this year's Cheers to Belgian Beers festival. For the second consecutive year, Logsdon Organic Farmhouse Ales takes the win. Congrats Logsdon! Here's the official press release: 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'... Read More »
Kill Devil Brown Ale Special Release on Saturday
Kill Devil Release Widmer Brothers Brewing Retail Store 929 North Russell St. Saturday, April 28 9 to 11 a.m. When I stumbled upon the beer label for Widmer Brothers' Kill Devil Brown Ale, I was very excited: interesting label, great ingredients, very promising. But, as the saying goes, you can't always judge a beer by it's label. However, if I was going to brew my own dream Imperial Brown Ale, it would probably have an... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Organic Green Mammoth from Laurelwood Brewing Company
Laurelwood's Organic Green Mammoth Imperial IPA is currently sitting on top of our Top 40 Portland Beers list. While we've seen many fluctuations on the list as more and more ratings come in, the Green Mammoth has had a consistent place near the top of the list since we started it two years ago. This beer makes very rare appearances, rearing it's beautiful tusked head every year or two—usually only on draft. As of last... Read More »
Beer Outtakes with Widmer's Ben Dobler
In the video blow, Ben Dobler from Widmer Brothers Brewing shows us it ain't easy being a pimp. On the other hand, in the photo below from last year's Benfest, he shows us that being a pimp is easy. Cheers Ben, thanks for making us laugh! "I don't like the word creaminess." Read More »
Portland's Cheers to Belgian Beers: 2012 Beer List
Portland's Cheers to Belgian Beers Saturday, Apr 21st 12:00pm-9:00pm @ Metalcraft Fabrication 723 N Tillamook St. Portland's Cheers to Belgian Beers is back again this Saturday. It's a 9 hour event, features many one-off beers, there are brewers on hand, and it's a great price! This one is easy people: get your butts out to Cheers to Belgian Beers! If you're not going to listen to me, check out the details below. The People's Choice... Read More »
Join the portlandbeer.org Team!
April 17, 2012
by Matt Wiater
We are looking for a fresh face to fill a vacant contributor position here at portlandbeer.org. Do you like drinking beer? Do you enjoy talking, tweeting, photographing, and writing about Portland beer? Do you enjoy long walks on the beach? While we don't put money directly in your pocket, there are perks to joining the team: Media entry in to beer events Media entry in to industry only events Huge exposure through our family of... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Biere de Garde from The Commons Brewery
Beer + Rain = PDX. It's the new, new math. While I don't have time to explain all of the intricacies of the equation, your takeaway is the beer part. In this case, The Commons Brewery's Biere de Garde. A trip to the The Commons Brewery taps during their limited tasting room hours will yield an amazing assortment of Belgian inspired beers. You can get them by the glass and even better, a four beer... Read More »
Two Upcoming Big Portland Beer Releases
Coming soon is the much anticipated collaboration between Deschutes Brewery and Hair of the Dog Brewing: Collage. This beer answers the question: What would happen if we blended Hair of the Dog's Adam and Fred with Deschutes Brewery's Dissident and Stoic? Oh, and what if we aged everything in a variety of barrels?" Well, I for one am glad that someone asked that question. I'm even more happy that the two great breweries decided to... Read More »
The 2012 Oregon Garden Brewfest
jQuery(document).ready(function(){ jQuery("#beer-list-link").click(function(){ $('html,body').animate({scrollTop: $("#ogb-beerlist").offset().top - 55}); return false; });jQuery("#beer-dinner-list-link").click(function(){ $('html,body').animate({scrollTop: $("#beer-dinner-list").offset().top - 55}); return false; }); }); 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... Read More »
Cascade Brewing Barrel House: Tap It Tuesday
Every Tuesday at 6pm, the Cascade Brewing Barrel House taps a new live barrel of a usually short-lived, one-off beer. What is a "live" beer? It simply means that beer is still active: the yeast and/or bacteria is still changing the profile of the beer as it sits in the barrel. These beers are rolled out of the barrel room and tapped—usually by a lucky patron—at 6pm. They are served at cellar temperature and carbonated... Read More »
The Commons Biere de Garde Release
The Commons Biere de Garde Release Cheese Bar 6031 SE Belmont Street 6p-9p I shouldn't need to say anything more than "Hey, great beer and great cheese!" But I will. I haven't tried the Biere de Garde yet, but if you know The Commons Brewery like I do, it will be fantastic! Pair this bottle offering with the amazing cheese at Steve Jones' Cheese Bar, and you've got an incredible, yet simple event. Check out... Read More »
Craft Brew Alliance Unveils Gluten-Free Craft Beers Brewed with Barley
I get a lot of email from people asking about gluten-free beer. Honestly, I don't have much experience with it. As someone with absolutely no gluten intolerance, I don't have to be picky about the ingredients in the beer I'm drinking. To different degrees, gluten intolerance can affect about 1 in 125 people in the US and is referred to as celiac disease or celiac sprue. In the beer world, it's hard to escape gluten... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Raspberry Russian Imperial Stout from Widmer Brothers Brewing
Hitting shelves beginning April 9th, tasting notes coming soon. For now, here are the stats: Ingredients Malts: Pale, Roast Barley, Caramel 60L, Midnight Wheat, Chocolate Malt Hops: Alchemy for bittering, Willamette and Cascade for aroma Red raspberries Profile Original Gravity: 21.5 P Apparent Extract: 5 P IBU: 70 ABV: 9.3% Color: 90 SRM Read More »
Fermented Photo: Lompoc Brewing Fermentation Tank
In honor of our March Photo Contest sponsor, I give to you: A Lompoc Brewing Fermentation Tank. 14 barrels to be exact. Oh yeah, and there's still plenty of time to enter and win some beer gear by submitting a photo! Read More »
2012 Portland Malt Ball
Malt Ball 03/24/2012 Bossanova Ballroom 722 E Burnside Portland 2-12pm, 21+ only Here are some details on tomorrow's Malt Ball: Lots of beer, lots of music, lots of food. Check out the impressive lists below, then get your tickets! $20 advance at website, $25 on the day of the event. Includes admission to show, four tasting tokens and commemorative mug. Ticket Sales end at 11:15pm Last Beer at 11:45pm Breakside Brewery + Denver: Hot Denver Pale Ale—A... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Chainbreaker White IPA from Deschutes Brewery
The "White IPA" style on the label should be a giveaway: this is not your normal IPA. But don't let that scare you: this is an excellent beer. As with every other Deschutes Brewery beer, this ale has gone through many iterations and tests at the Deschutes Proving Grounds (DPG)—aka the Deschutes brewpubs. Deschutes Brewery is not afraid to ask consumers for their opinions on new recipes and they are not afraid to change these... Read More »
Oatmeal Porter from Widmer Brothers Brewing
The newest addition to the Widmer Brothers 924 Series is the Oatmeal Porter. The 924 Series sits between the brewery's regular releases and their Brothers' Reserve Series. The regular 6 pack releases include the year round and widely known Hefeweizen as well as the Drop Top Amber, Drifter Pale Ale, and the Rotator IPA Series. These beers are the bulk of their portfolio and are seen all across the US. On the high end, Widmer... Read More »
On the Road with Brewvana
March 10, 2012
by Matt Wiater
Brewvana Brewery Tours Facebook | Twitter Last weekend, I was invited to participate in a media tour with Brewvana Brewery Tours. All I had to do was show up at the pickup location and I would be whisked away on a mystery tour for five hours. Of course, I'd be required to eat free food and drink free beer. Work, work, work, work, work. Hopping on board the bus, we were greeted by Ashley Rose... Read More »
Introduction to Homebrewing with BREWVANA
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... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Company Celebrates its Employee Owners with a New Brewer’s Share Beer
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... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Fermentation at The Commons Brewery
For the first time in the Fermented Photo feature, we feature fermentation. It's also today's tongue twister. What happens when you're drinking beer, taking photos, drinking beer, forgetting to take notes, and drinking beer? Well, you forget things. So, in a sad attempt to provide information, I'll bust through the pellicle in my brain to retrieve some sporadic details about the photo above. First, the facts: taken at The Commons Brewery it's a barrel it's... Read More »
The Commons Brewery Releases Brotherly Love
Brotherly Love Bottle Release 750ml bottles, $15 each 1810 SE 10th Ave Saturday March 24th, Noon Mike Wright, Founding Brewer The day has finally come: The Commons Brewery releases its first bottle conditioned beer! Brotherly Love will be released on Saturday March 24th at the brewery. That's the good news. The bad news? Only 150 of these handcrafted 750ml bottles of this beer will leave the brewery. Well, I guess it's only bad news... Read More »
Monthly Giveaways at Portlandbeer.org!
Brought to you by: Lompoc Brewing Facebook | Twitter We're kicking off a new series here at the site. Beginning this month, you'll have a chance to win prizes from Portland breweries, bottleshops, and festivals! We are teaming up with local beer businesses and and creating monthly contests so you can win things like: free beer, beer swag, festival admission, and anything else we can get our hands on. For now, most of these contests... Read More »
Neptune's Wrath Available Today at Burnside Brewing
Burnside Brewing is releasing Neptune's Wrath today at 3pm. From the official press release: "Packaged in Magnum sized (1.5 litres or 51oz) and limited to only 100 hand numbered green glass bottles with a wraparound label, Neptune's Wrath is expected to cellar well and be a valuable edition to anyone's craft beer collection! Bottles go on sale at the pub opening this Tuesday 2/28 at 3pm for $30." Read More »
Barleywine and Big Beer Festival at the Lucky Lab
Barleywine and Big Beer Festival Lucky Labrador Beer Hall 1945 NW Quimby St. March 2nd and 3rd Noon – 10pm One of my favorite events of the year starts on Friday: Barleywine and Big Beer Festival. In the past, this event has gone by many names. In 2008, it was the Barleywine and Big Beer Tastival and in 2009 it was the Barleywine Festeroon. But, whatever it's called, it's a great event. As the name... Read More »
Roscoe's 2nd Annual Stout Summit
2nd Annual Stout Summit Roscoe's Friday, Feb. 24th, 4pm 8105 SE Stark St. Roscoe's brings us another great beer summit tonight. Below are a few of the beers that will start pouring at 4pm. Be warned, I'm going to try and drink most of these before you get there! Deschutes—2010 Abyss Oakshire—Cordial Love: brewed with cocoa nibs and aged on espresso beans and cherries Great Divide—2010 Chocolate Yeti Boneyard—Sug Knite Upright—Bourbon Barrel Stout of Monte... Read More »
Fermented Photo Flashback: Full Sail Brewing Mash Tun
An old photo, but a timeless process. This photo was taken looking down the barrel of Full Sail Brewing's mashtun at their Riverplace location here in Portland. Brewers John Harris and Phil Roche are responsible for bringing us the Brewmaster Reserve Series of Full Sail beers. Make sure to check out the current release: Top Sail, Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Porter! ABV 9.5% IBUs: 40 Read More »
Create Your Own Portland Beer Crawl!
Over the years, we've had many suggestions for different beer crawls around the city. We kept changing our lists as new breweries appear appeared on the scene. But why take the control out of your hands? Just go to the Crawls page, and drag and drop breweries into the destination area. It's that simple! As soon as you have at least two destinations, the map above will update and show you the best route. You... Read More »
Zwickelmania Returns on Saturday!
Zwickelmania returns this Saturday to breweries all over Oregon! For those of us in Portland, 36 breweries are opening their doors for tours, specials, beer releases, and other beer-related activities. For the full list of participating breweries and details on what each spot is offering, check out the Oregon Brewers Guild page. Read More »
PDXBeerGeeks Presents Meet the Brewers: Natian Brewery
Meet the Brewer: Natian Brewery The Guild Public House Thursday, Feb. 16th, 6p-8p 1101 E Burnside Ave Portland, OR 97214 This Thursday, #pdxbeergeeks brings us a special Meet the Brewer event: Natian Brewery. Brewers will be on hand to talk beer, and of course, you'll be able to drink Natian beers: Old Grogham Winter IPA – 8.5% ABV Lumberjane Stout – 8.6% ABV CuDA Cascadian Dark Ale – 7.4% ABV Vertical Horizon NW Red Ale... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Widmer Brothers Spiced IPA
Spiced IPA from Widmer Brothers Brewing is the fourth release in their Rotator Series. This beer follows X-114, Falconer's, and O'Ryely. The Rotator Series lives up to its name as each of the releases has been very different from the last. It's hard for me to say goodbye to O'Ryely as it's been a go to beer of mine for the last couple of months: the combination of the fruity Nelson Sauvin and light peppery... Read More »
New Features on portlandbeer.org!
You'll notice a few great changes on the beer page. Every beer now has a rating display box. However, a beer needs at least 5 ratings by different users in order to display a numerical rating, otherwise you'll see an "n/a" in the box. So now, all in one spot, you can see your ratings alongside the compile ratings of everyone else. We've also added a "View Top 40 Beers" button on the "Customize Beer... Read More »
Mike Branes Leads Brewvana’s Connoisseur Tour
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... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Releases Dan's Satin Stout
A new stout from Full Sail Brewing is on the horizon. "Spicy", "floral", "wildflower honey", "nitrogen conditioning" and a fairly sessionable 5.2% ABV? I'm game! Plus, as with all of the Brewer's Share releases, part of the proceed's go to a charity, this time Hospice of the Gorge. Looks like a formula for success. Check out the details from the official press release below: Hood River, Oregon – This month Full Sail Brewing will release a... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Deschutes Brewery Bond Street Pub in Bend Oregon
Congratulations to Deschutes Brewery for the reopening of their Bond Street Pub in Bend Oregon! Doubling their size and rebuilding from almost the ground up, they've spared no expense to make their patrons feel at home—and quite frankly, a little spoiled. I took a walk around the Bond Street Pub a couple of weeks ago before their official grand reopening on February 1st. They still had a bit of work to do, but I captured... Read More »
Chainbreaker IPA from Deschutes Brewery
Those of you that came out to my Of Pints and Men beer photography show at Gigantic Gallery, got a sneak peek at Chainbreaker White IPA graciously donated by Deschutes Brewery. In fact, we kicked an entire 13 gallon keg in a matter of a few hours! I'm so proud of us. But playing around with an IPA is a dangerous proposition. It's obvious that we take pride in our huge floral and citrusy IPAs here... Read More »
Black Out Party at the Sidebar
Black Out Party Lompoc Sidebar 3901A N Williams Ave, Portland, OR 4pm-10pm Lompoc Brewing's Sidebar is having a great event tomorrow night: the Black Out Party! Big, bold, dark beers and a great way to see the influences of different types of coffee on the same base beer. Compare Ristretto Roasters' Beaumont Blend, Peruvian proprietary roast, and El Salvadorian proprietary roast. Check out the official press release: Come to the Dark Side tomorrow from 4 to 10 pm at Sidebar... Read More »
Widmer Brothers Kill Devil Brown
The label says Spring 2012 and I might be more excited about this beer than I am about the Spring season itself. American Brown Ales should be big on chocolate, caramel, and well-roasted malts, creating a medium to high viscosity sweet body, balanced out by some nice hop bitterness. Gentle aroma and flavor hops can be used by professionals of balance, but these can often muddle what should be a clear malt showcase. Well, that's... Read More »
Brewpublic Presents My Beery Valentine 3
My Beery Valentine 3 Saraveza 1004 N. Killingsworth St., Portland, OR Well, Brewpublic is at it again, this time with their third installment of the popular My Beery Valentine event. Let's face it, you love beer and beer loves you right back. Why not celebrate that love by letting Brewpublic serve you up some great, mostly one-off beers. Here you'll find beers brewed with delicious ingredients like: chocolate, cherry wood, vanilla, cocoa, black raspberries, coffee,... Read More »
When Beer and Code Meet and Fall in Love
January 30, 2012
by Matt Wiater
Take a look around, we've been pretty busy. We've stripped out years of cruft so that we can deliver our Portland beer goodness cleanly, and at faster speeds. We've kept all of your favorite content, but we have also made some great changes: We have removed the superfluous parts so that we can deliver the content to you, quickly and cleanly. These things included unnecessary bells and whistles that either got in the way or slowed the... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Rob Widmer
Rob Widmer, talking about the upcoming releases from Widmer Brothers Brewing: W'12 Dark Saison and the Rotator Series Spiced IPA. I've seen the Dark Saison on store shelves already, but the new Spiced IPA hasn't displaced the current delicious Rotator Series O'Ryely quite yet. Both beers are quite unique. The Dark Saison lives up to it's name, showcasing the Belgian yeast strain, while finishing long and sweet from the caramel and dark chocolate malt. The... Read More »
Brewligans Bottle Shop Grand Opening
Brewligans Bottle Shop 275 E Historic Columbia River Hwy Troutdale, OR 97060 Find them on Twitter and Facebook The grand opening for Brewligans Bottle Shop has just started. Doors opened at noon today for the Troutdale shop, and they are eager to get great beer into your hands and mouths. Brewligans is starting out with about 75 different bottled beers and five rotating taps. Also avaiable during your visit: gourmet hot dogs! Check out the photos on... Read More »
Valentine’s Day Beer Love Tour from Brewvana
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... Read More »
Scottish Week at Cascade Brewing Barrel House
The Cascade Brewing Barrel House has announced Scottish Week! From Scottish twists on favorite beer styles, to new food offerings for the week, the Barrel House is serving up some delicious treats for Portlanders. Check out the details below. I've got my eye on that soured McShagger for tomorrow night's Tap It Tuesday! From the official press release: Mo chairdean choir (my dear friends), it's Scottish Beer Week at the Barrel House, and as a toast to... Read More »
Upright Brewing Announces "Fantasia" Bottle Release
Fantasia from Upright Brewing answers the age old question: What is craft brewing? Craft beer is not defined by market segments, budgets, or campaigns. Forget the ideas surrounding the size of the brewery or the barrel production numbers and boil it down to the simple, yet often overlooked concept of "what if". Craft beer is created by carefully executing an idea—and creative brewers will come up with equally creative ideas. Throw quality ingredients and patience... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Beer Shrapnel
Shrapnel from the annual New Year's Eve Tasting. La Ferme de la Ville Provision (2011), Belgian Farmhouse, Block 15 La Folie (2011), Sour Brown, New Belgium Clutch (2011), Dark Sour, New Belgium Kriek (2011), Barrel Aged Kriek, Cascade Brewing The Dissident (2010), Oud Bruin, Deschutes Brewery Love Buzz (2011), Barrel-Aged Brett Saison, Anchorage Brewing Company Bourbon Barrel LSD, Bourbon Barrel Strong Ale, Lompoc Brewing 14 (2010), Barrel Aged Blend, Firestone Walker Labyrinth (2011), Rye Barrel Aged Black Ale, Uinta Brewing Abyss (2010), Barrel Aged Imperial Stout, Deschutes Brewery Abyss (2011), Barrel Aged Imperial Stout, Deschutes Brewery Bourbon... Read More »
Beer Hunter: The Movie
January 9, 2012
by Matt Wiater
Check out director John Richards' new project "Beer Hunter: The Movie". He is raising funds on Kickstarter to complete not only a film about the Michael Jackson, but also a series of "Beer Hunter: The Lost Tapes" out of 63 hours of unpublished footage acquired between 2004 and Michael's death in 2007. Currently, the project is sitting at $8708 out of a total of $30,000 needed to fund the project. It's got a long way to go... Read More »
Beer Photography on Display at Burnside Brewing this Month
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... Read More »
Red Chair NWPA from Deschutes Brewery
“You will find no cloying, mouth-puckering bitterness here. In its place is a straight-up, succulent, citrus punch to the nose.” Brewer John Abraham Traditionally, a Northwest Style Pale Ale is very hoppy: big floral aroma, huge citrus taste, and a giant bitter backbone. Deschutes Brewery has bucked that tradition with their version of the Northwest Pale ale, Red Chair. Now this beer is still hoppy, but retains none of the bitterness usually associated with this... Read More »
Big, Beautiful Holiday Releases from Hopworks
Happy Holidays to all of Portland from Hopworks Urban Brewery! Big releases this week including one of the standouts at this year's Holiday Ale Festival: Kentucky Christmas (on Thursday). Today from the brewery is a double header of their Noggin' Floggin' Barleywine. As of noon, you can stop in and do a side-by-side comparison of the vintage 2009 version against the 2010 bourbon barrel aged version. Tuesday's Imperial Stout sounds great as well, so you... Read More »
Skookumchuck, Skookumchuck, Skookumchuck!
What happens if you say Skookumchuck three times quickly? Unfortunately, nothing. Though people will look at you. And you'll be wasting time. Instead, you should be heading down to Belmont Station between 5pm and 8pm tonight to get your hands on a very limited quantity of Skookumchuck Wild Ale from Oakshire Brewing. Belmont Station has a few cases of Skookumchuck 750ml for sale at $19.99 each along with Skookumchuck, Hellshire II, and Ill Tempered Gnome... Read More »
Christmakuh at The Hop and Vine
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... Read More »
Brewing Up Cocktails Returns: Winter Holiday Special Edition
Well, the cold weather has not only brought some big beers back to life, but the team behind Brewing up Cocktails is back with a Holiday edition of their beer concoctions. Using a craft beer as a mixer is sacrilegious you say? Before you start wagging your finger, remember: people used to think the world was flat. And now, hundreds of years later, only half still believe that. But those that knew the truth were rewarded with trips... Read More »
Amnesia Winter Ale Fest
Still thirsty after the Holiday Ale Festival? You're in luck: Amnesia [map] is throwing their Winter Ale Fest this Saturday (December 10th) from noon until 10pm. They will have Frosty's Revenge and SleighJerker as usual along with aged versions including a Frosty's aged on Cognac infused French oak. They are also releasing a new strong milk stout made with flaked oats and lactose sugar called The Milk of Amnesia and we'll be tapping a ferkin... Read More »
Holiday Ale Festival: Opening Day Review
The portlandbeer.org team has come out of the other side of opening day of the 2011 Holiday Ale Festival in tact. Mostly. Perfect day: 50° and sunny for a 2pm kickoff. I was eager to work my way through the beers I mentioned in the "Must Try Five" List of Six Beers article. Very eager. Our pre-festival list held up very well under plenty of drinking scrutiny. It can be hit or miss coming up with... Read More »
The 2011 Holiday Ale Festival Begins
#haf2011 Kickoff is just hours away! We will be sending out info during the opening hours of the fest, so keep your eyes here: #haf2011 for news from everyone tweeting from the festival, on our Twitter account for news from us, and on our Facebook page. Don't forget, you can (and should!) also rate the Portland entries in the Holiday Ale Festival by going here and logging in with your Facebook account. Let the games begin! Read More »
Lompoc Holiday Beer Extravaganza!
