Blog Author: Rachael Bennett

I'm excited to say that this year, my Halloween weekend won't consist of watching scary "B" movies on cable while consuming half of the candy I have designated for trick or treaters. This year, I will be sippin' holiday inspired beer at Burnside Brewery's, Night of the Living Ales, this Saturday, October 29th. Burnside Brewery, my favorite brewery thus far, will be hosting this event in their elaborately decorated brew house, with an adjacent covered... Read More »

It's finally here! The 24th Annual Oregon Brewers Festival began yesterday at Tom McCall Waterfront park. This event has been on my mind since first hearing about it a few months ago. I was told, or you could say warned, to bring a huge jug of water and an even larger jug of patience to deal with the enormous lines, hot sun, and beer-crazed festival goers, ready to let their hair down. For those of... Read More »

John's Marketplace 3535 SW Multnomah Blvd. Portland, OR 97219 (503) 244-2617 I've lived in Portland for almost 6 months now and only just recently learned about John's Marketplace. I'd previously been using my navigation on my phone to try and find beer markets that sold beer individually, in order to avoid the commitment of a 6-pack.  The nights that called for drinking at home, instead of sampling beer at local breweries and brewpubs, started at my... Read More »

What a sweet weekend it's been! 80 degree weather, Portland Rose Festival and the chance to sample some of the fruit beers that will make an appearance at the Portland Fruit Beer Festival, next Saturday and Sunday. Burnside Brewery and Ezra Johnson-Greenough hosted a media preview Friday afternoon, that included 8 samples of some of the most interesting beer I've ever tasted. My experience with fruit beer is pretty limited. I once ordered a bottle... Read More »

The first annual Portland Fruit Beer Festival is less than two weeks away and the beer list is looking pretty darn delicious. They’re now up to 31 fruit beers being presented next weekend, which will include recently announced Burnside’s Marionberry Berliner-Weisse, to the rare rotating tap list. This is a slightly tart wheat beer with a mild fruitiness and fermented with a lactic bacteria in addition to the German ale yeast resulting in the slightly... Read More »

The results of the Washington Cup were released and it looks like Hale's Supergoose took the most votes and was named captain of Washington for next year's Beer Brawl. Here's a list of the Washington contendors and winners: Everybody's Country Boy IPA  (3rd place) Walking Man IPA Mac-N-Jack's IPA  (2nd Place) Big Al's IPA  (4th place) Hale's Supergoose IPA  (1st place) Diamond Knot IPA Elysian "The Immortal"  IPA Dick's IPA Lazy Boy IPA Pike's IPA So,... Read More »

Concordia Ale House Washington Cup 2011 (© Rachael Bennett) I have never been to a brawl, let alone a Beer Brawl, so I decided to head over to Concordia Ale House for the start of their Washington Cup to see what it was all about.  I knew there would be some sort of judging, and of course drinking, so I jumped on the opportunity of combining my two favorite hobbies. When I arrived, I was presented... Read More »

A festive plastic beer mug replaced my usual coffee mug this morning. The second press preview for the Spring Beer and Wine Festival, led by author and radio talk show host, Lisa Morrison, began at 10:30am today. My breakfast consisted of beer, a little port wine, some mouthwatering caramel, and a wee shot of gin; a balanced breakfast indeed. Spring