Tuesday November 29th 4pm-10pm Lompoc Sidebar Just a reminder about tomorrow night at the Lompoc Sidebar: Nine holiday beers released! From 4pm-10pm, you can check out this year's seasonal releases from the brewers at Lompoc Brewing. We talked about the releases in our previous article here, so we're just passing along the official press release for tomorrow night's big event. Don't let the looming Holiday Ale Festival scare you from going out on a Tuesday... Read More »
Holiday Ale Festival: Our Official "Must Try Five" List of Six Beers
The idea for this exercise was to pick out some must try beers for this year's Holiday Ale Festival. On the first try, I almost recreated the whole list. On the second try, I narrowed it down to 19. Still a bit much for the purposes of this article. So, my goal is to narrow the list down to five beers, with a bit of cheating. The first cheat is obvious: my list of five beers contains, well,... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Holiday Ale Festival
For obvious reasons*, this is a photo from the Holiday Ale Festival. This is one of my top three favorite Portland beer events of the year. First of all, it's cold and rainy: my favorite kind of weather. Second, these beers are big and unique: my favorite kind of beer. And third, I can hop on the Max to get to and from the festival: my favorite kind of festival mode of transportation. This is... Read More »
2011 Holiday Ale Festival Beer Descriptions
Of the 42 beers listed below, this year's Holiday Ale Festival is made up of some big beers weighing in at an average of 7.9% ABV! Over the upcoming days, we'll be talking about some of the beers that we're looking forward to and hoping that you can chime in and give us your opinion as well over at our Facebook page. Our team will be in full force at the fest this year for... Read More »
Season's Greetings from Lompoc Brewing
Holiday Beer Release Party Lompoc Sidebar Tuesday, Nov. 29th 4pm-9pm 3901 N Williams Ave. One of the perks of covering the Portland beer scene—as you might expect—are the media previews that we get to attend: beer, food, stories, history, beer stats, media handouts, and a lot of great people. One Tuesday night, we all gathered at Lompoc's Sidebar to sample Lompoc Brewing's ten seasonal releases. Uh, yep, ten. In fact, when these are released to... Read More »
2011 Abyss Release Party at Deschutes Portland Pub
Nov. 15, 11 a.m. - 10 p.m. Deschutes Brewery Portland Public House 210 NW 11th Ave., Portland (503) 296-4906 We promised details, and he they are! You'll see me there for a four year vertical. If you haven't had the willpower to store away bottles for the last three years, this will be your only chance to try all four years side by side. From the official press release: 2011 marks the sixth release of... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Abyss 2011 from Deschutes Brewery
Sorry for the cell-phone-nature of this photo, but I had limited time due to things like being required to drink a (different) vertical of beer, write about it, and photograph the process. Oh, the horror! I know, there could be worse ways to spend my time. Regardless of how I spend my time, free time can be very scarce. Unfortunately, you are the ones that have to pay the price by being subjected to that... Read More »
Burnside Brewing Jamaican-style Brewers Dinner with Simpatica
Burnside Brewing joins forces with Simpatica Catering and Laurelhurst Market executive chef David Kriefels to concoct a one of a kind four course Jamaican inspired beer pairing dinner at their dining hall on SE Ash. Burnside Brewing not even one year old is continuously pushing the boundaries of traditional American and German-style beer while always keeping in mind how beer plays off of food. This dinner at acclaimed restaurant Simpatica is a great chance to experiment with different styles of... Read More »
Beer List for KillerBeerFest Announced!
The official beer list for KillerBeerFest has been released! Uh, wow! Not sure there's a beer on here I don't want to try. Brewpublic is showing off what they do best, and the evidence is below. Come out to Bailey's Taproom tomorrow and celebrate some great beer with some official Portland beer geeks! And don't forget to stop by Saraveza tonight to help Angelo and crew celebrate Brewpublic's 3rd Anniversary! Occidental Sweven Occidental's first Belgian-style... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Hop Trip from Deschutes Brewery
Fresh hop beers are meant to be consumed as fresh as possible, keeping the floral and spice characters from receding into oblivion. This year, Deschutes Brewery's Hop Trip is on the shelves in six packs. Get 'em now and enjoy some of the last bits of the lost Northwest summer! Read More »
Oakshire Brewing to Release Hellshire II, Imperial Stout aged in Bourbon Barrels
Oakshire Brewing Company Hellshire II Release Party November 12th, 12-4pm Feel free to file this post under "Not Soon Enough." Brewmaster Matt Van Wyk at Oakshire Brewing has announced the second beer in their Hellshire reserve series beers. Last May, Oakshire debuted Hellshire I, an amazing bourbon barrel aged barleywine. With that release, we saw about 1, maybe 2 cases of this beer hit each of your favorite Portland beer retailers. It. Was. Scarce. Hellshire II,... Read More »
KillerBeerWeek Rolls On with Killer Beers of Southern Oregon!
Bottles 5015 NE Fremont St. 5PM-close Brewpublic's KillerBeerWeek rolls on with Killer Beers of Southern Oregon at Bottles tonight: "Bottles has quickly asserted itself as one of the best places for great beer in not only the Beaumont Neighborhood, but also in Portland. Oregon is a big-ass state so we’ve decided to head south and wrangle up a nice assortment of craft beers from Southern Oregon breweries such as SOB, Caldera, Wild River, Klamath Basin,... Read More »
Brewpublic Presents Killer Beer Week!
Brewpublic's annual Killer Beer Week is back, and it kicks off in just two days! Jeck out the awesome events coming up next week in the official press release: It’s official, KillerBeerWeek is back and this time Brewpublic has gone bigger than ever before. Starting on Sunday October 16 and lasting until Sunday October 23, KillerBeerWeek aims to deliver some of the best and most interesting beers the region has to offer at some of the best pubs in... Read More »
Brewer’s Dinner at Wildwood Restaurant & Bar
On Friday October 21, Matt Van Wyk from Oakshire Brewing in Eugene will be hosting the next Brewer’s Dinner at Wildwood Restaurant & Bar. He is bringing a fun lineup of seasonal and one-off beers to pair with six courses from Sous Chef Paul Kasten. Matt and Paul teamed up last week to work the Farm to Table Pavilion at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver, CO, and are looking forward to sharing some... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Lompoc Brewing Sidebar
Lompoc Sidebar Wednesday and Thursday: 4pm-10pm Friday and Saturday: 4pm-11pm Sunday: 4pm-9pm Lompoc Brewing's Sidebar is one of the best spots in Portland to enjoy a distinct barrel-aged beer. A friendly and knowledgeable staff, a great list of barrel-aged beers, and a fridge full of beers to take home. It's a small cozy spot, right between the 5th Quadrant and the new Hopworks Bike Bar. In the summer, you can sit outside--in the winter, an... Read More »
Tonight's Tap It Tuesday at Cascade Brewing Barrel House
Just in from Cascade Brewing (kicking off in about an hour so I'm just passing this straight through from the official press release): Tonight's Tap It Tuesday at 6 pm is "LIVE: Elderberry II." This live barrel of NW-style sour red ale was initially aged for 14 months in French oak wine barrels, then additionally aged on elderberries for five months. Sharp dark port, raisins, black currants and hints of red peppercorns greet you in the nose.... Read More »
The 2011 Tacoma Film Festival
For those reading from Washington, be sure to check out the 2011 Tacoma Film Festival. Hell, as long as you don't miss my opening night at Gigantic Gallery, head up there from Portland as well! We already know you have great beer up there, so take the time to mix in some film culture and check out the Tacoma Film Festival. Don't take my word for it, head over to the site and check out... Read More »
Lolatoberfest Release Party at the Lucky Lab
Tomorrow night, LOLA (Ladies of Lagers and Ales) will be releasing it's latest creation at the Lucky Lab Quimby Beer Hall. Coinciding with the LOLA release, the Lab will also be releasing two fresh hop beers! Check uot the details below in the official press release: Lolatoberfest Release Party Tuesday, Oct. 4th, 4pm The Lucky Labrador 1945 NW Quimby Street LOLA will be celebrating the release of Lolatoberfest at the Lucky Lab Beer Hall (1945 NW Quimby) on Tuesday October 4th, 2011 starting... Read More »
Fermented Photo Flashback: BridgePort Brewing
This is shot of the bottling line at BridgePort Brewing. Now, please join us for self-pimping 101: If you're a fan of our weekly Fermented Photo feature, please come out and check out the Of Pints and Men show at Gigantic Gallery. Opening night is Thursday October 6th at 5:30pm. Along with three other artists, I will be featuring 20 of my favorite black and white beer photos, 10 framed and matted along with 10 prints.... Read More »
Monster Mash Release Party at the Sidebar
Lompoc Sidebar Friday, Sept. 30th 4pm-11pm 3901A N Williams Ave Portland, Oregon This Friday at the New Old Lompoc Sidebar, plenty of amazing beers will be pouring. Of course, the headliner is Monster Mash Imperial Porter which will be pouring on draft and available in bottles. Weighing in a 8.1% ABV, the beer is not one of those boozy, overpowering imperial style beers. Instead, the focus of this beer is the balance of all of... Read More »
Of Pints and Men, a Beer Art Show at Gigantic Gallery!
Photography by Matt Wiater Paintings by Ian Seniff Cheers Deschutes! I am very excited to announce that two of us from portlandbeer.org are being featured in the show "Of Pints and Men" at Gigantic Gallery. Ian Seniff and I are taking part in this month's exhibit, which includes photography, paintings and illustrations all about beer. I will be showing photography from several breweries: Amnesia Brewing, BridgePort Brewing, Deschutes Brewery, Full Sail Brewing, Hair of the... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Fresh Hop Mirror Pond from Deschutes Brewery
Mirror Pond next to it's first-time-bottled fresh hop counterpart. Oh yeah, Otto wants your attention too. And a treat. In Fresh Hop Mirror Pond, light herbal and grassy notes come through from the fresh hops. These new hop additions also seem to cut down on the usual sweetness of Mirror Pond, leaving the body feeling a bit lighter, though there are no changes to the malt bill. While dry-hopping with fresh hops won't increase the... Read More »
Fire & Brimstone: Official List of Smoke & Chili Beers
Looks like a spectacular event going on at the The Hop & Vine this weekend: All smoke and chili beers! This event is a great way to see how different, mostly local, breweries create their unique versions of these styles. From the official press release: Where there is smoke there is fire and The Hop & Vine is boiling with anticipation to be bringing them to the first annual Fire & Brimstone: A celebration of smoke & chili beers.... Read More »
BiKETOBEERFEST 2011
BiKETOBERFEST returns this Saturday, September 17th for everything bicycles and beer: group rides, stunt shows, huffy toss, breakdancers, bands, and vendors! Last year's event was a full day in the sun full of great music, flying bikes, and 15 organic beers from Hopworks Urban Brewery. This year should be the same, with the weather promising more sunshine and a perfect high of 70°! See the official press release below. Portland, OR—BiKETOBEERFEST, the world's only... Read More »
The Beermongers 2nd Anniverary Festival Opening Taplists Announced!
The mostly finalized taplist for this weekend's anniversary festival at The Beermongers has been announced, and it looks fantastic! Wits, Barleywines, Stouts, Blends, IPAs, Vintages, and on and on! Stop by this weekend and help Beermongers celebrate a great two years! Saturday, September 10, 12-9PM Sunday, September 11, 12-8PM GO HERE! $15 Admission = Festival Glass + 7 tasting tickets Additional Tickets $1 each 21+OVER CASH ONLY! Outside starting taplist: Astoria Solar Dog IPA Barley... Read More »
Fermented Photo: 2011 Jubelale from Deschutes Brewery
Details about this year's Jubelale are starting to leaking out, even thought the beer won't hit the shelves until October. Jubelale rears it's beautiful head around Oregon in many shapes and sizes around Oregon throughout the year. A few weeks back, Tonip Lebuj (Jubelale aged in Pinot Barrels) was on tap at the Portland Pub. Two weeks ago, bottles of Jubel 2010 (the Once in a Decade Reserve Series version) mysteriously reappeared in Portland. Vintages of this... Read More »
Abe Fest this Sunday at Bailey's Taproom
Sad and curled up on the couch every Sunday because Bailey's Taproom isn't open? Well, there's a reason to rejoice this Sunday as Bailey's Taproom opens it's doors for Abe Fest! Abram Goldman-Armstrong is known for sideburns, rallying the Timbers Army, and many of us know him as the champion of the Cascadian Dark Ale. Check out this great article on Abe and Cascadian Dark Ales over on Brewpublic. Abe Fest Sunday, September 4th, 2pm-8pm Bailey's Taproom... Read More »
7th Annual Widmer Oktoberfest
It's back again for another year: the Widmer Oktoberfest! Games, beer, food, beer, music, beer, great big souvenir glass stein, and last but not least, beer! Last year's was a lot of fun, check out the details below for this year's lineup (or see the photos from last year's party). From the official press release: PORTLAND, Ore. – Sept. 2, 2011 – Widmer Brothers Brewing’s Oktoberfest returns for a seventh year celebrating Munich-style ales and German... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Deschutes Brewery Street Fare
Normally, it's easy to look our Fermented Photo feature and say 'Yep, that's a beer.' This week, it's bit more cerebral. Nope, no beer in the photo. In fact, if this photo weren't on a beer site, you'd be saying to yourself, "That's a pretty girl doing some pretty music." Or something similar, and probably even a bit more poetic. But this is a beer site. So I can guarantee that I had a beer... Read More »
2011 Lucky Labrador Hop Harvest
The annual Lucky Lab Hop Harvest celebration is happening on Tuesday August 30th. This year it seemed like the hops would never take off, but finally in August a few hot days allowed the hop growers to finally get their babies into usable cones. Hop Harvest celebrates the people who grow hops in their yard or on their farm for the pure joy of growing. Harvest your hops, regardless of what type and bring them... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Ferme de la Ville Provision from Block 15 Brewing
A shot of the three Block 15 beers in my cellar. I have two of each of these left, but they are so good, and my will power, well, not so good. Try as I might, I don't see any of these lasting past our annual New Year's Day tasting. Left to Right: Figgy Pudding, Pappy's Dark, Ferme de la Ville. As previously mentioned, Block 15 is worth the trip to Corvallis. Fantastic range of... Read More »
Beer Bloggers Conference Descends on Portland
First of all, hello to everyone joining us from out of town for the 2011 Beer Bloggers Conference! It should be a great time and I look forward to meeting all of the people I've talked to via blog/phone/sms/twitter/fb/email/telegraph/etc. The Beer Bloggers Conference unofficially kicks off tonight with a pub crawl hosted by members of the pdxbeerbloggers group. Bill Night and Charles Culp will be leading visitors through Portland by foot and by rail. Officially, tomorrow... Read More »
The Stoic from Deschutes Brewery: An American Quad
Let's start this off by admitting that I know very little about the Belgian Quadrupel style. I've had several versions, La Trappe Quadrupel, St. Bernardus Abt 12, Trappistes Rochefort 10, Allagash Grand Cru, and so forth. However, compared to the amount of Portland and Oregon based beer that I have to drink for this site, the numbers are very small. There are very few Quadrupel style ales brewed in the Portland and even fewer bottled.... Read More »
Organic Beer and Bacon Pairing Presented by Bison Brewing
Grain and Gristle Tavern 1473 NE Prescott Portland, Oregon 97211 503-298-5007 Sunday, August 21st, 2-5pm $21 for 7 3oz organic beers and 7 bacon samples Another great event for PDX Beer Week has been announced. What is better than a delicious organic beer and bacon pairing for brunch this Sunday? I can't come up with an answer, can you? Check out the press release below. ********** When asked to put together an event for PDX... Read More »
Deschutes Street Fare on Thursday
Deschutes Brewery Portland Public House 210 NW 11th Ave. Portland, OR Portland Pub (503) 296-4906 The 2nd Annual Street Fare, featuring street cart vendors, Deschutes Brewery beer and live music guarantee to wow you, your friends, and even your mother! Join us on August 18th as we shut down the street in front of our Pub from 5-9 PM for our most excellent party of the year! Proceeds benefit Morrison Child and Family Services and the entry... Read More »
Mighty Mites - A Session Beer Festival
Presented by: Beervana and Coalition Brewing Saturday, August 27, noon until the beer runs out Coalition Brewing Patio (Behind the pub at the Grilled Cheese Grill) 2724 SE Ankeny Street Higher gravity beers are the norm out here. In fact, for the 450+ beers we track made right here in Portland, the mean ABV is 6.58%. Jeff Alworth, writer of PDX's esteemed Beervana blog, brings us the Mighty Mites Festival at Coalition Brewing, an event... Read More »
BBQ Competition and IPA Challenge Fundraiser at Blitz Ladd
BBQ Competition and IPA Challenge Blitz Ladd Sports Pub 2239 SE 11th Ave. Portland, OR 97214 (503) 236-3592 Saturday August 20 and Sunday 21, 2011 11am-10pm both days Blitz Ladd’s third annual BBQ Competition and IPA Challenge takes place August 20 and 21 and benefits the Bald Faced Truth Foundation. Portland, Ore – As summer has hit its stride it’s time to head outdoors and enjoy some of the best flavors the region has to offer. The... Read More »
Oakshire Tap Takeover and Meet the Brewer at Bottles in PDX
Tonight at 5p at Bottles, meet Oakshire Brewing's Matt Van Wyk and taste 8 great Oakshire beers on tap! Read More »
Portland Beer Week Celebrates the World’s Most Vibrant Beer Community
Official announcements have been made, with more on the way. On the heels of Oregon Craft Beer month, comes PDX Beer Week, another celebration of beer in Portland. Rather than a centralized festival, events will be hosted at Portland's best beer venues, neighborhoods, taprooms, and breweries. Some of the official events are announced below, with more on the way. The complete list of more than 24 events (and more still being added) can be... Read More »
Block 15 La Ferme de la Ville Provision Portland Release Party
Sometimes an event announcement comes out and I want to keep it all to myself. It literally hurts me to post it. The fact is, the more of you that show up, the less beer I get. It's simple math. This Friday at Beermongers is no exception. Nick Arzner from Block 15 Brewing in Corvallis is coming up to Portland with several cases of his latest bottle creation: La Ferme de la Ville. Last year, I... Read More »
Beer Writer Brian Yaeger And His Wife "Half Pint" Launch Inn Beervana B&B: Bed & Beer
The most popular question I get asked at this site is "I'm coming to Portland, where should I stay?" I can always recommend areas of town near to beer, but I can't really recommend hotels any better than Yelp since I get the luxury of staying in my own house when in Portland. I can't in good conscience recommend places I haven't stayed. Well, until now. Brian Yaeger (beer writer, beer traveler, beer drinker) and his wife have... Read More »
OBF Buzz Tent, Now with Less Buzz
Just a quick post and a word of warning. According to the official post above, the OBF Buzz Tent is unlikely to be resuscitated for the remainder of the fest. As of last night, the crowds drank up all, or at least most, of the 50+ Buzz Beers. Our own Rachael Bennett attended the festival two days in a row, so she is probably responsible for at least half of the missing beer. On one hand, these... Read More »
Celebrate Oregon Craft Beer Month’s Most Drinkable Brews at Blitz Summer Session
July 29, 2011
by Matt Wiater
Blitz Ladd Sports Bar Back Lot 2239 SE 11th Ave. Portland, OR 97214. 503-236-3592 Summer is the perfect season to session. Warmer, longer days pair perfectly with lighter “session” beers. Many people, from the novice beer ponger to the uber beer geek, can appreciate great beer and are now discerning between lighter craft session beers and macro beer. While many of these fine brews are light in color and lower in alcohol, they represent a... Read More »
Widmer Brothers Brewing Celebrates Oregon Craft Beer Month with a Beer Bar Brunch
Widmer Brothers Gasthaus Pub 955 N Russell Street Portland, Oregon PORTLAND, Ore. – July 26, 2011 – Widmer Brother Brewing’s Beer Bar Brunch will celebrate Oregon Craft Beer Month and Oregon Brewers Festival weekend with a special event featuring a buffet paired with handcrafted beers and a beer blending bar. The brunch will take place Saturday, July 30 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Widmer Brothers Brewing. WHAT: The 24th Annual Oregon Brewers Festival... Read More »
Roscoe's 2nd Annual Oregon Craft Beer Summit
Ripped from the headlines! Well, ok, ripped from Roscoe's Facebook Events Page. But ripped nonetheless. Actually, Co-owner Jeremy sent this to me, so it's not ripped at all. It is, however, a great beer lineup at a great place. Take a look: Get ready to show some love for our amazing Oregon Breweries. Roscoe's 2nd Annual Oregon Craft Beer Summit is coming up on Friday July 29th beginning at 4PM with great Oregon beer flowing... Read More »
Groupon Portland Partners with Glen Hay Falconer Foundation During Portland Beer Day
On July 28th, in celebration of my birthday, Groupon will be focused on the best beer deals in Portland. Thanks Groupon, what a nice present. UPDATE: I was just informed by Groupon that this event is happening tomorrow because of the kick-off of the Oregon Brewer's Festival and while my birthday is "super-awesome", it apparently has nothing to do with these offers tomorrow. Whatevs. Portland, OR (July 22, 2011) -- Groupon (http://www.groupon.com), a shopping website that... Read More »
Cascade Brewing Barrel House Special Beer Releases
Not that you need a reason, or in this case several, to go to the Cascade Brewing Barrel House, but below you'll find several convincing incentives to stop by this week. For four days, there will be a special bar opening up on the production side of the facility (from 3pm to 10pm), serving new, rare, and vintage beers. You'll see some never-before-tasted editions along with some old favorites. Just check out the details below... Read More »
Oregon Brewers Festival: Buzz Beer Lineup
Below is a list of the beers pouring in the 2011 OBF Buzz Tent. These beers stray from the conventional list by being a little more aggressive, a bit more rare, and a tad more expensive. The Buzz Beer tent was added to the festival in 2009 to not only increase the beer variety, but also to cater more toward the beer geek crowd. While the fest provides a lot of beer variety, many... Read More »
BridgePort Brewing OBF Events
OBF Block Party – July 30th, 3-8pm – BridgePort Brewpub in the Pearl It’s the second most wonderful time of the year! Brew Fest in Oregon! This year, BridgePort will be celebrating in typical Oregon fashion – with beers, brews and bands. On July 30th, we’ll be closing down NW 13th Ave outside the brewpub for food and brews from BridgePort along with music from Kasey Anderson, Will West and the Strangetones. Free and open to the public, families are welcome and... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Bottlenecks
Hopworks Urban Brewery, from Left to Right: Rise Up Red, Ace of Spades Imperial IPA, Galactic Imperial Red Read More »
Brewpublic Presents Oregon Farmhouse Brewers Night at The BeerMongers
July 21, 2011
by Matt Wiater
Join Upright Brewing, Beetje Brewing, and Logsdon Organic Farmhouse Ales at The BeerMongers on Friday July 22 for a special evening Belgian and French Inspired Beers. Upright Brewing's Alex Ganum and Gerritt Ill will be pouring a special keg of their Alphaphylactic Hop, a piquant, floral, and bold hybrid ale brewed with their house Illganumberg yeast strain and dry-hopped with copious amounts of Apollo hops. Upright's inventive approach to the craft pulls from a wide range of French and Belgian... Read More »
Oregon Brewers Festival: 2011 Beer Lineup
tbody { text-align:left; background-color:#ffffff; } Alright, the 24th Annual Oregon Brewers Festival is upon us! Starting next Thursday, we will be seeing hordes of people flocking to the Tom McCall Waterfront Park along the Willamette River for their choice of beer from 84 different breweries. Covering a whopping 33 beer styles, the beer festival shows off beer from 14 different states, with Oregon representing 46 of the beer choices. Not listed below, and rotating quickly... Read More »
Fermented Photo: BenFest Outtake
Outtake from the BenFest sessions. Mix an Angelo in with the Bens, and it all goes to hell. Read More »
BenFest 2011
Join us in honoring the Bens of brewing at the first annual Benfest! Brewpublic and Portland Beer & Music bring you the first annual BenFest to be held at Grain & Gristle on Monday July 25, 2011. It is a celebration of brewers named Ben and their amazing contributions to craft beer. The original inspiration for the event was a photo taken by Angelo De Ieso of Brewpublic at the Cheers to Belgian Beers dart... Read More »
LOLA Presents - A Celebration of Women in Beer
Portland, OR - Saturday July 23, 2011 11 AM - 11 PM: The Ladies of Lagers and Ales (LOLA) presents a celebration of Oregon female brewers. All beer on tap at Saraveza the day of the event will have been brewed by female brewers from Deschutes, Oakshire, Bend, Natian, Lucky Lab Brew Pub, Hopworks Urban Brewery and Heater Allen. Expect some special brewed lagers and ales from these ladies. At 7 PM, there will be... Read More »
Saraveza's 2nd Annual IIPA Fest
PORTLAND, ORE. -- SAT & SUN, July 16-17th, 1-10pm: With over 20 rotating IIPAs on draft including fest special brews and a tapping of our staff’s first beer, team Saraveza and Brewpublic present to you our 2nd Annual IIPA Festival! Join us July 16th & 17th for lots of hops, housemade B.B.L.T.s (yes, that’s Bacon Bacon) and live music. Look for your "free jar" tickets the week before the festival. This year's event reveals some... Read More »
Beer and Cigar Pairing Event at the East Burn
In collaboration with 33 Beers and 11th Ave. Liquor & Cigars the New School presents a unique pairing event for Oregon Craft Beer Month of Beer & Cigars at East Burn's fine patio. Dave Selden an avid homebrewer, blogger and Creative Director launched a little tasting note booklet called 33 Beers that has become an incredible success and a staple for many beer geeks to keep on hand. Off the success of 33 Beers Dave has launched... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Deschutes Brewery Black Butte XXIII
Generation 23 melds cocoa nibs, dark chocolate, orange peel, and chilies all aged in bourbon barrels to create a masterpiece of creative brewer whimsy. Available in bottles and on draft. Get it before it's gone, which will be soon. Read More »
Portland Fruit Beer Festival: The Making of a Festival
Portland Fruit Beer Festival Saturday June 11th 11am-9pm Sunday June 12th 11am-6pm Burnside Brewing 7th and East Burnside Portland, OR 97214The inaugural Portland Fruit Beer Festival kicks off tomorrow. We've mentioned it a few times already on the blog (official press release, main beer list, rare beer list, more event details, beer sampling preview), tweeted about the festival, and discussed it in person with you. The hype machine is churning and spinning ever faster, but... Read More »
LOLA Kolsch Release Party Tonight at the Lucky Lab
Come out and celebrate the first public beer release from the Ladies of Lagers & Ales tonight at the Lucky Lab Northwest location. The party kicks off at 4:30pm and goes through 9:30pm. From the Release Party Facebook page: Join LOLA and the Lucky Labrador Beer Hall for the release of the LOLA Kolsch! This brew is a first for the Ladies of Lagers and Ales (LOLA) crew with no less than a dozen women... Read More »
Free Beer Contest: This Week's Beer Movement
I just wanted to do a quick recap of the free beer ratings contest. Listed below are the ratings before the contest started, and then a week later. The sheer volume of ratings has increased from sitting in the hundreds to jumping into the thousands! Seven new beers jumped into the top twenty, and that means that seven beers had to drop off. Deschutes Brewery and Cascade Brewing are dominating, taking up a total of... Read More »
Fermented Photo Flashback: Amnesia Brewing
June 3, 2011
by Matt Wiater
Since we're coming up on Amnesia Brewing's Single Hop Festival tomorrow, I dug way back in the archives for this shot. These are very early batches from Amnesia Brewing: #14, #15, #16, #17, dating all the way back to January 2004. These tape strips are used to temporarily label what's currently in the fermentation and serving vessels. Amnesia made a habit of keeping these and slapping them on the cooler (also seen here). We'll see you tomorrow! Read More »
Portland Fruit Beer Fest: Rare Beer Taplist Announced
Saturday June 11th 11am-9pm Sunday June 12th 11am-6pm Portland Fruit Beer Festival Burnside Brewing 7th and East Burnside Portland, OR 97214 Fifteen more beers were announced today for the First Annual Portland Fruit Beer Festival! These rare beers are an addition to the inaugural list announce a couple of weeks ago. This festival is shaping up to be a great event. More news to come: we'll talk about other partnerships and activities at the festival... Read More »
Free Beer. Really.
It's a simple idea and a simple process, so I won't water it down with dramatic prose: Rate 20 or more beers, and automatically be entered to win a $15 gift certificate from Belmont Station. We'll be giving away at least two $15 gift certificates to you, our dedicated users. If you're more of a "list" person, it breaks down like this: Go to the beer page: /beer/ Login with your Facebook credentials on the... Read More »
Fifth Annual Oregon Zoo Brew
Just a quick reminder that the 2011 Oregon Zoo Brew is happening this Friday, June 3rd from 5 - 10 pm. Breweries representing include: Ambacht Brewing Alameda Brewhouse Anchor Brewing Company Blue Mountain Cider BridgePort Brewing Cascade Brewing Columbia River Brewing Co. Crater Lake Soda Deschutes Brewery Fish Brewing Company Full Sail Brewing Co. INC Golden Valley Hopworks Urban Brewery Klamath Basin Brewery Kona Brewing Company Lagunitas Brewing Co. Laurelwood Brewing Co. Lompoc Brewing Co.... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Releases New Brewmaster Reserve Beer: Elevation Imperial IPA
Hood River, Or – Oregon’s Cascade Mountains are named for the multitudes of cascading waters that rush from their glacial peaks. Oregon’s rushing rivers, cascading streams and thundering waterfalls all flow through the deep forests and rolling foothills. It is from these epic elevations that every batch of Full Sail beer sources its water. Full Sail’s new Brewmaster Reserve release, Elevation Imperial IPA, is brewed to celebrate these snow-capped mountains and their bounty of pristine, crystal clear... Read More »
New Beer Brings the Best of Two Regions Together
25 April 2011 - Bend, Oregon– Deschutes Brewery and Boulevard Brewing Company today announced that they will release two versions of a new collaboration beer later this summer. The style, which is described by brewmasters Steven Pauwels of Boulevard and Larry Sidor of Deschutes as a White I.P.A., combines Boulevard’s expertise in making Belgian-style witbiers with Deschutes' mastery in brewing hop-forward ales. The ale will be made at both breweries and released simultaneously throughout each... Read More »
Amnesia Single Hop Fest
On Saturday June 4th, Amnesia Brewing will host a mini beer fest dedicated to one hop beers. These are beers made with just one variety of hop throughout the brewing process from bittering to finishing. There will be eight guest breweries each with a unique style of beer and each beer made with a unique hop variety. Amnesia will also be featuring two single hop seasonals of their own. Also, Along with each beer poured will be a whole... Read More »
Portlandbeer.org Website Updates: Better Than Beer?
Ok, the updates aren't better than beer, but don't leave just yet. We've made some big improvements to help you find beers by styles, breweries, and top rated beers. First of all, we've expanded the functionality of the top beers list on the home page. Not only are we tracking your favorite beers, but we'll show you the week by week changes in rank as votes come in. The list has been expanded to the top 20... Read More »
Portland Fruit Beer Festival - Beers and Brewery Lineup Announced!
Just in: Below is the list of breweries and beers for the first annual Portland Fruit Beer Festival. There is quite a wide variety of styles represented, from Gose and Farmhouse ales to Browns and Stouts. Three are even a few blends and barrel-aged beers in the mix. As we get closer to the festival, more beers will be announced for their indoor taplist of rare, on-of-a-kind beers. The official press release: The Portland Fruit Beer Festival set... Read More »
Bridgeport Brewing Company Presents First Annual Sound And Vision Fest
PORTLAND, Ore. – BridgePort Brewing Company, Oregon's oldest craft brewery, is proud to announce this year’s “Sound and Vision Fest” taking place at The Hollywood Theatre to benefit restoration projects at the 85 year-old Portland landmark. The festival was created to showcase new or existing collaborations between musicians and filmmakers, exploring how the moving image informs musical performance and vice versa. Each night of the festival will be curated by a different local artist and... Read More »
Looking Ahead: Upcoming Portland Bottle Releases
Looking for something new on the shelves? Here are a few releases that will be hitting the stores, well, sometime. While not new to draft lines, this is the first year that Hopworks' Galactic Imperial Red is being bottled. Draft description: "Our Galactic Imperial Red boldly goes where no Red has gone before. We gave it all the Centennial and Cascade hops we've got to bring the floral and citrus flavor and aroma to Warp... Read More »
BridgePort Brewing Company Releases Summer Squeeze
PORTLAND, Ore. – May 3, 2011 – BridgePort Brewing Company, Oregon's oldest craft brewery, will release its newest summer seasonal, Summer Squeeze, in bottles on May 16th. Deemed as the perfect lawn-mower beer, Summer Squeeze will bring relief to hot summer evenings through its crisp citrus finish. The new brew has a pale ale base with a twist of lemongrass and the East Asian citrus fruit, yuzu and is currently on tap at the Ale... Read More »
Beer and Cheesecake for Mother's Day!
Join Sarah Pederson of Saraveza and Lisa Morrison, the Beer Goddess, for a unique Mother’ s Day event: Beer & Cheesecake! SUN, May 8th, 1-3pm @ Saraveza’s backspace 5433 N Michigan Ave Discover YOUR perfect craft beer and cheesecake pair! Enjoy samples of 6 savory and sweet cheesecakes made by local bakers & brewers as well as 8+ craft beers. $30 per person. Space is limited, purchase tickets now at Saraveza! This event benefits the... Read More »
First Annual Portland Fruit Beer Festival
A new festival has been added to Portland's list of annual beer celebrations. This year kicks off the first annual Portland Fruit Beer Festival. The press release is below, more thoughts and details as we get closer to mid-june. Portland, OR - A new kind of beer festival kicks off this June outside of one of Portland's newest breweries, Burnside Brewing. Fruit beers are the red-headed stepchild of craft beer, often overlooked by beer lovers because... Read More »
Portland Beer Ratings, April 2011
April 23, 2011
by Matt Wiater
Every once in a while, we'll publish the current ratings for the beers on our site. That way, we can see how they change over time as trends change, as new beers are added, and as new votes come in. Below is today's snapshot of the current beer ratings by users of this site. To rate beers, login with your Facebook ID here. Up-to-the-second ratings are always displayed at the bottom of the home page.... Read More »
Brewing up Cocktails Easter Sunday with Oakshire Brewing
For the fourth edition of Brewing up Cocktails, events exploring the interplay of beer and spirits to create new drinks, writers and mixologists Ezra Johnson-Greenough and Jacob Grier have taken on yet another challenging theme. This time they’re focusing on the 'Flip' class of drinks using whole eggs and will be partnering with Eugene, OR based Oakshire Brewing who will be providing the beers as well as farm fresh eggs from the brewery’s own chickens. Join them on a beery... Read More »
Beer Roadtrip: Scotland (Part 2)
Black Isle Brewery's first brewing location, now supported by a new larger facility. From Inverness, we traveled north to Black Isle Brewery, an all organic brewery producing a current lineup of about ten beers, all available in bottles. As I mentioned earlier, this is where the battle lines on real ale get a bit murky. Included in Black Isle Brewing's beer range is a line of "Organic Live Bottle Conditioned Beers", which CAMRA defines as... Read More »
Hellshire I: Bourbon Barrel Aged Barleywine from Oakshire Brewing
Let's get this out of the way first: You want this beer. Since a very limited amount (i.e., I'm going to punch you in the face to get the last bottle) will make it up to Portland, the best way to get your hands on this is to make it down to the brewery on May 7th at 8am. Not only will you get the chance to purchase a bottle of this superb beer, but... Read More »
Beer Roadtrip: Scotland (Part 1)
Becky and I decided to head out of Portland, hopped on I-205 North, and a couple of turns later ended up in: Scotland. Alright, there was a bit more to it than that, but this isn't a blog that specialized in travel planning. Most beer drinkers in Scotland—who care about what they are drinking—are firmly planted into two camps: traditional real ales and emerging craft beer. I'm using the word emerging here as compared to... Read More »
Brewpublic Presents Microhopic 3
Here's the newest upcoming event put on by Brewpublic: BREWPUBLIC is pleased to announce our next event. MICROHOPIC is a series showcasing new and interesting breweries and beer styles from around Oregon. In our third installment of MICROHOPIC, our friends at Migration Brewing Company will host and participate in this unique tasting experience. In addition to Migration's fine house brews, we will also be showcasing newer releases from Amnesia Brewing, Beetje Brewery, Breakside Brewery, and Burnside Brewing. These five Portland... Read More »
Upright Brewing's Gose Release Party
From Upright Brewing: Next week on Monday marks the re-release of our Gose bier one of our absolute favorite releases and one that won us a Medal at last years World Beer Cup. Gose is a nearly extinct style of wheat beer from Germany that is brewed with Coriander and Salt and is both light, refreshing, slightly tart and yet has a subtle salt finish that leaves you wanting another. The Grain & Gristle will... Read More »
Galaxy Hopped Barleywine, a successful experiment in balance, subtlety, and complexity
Widmer Brothers brewing, fresh off a media event about their new outside packaging and branding, are now showing off their insides. The latest addition to the Brothers' Reserve series is the Galaxy Hopped Barleywine. "At Widmer Brothers, we're always experimenting with new recipies, and the Brothers' Reserve Series brings some of our most innovative concepts to market," said Rob Widmer. "We love craft brewing, we love great beer, and our hope is that we're able... Read More »
Widmer Brothers Brewing Celebrates the Repeal of Prohibition with Arts & Draughts
PORTLAND, Ore. – March 28, 2011 – Widmer Brother Brewing's Arts & Draughts will celebrate the 78th anniversary of repeal of Prohibition with a special event celebrating a new look and new releases from the Brewery as well as the craft of local beer, food, and artistry. Festivities will take place Thursday, April 7 from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. at LeftBank Annex. WHAT: April 7th is a day with many historical references - the... Read More »
Set Home Brew Free Event at F.H. Steinbart's
April 1, 2011
by Matt Wiater
From the official event post: "Saturday April 2nd, which is this upcoming Saturday, we will be hosting a "Set Home Brew Free" event. We along with members of the Oregon Brew Crew will be celebrating the passage of SB 444 by inviting home brewers, professional brewers, beer bloggers and connoisseurs out to share samples of beer with each other. Why, you might ask? Because we can! The event begins when our shop opens at 9am,... Read More »
Oakshire Brewing to Release Hellshire I
We can file this under "not-so-portland-but-oh-so-worthy-news". While our focus here at the site is on Portland beers, there are some breweries like Oakshire down in Eugene that will always be on our radar. Why? Well just look what we have here. Oakshire is not just stepping into the barrel aged beer scene, they're kicking in the doors and stomping forward with this aggressive inaugural release in their new barrel aged beer series. Oakshire doesn't mind setting... Read More »
Fermented Photo: BrewDog in Edinburgh
April 1, 2011
by Matt Wiater
Admittedly, a bit outside of the Portland beer realm, but important nonetheless. We'll cover a bit more about what we found out about beer in Scotland, but here's a spoiler: BrewDog is doing it's best to change the face of beer in their country. Starting with a stellar beer list, a bit of beer education, and a staff who knows beer, they're off on the right foot. Read More »
Looking Ahead: Upcoming Portland Bottle Releases
March 15, 2011
by Matt Wiater
Being released at Laurelwood's 10th Anniversary Party, Imperial Workhorse Double IPA should satiate the most aggressive hopheads out there. There isn't much to say except: I can't wait for this beer. There will always be a large place in my heart for big, bitter, floral beers and the fact that this brew shares some DNA with my favorite IPA in town, it's already heading straight for the bullseye. The first sip will tell, but I think I... Read More »
Laurelwood's 10th Anniversary Celebration!
Laurelwood Public House & Brewery will be celebrating their ten year anniversary on March 18th with a grand birthday celebration. In true Laurelwood fashion the occasion will be marked with 12 great beers on draught, the tapping of 2 firkins, live music, family fun and food specials featuring a Sweet Briar Farms Berkshire Pig Roast. From the brewery there will be two great new beer releases. First off is Imperial Workhorse IPA in a limited... Read More »
Fermented Photo: The Widmer Brothers
March 11, 2011
by Matt Wiater
Kurt and Rob Widmer, enjoying a beer at Saraveza at a recent media event. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Wanted: Beta Testers for Our Portland Beer Android App
March 7, 2011
by Matt Wiater
You may have noticed the lack of regular posts, photographs, and original news. Sure, we've been passing along the same old press releases, and we're really fun at parties, but we've been slacking. At least that's what it looks like. In reality, we've been slaving away at a brand new way to have beer information in your pocket. Introducing, the brand new, yet unnamed, portlandbeer.org Android App. Rolls off the tongue, doesn't it? That's it.... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Darkness
March 4, 2011
by Matt Wiater
Once in a very long while, a camera phone will produce some interesting results. There are a lot of problems with the photo, but I think the mood works well enough to overcome the flaws. Read More »
Bend, Oregon Cycle Pub Debuted in Old Mill District at 2011 Bend WinterFest
24 February 2011- Bend, Oregon – The Old Mill District and Cycle Pub announced that the newest way to enjoy beer in Bend, Oregon debuted last weekend at the Bend WinterFest in Bend, Oregon. The Cycle Pub, sponsored by the Old Mill District, seats 16 people who seek to enjoy two of Bend, Oregon’s top passions: cycling and microbrews. In short, Cycle Pub is a non-traditional bike where riders sit at a “bar” while pedaling... Read More »
Zwickelmania!
2011 President's Day weekend, dozens of Oregon breweries and brewpubs will open their doors to visitors for the state's 3rd annual Zwickelmania. Zwickelmania, hosted by the Oregon Brewers Guild (OBG), is a free statewide event that offers visitors a chance to tour Oregon breweries, meet the brewers and sample their favorite beers. Got a favorite brewery? Got a favorite beer? This is your chance to get into the brewery, talk to the brewers, and sample... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Company adds LTD 05 Amber Lager to their Seasonal Line of Lagers
The best brews reflect the delicate balance of art and science. With Full Sail’s latest release in their Limited Edition lager series, LTD 05, artistry takes form in an amber lager- a sophisticated beer that has an elegant maltiness and is superbly balanced. “We brewed this beer as a celebration of lagers, and like the other beers in our LTD series, it allows us to explore a classic lager profile and intertwine our own passion as an American craft brewer. LTD 05,... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Pappy's Dark from Block 15 Brewing
From Block15.com: "Brewed with six malts of Belgian & British origin. Bourbon in color with a very complex and interesting malt profile. Matured in 9 & 10 year old bourbon barrels for 2-4 months. Bright aromas of bourbon, fresh baked bread, caramel, and oak. Velvety texture, rich malt and bourbon flavours with an enticingly warm bourbon finish. 10% alc/vol, 40 IBU’s." Yesterday, we were treated to four stellar beers at the Hop & Vine from... Read More »
2011 Big Beer and Barleywine Festival Beer List
Hot off the presses is this year's Big Beer and Barleywine Festival beer list from the Lucky Lab. Of course, by the time we get to the event, it may be known as a festeroon, tastival, festerival, or something else as in year's past. Whatever the name, it's plenty of big beers, barleywines, verticals, and vintage releases. It's a favorite event of mine, full of interesting beers and fun people. You can check out photos... Read More »
Worldwide Toast, Virtual Wake To Honor Don Younger
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Whatever you are doing, and wherever you are at 3 p.m. your time on Sunday, Feb. 13, make sure to hoist a glass to Don Younger, the venerable publican of the world-famous Horse Brass Pub, who died Jan. 31. "In his hometown of Portland, a wake will be in full swing by 3 p.m. at the Horse Brass Pub. Attendees at the time will be raising their glasses to Don. But hundreds,... Read More »
Fermented Photo: KGB Russian Imperial Stout
Widmer Brothers KGB Russian Imperial Stout. This would be a great addition to their year round lineup. I found a 12 pack for a little over $12 at Fred Meyer. Delicious: a strong beer with dark chocolate, coffee, caramel, and licorice flavors. 70 IBUs 9.3 % ABV 21.5 Plato Read More »
Scottish Ale Festival
Portland's first annual Scottish Ale Festival is coming up this Saturday from 3 to 11 pm. Hosted by the Cascade Brewing Barrel House, the event will take place on the production side of the building at 939 SE Belmont St. Nine regional breweries will pour 11 different Scottish and Scotch Ales. The event will also feature traditional Scottish music by Cascade Brewmaster Ron Gansberg's band, Stone Porridge, plus a few bagpipers thrown in the mix. The... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Releases Vintage Barrel Aged Beer: Black Gold
Hood River, Or – For the past year bourbon barrels and time have been working their magic together deep in the cellar at the Full Sail Brewery. There are absolutely no shortcuts with this beer, as it all has been aging in rich bourbon barrels for twelve months. A 100% commitment to excellence results in a truly special beer – complex, elegant and supremely balanced. Now we’re finally able to taste the delicious results as... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Feel Good About Wood
This Barrel from Woodford Reserve Distillery in Kentucky made it all the way to Portland to house great beer. Mmmm, bourbon. Read More »
Fermented Photo: 33 Beers Journal
January 14, 2011
by Matt Wiater
What pairs nicely with any beer? A 33 Beers Journal! Read More »
Fermented Photo: Scenes from NYE 2010
A scene from our annual New Year's Eve beer tasting. Each year, my family gets together and we have a tasting so that I can introduce them to new and interesting beers. What started as a couple of us and a couple of bottles has now turned into a more formal event. This year, we had sixteen people and several boxes of beers. Plus, this event is a good excuse to squirrel some away. Without... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Figgy Pudding from Block 15
Not quite Portland, but then again, not talking about Block 15 would be a great sin of tremendous proportions. Block 15 from Corvallis Oregon is out of the gate with their first official bottle release of Figgy Pudding. From their website: "Inspired by a 16th century English Christmas cake our Figgy Pudding is brewed with English Pale & Specialty malts & molasses and fermented with London ale yeast. After fermentation we matured Figgy Pudding... Read More »
Bottle Release: Laurelwood's Green Mammoth Imperial IPA
Laurelwood's annual limited edition bottle release this year is their extraordinary Green Mammoth Imperial IPA. Weighing in at 10%, you can now pick up these 750ml swing top bottles at their NE 51st location for $15. Other locations may carry these as well, but I got mine at 51st today. From Laurelwood: "This is the Imperial (read big ‘ol) version of our Green Elephant Organic IPA. This beer is all about hops, hops and more... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Releases New Brewmaster Reserve Beer
Hood River, Or – The days are getting shorter and the temps are falling, but there is plenty of reason to rejoice this month. The holiday season is in full swing, the mountains are covered in snow, and Full Sail Brewing Company will release Bump in the Night, the first and newest beer in their 2011 Brewmaster Reserve line up. Bump in the Night is brewed in the Cascadian Dark Ale (CDA) style and is the perfect companion for... Read More »
Fermented Photo: 2010 Deschutes Brewery Abyss
Straight on the heels of Deschutes Brewery's release of The Dissident, out comes the Abyss. With larger quantities than The Dissident, this beer should be a bit easier to find both at the pubs and in stores. Wait too long though, and it will be gone just the same. Read More »
Holiday Ale Festival 2010 Preview
Well, here we are again. It's time for another great Holiday Ale Festival here in Portland. It's also time for us to wimp out and not tell you exactly what to expect. But that is part of the draw of the festival: expect to be surprised. Of course, we've posted the beer list and the Rare Beer tapping schedule, but words are only 2% of the fun. Last night, some of us were... Read More »
2010 Holiday Ale Festival Beer List
OK, here's the somewhat finalized list of regular beers and special tappings happening at this year's Holiday Ale Festival. While it's not set in stone, this should be a very accurate list of what to expect later this week. Notes from last night's Media Preview up next. Rare Beer Tapping Schedule: Wed. 2 pm 2005 Samichlaus 2009 New Belgium Love 2008 Oskar Blues Ten-Fiddy Firestone 14th Anniversary Thurs. 2 pm Lompoc Brewing 8 Malty Nights Deschutes... Read More »
Fermented Photo: The Dissident
The Dissident from Deschutes Brewery. Gone as quickly as it appeared, selling out in under three hours at the Portland Pub. Sporadic cases have hit a few stores, good luck! Read More »
Rate Portland Beers!
November 18, 2010
by Matt Wiater
We've had our rating system in beta for awhile now. It turns out that 97% of the people who requested logins during this period also had Facebook accounts. So, we did some math, programming, drank some beers, undid some programming, and then reprogrammed a bit more. What came out the other end is your ability to login and rate beers with your Facebook account. If you're already logged into Facebook, just click on the Facebook... Read More »
Lompoc Brewing Announces Release of Eight Holiday Beers, Including Two for Hanukkah
PORTLAND, Ore. - Nov. 16, 2010 - The Lompoc brewers have been as busy as elves preparing for the holiday season. This year, they are releasing eight different holiday beers - including two for Hanukkah. The Lompoc Holiday Beers Release Party will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 30th from 4 to 10 pm at the Lompoc Sidebar, located at 3901 N Williams Ave. next to Pix Patisserie. This year's offerings include Blitzen Golden Ale, Brewdolph Belgian... Read More »
Looking Ahead: Upcoming Portland Bottle Releases
November 16, 2010
by Matt Wiater
Many things exist on paper before they are fully realized. With the exception of BridgePort's Nightcap (released on November 11th), the labels below represent planned releases from the breweries. No specific dates yet as the press releases have not hit the streets. BridgePort Brewing Nightcap Winter Ale Full Sail Brewing Bump in the Night Cascadian Dark Ale Full Sail Brewing Imperial Porter Widmer Brothers Galaxy Hopped Barleywine Ale Widmer Brothers Nelson Imperial IPA Widmer Brothers... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Offers New Release in Brewer's Share Line-Up – Pub's Powder Stash Pale
Hood River, Oregon – The peaks are covered in fresh snow and the ski and snowboard season has finally arrived. To celebrate the newly fallen snow and the predictions for an epic snowfall year, Full Sail will release a new beer in their Brewer’s Share line up, Powder Stash Pale, brewed by Full Sail’s Pub staff. “It’s an easy drinking, low alcohol, nitro beer so it’ll be smooth and creamy, just like the powder on the mountain,” says Matt Bowers, Full... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Company Expands Distribution to North Eastern States
Hood River, Oregon – Full Sail Brewing Company, renown for their internationally award-winning beers, has announced that they have expanded distribution to additional markets in New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hampshire in partnership with L. Knife & Son Companies. “We are very proud to enter the northeast markets with such a strong distributor partner. L. Knife has had a long term commitment to craft beer and has a deep understanding of how to... Read More »
Volunteer at the Holiday Ale Festival
According to the Holiday Ale Website: "Shifts are filling up fast! If you want to be part of the 2010 HAF and get cool free swag and beer tickets, you better sign up before it's too late!" Sure, you can support the festival by drinking beer, but why not meet some cool people and help the cause that you love so dearly? Though not finalized, this year's event is shaping up to be another great... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Releases Hoppy Holiday Treat
Wreck the Halls, a Festive Brewmaster Reserve Beer Hood River, Or – The first snow storm of the season has arrived! The air is cooler, the nights are longer, and the east winds are blowing as snowboarders and skiers start to make their way up the mountain. At the Brewery, the Full Sail crew is humming with the anticipation of a big snow year and their hoppy holiday release, Wreck the Halls. Wreck the Halls... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Cascade Brewing Vlad the Imp Aler
Vlad the Imp Aler (10.3% ABV / 6 IBU): This strong NW sour is a blend of strong blonde quads and tripels aged in oak and Bourbon barrels, then further blended with spiced blondes and left to condition for an additional five months. Click here for a photo of inaugural release cousin Bourbonic Plague. Read More »
Looking Ahead: Upcoming Bottle Releases from Full Sail and Block 15
Not much on the label, except that we can expect: a 22 oz bottle of hoppy, Imperial IPA, sometime in 2011, IBUs: 80, ABV: 7.5% This should be another great release from John and Phil down at the Portland Waterfront location! I'll have more information when the press releases start dropping, but with 2011 on the label this one is probably at least a few month off. Normally, we don't report on things too far... Read More »
Pelican Releasing Mother of All Storms on November 19th
Pacific City, Ore.—The Pelican Pub & Brewery will release its famous Mother of All Storms beer on November 19, which the Pelican is naming “Mother’s Day.” Mother of All Storms, formerly known as The Perfect Storm, has caused quite a stir over the last couple years and has sold out quickly. Mother of All Storms is produced in an extremely limited quantity and only 240 cases will be produced in 2010. This year, the only... Read More »
Cascade Brewing Announces Bottle Release for Two of its GABF Award Winning Beers
UPDATE: Regarding the release of Cascade Brewing Bourbonic Plague and Vlad the Imp-Aler: due to massive interest in these beers and concerns for quantities, we are limiting the purchase of these two products to six bottles per person, per beer. Thank you. PORTLAND, ORE. - Oct. 13, 2010 - More than a year after winning gold and silver medals at the 2009 Great American Beer Festival, Cascade Brewing will begin selling 750 ml bottles of... Read More »
Brewpublic KillerBeerWeek 2010
From the Press Releases: Never content to be just another blog like this one, Brewpublic.com is throwing yet another event in Portland. This one marks the second anniversary of the site, and what a short, not-so-strange trip it's been. In fact, in the meager two years the site has been around, Angelo and Co. have thrown a lot of events, written countless articles on beer in Portland and elsewhere, and somehow, has covered almost every... Read More »
Fermented Photo Flashback: Full Sail Brewing Tanks at Riverplace
Yay! Shiny metal tanks. Bender approved. Read More »
The Dissident 2010
Three things that make me think that this release is getting pretty damn close: Tweet from Deschutes today: "The Dissident sure smells good. Having a little tasting session with the brewers to determine the perfect blend for 2010." Label approval (uh, see above) Best After date on label: Usually about a year after release, and we're well into that territory. The last release of this in bottles was in 2008, too long ago. I was... Read More »
Fermented Photo: BridgePort Brewing's Hop Harvest
BridgePort Brewing Company, Oregon's oldest craft brewery releases its 2010 Hop Harvest beer September 16th at the Pearl district brewpub. This year’s Hop Harvest features fresh Centennial hops from third-generation, family-owned Goschie Farms in Silverton, Ore. When announced by Gayle Goschie, farm head of Goschie Farms, the crop was ripe for harvest, BridgePort’s Brewmaster, Jeff Edgerton, and family, drove to the farm with utility trailer in tow. Armed with burlap bags, the group took to... Read More »
Sour to the People! Cascade Brewing Barrel House opens in Southeast Portland
It's official! After much speculation, mysterious tweets, heated discussions, the official announcement is below. For more even more information, you can check out our Cascade Brewing Barrel House Preview post from last week. Official Press Release: PORTLAND, ORE. - Sept. 27, 2010 - For nearly a year, sour beer lovers all over the Northwest have anxiously awaited the opening of the Cascade Brewing Barrel House, and the wait is finally over. Located at 939 SE Belmont... Read More »
Oregon Bounty Wanderfeast Cooks Up Edible Adventures
I received a press release today about the Oregon Bounty Wanderfest. This is week three of a ten week series and this week is dedicated to, you guessed it: beer! The main man on the beer beat is Alan Sprints (need I even say: Hair of the Dog). Not only do you get to learn to cook beer braised short ribs with Hair of the Dog Adam, but you also get to learn how to... Read More »
Upright Beer Release Party Tonight
Whether you have plans tonight or not, you may want to change them: Check out the new details to Upright Brewing's bottle release party tonight. Along with the relase of their "unnamed strong lager brewed in tribute to the only band that mattered in the 80's brit punk invasion*", you can also look forward to: Tonight, 4:30p-9:00p at Upright Brewing. 240 N. Broadway @ Leftbank Project Suite 2 Portland, OR 97227 (503) 735-5337 Our newest... Read More »
Looking Ahead: Upcoming Portland Bottle Releases
September 24, 2010
by Matt Wiater
The crystal ball has sent out its predictions again. From big, bold winter releases to a Framboise that's been in the works for nearly two years, these upcoming seasonal releases should help you through the rainy season! Read More »
Fermented Photo: Cascade Brewing Barrel House
Bourbonic Plague: Need I say more? Read More »
Der Rheinlander's Oktoberfest Starts Tonight
Starting tonight, Der Rheinlander and Gustav's Bier Stube are throwing thei annual Oktoberfest. Unlike some of the breweries around town that have pitched their own versions, this one is a bit more traditional in the sense that they are featuring actual German beers. Beers including Paulaner Oktoberfest-Märzen, Hofbräu Oktoberfestbier, and Spaten Oktoberfestbier Ur-Märzen imported from Germany will be available. Living in Portland, you're probably used to ales as they rule the beer scene around here.... Read More »
Cascade Brewing Barrel House: Preview
The clouds have come in, the rain is trickling, and if you've been listening to the wind, it's been whispering: Bourbonic Plague. If you've got a beer geek friend (and who doesn't here in Portland), you've probably noticed some strange behavior lately: a seemingly random tilting of the head at an odd moment. Or maybe a squinting of the eyes at something that is just beyond the horizon. If you haven't been able to figure... Read More »
Scenes From Widmer Brother's Oktoberfest
Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Saturday's Beer Events
September 10, 2010
by Matt Wiater
A quick look at our upcoming events page shows us that tomorrow is a big day for Portland beer lovers. Between them, these events have bike rides, pig roasts, live music, new beer releases, and a promise of 70° and sunny skies. Get out and get some beer! Luck Labrador's Tour De Lab Columbia River Brewing's Grand Opening (11a - 11p) Widmer Brother's Oktoberfest (3p-11:30p) Lompoc Brewing's Oktoberfest (Noon-8p) Read More »
Celebrate the Hop Harvest with Three Fresh Hop Beers from Full Sail Brewing Company
It's that time of year: Fresh hops, fresh hop festivals, fresh hop beers. Full Sail is kicking off the season with three fresh hop seasonals. Two of these are the same beer made with different hop varieties, showcasing the difference in First Gold and Centennial hops. These beers are great for a side-by-side comparison, and a simple way to discover the aroma and taste differences for yourself. Check out the rest of the details in... Read More »
Brewpublic Presents Microhopic!
Not only is the beer list great, but you might even be able to rub shoulders with PDX Beer Celebrity and host Angelo. PORTLAND, OR –Brewpublic is pleased to announce our second Microhopic event featuring some of the area’s smallest commercial breweries and even a few we’re sure you have not experienced before. Microhopic 2 is not a nano beer event. We like to think of it more as a pico, femto, atto, zepto, or... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Huffy Toss
The Huffy Toss event from the 2010 BiKETOBEERFEST at Hopworks Urban Brewey. Drink a beer (optional) Pick up a designated bike (required) Chuck it (required) View on black (recommended) Read More »
Looking Ahead: Laurelwood and Old Lompoc 22 Ounce Bottle Releases
September 2, 2010
by Matt Wiater
Portland needs more great year-round Brown Ales. It's an often neglected style here, with many breweries opting for the hoppier Red Ale to fill in the color spectrum of styles. In fact, over at Laurelwood, their Free Range Red has long held the title of being their biggest seller. But this did not dissuade them from creating one of the best Brown Ales in town: Hooligan. Rich, malty, complex, available year-round at the brewery, and... Read More »
Scenes from BiKETOBEERFEST 2010
Custom bikes, flatland riders, live music, beer, and 70 degrees! Oh, I'll be back next year. In support of the Bicycle Transportation Alliance and Portland Sunday Parkways, Hopworks Urban Brewery threw a great party for cycling support and awareness in Portland. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Deschutes Brewery Announces Jubelale Release
Any murmurings on Deschutes Brewery's Jubel Ale release should signify a change of season. After all, it is their Winter ale. As the press release below denotes, this beer will be hitting the shelves in October. In fact, Portlander's often see these releases even earlier than the printed date, so I'd expect to see these in September around here. It's pretty early for a Winer Ale release and I have to wonder if a beer this good... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Company announces the 20th release of Old Boardhead Barleywine
When Full Sail claims that this beer ages well, it's an understatement. At my last family tasting, I brought out a 3 year old Full Sail Old Boardhead. While it's not surprising that this beer was great, it was a huge surprise that this beer got top honors at a table of people who never drink barleywine outside of our tastings. This beer transcended all style barriers and was a show stopper as everyone slowed down even... Read More »
Scenes From The Deschutes Brewery Street Fare
I'll put up another post about last week's Deschutes Brewery Street Fare when we get some hard numbers: attendance, money raised, etc. For now, enjoy some photos from what ended up being one of my favorite events this year: Deschutes beer, delicious food, great music, and an energetic crowd! Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Hopworks Urban Brewery Beers Land In Seattle and B.C.
Christian Ettinger, owner, Hopworks. This just in from Hopworks Urban Brewery: the needle points northward for Hopworks as they expand their distribution to our friends in Seattle and British Columbia. Good luck in the new markets! PORTLAND, Ore. – Hopworks Urban Brewery (HUB) recently expanded distribution of its beers to British Columbia and Seattle. Kegs and bottles of the company’s organic, sustainably-produced beers can be found in leading taphouses, bottle shops and markets in both... Read More »
Thirsty Cyclists Tour Portland for a Doggone Good Time
August 9, 2010
by Matt Wiater
What's more Portland than Bikes, Beer, and Charity? If you couldn't come up with an answer, you're right! Check out the official press release for the upcoming Tour de Lab (website / twitter): The dog days of summer aren’t over yet! On September 11, 2010, starting at 10 a.m., hundreds of cyclists will take to the streets of Portland to ride in the third annual Tour de Lab, a bicycle tour of the four local Lucky... Read More »
Imperial Birthday Beer Week
As if Oregon Craft Beer Month didn't give me enough to do, I decided to enjoy a self-imposed Imperial Birthday Beer Week: on each of the seven days surrounding my birthday, I sought out an Oregon brewed imperial beer. I didn't give much preparation to the challenge, I just woke up Sunday and decided to give it a try. How hard would it be to find (and drink) one imperial beer each day for a... Read More »
Upcoming Deschutes Brewery Events
Below are a couple of beer events on the horizon from Deschutes Brewery. The Street Fare event is next week in Portland, and looks like a lot of fun: wide variety of food and beer, music, and a great cause: Morrison Child and Family Services. And—as if you need an excuse to go to Bend—check out the Little Woody Festival (bourbon barrel-aged beer festival) in early September. Details below... As always, keep an eye on... Read More »
Collaborative Evil 2010
This just in from Matt Van Wyk of Oakshire Brewing: For several years, a group of brewers have been brewing unique, distinctive beers in an experiment of sorts that aims to demonstrate the diversity in brewing styles, techniques, and ingredients. Todd Ashman of FiftyFifty Brewing Company, Truckee, CA initially created the Collaborative Evil group with industry friends Zac Triemert Co-President and Co-Founder of Lucky Bucket Brewing Company, La Vista, NE and Matt Van Wyk, head brewer... Read More »
Concordia Cup 2010 Results
What a way to end Oregon Beer Craft Month: twelve unmarked Oregon Imperial IPAs in 3 ounce tasters for $13! Of course, not everyone out there is a hophead, but for those of us that love big imperial IPAs, this is a fun event every year. Work your way through the tasters, take some notes, and mark your top contender on the ballot. Concordia Ale House does heavy lifting when it comes to counting the... Read More »
Oregon Brewers Festival 2010
I'm feeling very sentimental after the opening day of this year's Oregon Brewers Festival. Maybe it was the beer. Maybe it's just because I'm getting older. Maybe it was listening to Elliot Smith's XO on the Max ride home. Maybe it was the beer. Wait, did I say that one already? Yeah, it was definitely the beer. As most of you know, some select media gets treated to a festival preview in order to taste... Read More »
The OLCC v. Homebrewers Continues
A new interpretation of an old law came to light when the Oregon Liquor Control Commission cancelled the homebrew contest at the State Fair, causing quite a stir in the Oregon Beer Community. In fact, I was fielding questions from as far away as North Carolina once news of the issue spread across the country. The problem revolves around the legality of homebrewers being exempt from requiring a manufacturers license when there beer is sampled in a... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Puckerfest
July 16, 2010
by Matt Wiater
Puckerfest. Another Puckerfest is but a memory—but what a memory it is! This photo is from Cascade Brewing's night at Belmont Station's annual Puckerfest. They brought Manhattan Transfer (Blend of Quad in Heaven Hills barrels, Tripel, and Sour Pie Cherry Kriek), Noyeaux (blend of Belgian spiced Blonds aged in white port barrels with raspberries and toasted apricot pits), and Sang Noir. Wow, I'm really glad we went back for this night! Ron and Curt of Cascade Brewing... Read More »
Deadlifting Imperial IPAs
It is no surprise that I'm a sucker for big, hoppy beers. Actually, after exploring what are possibly hundreds of different styles, style variations, and free-form brews, I don't really discriminate. But one style I return to over and over is the elusive Imperial IPA. I know, elusive? In a city somewhat defined by hops, these beers pop up often, but are they often done right? Obviously, you're going to want all aspects of hops:... Read More »
Lompoc Sidebar: Back Catalog
I stopped into the Lompoc Sidebar on Saturday to see what beers have been sitting on wood. The Bourbon Barrel Big Bang Red was released the night before and available on draft and in bottles. Both versions were very good, but I picked up an extra bottle to store for a few months—if I can hold onto it that long. Sidebar tender and brewer Zach also reached into the secret cellar and pulled out... Read More »
Back by Popular Demand: Beer To-Do Lists
July 12, 2010
by Matt Wiater
One feature that dropped off of our site in the redesign was the beer to-do lists. It wasn't an accident, it just wasn't incorporated at the time. Our designer (me) and our developer (me) were butting heads when we were deciding on which features to roll out with the first iteration of the site. Our developer won the fight and was able to shorten his own to-do list by dropping this feature and concentrating on... Read More »
Brewing Up Cocktails
July 8, 2010
by Matt Wiater
Passing this along from Ezra at The New School: For too long craft beer and spirits have remained separate entities only crossing in the occasional shot with a beer back. With Portland's well established craft beer culture and the rise of craft distilleries it is only right that these two should meet again with more tasty results. While writers like Stephen Beaumont have been pioneering the blending of spirits and beer for awhile most lovers... Read More »
Send Matt to Beer Camp!
July 6, 2010
by Matt Wiater
I'll be honest and upfront right at the beginning of this post: I have been to camp before. My parents used to send me away for the summers to a camp up in the Northeast Appalachians where I learned to shoot bow and arrows, ride horses, and break curfew. Now I've got the chance to do it all again, except this time with beer (although probably without the bow and arrows). Sierra Nevada Brewing... Read More »
Looking Ahead: Widmer Brothers Releases
Sled Crasher Although summer got a late start this year, we are already peering around the corner to Fall, with some notable releases slated for Widmer Brothers Brewing. While there is no release information on the Sled Crasher label, this beer is classified as a Winter Warmer, so I doubt it will be released until the Fall. This is part of Widmer Brothers Collaborator series. From the Oregon Brew Crew page: "The Collaborator Project is... Read More »
R.I.P. Deschutes Black Butte XXII Bottles
So, we'll wrap this sad tale up with an official statement from Deschutes. It's true, no Black Butte Reserve Series in bottles this year. While it is a loss of one of the most anticipated beers of the year, it's great to know that a company like Deschutes Brewery won't just push out beer that doesn't meet their high standards. There is a very limited amount on draft at both Bend Pub and tasting room... Read More »
2010 North American Organic Brewers Festival
It's that time of year again, and the 6th Annual North American Organic Brewers Festival is upon us. What does that mean? Beer, sun, music, and a bit of organic education. This year, there are around 50 different beers that cover a huge variety of styles, including: Witbiers, Belgian-style Scotch Ales, Biere de Gardes, Blondes, Fruit Wheats, Spruce Ales, Bohemian Pilsners, Saisons, Browns, Lagers, Ryes, and on and on (see the beer list below).... Read More »
Portland or Bust!
June 24, 2010
by Matt Wiater
People come to Portland for all kinds of reasons: beer, hipster-watching, and hipster-watching while drinking beer. Four women, however, are making the journey here for a completely different reason: breast cancer awareness. I ran across this group in the Twitterverse, so the details only came in 140-character-max bursts. I'm not sure why Portland is their destination, but here they come! From their site Road Trip For A Cure: "4 Women. 8 Breasts. 4 Bras.... Read More »
North American Beer Awards Deliver Three Bronze Medals to Bend Brewing Company
Bend Brewing Co. is thrilled to announce three new medals awarded for its innovative microbrews. BBC was awarded Bronze medals for the Outback X Strong Ale, the Metolius Golden Ale, and the Dry Irish Stout last week at the North American Beer Awards, sanctioned by the North American Brewers’ Association. The Outback X Strong Ale, a beer Head Brewer Tonya Cornett describes as demonstrating “roasted malt with hints of hops in the nose leading to... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Kicks Off Oregon Craft Beer Month with New Brewer’s Share Beer
Full Sail Brewing's Kristy Holsopple Hood River, Oregon – “He was a wise man who invented beer.” –Plato The Greek philosopher had his sentiment right, but according to most historians it was likely a woman who brewed the first beer and for most of the last 6,000 years of recorded civilization it was women “Brewsters” who continued to evolve the art of brewing beer developing many unique and regional varieties of beer. “As craft brewers we are... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Bourbon Barrel Aged Dark Side Porter, Lompoc Brewing
Bourbon Barrel Aged Dark Side Porter, Lompoc Brewing. Read More »
Portlandbeer.org Goes Back to the Future
Alright, that sounds more glamorous than the truth. I put a bit of a Hollywood spin on a simple fact: we're late to the party. Well, at least the Facebook party. We've created a nest at the site to grow our community and facilitate conversations on beer. It's branded as an alcohol related site, so it is age restricted and requires a Facebook account. It's not the most convenient way to drum up interest, but... Read More »
Concordia Ale House's Washington Cup Results
2010 Washington Cup contenders and winners (in the order on the taster tray): 1. Mac-N-Jacks African Amber 2. Elysian Avatar Jasmine IPA (4th place) 3. Baron Uberweiss 4. Diamond Knot XIPA (2nd place) 5. Salmon Creek King Salmon IPA 6. Hales SuperGoose IPA (1st place) 7. Everybody's Seasonal IPA 8. Lazy Boy IPA 9. Dick's Imperial Red (3rd Place) 10. Walkingman's Knuckle Dragger The Washington Cup decides who will captain their state's team in the... Read More »
Hop in the Dark, the Challenge
Some beers are simply brewed and bottled. Others take a different route, a route that beings almost two years ago, in a land far, far away... In October of 2008, Deschutes Brewery introduced the first version of it's Hop in the Dark, a Cascadian Dark Ale. Though it wasn't know by that moniker quite yet, this first generation IPA brewed with dark malts was a hit with the masses and brewer Larry Sidor decided that Deschutes should... Read More »
Fermented Photo Flashback: Ben Flerchinger, Lucky Labrador Brewing Co.
Ben Flerchinger, Lucky Labrador Brewing Co. This is another early photo, this time at the Lucky Labrador on Quimby. I remember thinking that shooting directly into the morning light with all of the grain dust coating my gear would be a disaster. It turned out to be one of my favorite photos. Read More »
That freakin' bird that won't stop chirping
June 1, 2010
by Matt Wiater
In other horrifying news, updates to old blog posts caused a firestorm of old Tweets today. Please accept our apologies, we usually run a tight ship. I guess our boat sprung a leak today... No more beer allowed at the office. Well, at least no beer before noon. Read More »
Beer + Nerd = XML
Our mission is to get Portland beer information out to you. Primarily, we do this through the site, but there's a lot more going on in the background. For example, our newly implemented events list is now driven by Google Calendar. Events placed on the calendar are not only available through this site, but also directly as XML, or as an add-on to your own calendar. <geekery> Most of the data that we... Read More »
Beer Release: Hop in the Dark, Deschutes Brewery
What takes 22 brews and more than a year of experiments to reach perfection? Deschutes Brewery’s newest Bond Street Series release: Hop in the Dark Cascadian Dark Ale (C.D.A.). C.D.A. is a new style of beer that emerged recently in the Pacific Northwest, more widely known as a Black I.P.A. There has been a significant movement and debate in the region to call the style C.D.A., and Deschutes Brewery leads the way with Hop in... Read More »
Fermented Photo Flashback: Dustin Kellner, Laurelwood Brewing Company
Dustin Kellner, Laurelwood Brewing Company. This is one of the first photos I took at a brewery. Just over three years ago, I talked to the Paul Bergeman at Laurelwood Brewery on NE 40th Avenue to see if he'd mind if I came in to shoot the brewery on a brew day. No one else knew I was coming, so imagine showing up to work at 7:00am to find a strange guy following you... Read More »
NAOBF Volunteer Recruitment Party
Going to the North American Organic Brewers Festival this year? Why not volunteer and give a little back to the beer community that you love so much! This year, Roots Organic Brewing is holding a volunteer recruitment party with a lot of perks to get you in the mood. Along with the party, if you volunteer for a four hour shift at the fest, you'll get beer tokens, a t-shirt. From the press... Read More »
Beer Release: Widmer Brothers Sunburn Blonde Ale
Widmer Brothers Brewing, based in Portland, Ore., has introduced its new summer seasonal, Sunburn Summer Brew, initiating the unofficial start of summer. “We crafted this beer with summer in mind, wanting to create something perfect for long, hot days,” said Rob Widmer. “It is a crisp and refreshing beer that is an anticipated addition to our seasonal lineup.” Sunburn is a blonde ale with a light caramel body and subtle, refreshing hop aroma. This brew uses Citra... Read More »
Beer Release: Full Sail Spotless IPA
Hood River, Or – The warm west winds signal the start of the summer season as kiteboarders and windsurfers light up the river in a swirl of color. You can watch the sight from the vantage point of Full Sail's Tasting Room and Pub and savor the newest release in their Brewmaster Reserve series, Spotless IPA. This release continues Full Sail’s summer “sun” series. Named to honor our sun that has been spotless for over a year, Spotless is a... Read More »
South of Portland: Block 15 Brewing Company in Corvallis
Nick Arzner, owner, brewer, bartender... Before I get started with this writeup, I think it's only fair that you know I've got a big prejudice against Block 15 Brewery. It may color my writing a bit, so I wanted to air all grievences right away. I did talk to owner Nick Arzner about my problem, but he said that there's nothing he can do about it, and for that I'll always be a bit... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Christian Ettinger, Mad Skills, Hopworks
Christian Ettinger, Mad Skills, Hopworks. Multitasking: Hopworks' Owner Christian Ettinger manages to give a tour, pour beer off of the tanks, and drink a pint at the same time. That's how you stay on top of your game. This was taken at the Organic Rise Up Red Release Party. Beer Geek Information: IBU: 60, ABV: 5.8% Read More »
Bottle Release: Organic Rise Up Red from Hopworks
Well, you don't have to take my word, last year the GABF bestowed a Gold Medal in the American Style Amber/Red Ale on this beer. I haven't had this beer since it was out about a year ago and after trying again tonight, I'd have to agree with the GABF. This beer is an amazing representation of the style. Now, through a 22 ounce bottle, it'll be easier for you to get your hands on... Read More »
South of Portland: Flat Tail Brewing in Corvallis
Flat Tail Brewing, Corvallis, OR. As we continue our journey South of Portland, we end up at Flat Tail Brewing. But things have become out of sync since the information in this article is a bit out of date with what's currently happening at Flat Tail Brewing. When we were invited to check out the establishment in mid-February, they were on track to open the restaurant side of the business soon: the kitchen... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Celebrates American Craft Beer Week with New Brewer's Share Beer - Vendell Veizen
Hood River, Or - Brewers know the best way to celebrate is to brew a special beer, so to honor American Craft Beer Week (May 17 - 23), Full Sail will release a new beer in their Brewer's Share line up. This special beer, "Vendell Veizen" is a Weizen Bock and was developed by Assistant Packaging Supervisor, Wendell Bryant. "It's such an honor to brew a beer for American Craft Beer Week. I'm an avid... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Ace Of Spades Imperial IPA, Hopworks
Ace Of Spades Imperial IPA, Hopworks Urban Brewery. HUGE Imperial IPA. Find it while you can, limited bottling. Beer Geek Information: IBU: 100 Plato: 21.5 ABV: 9.2 Read More »
Upcoming Bottle Releases from Deschutes Brewery
Just got some information from Deschutes about some upcoming beer releases over the next few months. While Hop in the Dark will be debuting in bottles on the shelves this month, Black Butte XXII will be out at the end of June and The Dissident will be out in September. More details as the release dates approach and I can get my hands on some. For now, here's plenty of information so that you can... Read More »
Bridgeport Brewing Company Unviels Third Generation Stumptown Tart At May 6 Release Party
PORTLAND, Ore. – BridgePort Brewing Company, Oregon's oldest craft brewery is releasing its third generation Stumptown Tart. The new brew is a Belgian Style Framboise infused with 2,000 pounds of Oregon Red Raspberries grown at Willamette Valley Fruit Company in Salem, Ore. This year’s Stumptown Tart varies from years past as it blends an aged oak barrel and a fresh Belgian Tripel. Stumptown Tart is touted as a brew that hits the drinker upfront with... Read More »
2010 Cheers To Belgian Beers List
Some info from the Oregon Brewers Guild: 05/01/2010 Hopworks Urban Brewery Upper Parking Lot 2944 SE Powell Blvd Portland 503-232-4677 Noon-9pm Admission is Free. $5 for tasting goblet which is required to taste. $1 for tastes. Portland's Cheers to Belgian Beers started three years ago to help introduce Oregonians to the breadth of style and flavors of beers brewed in Belgium. The first year had 10 brewers pouring 10 beers at the Rock Bottom Brewery... Read More »
Two Creative Oregon Breweries Come Together to Craft an All-New Brew
Alan Sprints working his cauldron at Hair of the Dog. Just got this press release and I thought I'd pass it along. How nice of me, right? But this isn't just any release: it's a collaboration between Deschutes Brewery and Hair of the Dog! And it's not just a collaborative brew in the usual sense: it's two new brews from each brewer that will be barrel-aged separately and then blended in early 2011! I'd pre-order right now if it... Read More »
Downer and Outer
April 29, 2010
by Matt Wiater
Yep, I've been missing from the Portland beer scene: no events, no photographs, no articles, and last but definitely not least: no freakin' beer. I've spent the last six days trapped on my couch, sweating and weeping with a terrible flu—rampant fevers, unmentionable television, and acute malaise. A second, giant dose of antibiotics has put me back on my feet and I finally feel like I'm starting to win the battle. I've got... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Twilight Summer Ale
Twilight Summer Ale from Deschutes Brewery. As a summer seasonal, Twilight Ale will be available from April until September in 6-packs, 12-packs and on draft. Beer Geek Information: 5% ABV, 35 IBUs. Read More »
South of Portland: Oregon Trail Brewery in Corvallis
Beer at 11am again on day two. This time, our group meets up at Oregon Trail Brewery in Corvallis. Several years ago, I lived in Corvallis. This was the first place I landed after moving to the West Coast from South Carolina—and this is when I started to really get into local beer. By that time, I had long since switched from the American macro lagers I drank in college to other American beers like Harpoon... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Laurelwood's Workhorse IPA
Laurelwood's Workhorse IPA. One of the best IPAs in Portland is now available in bottles. Ever since we added the ability to rate the beers in our database, this beer has sat at the top of the list. Check the home page for current rankings. This feature is open to the public, but for now, you have to request a login through our contact form. Read More »
FredFest Date Change, Tickets On Sale
PORTLAND, Ore. — The littlest big beer festival in the world – or at least in Portland – is slated for Monday, May 10, Fred's actual 84th birthday. Tickets go on sale immediately at the official Web site: http://www.fredfestpdx.com What started as a surprise 80th birthday party for world-renowned beer writer Fred Eckhardt grows each year and has become a significant fundraiser for the charity of Eckhardt’s choice. Now in its fifth year, this year’s proceeds... Read More »
Oregon Craft Beer Production Tops One Million Barrels
PORTLAND, Ore. (April 7, 2010) - Oregon breweries reached a landmark in 2009, producing more than one million barrels, or roughly 260 million pints of beer. According to figures released today by the Oregon Brewers Guild, Oregon’s breweries crafted 1,050,000 barrels of beer, which represents an increase in production of 15.2 percent over 2008. “The brewing industry is a major contributor to Oregon’s economy and a big supporter of our communities,” said Brian Butenschoen, Executive... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Full Sail Hop Pursuit IPA
Full Sail Hop Pursuit IPA. Read More »
Fermented Photo: Widmer Brothers Deadlift Imperial IPA
Widmer Brothers Deadlift Imperial IPA. Read More »
33 Beers: The Notebook
On my recent trip South to Eugene and Corvallis, I got to hang out with Dave Selden and Bruce Kehe from BS Brewing. We've all rubbed shoulders in the past at various events, but I'm usually hiding behind my camera, or behind a beer, or just falling behind and getting there after everyone's left. This time, I got to hang out, travel to breweries, and drink and talk beer. I also got to test the... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Dave Wills, Oregon Trail Brewery
Dave Wills, Oregon Trail Brewery. Up in the third floor barrel room, Dave Wills samples the goods. I could have sat up there all day "testing" the creations at Oregon Trail Brewery. Read More »
South of Portland: Oakshire Brewing in Eugene
Matt Van Wyk, Oakshire Brewing. 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... Read More »
Fermented Photo: PDX, Dogs, and Beer
PDX, Dogs, and Beer: Otto von Zitzewitz. Before anyone asks what this has to do with beer: I was drinking one while I took the photo. Portland goes together with dogs, just as it does with beer. All three can even go together with outdoor seating or even "dog-friendly" breweries like the Lucky Labrador. My dog Otto is absolutely nuts. He's either literally running in circles (kitchen, backyard, living room, etc.), jumping in... Read More »
Paul's Boutique: Single Hop Red Series at Laurelwood
In the Northwest, beers that showcase hops usually come in the form of Pales, IPAs, or Imperial IPAs. Once upon a time, a brewer pondered, "Just how many hops can I fit into a beer?" Throw in high alpha hops for bitterness, big citrus hops for flavor, and tons of dry hops for a huge floral nose, and you'll end up with some of big hop bombs known around Portland. Brewer Paul Bergeman of Laurelwood... Read More »
South of Portland: Ninkasi Brewing Company in Eugene
Jamie Floyd, Ninkasi brewing. 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... Read More »
South of Portland: Hop Valley Brewing Company in Eugene
The best way to start the day: a sample tray. 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... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Nick Arzner, Block 15 Brewery
Fermented Photo: Nick Arzner, Block 15 Brewery. Nick unleashing barrel-fermented, brett-pitched, sour goodness directly from the source. Today, it's good to be me. Read More »
Auction for Haiti Relief Conclusion
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="Red Cross Donation"][/caption] For everyone that's been following the auction, we've finally assembled all of the pieces and made our donation to the Red Cross Haiti Relief Fund! Through the bidding wars, we were able to raise $381.00. We rounded it up to $400.00 and made the donation on February 10th. First of all, thanks to everyone for participating. Several bloggers helped spread the word via their websites, twitter, and word... Read More »
4th Annual Zoo Brew Microbrew Festival
PORTLAND, Ore. Nights at the Oregon Zoo are full of excitement several nocturnal species keep the zoo hopping from sunset to sunrise but usually only the animals get to partake in the fun. On Friday, June 4, humans get to join the party at Zoo Brew, where some of the best beer in the Northwest will combine with one of the greatest bands ever to come out of Oregon: the Crazy 8s. Inducted into the... Read More »
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... Read More »
AKA 2010 Lucky Labrador Barleywine and Big Beer Tasting
In the past, it's been called a tastival. It's also been called a festeroon. This year? Who knows. But a festival by any other name would be as sweet! Whatever the name, you'll be tasting barleywines and big beers! The Lucky Lab's Ben Flerchinger just sent me the newest list: 46 beers with an average ABV of 9.8%—big beers indeed! Ben also said to expect about 15 or 20 more offerings by the time the... Read More »
Fermented Photo Flashback: Alan Sprints, Hair of the Dog
Alan Sprints, Hair of the Dog. Eye of newt, tail of cat, and hair of dog: Alan Sprints at his beer cauldron, making the brews that we all love. Read More »
Lompoc Brewing's Batch 69 Baltic porter
February 8, 2010
by Matt Wiater
No details yet, but when it hits the shelves, I'll be grabbing them by the handful! After getting their beer into 22 ounce bottles not too long ago, Lompoc Brewing is doing a great job getting us some bottled seasonals as well: Barrel Aged Oak Doppelbock, Barrel Aged LSD, and now this. Keep 'em coming! Read More »
Brewpublic.com and Saraveza Presents: My Beery Valentine, A Benefit for Haiti Relief Efforts
In pursuit of interesting and imaginative beer styles, Brewpublic and Saraveza have again coordinated a one-of-a-kind line-up of specialty brews. This time it is a killer tap list for Valentine's/Zwickelmania Weekend. "MY BEER VALENTINE" will showcase some never before experienced draughts of chocolate and fruit beers as well as some of Oregon's best hoppy brews. MY BEERY VALENTINE expresses the love and passion for dynamic brews and is designed with the true beer geek in mind. This event... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Jubel 2010, Deschutes Brewery
Jubel 2010, Deschutes Brewery. Every winter, I track this beer down—which sometimes requires a trip to bend. As noted below, it's usually around every winter on draft as Super Jubel, but it's finally making it's appearance in Deschute's Reserve Series bottles (though it was bottled ten years ago before the Reserve Series was born). Jubel 2010 is a deeply dynamic presentation of the flavors found in our festive winter seasonal, Jubelale. Available on tap around... Read More »
Standing Stone Brewing Co. Hosts Regional Kickoff For "Women Enjoying Beer"
(Ashland, OR) Standing Stone Brewing Co (101 Oak St, Ashland) will host the regional kickoff gathering of Women Enjoying Beer on Thursday February 11 from 7-9 pm. This event is for women only, and focuses on helping females learn more about many different aspects of beer, have fun doing it and identify varieties. Women Enjoying Beer will be held on a regular basis, providing participants with a chance to try new beers and deepen their... Read More »
Hoppy Housewives Beer Class
Awesome! Check out what Lisa Morrison (aka The Beer Goddess) is doing out at Fort George Brewery in Astoria: Looking for something fun, unique and tasty for your best gal pal this Valentine's Day? How about a romantic trip to the coast and a special beer-tasting journey just for her? Lisa Morrison, aka the Beer Goddess, is hosting one of her popular women-only beer classes at Fort George Brewery & Public House on Feb. 20.... Read More »
Vintage Big Bottle Winter Beer Tasting at Saraveza
PORTLAND, Ore.—Jan. 25, 2010—Thirty lucky citizens of Beervanna will get a rare and limited opportunity to try a variety of big bottle vintage beers Tuesday, February 9th at 6:30 pm at Saraveza, 1004 N. Killingsworth St. This special affair features seven expensive and rare vintage large format bottles as the centerpiece of an evening of vintage beer tasting, beer and food pairing, and education about the beers and the changes they undergo in their mammoth... Read More »
Beer Print Auction for Red Cross Haiti Relief (Day 2)
We have teamed up with Deschutes Brewery to bring you some one of a kind photo prints to benefit the Red Cross Haiti Relief and Development. 100% of all proceeds will go directly to this program. We have created a simple auction in hopes of raising more money than we could have individually contributed here at the site. We haven't done this before, but the Portland beer community is made up of a lot of... Read More »
Press Release: Full Sail Brewing Company Releases Top Sail Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Porter
Hood River, Or – The waiting list is growing and so is the anticipation. It is almost time for the annual and very limited release of Full Sail’s bourbon barrel beer. Top Sail Bourbon Barrel Porter rested in oak bourbon barrels for close to one year will finally be ready to pour early this February. “Our barrel aged beers have been a Full Sail tradition since 1998 when we discovered the magic that happens when... Read More »
Press Release: Deschutes Brewery Releases Reserve Series Jubel 2010
BEND, Ore. – Deschutes Brewery, the sixth largest craft brewery in the nation, announces the release of its first Reserve Series beer for the New Year and decade, Jubel 2010. Jubel 2010 is a deeply dynamic presentation of the flavors found in its festive winter seasonal, Jubelale. Available on tap around the holidays at its pubs as “Super Jubel,” February 2010 marks only the second time the Brewery has ever bottled this immortal libation. The... Read More »
Fermented Photo: 10 Barrel Brewing's S1NIST0R BLACK ALE
10 Barrel Brewing's S1NIST0R BLACK ALE. We craft our S1NIST0R BLACK ALE using a special German dehusked black malt that is free of astringency, giving the beer a rich black color without the traditional dark beer characteristics. You will notice subtle hints of chocolate with an easy drinking balance on the back end. In the glass the dark color may look intimidating to some, but don't let this beer fool you. Our unique combination of... Read More »
Beer Release: BridgePort's Highland Ambush Scotch Ale
So much beer, so little time. I know, I lead a rough life. Living in Portland and writing about beer is a sweet gig--as long as you don't enjoy being paid for it. But for each snide comment and bit of sarcasm that comes out of my mouth, everywhere I turn, there's beer, beer, beer: new releases, more events, budding breweries, more bloggers, and new friends in beer. From startup breweries to those entering... Read More »
Beer Release: Hop Henge Experimental IPA
Deschutes Brewing has released the next version of their Hop Henge Experimental IPA. As you'd expect, this monster is big on hops: huge aroma, giant floral taste, and a whopping bitterness to balance out the malt blend. This is an IPA pushed to the edge of balance supporting 8.75% ABV and 95 IBUs. For an IPA lover, this is a great creation, and fairly complex rather then just a hop bomb. Sure, it's a showcase... Read More »
Zwickelmania Returns!
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... Read More »
Fermented Photo: BridgePort's Hop Czar
BridgePort's Hop Czar. BridgePort is now releasing 6-pack versions of their Hop Czar Imperial IPA. This beer was originally released in July 2008 as one of the beers in the brewery's "Big Brew" series. Read More »
Fermented Photo: Old Humbug Winter Warmer
Southern Oregon Brewing's Old Humbug Winter Warmer. You can probably guess from the Brewery's name that they don't reside in Portland. However, now that they are bottling, it's much easier to get your grubby hands on their beers here in PDX. Sure, Scrooge and humbugging are related to the Winter season, but "old" this and "old" that are traditionally reserved for Barleywine style ales. Oh well, with a beer this good, I won't hold it... Read More »
Cellaring Beer and the 2010 New Year's Day Tasting
January 6, 2010
by Matt Wiater
Another year is upon us, and that means another Annual New Year's Day Tasting for my family. Overall, the tasting went great, but there were a few mistakes made that we can look forward to cleaning up next year. In this article, we're going to talk a little bit about cellaring beer--the whats, whens, and whys. First though, let's go through this years tasting list: Abyss (2007), Deschutes Brewing, Barrel Aged Imperial Stout Abyss (2008),... Read More »
On The Outside: Goose Island's Bourbon County Stout
Yesterday, my girlfriend noticed a beer bottle in a seldom seen area of the refrigerator, mixed in with the secondary condiments. She asked me why I was hiding a bottle of Bourbon County Stout (BCS). I yelled from my spot on the couch that I had just picked it up yesterday. "You picked up a 2008 yesterday?" she asked. That piqued my interest. Earlier this year, we moved to a new house without a basement. ... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Deschutes Red Chair NWPA
Deschutes Red Chair NWPA. Spring Seasonal (6-packs, 12-packs and draft) From the brewery: "Not up for a full–on hop assault? Red Chair NWPA is a smoother ride. Seven select European and domestic malts take a surprisingly plush, satin turn on the way to a citrusy hop kick. Edges out, layers in. Witness the subtle, aromatic seduction of the debut Northwest Pale Ale. Red Chair NWPA is named for the oldest operating chairlift at Mt. Bachelor:... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Bell's Expedition Stout
Bell's Expedition Stout. Nope not a Portland beer. Not even a West Coast beer. But that's the point of the holidays: give, give, give. I give out a lot of beer realted presents for the holidays, and sometimes I get some in return. This year, portlandbeer.org contributor Ian gifted me my first Bell's beer: Expedition Stout. Hopefully, the first of many (hint, hint). It wouldn't be the holidays without some grovelling, right! Read More »
The Beer Finder
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... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Laurelwood's Auld Battle Axe
Laurelwood's Auld Battle Axe. This year, for their limited addition 1 Liter swing-top release, Laurelwood brings us a Scotch-style ale. This is a style that's not seen too often around Portland. Big on malt, high in alcohol, and very low on bitterness, this falls way outside of the comfort zone of many a PDX hop head. But during these last few bitter cold days, this beer really hits the spot--warming you up from the inside... Read More »
BridgePort Releases Newest Big Brew
Assistant BridgePort Brewmaster Jeff Edgerton. PORTLAND, Ore. – Dec. 4, 2008 – BridgePort Brewing Company, Oregon's oldest craft brewery, is launching its newest beer in the Big Brew Series, Highland Ambush, on December 17. This brandy snifter beer lends itself to fireside chats with its heavy body and malt driven palate. In keeping with the Scottish appetite for whiskey, this brew was aged partially in fresh bourbon barrels from the distillery at Makers Mark. First... Read More »
Fermented Photo: 2009 Holiday Ale Festival
2009 Holiday Ale Festival. Wish I could sneak out of work early today. Email me if you feel like staging a kidnapping. Read More »
Holiday Ale Festival 2009 Starts Tomorrow
2009 Holiday Ale Festival In a bout of uber-lazy journalism, I could merely remind everyone that the 2009 Holiday Ale Festival starts tomorrow and point to my beer blogging brethren's pregame coverage over at Beervana, Brewpublic, and Beer Around Town. Hmm, looks like I just did that. Oh well, not much to say that the official beer list doesn't say itself. Don't worry, this isn't all you'll get out of us. We'll be there tomorrow... Read More »
On the Outside: Firestone Walker 13
Firestone Walker 13 We like to keep most of our coverage on the local Portland beer scene, hence the URL portlandbeer.org. Makes sense to us. A lot of beer news happens outside of our little beer utopia though. Some of it is relevant, some of it is interesting. Though our main concentration will remain in our community, we will be bringing you some worthy news from the outside in an aptly named column called... Read More »
Fermented Photo: 2009 Full Sail Wreck the Halls
2009 Full Sail Wreck the Halls. While other beers go malty, this winter beer leans toward hoppy. In fact, it's labeled as a "hoppy holiday ale". The only thing wrong with this beer is that I only bought one. Delicious! Read More »
Fermented Photo: 2009 Full Sail Wassail
2009 Full Sail Wassail. Here come the winter beers! "It's the most wonderful time of the year..." Read More »
Portland, We *had* a Problem
Well, in my haste to push out only lightly-tested code, some things broke without me knowing about it. In an effort to get some beta testers of our new beer rating system, I wrote a quick article hoping to attract a few people. "Just contact us through our form," I said. Of course, the form was broken. So, while we could see that many people were interested—and attempted to submit the contact form—all of... Read More »
Rating Beer at portlandbeer.org
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,... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Bailey's Taproom
Bailey's Taproom. Finally, a much needed night out after work, work, work. We ended up at Bailey's Taproom for a few beers on a typical rainy and dark Wednesday in Portland. Perfect night to warm up around a great selection of beers! Well, now that I think about it, isn't every night? Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Indie Hops, a New Look at an Old Friend
Just got a press release in from Indie Hops, LLC. They are specializing in aroma hops exclusively for the craft beer industry. I'll go out on a limb here, but I don't think that it'll hurt the Portland beer scene to be so close to this operation! ----- We are pleased to announce the launch of our new business, Indie Hops, LLC. Our mission is to supply 100% Oregon grown aroma hops to the craft... Read More »
Fermented Photo: 2009 Deschutes Abyss
2009 Deschutes Abyss. The lines stretched around the building on the release day. Doesn't anyone have anything to do at 2:00pm on a Tuesday? Don't I have anything to do? Well, yes. I was planning to swoop in, pick up a handful of bottles, and be back at work within 30 minutes—just like I did at the Dissident release. Instead, I saw the line, circled the building in my car, wept, and went back to... Read More »
Portlandbeer.org: Past, Present, and Future
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... Read More »
Portlandbeer.org Relaunch
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... Read More »
Brothers' Reserve: Cherry Oak Doppelbock
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... Read More »
Supporting Oregon Beer by Drinking Oregon Beer
July 28, 2009
by Matt Wiater
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,... Read More »
Fermented Photo: 2009 Oregon Brewers Festival
Another Fred. I can't pass on posting another photo of Fred. This one is Fred Eckhardt sitting across from me at the festival's media preview. His best advice: drink one glass of water for every glass of beer. Trust me, it's a lifesaver. Read More »
Oakshire Brewing to release bottles of Watershed IPA and Overcast Espresso Stout
Last week, I got a press release from Oakshire Brewing in Eugene, OR. Nope, not a Portland beer, but if you've been able to taste their brews, you'll agree that everyone should keep an eye on them. Almost exactly a year ago, Oakshire Brewing emerged after a bit of legal prodding forced a name change from Willamette Brewing. They have continued to haul their beer and brand all over oregon throughout the year and are... Read More »
Oregon Brewers Festival: Buzz Tent
Oregon Brewer's Festival 2008. Well, the Oregon Brewers Festival is upon us. Every year, there is more beer, more people, and hotter temperatures. I use up a few vacation days each year so that I can make it out to the festival by noon on Thursday and Friday, avoiding much of the crowd and concentrating on the beer. This time, the organizers are adding another feature to the festivities: The Buzz Tent. It's kind of... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Oregon Brewers Fest 2008
Fred Eckhardt at last year's brewer's dinner.One of the best parts of the OBF is the Brewer's Dinner. Tickets sell out fast for a reason: exclusive beers, great food, and a lot of beer celebrities. Read More »
Fermented Photo: Baltic and Imperial Porter Tasting
Baltic and Imperial Porter tasting at Upright Brewing. A shot from the Porter tasting at Upright Brewing a couple of weeks back. The strong beers hit quickly, but I still can't help but wonder what these people think as I crawl on tables and in between barrels with a camera in one hand and a glass of 11% Porter in the other. They'd probably be more horrified if I dropped my beer, whereas I might... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Celebrates Oregon Craft Beer Month
Hood River, Oregon - Brewers know the best way to celebrate is to brew a special beer, and in honor of Oregon Craft Beer Month Full Sail Brewing Company will release a new beer in their Brewer's Share line up. The special beer, Andy's Ambrosia Red, was developed by Full Sail Brewer Andy Cummings. The Brewer's Share series is a line up of small batch draft beers where each of the Full Sail brewers takes... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Black Butte XXI
Black Butte XXI from Deschutes Brewery. The new batch is out. If I needed to say more, this beer wouldn't be as good as it is. Read More »
Fermented Photo: Oregon Trail Bourbon Barrel Porter
Oregon Trail Bourbon Barrel Porter. This one comes from Oregon Trail Brewery in Corvallis Oregon. Not much to say, yet--it's still in my fridge. I keep planning to crack it open, but then something happens and the circumstances are quite right for a slow sipper. Weekends usually work well and look at that, it's Friday! Read More »
Fermented Photo: My Dad, the Dissident
My dad, the dissident. This scene is from our family's first annual Cellar Series. I've been stocking up on beer for next year's series, so I took a look through last year's photos and found this one. The Fermented Photo post usually comes out on Fridays, but I wanted to wait until today to post this special Father's Day edition.While my brothers and I were stuck in college in South Carolina, my dad made his... Read More »
Beer Adventure in Astoria Oregon: Part Four--Wrap Up
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... Read More »
Portland's Not-So-Secret Society of Beer Geeks Gathers in Secret
Brewpublic's Angelo De Ieso II, amongst friends, beer, and ghosts. Last night at Upright Brewing, beer geeks gathered for an Imperial and Baltic Porter tasting. There were a few kegs including Block 15's Imperial Smoked Porter and Lucky Lab's Imperial Stout. Thrown in for good measure were Upright Brewing's Four, Seven, Reggae Junkie Gruit, and Anglo-Saison. Sure, not anywhere close to Baltic Porters, but they were hosting the party, so I let it slide. And... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Barrel Aged Awesomeness
Barrel Aged Awesomeness at Cascade Brewing. Without reserve, we highly recommend grabbing any available seasonals from Cascade Brewing. Ron and Curt are making some outstanding beers: Krieks, Blends, Sours, Fruits. Not your normal NW IPA fare, but that's why we love them! Read More »
Fermented Photo: Hopworks IPA
Hopworks Urban Brewery, Organic IPA. In the past couple of weeks, Hopworks beer has been popping up on shelves around town. It's great to have another local beer to support when out at the store, especially the Hopworks releases: Deluxe Organic Ale, IPA, Survival Stout, and Crosstown Pale. So, get out there and get some! Read More »
Fermented Photo: Widmer Brothers 25th Anniversary Double Alt (Signed)
Widmer Brothers 25th Anniversary Double Alt. I know. Same beer from a couple of weeks ago. But, there's a twist. I got a package in the mail this week from Widmer Brothers Brewing. I opened it up to find a fresh bottle of the Double Alt, signed by Rob and Kurt!Last week, I was working on a photo to celebrate Widmer's 25th Anniversary. I was going to use a Widmer logo, so I contacted the... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Moose and Squirrel Russian Imperial Stout
Laurelwood's Moose and Squirrel Russian Imperial Stout. I wasn't able to hold onto these bottles as long as I had hoped. They "disappeared" rather quickly. If you see it, drink it! A little bit of this beer made it's way into bourbon barrels and then served on cask at the Pizza location--unannounced and quite a delicious surprise! Read More »
Fermented Photo: Widmer Brothers 25th Anniversary Double Alt
Widmer Brothers 25th Anniversary Double Alt. I'm not sure about the production scale or what markets this beer will reach, but if you see it, grab one! A huge double Alt, very well balanced, strong, sweet, nutty, and warming. Read More »
Beer Adventure in Astoria Oregon: Part Three--Astoria Brewing
Astoria Brewing's Head Brewer, Bolt Minister. Astoria Brewing lives inside of the Wet Dog Cafe, right on the Columbia River, about five blocks from Fort George Brewery.The first thing I notice about the brewery is that it just might just fit in my living room. And after tasting the beers, I want it in my living room as soon as possible. Not sure that my girlfriend would agree with the new decor though. The 4... Read More »
Beer Adventure in Astoria Oregon: Part Two--Fort George Brewery
Fort George Brewery. I arrive at Fort George Brewery at noon on Saturday. I've got a couple of hours to talk with brewer and proprietor Chris Nemlowill, sample some beer, tour the brewery, and then head off to the next brewery. This seems like ample time as I sit in my car and review my agenda for the day. This assumption will prove false as I head to my first beer meeting of the day.I... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Fred Eckhardt at FredFest 2008
Fred Eckhardt from last year's FredFest. We put up this photo in honor of tomorrow's FredFest celebration! There may actually be some tickets left, so don't miss one of Portland's premiere events. Read More »
Beer Adventure in Astoria Oregon: Part One--Go West Young Man
The Astoria Bridge, Oregon Coast Highway. A few weeks ago, I went on a journey to check out the beer scene in Astoria Oregon. Between then and now, I've been juggling a lot and running behind in a few things. I really had no timetable for getting this finished, but I thought it would be finished in the first week or two. That didn't happen. The other night, I went out for a beer (or... Read More »
Succumbing to Poll Pressure -- Portland v. Asheville?
People are going insane about this poll: Which city wide area do you think ranks #1 as Beer City USA? I've gotten emails, tweets, and verbal requests to post about it, so I feel somewhat obligated. The question comes up all of the time on websites, newspapers, and forums. Portland is always a contender, and tempers flare as everyone casts a vote for their favorite.The interesting thing about this poll is that it's almost closed... Read More »
Portland Beer Recommendations (The Other PBR)
May 4, 2009
by Matt Wiater
It's been in the works for awhile, and we're finally releasing the secret information about beer in Portland. As most great ideas, it started out as notes on napkins and coasters at local breweries. Over the last few weeks, the idea has jumped off of the page and worked it's way into our site.We've gathered the greatest minds from the Portland beer scene and put them to the task of recommending Portland beers. Some of... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Beer at the Lucky Lab
Beers at the Lucky Lab, from this year's Barleywine Festeroon.Today's photo is in honor of the festivities that are starting in a few hours at the Lucky Lab (Quimby): Cheers to Belgian Beers. Sample about 40 or so Belgian styled beers, today and tomorrow, noon to 10pm. Read More »
2005 and 2009 Deschutes Mirror Mirror Barleywine!
2009 Deschutes Brewery Mirror Mirror Barleywine Picked up a few bottles at Deschutes Brewery downtown, took a few photos to remember them by, and stashed them in the basement--to be opened in the distant future. But all is not lost, I have the taste of Mirror Mirror on my tongue without opening a bottle. This deliciousness was made possible by the brewery by offering up 2005 and 2009 Mirror Mirror on draft! Yep. All is... Read More »
This Week's Portland Beer Events
There's a lot going on this week. Let's get to it! Tuesday (2009-04-28) Green Dragon's Meet the Brewer: Laurelwood's Chad Kennedy 6PM to 8PM Featured Beers: Green Mammoth Imperial IPA: The Imperial version of Laurelwood's popular Organic IPA, with Cascade Ahtanum and Amarillo hops. Saison: To create this unique beer, Laurelwood used Organic malted barley, white wheat malt, oats, maize, and Belgian candy sugar. Subtle notes of citrus are added by the use of orange... Read More »
Fermented Photo: Astoria Brewing's Bolt Minister
Bolt Minister, Head Brewer at Astoria Brewing Company.We'll have more info on Bolt Minister in our upcoming article on Astoria Oregon.We've been sporadically throwing up some "photo of the day" posts, but that kind of implies one photo every day--which we haven't been doing. So from now on, we'll have a Fermented Photo posted once each week on Fridays. Read More »
Photos: Astoria Beer Adventure
I headed out to Astoria last weekend to do some investigative reporting on the beer scene out there. I had a great time, fantastic beer, and met some cool people. I'm working on the article now, but I'm a bit behind due to entertaining some guests this week. So, I'll go ahead and leak some photos to buy me a little more time! The whole story will be finished next week. Check out the rest... Read More »
Portland Beer Photo of the Day: Full Sail's Old Boardhead
Old Boardhead Barleywine-Style Ale from Full Sail Brewing Co."A deliciously rich Barleywine that has a spectacular depth and delicacy of flavor that is deep and robust. Its strong sweet body is balanced with Centennial and Crystal hops for a pleasant hoppiness and finish."Stats: 9% ABV, 91 IBU Read More »
Portland Beer Photo of the Day: Laurelwood's Workhorse IPA
"Workhorse is a true West Coast IPA, featuring over-the-top hop flavor and aroma. Three separate dry hop additions in the fermenter make this one of our hoppiest beers to date."Stats: 7.5% ABV, 17º Plato O.G., 3º Plato T.G., 80 IBU Read More »
Oakshire Brewing Expands, Adds Brewmaster
I received a press release from Oakshire Brewing Company with some information on their expansion and an introduction to Matt Van Wyk (a brewer from Flossmoor Station whose reputation precedes him by a mile). I don't know much about Oakshire personally, so I'll pass the press release on verbatim below.I was able to taste some of of Oakshire's brews at last year's Oregon Brewer Festival and OBF Brewers Dinner. Oakshire appeared at the dinner with... Read More »
Meet the Brewers: Lompoc Brewing
Jonathan Berry and Brian Kielty of Lompoc Brewing. Not pictured: [the other guy] Get out to the Green Dragon tomorrow night to check out some great beers and meet up with the brewers from the New Old Lompoc's 5th Quadrant: Jonathan Berry, Brian Kielty, and [the new guy]. I met up with all three of them at the Firkin Fest this past weekend, and unfortunately, due to several cask ales and lack of a notebook,... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Co. Releases Brewmaster Reserve Keelhauler Scottish Ale
This just in from Full Sail:Hood River, Or - Full Sail Brewing Company is proud to release a new beer in their Brewmaster Reserve line-up for 2009, Keelhauler Scottish Ale. Keelhauler is a full bodied rich ale with slight notes of caramel and cocoa and a strong malty flavor. The hop character is spicy and earthy with a nice finishing hop flavor. "With this style we embark on a trip across the pond. Keelhauler, a... Read More »
2009 Barleywine Festeroon Aftermath
Ben Flerchinger, Lucky Lab Brewer and Festeroon Operator. Another Lucky Lab Barleywine Festival has come and gone, and it'll be another year until we can see what surprises pop up for next year's event--and that's way too long. As a strong beer lover, this festival is a highlight on my busy beer calendar.About 50 different barleywines and strong beers flow throughout the weekend with several vertical tastings available so that people can try different years... Read More »
Photos: 2009 Barleywine Festeroon
Here are some photos from this past weekend's 2009 Barleywine Festeroon at the Lucky Labrador. Wow! Big. Strong. Beers. We'll post a recap later this week, but for now, here's a glimpse of what was going on Saturday afternoon. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Updated Beer List for the 2009 Barleywine Festeroon at the Lucky Lab
Just got an email from Ben Flerchinger from the Lucky Lab containing the final list for the 2009 Barleywine Festeroon this weekend! I updated the old post, but here it is again:.nobrtable br { display: none } Year: Brewery: Name: Style: ABV: 2007 ANCHOR OLD FOGHORN BARLEYWINE 8.80 2006 ANCHOR OLD FOGHORN BARLEYWINE 9.40 2006 ANDERSON VALLEY HORN OF THE BEER BARLEYWINE 10.30 2008 ASTORIA BITTER BITCH STRONG ALE 8.20 2007 B.J.s TATONKA STOUT IMPERIAL... Read More »
The Results Are In: Beer Brawl II
Concordia Ale House's Beer Brawl II The time for speculation is over: the official results are in. I'd like to say that I was able to identify all of them by sight alone, but in all honesty, I couldn't do it--until I was able to smell them.1. Walking Man, Pale Ale (WA) [3*]2. Full Sail, Pale Ale (OR)3. Speakeasy Untouchable, Pale Ale (CA)4. Bend Brewing, Hophead IPA (OR) [2*]5. Anderson Valley 20th Anniversary DIPA (CA)6.... Read More »
Photos: Concordia Ale House Beer Brawl II
The Beer Brawl II is continuing at the Concordia Ale House. California, Oregon, and Washington duke it out to win your taste buds. As my schedule would have it, I couldn't make it out until Friday at 1:00pm. Well, another twelve beer lunch under my belt... $12, 12 samples, and you get to judge! Three different beers in each of four categories: Pale Ales, IPAs, Stouts, and a open category. As of my visit on... Read More »
The 5 things you can do to stop HB 2461
This came from the Oregon Brewer's Guild today, so I'm just passing it along verbatim:The Five things you can do to help fight House Bill 2461The Oregon brewing industry is facing a nearly $50 per barrel increase on beer taxes – an increase of over 1900% – which would make the Oregon beer excise tax the highest in the country. If House Bill 2461 passes, it could result in the loss of up to 3,400... Read More »
2009 Barleywine Festaroon!
Last year's list... Don't be confused by the name. This year's Barleywine Festaroon is a continuation of last year's Barleywine and Big Beer Tastival. As much as I am part of the Portland beer scene, it's hard for me to blog about these events. The simple reason is that I want to keep it all to myself. Not that I could drink all of this fantastic beer by myself (though I could put a pretty... Read More »
Upcoming Portland Beer Releases
Laurelwood Brewing Company Two big releases coming up this month show off two drastically different styles. First up is Laurelwood Brewing Company's release of it's Olde Reliable Barleywine:"This strong, deeply complex beer is truly for the connoisseur. Olde Reliable gets its rich color and flavor from loads of Pacific Northwest malt and an especially long boil. A dose of brown sugar in the boil add to the unique character of this ale. ABV: 10%, IBUs:... Read More »
Renowned Last Abbey Brewer Tomme Arthur To Guest Brew at Bend Brewing Company
Award-winning Bend Brewing Co. Head Brewer Tonya Cornett will team with award-winning Lost Abbey Head Brewer Tomme Arthur to brew a traditional stein lager at Bend Brewing Co. on February 5 and 6, 2009.Cornett traveled earlier this year to the San Marcos, California, brewery, the Lost Abbey, to collaborate with Arthur to make the first batch of this unique beer. On March 5 and 6, Arthur will travel to Bend so that he and Cornett... Read More »
Beer and Film in PDX
BridgePort Brewing Company. "Seriously. Last night, man, I was so drunk, I was calling Morocco, man. Calling, trying to get to the Hotel Hilton at Tangiers in Casablanca, man. That's, I mean, that's, that's pathetic, man! Is that what you wanna do with your life? Suck down peppermint schnapps and try to call Morocco at two in the morning? That's senseless! But that's what happens, man." --Mark Borchardt, American MovieI can watch American Movie about... Read More »
All Stripped Down
January 29, 2009
by Matt Wiater
Handy portlandbeer.org analog note-taking device. Don't worry, we're still here. We've been a little slow on updates lately due to some website issues. Every day, new people come to the site, and they keep coming back. Over the last year, our content offering has expanded exponentially: beer lists, beer news, beer photography, beer tools, etc. Our site framework, however, has not. So, we're cramming a lot of stuff wherever we can find room. This has... Read More »
2007 Bourbon Barrel Cask Moose and Squirrel!
Mashing at Laurelwood. Just a quick note. I stopped by the Laurelwood Pizza Co., ordered an Audacity of Hops, and was told that there was a 2007 (Heaven Hill) Bourbon Barrel Cask Moose and Squirrel on tap, and , uh, would I like some? Hell, yeah! There is only one cask of this, so get it while you can (or I will drink it all)! Seriously, I will drink it all. Thanks for stashing some... Read More »
Full Sail Releases Black Gold Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout
Hood River, Or - Full Sail Brewing is proud to announce the special release of Black Gold Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout 2009. This highly anticipated release from Full Sail's vintage barrel series has been a Full Sail brewing tradition since 1998. Every year since, Full Sail's talented team of brewers brew an Imperial style dark ale and fill roughly sixty oak bourbon barrel casks, then age them in their cellar for about a year."Wood... Read More »
Roots Organic Brewing Releases the Much Anticipated Flanders Red
Roots Flanders Red. The release of Roots Organic Brewing's Flanders Red has been a long time coming. Previous releases were canceled as Roots waited for the ideal time to start filling glasses. This beer has been around for over two years, fermenting, aging, blending, and waiting to be consumed. And for two years, the public has been waiting. From Craig Nicholls of Roots: "This is exquisite ale made with a blend of wild and domestic... Read More »
Someone Stole My Lunch Money
January 13, 2009
by Matt Wiater
I have chosen to remove the article that previously occupied this spot. I was under no obligation. This was completely my decision. There was no pressure from anyone. While I hate to edit myself, I feel that this is the best move at this point.Ultimately, the issue took a took a strange turn through the emails of support I received. Almost one hundred emails later, people came out of the woodwork (in a good way!)... Read More »
Hello Monkey, Goodbye Boss and Piston
Over the last few years, Laurelwood brewing company has seen some big changes. Original brewmaster Christian Ettinger left to start his own venture Hopworks. Taking the helm was Chad Kennedy. Without a dropping a pint, Laurelwood continued to put out it's stellar standard lineup and an enormous amount of seasonals. Soon after the roster change, Laurelwood opened up it's Sandy and 51st location. Now, they had a 7 barrel brew system at their 40th Avenue... Read More »
A Hoosier's First Musings on Portland Beer
January 12, 2009
by Matt Wiater
Three of my favorite things: porter, my wife and bending. When visiting a new city, a person is going to almost instantly compare that city with their own. From gas prices to the climate to whether it's called Carl's Jr. or Hardee's. It is inevitable. I do it, you do it, everyone does it. Remember every vacation you have ever taken, ever. I was in a Denny's in Chicago and heard a woman exclaim "Boy... Read More »
Six Beers with Vertigo Brewing in Hillsboro, OR
Six samples from the Vertigo Brewing lineup. In an out of the way warehouse space in Hillsboro Oregon, two guys named Mike are spending their weekends--and a bit of other spare time--starting a brewery in a town where there seems to be a brewery on every corner. So far, they are on the right track: they've got great beer.Mike Kinion and Mike Haines are planning to conquer the Portland beer scene--one barrel at a time,... Read More »
Portland Beer: January Releases
Dustin Kellner, Laurelwood Brewing Company. I just got a few emails from some of the brewers in town about some current and upcoming releases. These releases come from four very different breweries and cover quite a range of styles.Inspired by the the end of the world drama of our last winter snow storm, Laurelwood has released an Imperial Black IPA called: Arctic Apocalypse. "This is an Imperial IPA with a twist. It's actually quite black... Read More »
Kicking Off 2009 With Great Beer
January 6, 2009
by Matt Wiater
Deschutes Dissident. This year, the portlandbeer.org family started a new tradition: The First Annual Kick Off The New Year With Great Beers (as if we need the excuse). The justification is that sharing great beers on the first day of the year will bring good luck for the whole year. Well, we're five days into the new year and I've had no disasters, so it must be working.Cellaring beer is a new concept for me.... Read More »
Nation's Greenest State Honors Brewery for Responsible Business Practices
Full Sail Brewing Company Portland, Or - Full Sail Brewing Company was honored by the State of Oregon for their outstanding commitment to sustainable business practices. The Brewery received the Governor's Sustainability Award for small business. The State of Oregon, ranked the greenest state in the nation by Forbes.com and Business Facilities Magazine, presents the awards annually to innovative companies and organizations that demonstrate an exemplary commitment to sustainability.The second annual Governor's Sustainability Awards were... Read More »
Non-Standard Deviation: Portland Beer and Portland Sports
Portland LumberJax Over the past few years, I don't think I've posted anything that wasn't 97% beer related (I did the math). Nor, will I continue to do this--but I've got a soapbox, so I'm gonna use it today. At least it will be Portland related.One of my other jobs--one that offsets the cost of this blog (beer, hosting, beer, giveaways, beer, etc.)--is sports photography. This is a strange job for me as I am... Read More »
Good Times, Bad Times: A Fitting End to a Trusted Friend
Canon 50mm Lens: Maimed In Action. Well, it had to happen sometime. Today I say somewhat of a goodbye to a trusty companion who was maimed in the field this past weekend. A few days ago, my beloved Canon 50mm f1.4 lens took a dive off of a bench and was irreparably injured. Now to say that he was my most popular or most beautiful friend would be a lie and an insult to his... Read More »
Tonight's Deschutes Tasting at Moon and Sixpence
Tonight, the Moon and Sixpence is holding a tasting of rare Deschutes Brewery beer. The list is below. Get 'em while you can! Big Red, 9% ABV, 10oz, $3.75 2007 Super Jubel Ale, 9.5 ABV, 10oz, $3.75 Jubel Ale (Nitro), 6.8 ABV, 20oz, $5.00 2008 Black Butte XX, 11 ABV, 10oz, $4.75 2008 Abyss, 11 ABV, 10oz, $4.50 Dissident, 11 ABV, 10oz, $4.75 Mirror Pond, 5.4 ABV, 20oz, $4.50 Moon and Sixpence2014 NE 42nd AvePortland,... Read More »
99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall
Old Lompoc Brewing's C-Note Imperial Pale Ale! OK, maybe 99 is an exaggeration, but Portland is seeing an increase in bottle releases from smaller breweries. From the serving tank to the pint glass, draft sales at local small breweries are an easy way to keep the cost of beer down. But many breweries have to turn to bottling in order to reach new markets and gain exposure for their beer. But it ain't easy.Smaller breweries... Read More »
2008 Holiday Ale Festival -- Revisited
2008 Holiday Ale Festival Ah, the 2008 Holiday Ale Festival is but a hazy memory in the minds of those who attended--and many are already anticipating next year's lineup! As we wrote earlier, we sampled a lot of different beer. Many were brewed exclusively for this event--never to be seen, smelled, and tasted again. Luckily, while we were paying attention to the beer, someone else was paying attention to the event. The following is a... Read More »
Laurelwood's Moose and Squirrel Bottle Release
Laurelwood's Moose and Squirrel, a Russian imperial stout. Just a quick note about a great bottle release this week. Laurelwood Brewing Company just released their superb Russian imperial stout. For the first time, this brew is hitting the shelves in bottles, rather than just on tap. I'm not sure about the distribution, but these beautiful bottles are currently available at all of the Laurelwood locations.This limited edition run created only 500 1 liter, swing-top, hand... Read More »
2008 Portland Holiday Ale Festival: Preston's Picks
Festival organizer Preston Weesner talks to Firestone Walker's Matt Brynildson about the amazing 2006 Jim. There are obvious perks for covering the beer scene here in Portland. I get to meet a lot of great people, I get a free beer once in awhile, and chicks, chicks, chicks! The girls are great, but it's actually not the best part. The part I love most about this job is being involved in a community that knows... Read More »
Old Lompoc Blasts Portland with Six Holiday Seasonal Beers!
Bryan Keilty, New Old Lompoc's 5Q Brewery. Sometimes it's best just to let the beers speak for themselves. This is one of those times. New Old Lompoc has released six distinct seasonals covering a huge range of styles: Spiced Golden Ale, Belgian Style Strong Ale, Imperial Pale Ale, Strong Amber Lager, Aged Dark Barleywine, and a Vanilla Porter! Five of the releases are available at the various Old Lompoc locations and Brewdolph will be exclusive... Read More »
Beer Photo Contest -- And A Lot Of Beer Prizes!
Beer + Photos = Prizes! A Good Beer Blog and Stonch's Beer Blog are putting on their annual Yule Beer Blog Photo Contest. The original posts talk about the rules and the first round of prizes, but keep checking back with their blogs for prize updates, as they just keep rolling in.I've working with both blogs to get some local breweries involved with prizes and so far Laurelwood Brewing Company and Hopworks Urban Brewery have... Read More »
Find Beers Like This One!
Many of you have asked for this feature, so here it is. For lack of a better name, we'll call it the "Find beers like this one" tool. I know it doesn't really roll off the tongue, but what's in a name anyway?In our beer lists, you'll now see the tag "Find beers like this one" at the end of the description of many of the beers on the site. In order to be part... Read More »
Lompoc Lager Night hosted by Bailey's Taproom
Limited Space: New Old Lompoc's 5Q Brewery Cooler. Portland is a land of ales. Lagers pop up as seasonals at a lot of breweries, but it's ales that dominate the Portland beer scene. Lagers are brewed the same as ales, with the exception of the yeast used. Lager yeast is a bottom fermenting yeast, that requires colder temperatures and a longer primary fermentation time than ales. Colder and longer fermentation has a large impact on... Read More »
Roots Organic Brewing: The Five Beers of Winter
Brewer Chip Conlon making the beer we love! Well, obviously no one told Roots that hibernation starts in winter. Over the next two months, Roots Organic Brewing will be hard at work releasing it's next five winter seasonals:*11-26 Festivus Olde Ale 7.8%*12-10 Chocolate Habenaro Stout 6.1%*12-18 Epic Ale 14%*12-31 Oak Aged Imperial Stout 10.5%*01-14 The Long Awaited Belgian Flanders Red 10.5%To kick off this seasonal surge, Roots is throwing a party on November 26th, starting... Read More »
10 Questions with Eric Wathen of Alameda Brewhouse
Brewer Eric Wathen. Brewer's Name:Eric WathenBrewery:Alameda Brewhouse1) If you were stranded on a deserted island, and you could only choose one pound of either hops, water, barley, or yeast, which would it be, and why?Clean water to survive and possibly make beer with!2) What is the best aspect of NW beer drinkers?Palate versatility.3) What is your favorite beer style, and why?Pale Ale, for its tradition, drinkability, and availability.4) What is the first beer you brewed... Read More »
Beer of the Month - Hopworks Noggin Floggin' Barleywine [November 2008]
Hopworks Noggin Floggin' Barleywine [November 2008]Well, we're back. Our Beer of the Month segment has been missing for a few months, but we're going to get back on track and make sure to keep this section up to date. We've got some napkin and coaster notes from past months, so we'll go back and fill in some earlier missed months as well.November's Beer of the Month installment is Hopworks Noggin Floggin' Barleywine. The official description... Read More »
Holiday Ale Festival has an early gift for beer lovers, announces Wednesday opening with rare vintage beers
Portland Holiday Ale Festival! PORTLAND, Ore. – Nov. 1, 2008 – The Holiday Ale Festival is giving beer lovers a gift by opening one day early, and rewarding those who come with a selection of rare and vintage kegs. The 13th annual Holiday Ale Festival will take place Dec. 3 through 7 at Pioneer Courthouse Square, located at 701 SW Sixth Ave. in downtown Portland. Hours for the event are 3 to 9 p.m. Wed.,... Read More »
We're Looking for Two Contributors
November 6, 2008
by Matt Wiater
Got opinions about the Portland beer scene? Share them here! We're looking for two more contributors to fill out our team here at portlandbeer.org. It's simple: all you need to do is submit one post each week. These posts need to be between a paragraph and a couple of pages in length on topics of your choice. The only things we stay away from here are beer and brewery reviews. Everything else is fair game.But... Read More »
Beaumont Market: The Little Store that Could, and Does!
Wall to wall to floor to ceiling beer. A few years ago, I took a peek in my friend's fridge and saw something unimaginable. He had a beer that I hadn't been able to find anywhere else. Unfortunately, that was over 1000 beers ago, and while I remember it was definitely unimaginable, I can't remember exactly which beer it was. My friend did catch me with the beer tucked into my coat pocket, trying to... Read More »
Portlandbeer.org Blog Navigation Changes
October 29, 2008
by Matt Wiater
Just a quick note about our beer blog navigation changes. For some reason, I thought it was a great idea to have the blog's navigation inside the blog area instead of inside the main navigation bar, thus creating two navigation areas, segregating the two areas of the site, and creating mass confusion about how to get to the content. If that sentence was confusing, it seems the navigation was even more confusing. And the solution... Read More »
BridgePort's Raven Mad Imperial Porter Released
Each bottle of BridgePort's Raven Mad Imperial Porter comes with 3D glasses to view it's 3D label. BridgePort's newest seasonal release, Raven Mad Imperial Porter is part of it's Big Brew series, which also includes Old Knucklehead Barleywine, Hop Czar Imperial IPA, and Hop Harvest Ale. About 185 Barrels of Raven Mad were brewed, making up 1300 cases of bottles, and the rest was kegged. This beer will be available in bottles and on draft... Read More »
If you have to leave, go to Beervana
Let's face it, there are hundreds of beer blogs out there for you to read--some, definitely better than others. While we bring you news, photography, interviews, and beer tools, we can't be everything to everyone. Though we try to keep up with your suggestions and requests, we know that some of you will still be looking for more info on the Portland beer scene.First of all, we're glad you're here, reading this. But, we're realists... Read More »
Portlandbeer.org's New Beer Finder
Sure, we drink a lot of beer, but that's not all we do. We also do some work. It is our ultimate goal to make sure that you can find the beer you're looking for in Portland. We've already got customizable lists, beer and style sorting, but honestly, with over 200 beers listed on our site, it's a lot of freaking information.To simplify the process, we've added the Beer Finder tool to our site. The... Read More »
Widmer Brothers Brewing Warms Up Winter With A Cold One
Widmer Brothers Brewing. PORTLAND, Ore. – October 9, 2008 – Widmer Brothers Brewing says “Baby its cold outside!” with its first new winter ale in four years: Brrr. The highly anticipated brew, perfect for winter, is a moderately strong dark red ale that embodies the notable “Pacific Northwest style” citrus hop aroma and flavor.“I have many fond memories of my brew-studies in Germany. In particular, the tradition of crafting beers that reflect the unique attributes... Read More »
Scottish Invasion: BrewDog's Founders Visit Portland
The founders of Scotland brewing startup BrewDog paid a visit to Portland this week and made an appearance at Belmont Station's "Meet the Brewer" event. Now, most of you know that I've got an unhealthy obsession with all things Scottish: Movies, history, accents, whisky, and beer. Tonight's event gave me a special reason to celebrate as I was able to check off 3 out of 5: accents, whisky, and beer.BrewDog came together not to long... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Celebrates the Bounty of the Holiday Season with Wassail Ale
Hood River, Or - A few unmistakable signs tell us when winter has arrived in Hood River. The waterfalls in the Gorge start kicking out the jams. The snow report for the backcountry regains its hold over us. And the Wassail starts flowing once again. And that means friends and family will surely be close behind."Historically, brewers craft small batches of darker beers, generously adding extra hops and malts to make exceptionally robust tasty ales... Read More »
Two More Oregon Fresh Hop Tastivals
Bags of Nugget hops for Laurelwood's Fresh Nugs Pale Ale. Did you miss the Hood River Hops Fest? Or maybe you made it and it only served to increase your appetite for fresh hop beers. Either way, you're in luck! There are two more tastivals during the second half of October, one in Portland and one in Eugene. October 18 at Hopworks, 2944 SE Powell Blvd. in Portland. October 25 at Ninkasi, 272 Van Buren... Read More »
BridgePort Brewing Company Joins the Fight Against Breast Cancer
BridgePort Brewing Company PORTLAND, Ore. – October 1, 2008 – Bridgeport Brewing Company is teaming up with the Komen Race for the Cure of Oregon, SW Washington and Puget Sound® with ‘Case for the Cure.’ Throughout October – National Breast Cancer Awareness Month - BridgePort Brewing Company’s ‘Case for the Cure’ program will donate one dollar for each case of BridgePort Brewing product sold at participating retailers to Komen for the Cure of Oregon, SW... Read More »
41 Oregon Fresh Hop Beers in 2008!
Hops off the vine. Well, it's no surprise that we live in a hop utopia here in Oregon. Thanks to the Oregon Brewers Guild, we now have a way to show the world what happens here during hop season! They have compiled a list of all of the fresh hop beers released this season and wow, is it impressive! For the 2008 season, Oregon Breweries have produced 41 fresh hop beers. With 2000 barrels produced... Read More »
Photos: Behind the Scenes at Cascade Brewing
Cascade Brewing has always been on the list of breweries to shoot, but for some reason they ended up near the end. Well, we finally climbed over the West Hills over to check out their operations. They are definitely doing a lot of unique things at the brewery, but that's better left for an article. So enjoy the peek into the workings of Cascade Brewing and check back soon for the full story! Check out... Read More »
Fresh Nugget Hops
Fresh Nugget hops. Laurelwood brewer Paul Bergeman drove into Portland this morning with a truck full of fresh hops. These Nugget hops are from a hop farm in Hubbard, OR, and will be used in Laurelwood's second fresh hop release: Fresh Nugs Ale. The hop harvest season is at a close and these hops are some of the last to be plucked from the vine.Laurelwood is releasing two fresh hop beers this season, the first... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Celebrates 21 Years with "21" A Special Anniversary Brew
Full Sail's "21" Doppelbock. Hood River Oregon - "Over the last year, we have been working on a special beer to celebrate a special occasion - the brewery's 21st birthday which is coming up in September. This means we are finally old enough to drink our own beer. They say your 21st birthday is a rite of passage - the milepost that marks your evolution from child to adult, with all the attendant privileges &... Read More »
Holiday Ale Festival celebrates the season with 40 specialty and vintage winter beers from across the nation
During last year's Holiday Ale Festival setup, I helped by drinking beer. PORTLAND, Ore. - Sept. 9, 2008 - The winter season holds many gifts for beer lovers in the form of big, bold ales designed to fend off the cold chill of a long winter night. The Holiday Ale Festival has gathered together 40 of these winter warmers, most of which cannot be tasted outside of the event, for a joyous weekend celebration. The... Read More »
Beer lovers reap the benefits of Oregon's fall hop harvest at Oregon Bounty's Fresh Hop Beer Tastivals
Fresh Cascade hops. PORTLAND, Ore. – Sept. 9, 2008 - Hopheads, rejoice! The autumn air is turning crisp, heralding the annual harvest of hops, and with it, the celebration of fresh hop beers by Oregon’s famed craft brewers. Oregon Bounty and the Oregon Brewers Guild have collaborated to host a statewide series of three Fresh Hop Beer “Tastivals,” each featuring more than 20 original fresh hop beers from many of Oregon’s top craft breweries.The Oregon... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Releases New Brewer's Share Beer - Phil's Existential Alt
Full Sail Brewer Phil Roche. Hood River, Oregon - This year Full Sail celebrates 21 years of doing what they love, brewing beer. As a continuation of their 21st birthday celebrations, Full Sail is proud to announce the next beer in their line up of small batch draft beers called "Brewer's Share." To celebrate the release of Phil's Existential Alt, brewed by Full Sail brewer, Phil Roche, the brewery invites you to "Meet the Brewer... Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Celebrates the Bounty of the Hop Harvest with Lupulin Fresh Hop Ale
Full Sail Brewmaster John Harris checking out the fresh hops on the vine. Hood River, Or - Full Sail Brewing is proud to announce the release of Lupulin Fresh Hop Ale as part of their Brewmaster Reserve series. Brewing a fresh hop ale to celebrate the hop harvest is an annual tradition at Full Sail. Every year, the Full Sail brewers travel to area hop fields and gather all the fresh hops they can carry... Read More »
Deschutes Brewery: The People's Goliath
One of the great things about the Portland beer scene is that there is so much beer that never makes it out of Portland. Small seasonal batches pop up here and there and are consumed so fast that by the time you hear about them, they may have already disappeared. It's beer that's brewed specifically for the people of Portland (or anyone visiting at that particular time). Many breweries out here craft their beer on... Read More »
Free Portlandbeer.org Stickers!
August 25, 2008
by Matt Wiater
They're perfect for sticking on passed out strangers at brewfests! We've got a stack of 200 stickers and we're giving them away to you, our loyal readers. Over the last few years, our readership has grown exponentially, we've gotten a lot of helpful feedback (mixed in with the ever-entertaining drunken rambling emails and phone calls). In the past, we've given away t-shits and Ultimate 6-Packs, but this year, our checking account is a little low,... Read More »
Photos: Deschutes Brewery and Public House (Bond Street, Bend, OR)
Here's another set from last weekend's trip to Bend. Along with the 2008 Bend Brewfest and the main brewing facility of Deschutes Brewing, I also stopped by the Deschutes Brewery and Public House to meet some people and check out their Bond Street operations. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
2008 Bend Brewfest
Coming out of Oregon Craft Beer Month in July, it's pretty easy to say how I'm feeling: worn out. I played many roles in July including host, photographer, writer, patron, and professional napper. Sometimes covering several events in a single day, I was ground up and spit out into August a weary soul. I'm not complaining about this because July is an exceptional time to be a beer lover in Oregon. It just that my... Read More »
Photos: BC Hop Farms Tour!
I got an email from Brian Butenschoen, director of the Oregon Brewer's Guild, saying "What are you doing at 10am on Tuesday? Want to go for a tour of BC Hop Farms?" Those are my favorite emails...So we picked up John Harris, brewmaster at Full Sail in Portland, and made our way down to Woodburn, Oregon. After only a few wrong turns, we made it and were surrounded by more than 350 acres of hops!... Read More »
Fresh Hop Flavors Drive Interest in Microbrew Lineup as Hood River Hops Fest Celebrates Fifth Anniversary
Oregon grown hops! HOOD RIVER, Ore. (June 23, 2008) — Celebrating its fifth year as the premier fresh hops beer tasting event in the Pacific Northwest, the Hood River Hops Fest on Oct. 4, 2008, will feature beers from more than 20 Northwest craft brewers, an expanded menu of food with an emphasis on local restaurants, Columbia Gorge wines and activities for the entire family.“Hops Fest started as a tribute to the great, fresh-hopped microbrews... Read More »
Organizers call off All Oregon Ale Festival
PORTLAND, Ore. - August 11, 2008 - The Portland Brewers Festival Association of Oregon regrets to announce that the first-ever “All Oregon Ale Festival” has been cancelled for 2008. The event was scheduled to take place September 12 & 13 at Portland International Raceway. Organizers cite various reasons for the cancellation, including still-pending approval by the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC), and the lack of time to properly promote the event.“We are extremely disappointed to... Read More »
Photos: Behind the Scenes at Widmer Brothers Brewing Company
We can't show off the inner workings of Portland breweries without stopping by Widmer Brothers Brewing! Thanks to brewer Ben Dobler for showing me around the facility. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Photos: Behind the Scenes at Amnesia Brewing
Our next stop is Amnesia Brewing in North Portland. Thanks to Owner/Brewer Kevin King and Brewer Sean Thommen for showing me around and letting me in on the details as they brewed a batch of Desolation IPA! Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Oregon Brewers Festival bucks the economic downturn, celebrates banner year with record attendance and sales
2008 Oregon Brewers Festival (Brewers Dinner). PORTLAND, Ore. – July 31, 2008 – America’s economy may be in a downturn, but the effects didn’t show at the 21st annual Oregon Brewers Festival (OBF). The nation’s largest outdoor craft beer festival witnessed record attendance with 70,000 people, a 15 percent increase over last year’s all time high. Beer sales followed suit, also showing a 15 percent increase. The four-day event concluded on July 27th at Tom... Read More »
Photos: Behind the Scenes at BridgePort Brewing Company
Continuing the series of Portland brewery photography, we visit BridgePort Brewing Company. Thanks to Assistant Brewmaster Jeff Edgerton for the private tour! Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Photos: Behind the scenes at Alameda Brewhouse
Next in our series of Portland brewery photography is Alameda Brewhouse. Thanks to Eric Wathen for letting us meet up with him and follow him around with a camera! Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Photos: 2008 Oregon Brewers Festival -- Brewers Dinner
Here are some shots of the Brewers Dinner on the night before the festival opens. Great people, great food, and awesome beer! Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
2008 Oregeon Brewers Festival -- Exclusive Brewers Dinner Beer List
Brewers Dinner pint glass. I just wanted to post a quick note about the beers featured at the 2008 Brewers Dinner, which kicks off the Oregon Brewers Festival the night before it opens. Along with great food, this dinner features about 25 beers which are not featured at the OBF.I know, if you missed it, this list won't help you. But maybe you'll see that it would be wise to get your tickets ahead of... Read More »
Photos: Behind the Scenes at Hopworks Urban Brewery
Thanks to Christian Ettinger, Ben Love, Jaime Rodriguez, and Mike Price for letting me get in their way to shoot the brewery! Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Photos: Behind the Scenes at Roots Organic Brewing Company
Thanks to Craig Nicholls, Jason McAdam, and Chip Conlon for letting me invade the Roots brewery. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Bridgeport's Hop Czar Imperial IPA Preview
Bridgeport's Imperial IPA: Hop Czar. Available in 22oz bottles next week. Bridgeport's Assistant Brewmaster Jeff Edgerton gave the media a preview of their new release for their Big Brews series today. The Big Brews program started last October with their Hop Harvest Ale and continued on with Old Knucklehead and Stumptown Tart--all 22oz limited release bottles. Continuing this journey, Bridgeport has taken their flagship IPA, stuck a bike pump to the bottle, and had the... Read More »
The Biggest and Baddest Oregon Imperial IPAs: The Concordia Cup
Ten 3oz. Imperial IPA samples and scorecard for the 2008 Concordia Cup. Imperial IPA lover? Get your butt to Concordia Ale House July 9th - July 13th for the Concordia Cup! Ten of the best Oregon Imperial IPAs battle it out for supremacy and your vote counts.OK, now that the press release talk is over, let's get down to what's actually involved here. First of all, for all of you that think that beer bloggers... Read More »
What To Do If You Run Into a Big Black Homo
Walking Man Brewer, Jacob Leonard. Drink it. It's delicious.There were so many rumors about a Big Black Homo being released in Portland that I thought all the news outlets would be outside of Belmont Station. Man, FOX wasn't even there.Luckily, I was. This was Walking Man's dark malt version of their Homo Erectus, an Imperial IPA, and it was awesome. Walking Man Brewing is synonymous with big, quality beers and this was no exception. Based... Read More »
All these beers blend together--especially when they're, uh, blended together
Brewing grains. As everyone (and their mothers) are reporting, it is now Oregon Craft Beer. In fact, my mother called and left me a message: "Matt, it's July. Don't forget it's Oregon Craft Beer month!" Like I need reminding!As hyper-champions of beer blending, we at portlandbeer.org are excited to see a few events in support of this art. As Brett mentioned in an earlier post about beer blending, it seems to be a very polarizing... Read More »
2008 Oregon Brewers Festival Beer Descriptions
Oregon Brewers Festival 21st Amendment BrewerySan Francisco, CA21st-amendment.comHell or High Watermelon / Wheat Beer with fruitOG: 1.048FG: 1.010ABV: 5.2IBUs: 17Color: GoldenOne of the most popular beers at the OBF for several years, this wheat beer is flavored with real watermelon, giving the beer a subtle aroma and a dry, tart flavor. Low hopping levels let the unique taste of wheat and watermelon shine through.Alameda BrewhousePortland, ORalamedabrewhouse.comEast Village Amber / AmberOG: 1.054FG: 1.014ABV: 5.2IBUs: 33Color: Dark... Read More »
Photos: 2008 North American Organic Beer Festival
I just got back from the 2008 North American Organic Brewers Festival and boy is my liver tired... Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Full Sail Brewing Celebrates Oregon Craft Beer Month
Brewmaster John Harris and Brewer Phil Roche from Full Sail's Brewery at Riverplace in Portland. Hood River, - June 27, 2008 -- This year Full Sail celebrates 21 years of doing what they love, brewing beer. As a continuation of their 21st birthday celebrations, Full Sail is proud to announce the next beer in their line up of small batch draft beers called "Brewer's Share." The brewery will launch their second offering, Lizama Summer Weizen,... Read More »
July is Oregon Craft Beer Month!
Wow, we just got the events list from the Oregon Brewers Guild and holy #%@%%$, it's good to be a beer drinker in Oregon! I'm not even sure where to begin with this one. Walking you through this one step at a time would take hours, and neither you or I have that kind of time if we're going to seriously prepare for July...JulyFirst of all, there is something going on every single day in... Read More »
Photos: Behind the Scenes at Rock Bottom Brewery
Here is the next set in our series of Portland Brewery photography. Last week, we hit Rock Bottom Brewery in downtown Portland. Thanks to Van Havig and Vasili Gletsos for letting us poke around the brewery and step on their toes! Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Photos: Behind the Scenes at Deschutes Brewery in Portland
Here is the next set in our series of Portland Brewery photography. This time, we are at Deschutes Brewery in Portland. We know you love the beer, now see where it is made!Some samples from the set are below. The whole set is available here. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Website Update: Searching for Portland Beers
June 4, 2008
by Matt Wiater
Beer, sweet beer. With 235 beers listed in 58 style categories, we've got a lot of info to get through. Sure you can sort beers by styles, breweries, name, etc., but why stop there? Now, in the blog section of the site (uh, you're here now) and the home page, you'll find a search box at the top of the page. You can put in your favorite beer term and see what we've got to... Read More »
Upcoming June Events
June Beer events in Portland. You can't complain about a lack of beer things to do this month. First of all, Belmont Station has some great tastings this month which include draft and bottle selections. As always, they also run specials during these tasting so it a great time to stock up on your favorites: Hale's Ales: June 3rd, 6-8PM Dick's Beer: June 10th, 6-8PM Grand Tetons: June 16th, 6-8PM Fish Tale Organic Ales: June... Read More »
Beer of the Month - Hopwork's Original Red [June 2008]
Hopwork's Original Red [June 2008]OK, it's officially beer season! I know, beer season here is year round, but you've got to shout it out once in a while. It's time for the Winter vampires of Portland to finally get some sunshine and visit the outdoors without layers of protective rain gear. One of your first stops should be to Hopworks Urban Brewery to check out their new seasonal Original Red.Brewer's description:"This full bodied NW Red... Read More »
70+ Beers Not Enough? More Events During The Oregon Brewers Festival
Oregon Brewers Festival Four days of drinking at the Oregon Brewers Festival not enough for you? 70+ beers not enough to keep you occupied? No problem! Check out these other events preceding the 2008 Oregon Brewers Festival.July 23, 2008Oregon Brewers DinnerTom McCall Waterfront Park, SW Pine St and Bill Naito Parkway6 to 8:30 p.m.$50www.oregonbeer.org or 503-288-2739/800-440-2537The Oregon Brewers Dinner is an annual barbecue held the eve of the Oregon Brewers Festival. The event is attended... Read More »
Photos: Behind the Scenes at Full Sail Brewing Company
These are shots from the Full Sail Brewery in Portland where John Harris and Phil Roche craft the Brewmaster Reserve series which include: Top Sail Bourbon Imperial Porter, Old Boardhead Barleywine, Prodigal Sun IPA, Wreck the Halls, and many others. Check out the Full Sail website for their PDF on this ever-rotating series. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Two Beer Icons
Two Beer Icons. Writing a caption for this photo was harder than expected. It kind of turned out to be like a chicken and egg problem, or a recursive acronym, or something.On the left, Fred Eckhardt, homebrewing icon, author, and all around great guy. On the right, Alan Sprints, founder of Hair of the Dog Brewing Company and mastermind of great original ales. I was happy to capture these two together.But looking a little deeper,... Read More »
Beer of the Month - Deschutes Black Butte XX [May 2008]
Deschutes Black Butte XX [May 2008]OK, we're a little late for May, but what's new, right? We had some ideas for May, but I wanted to make sure to get down to Deschutes' New Portland Pub to see if any of there beers spoke to me. Well, after two rounds of the Black Butte XX, not only did the beer talk to me, but so did the walls, and the floor, and the parade of... Read More »
Photos: FredFest 2008
Photos from the FredFest 2008. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
FredFest 2008 Recap
Fred Eckhardt making the rounds. Well, Fred Fest 2008 has come and gone--except for what's left in my liver. If you are in Portland and consider yourself a beer enthusiast, this is the place for you.This gathering is much more like a party than a formal event, complete with home cooked food, sporadic cheers, and verses of happy birthday sung throughout the day. Amidst the Hair of the Dog brewing equipment, there were four beers... Read More »
Photos: Hair of the Dog Brewing Company
Photos from the Hair of the Dog Brewing Company. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Photos: The Lucky Labrador Brewing Company [Quimby]
Photos from the Lucky Labrador Brewing Company on Quimby. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Gerritt's Official Welcome
April 29, 2008
by Matt Wiater
Gerritt, our feet on the street. Many of you enjoy the beer section of our site. And why wouldn't you? We've been keeping track of beer in this city for a couple of years now and have accumulated over 200 listings! Yep, 200. But don't thank us, thank the brewers. OK, you can thank us a little, now you know where to find these new seasonal releases and fresh taps across the city.But it takes... Read More »
Elephant in a bottle?
Was it real, or just a dream? True story? I'm pretty sure. I've got a witness. Unfortunately, neither her nor I were given permission to break the silence. But, on the other hand, we weren't told not to break the silence. So, in the spirit of ambiguity, I've got a tale to tell. But, good journalists don't expose their sources and good journalists don't sit on important stories either. Luckily, I'm not a good journalist.... Read More »
Oregon Brewers Break Record Production Numbers
Portland, Oregon PORTLAND, Ore. (April 24, 2008) – Figures released today by the Oregon Brewers Guild show 2007 was a banner year for Oregon's craft brewing industry as production across the state grew at a rate of 8.1 percent. Total beer production for the state was approximately 860,000 barrels, or 285 million bottles of beer. That is an increase of more than 64,000 barrels, up from 796,000 barrels in 2006.The industry posted strong growth despite... Read More »
World Beer Cup 2008 - Oregon Medal Winners
Oregon breweries brought back 16 medals from 91 style categories in this year's World Beer Cup. 2008 World Beer Cup Bend Brewing Co.Black Diamond LagerAmerican-Style Dark LagerGoldBend Brewing Co.Outback XStrong AleGoldBridgePort BreweryBeertown BrownEnglish-Style Brown AleGoldBridgePort BreweryBlue Heron Pale AleOrdinary BitterSilverDeschutes BrewerySorghum BeerGluten Free BeerGoldHopworks Urban BreweryOrganic IPAAmerican-Style Strong Pale AleGoldHopworks Urban BreweryHUB Organic LagerBohemian-Style PilsenerSilverLaurelwood Brewing Co.Organic DerangerImperial or Double Red AleSilverPelican Pub and BreweryDoryman's Dark AleAmerican-Style Brown AleGoldPelican Pub and BreweryKiwanda Cream AleGolden or... Read More »
Bridgeport Brewing Company WinsTwo Medals at 2008 World Beer Cup
Bridgeport Brewing Co. PORTLAND, Ore. – April 22, 2008 – BridgePort Brewing Company, Oregon's oldest craft brewery, recently claimed a gold and silver medal in the Brewers Association (BA) World Beer Cup 2008, a global beer competition that evaluates beers from around the world and recognizes the most outstanding beers being produced in the world today.Gold, silver and bronze medals in the competition's 91 beer-style categories were awarded April 19, 2008 during the World Beer... Read More »
The Ultimate 6-Pack Giveaway Winners Announced!
April 22, 2008
by Matt Wiater
The Ultimate 6-Pack Giveaway! Well, the results are finally in. We apologize about the delay, but with over 50 entries the total beer count was well over 300! Sure, there was some overlap between entries, but it was still a lot to go through. Thanks to everyone that entered, we wish we could award everyone who participated!Brett and I decided that the best way to judge these beer collections was to drink our way through... Read More »
Pins, plates, and broken bones
Pins, plates, and broken bones As most of you know, almost one year ago, I was in a motorcycle accident. Not my fault, but that didn't seem to matter to my leg--which kept me couch and bed ridden for 2 straight months. My tibia was split down the middle--kind of like you would chop a piece of firewood--and it required surgery, plates and pins. As seen below, I also got a cool 9" of surgical... Read More »
FredFest 2008 Honors Memory of Michael Jackson
Fred Eckhardt at the 2007 Oregon Brewers Festival PORTLAND, Ore. — What started as a surprise 80th birthday party forworld-renowned beer writer Fred Eckhardt is coming back around in itsthird year as a fundraiser in the memory of fellow beer scribe,Michael Jackson, also known as the Beer Hunter.More than 15 rare and unique beers created by some of Oregon's mostcelebrated breweries will be on tap at FredFest 2008. The event willtake place from 2 p.m.... Read More »
Our Faithful Departed, Remy
April 12, 2008
by Matt Wiater
Remy, reminding us to go outside and play! Well, many of you know that we are a small group here at portlandbeer.org. My brother and I started this site a few years back and it has grown, and grown, and grown. Though we've gone through many changes over the years, both in style and content, one thing has remained constant through it all: Mine and Becky's faithful dog, Remy. Many of you know her through... Read More »
Ultimate 6-Pack Giveaway Entries
April 10, 2008
by Matt Wiater
The Ultimate 6-Pack Giveaway! Well, although the contest is over, you can check out all of the entries on our forum post. The 40+ entries span the globe to fill up their ultimate 6-pack. Sure, there were many hop-headed local beer entries, but also many dreams of German, English, and Belgian beers. Check it out and take a peek into the secret beer thoughts of your friends, neighbors, and enemies.Some entrants simply listed their ultimate... Read More »
Spring Beer & Wine Fest People's Choice Awards
Sorry for the delay on this one. Here's the official press release for the People's Choice Awards at this year's Spring Beer and Wine Fest:Bitter Bitch Makes It A Double (IPA) In Spring Beer & Wine FestPeople's Choice AwardsPORTLAND, OR -- For the second straight year, Astoria Brewing Co.'s Bitter Bitch Double IPA has grabbed the People's Choice Award at the Spring Beer & Wine Fest.Despite the brew's bitter name, the win is an especially... Read More »
Bridgeport Brewing Company Unveils its First Fruit Ale -- Stumptown Tart
Bridgeport Brewing Company Pucker Up for the Debut of the Next 22-Ounce Big Brew, an Oregon Marion Berry Belgian Style Infused Ale, at the Stumptown Tart Release Party April 24thPORTLAND, Ore. – April 7, 2008 – BridgePort Brewing Company, Oregon's oldest craft brewery, is unveiling its next limited-edition 22-ounce Big Brew Stumptown Tart, a Belgian Style Ale infused with Oregon Marion Berries. BridgePort's Stumptown Tart, at 8.3-percent ABV (alcohol by volume) is more than just... Read More »
Beer of the Month - Laurelwood Darkhorse [April 2008]
Laurelwood Darkhorse [April 2008]Well, here we are again. And, by "again", I mean: here we are, Beer of the Month, about four months behind schedule. We'll be going back to check out notes and fill in the blanks, but for now, it's April 2008 and we've got a hybrid beer to showcase.April is a crossover month, sitting between winter and spring. Portland can fluctuate between snow and hot sun and back again as nature tries... Read More »
Barleywine Flight Night, @ Belmont Station Wednesday April 2nd
"BARLEYWINE FLIGHT NIGHT. 5-10 PM. Enjoy 3 ounce samples of 5 great bottled Barleywines for only $6 (yes, the $6 gets you a 3 oz. sample of all 5). Bison Organic, Butte Creek Trainwreck, Bridgeport Old Knucklehead, Stone Old Guardian, Full Sail Old Boardhead."Great price, great Barleywines! Is there a better way to spend a Wednesday? Check it out at Belmont Station. Winter is not over! Read More »
21st Annual Oregon Brewers Festival Official Press Release
Scene from last year's Oregon Brewers Festival. PORTLAND, Ore. - March 26, 2008 - In 1933 the 21st Amendment to the United States Constitution repealed the 18th Amendment, which had mandated nationwide Prohibition. Since the Oregon Brewers Festival turns 21 this year, the event finds it fitting to celebrate the ratification of the 21st Amendment during its four-day course. One of the nation's longest-running and best-loved craft beer festivals will take place July 24 through... Read More »
The Local Brew DVD Review - The Stone Brewing Company
The Local Brew A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about a show called The Local Brew. Jared Cotton got in touch with me to help spread the word about their new episode. We traded a few emails and got my hands on a copy of their premiere episode featuring Stone Brewing Company. Yeah, I know, not Portland beer related, but they will be filming an episode up here during the summer, so I wanted... Read More »
Portland Beer Tools
Helping you find your perfect beer! After the redesign of our site, we want to make sure that people are checking out the other areas of our site, and not just the wonderful blog area. Of course, in the blog section, you can find articles, news, events, photos, and almost everything else you need. Almost.It made sense for us to consolidate a few areas together for the blog, but there are still some great features... Read More »
Hopworks Urban Brewery Official Opening Date!
Christian Ettinger, Owner of the HUB This just in! Official Hopworks Urban Brewery Announcement:"Hopworks opens for business on Tuesday, March 25th!Hopworks Urban Brewery is excited to announce that we will be opening our doors on Tuesday, March 25th at 11:00am. Construction is finally complete and the taps are flowing with ten Organic, handcrafted beers.We look forward to seeing you and your friends at the HUB. Cheers!" Read More »
Seriously people, Free Beer in Portland! FREE BEER!
March 18, 2008
by Matt Wiater
Maybe y'all are drinking too much--maybe not enough. So far, we've had no entries (not a single submission!) to our Ultimate 6-Pack Giveaway. We are literally (not figuratively) giving away free beer. Three $15 gift certificates to Belmont Station. Free. Beer. Now. Check the original post for details.So, if you live in Portland, or visit, and like free beer (again, free beer), please enter the contest. We get thousands of people to this site every... Read More »
Deranger 2008 Release
Pictured here in bottle form, but you can get yours on draft now! Just a quick note to let you know that Laurelwood has their unbelievable Deranger back on tap. Brewed as an entry for the 2008 World Beer Cup, you can get a local taste before it leaves for world domination. I know it's on tap at the Sandy & 51st location, but it may be available at the others as well. As the... Read More »
Photos: Roots Brewing 3rd Anniversary Party
Photos from the Roots Brewing 3rd Anniversary Party. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
2008 Barleywine and Big Beer Tastival Beer List
Previously, I posted my notes and photos on the Barleywine and Big Beer Tastival 2008. I finally got around to typing up the beer list from the event. I know it's a bit late, but at least it's a reference for next year's event..nobrtable br { display: none } Barleywines Brewery Beer OG FG ABV IBUs Anchor 2006 Old Foghorn - - 9.4% - Anchor 2007 Old Foghorn - -... Read More »
The Ultimate 6-Pack Giveaway!
March 11, 2008
by Matt Wiater
The Ultimate 6-Pack Giveaway! !!! THIS OFFER IS NOW CLOSED !!!Yep, free beer. From us, to you. We've got three $15 gift certificates from Belmont Station to give away on our site.Here's how it works: You win the gift certificate, head down to Belmont Station, choose $15 worth of beer, redeem your gift certificate, and enjoy. At Belmont Station, you can choose from over 1000 beers (yeah, one thousand). You can grab them to go,... Read More »
The Spirit of Sam Adams
March 10, 2008
by Matt Wiater
O Hops, Where Art Thou? All of us beer geeks have done our best to support the local breweries and rage against the brewing titans. Of course, the big boys aren't all evil, but they make an easy scapegoat by passing off their product as beer, dumbing down America with their advertisements, and laughing at us all the way to the bank.For awhile, Sam Adams has existed somewhere between the big guys and the local... Read More »
Photos: Barleywine and Big Beer Tastival 2008
Photos from the Barleywine and Big Beer Tastival 2008 at The Lucky Lab. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Barleywine and Big Beer Tastival 2008
Sample list, and some samples. Well, it was a Saturday afternoon in Portland and unfortunately, I had to go to work. Yep, I had to go down to the Lucky Lab in NW Portland and check out the Barleywine and Big Beer Tastival: drink strong beers, talk to fellow beer lovers, drink strong beers, take some photos, and finally, drink strong beers. How do I even get out of bed in the morning?This is the... Read More »
Roots Three Year Anniversary Party
Roots Organic Brewing Co. I just received an email from Craig Nicholls over at Roots Brewing Company with the following information:"Roots Organic Brewing Co. is turning 3 years old! We had a very successful year full of growth and expansion, new food and beers, great art shows and music and we know we couldn't have done it without you!So Roots would like to show our appreciation to all our loyal customers by offering everything on... Read More »
The Local Brew
March 5, 2008
by Matt Wiater
The Local Brew Today, information about beer is on your laptop, on the barstool next to you, and on your television. With the addition of MOJO's Three Sheets series, it's even in HD (though not exclusively about beer). OPB also threw it's hat into the ring last year by airing Oregon Experience's Beervana.Now on the scene is The Local Brew. Their latest show covers Stone Brewing in California. From the previews on their site, the... Read More »
Eugene Invades Portland
March 4, 2008
by Matt Wiater
OK, it might not be Portland beer related, but it's about beer. And it's still within the Oregon border. Ninkasi Brewing beers from Eugene have been available in Portland for awhile, but until now, just on draft. Three styles are now available in bottles over at Belmont Station.I don't want to repeat too much of what's said over at Belmont Station's blog, but I would like to say that if you pass up any Ninkasi... Read More »
10 Questions with Alan Sprints of Hair of the Dog Brewing
Brewer/Owner Alan Sprints brewing a batch of Blue Dot IPA. Brewer's Name:Alan SprintsBrewery:Hair of the Dog1) If you were stranded on a deserted island, and you could only choose one pound of either hops, water, barley, or yeast, which would it be, and why?Hops, at least I could remember what Beer smelled like.2) What is the best aspect of NW beer drinkers?The support they give to local Breweries. We have some of the most educated... Read More »
Website Consolidation
February 25, 2008
by Matt Wiater
OK, we've consolidated a few sections of our site onto this blog: Articles, Photos, Beer of the Month, and Ten Questions. This is a one stop shop for most things related to the Portland beer scene. You can visit, or grab all of this information in a single feed.However, the "classic" area of the site was better suited to produce the New Beer Releases and Portland Beer Events feed, so there they shall remain. These... Read More »
Photos: Hopworks Urban Brewery Preview
Photos from Hopworks Urban Brewery. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Hopworks Urban Brewery Preview
Owner Christian Ettinger enjoying the warmth of his custom fireplace. Christian Ettinger was kind enough to give me a tour of his new place, Hopworks Urban Brewery (HUB). If you're thinking that this will just be another place to add to Portland's already extensive list of breweries, you're quite a bit off the mark. But I don't blame you. I thought that as well before getting a glimpse of the future HUB empire.Let's start with... Read More »
10 Questions with Van Havig of Rock Bottom Brewery
Rock Bottom's Brewmaster Van Havig. Brewer's Name:Van HavigBrewery:Rock Bottom Brewery1) If you were stranded on a deserted island, and you could only choose one pound of either hops, water, barley, or yeast, which would it be, and why?I'd take the barley, basically since you didn't mention if it was malted, so I'll assume it isn't. I could then plant it, grow more, and eventually start a plantation – have you seen the price of barley... Read More »
10 Questions with Chad Kennedy of Laurelwood Brewery
Laurelwood Brewing Company. Brewer's Name:Chad KennedyBrewery:Laurelwood Brewery1) If you were stranded on a deserted island, and you could only choose one pound of either hops, water, barley, or yeast, which would it be, and why?Yeast! I'm sure I could make some sort of alcoholic concoction with the native flora. Maybe fermented coconut spiced with the root of some exotic plant? I wouldn't want to risk the local yeast though- I mean come on- just because... Read More »
Beer of the Month - Lompoc Old Tavern Rat [December 2007]
Lompoc Old Tavern Rat [December 2007]Ah, December. Colder. Darker. Wetter. But even with all of this, there is a bright spot: barleywine!Barley Wine had to be strong – often between 10% and 12% -- and was stored for prodigious periods of as long at 18 months or two years. When country houses had their own small breweries, it was often the task of the butler to brew ale that was drunk from cut-glass goblets at... Read More »
10 Questions with Dave Fleming of Lucky Labrador Brewing
Lucky Lab Brewing Company. Brewer's Name:Dave FlemingBrewery:Lucky Labrador Brewing1) If you were stranded on a deserted island, and you could only choose one pound of either hops, water, barley, or yeast, which would it be, and why?Yeast!!! We'll find something to ferment on that island.2) What is the best aspect of NW beer drinkers?People love beer. I can't imagine living in Mississippi where there is no beer culture. Okay, I'll be ready to respond to... Read More »
Photos: 2007 Holiday Ale Festival Media Preview
Photos from the 2007 Holiday Ale Festival Media Preview. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
12th Annual Holiday Ale Festival
Most likely, it will be cold. And yeah, it'll probably be rainy. But under the big white tent in Pioneer Square, the heaters and strong beers will warm you plenty. It's time again for the annual Holiday Ale Festival! 2007 Holiday Ale Festival mug. "The 12th annual Holiday Ale Festival will begin on Thursday, Nov. 29, and continue through Sunday, Dec. 2 at Pioneer Courthouse Square, located at 701 SW Sixth Ave at the intersection... Read More »
Fresh Hops for Portland
Once each year, toward the end of September, there is an unusual site as Oregon brewers in vans and pickups race around the Willamette Valley, leaving a trail of hop cones behind them. The beginning of this trail may start at any of the hop fields that are so prevalent in this area. Following the trail in the opposite direction, you'll wind up at any of several breweries in Portland, but you won't find any... Read More »
Beer of the Month - Amnesia Sleighjerker [November 2007]
Amnesia Sleighjerker [November 2007]Alright, back to Amnesia Brewing for November's Beer of the Month. October was pretty a mild month for us out here, but November has finally brought Winter with days hovering in the mid 40's and a cold biting wind. So, we fight back the only way we know how--with stronger beers!Weighing in around 8% ABV, Sleighjerker has the ability to take the edge off of a cold night (but honestly, I'd drink... Read More »
10 Questions with Ben Flerchinger of Lucky Labrador Brewing
Lucky Lab Brewer Ben Flerchinger. Brewer's Name:Ben FlerchingerBrewery:Lucky Labrador Brewing1) If you were stranded on a deserted island, and you could only choose one pound of either hops, water, barley, or yeast, which would it be, and why?Yeast. There has to be something with sugar in it on the island.2) What is the best aspect of NW beer drinkers?Knowledge. NW beer drinkers know their stuff. Also, I would say that they are not afraid to... Read More »
Get your head out of your (gl)ass!
October 22, 2007
by Matt Wiater
"This beer pours with a 1.17 inch head that drops into a nice webby lace within 7 minutes. The carbonation rises from the bottom like giant hot air balloons on a hot summers day in Readington, New Jersy. The front end dances on your taste buds with a bit of intense citrus, finishing with an herbal note that a light breeze can blow off of your tongue. If you squeeze your eyes shut and grit... Read More »
Photos: 2007 Bend Brewfest
Photos from the 2007 Bend Brewfest. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Beer of the Month - Laurelwood Break A Leg Rye [August 2007]
Laurelwood Break A Leg Rye [August 2007]Yep, I already know: another Laurelwood pick? Well, if they would stop making great beer! As most of you know, I've been down and out with a broken leg and Laurelwood is right down the street from me. Right now, it's the easiest place for me to get to. I'll be expanding my picks as my leg heals.I've finally moved to a cane, so it's getting a bit easier... Read More »
Photos: 2007 Oregon Brewers Festival
Photos from the 2007 Oregon Brewers Festival. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Photos: Laurelwood Brewery on 51st
Photos from Laurelwood Brewery on 51st. Check out the rest of the photos here. Read More »
Oregon Brewers Festival Preparation
It's that time of the year again, thank god. The 20th Annual Oregon Brewers Festival is just around the corner. This year, 73 breweries are scheduled to appear and share their wares. If you can't find a beer to fall in love with here, you've mistakenly categorized yourself as a beer lover. Maybe you should try a wine tasting instead. The transaction is simple: choose a beer (or a short line) and trade your token... Read More »
Laurelwood Brewery Grand Opening!
I don't think that there are any respectable beer drinkers in Portland that didn't know that Laurelwood Brewing Company is opening a third location in town. We have been waiting and there were a few setbacks, but luckily for Portland, that's all in the past. Paul Bergeman readies the wort for the second of a double batch of their Organic Free Range Red. For years, the 40th Avenue location has brewed beer for it's sister... Read More »
Beer of the Month - Lompoc Strong Draft [July 2007]
Lompoc Strong Draft [July 2007]Well, I've been stuck indoors all summer because of my motorcycle accident which has caused me to miss out on some of the heat and sunshine of the summer months here in Portland. Because of this, some of my summer picks are a bit untraditional for this time of year. Usually in July, a nice crisp Pale or Kolsch will cure the summer heat. However, trapped in an air conditioned room... Read More »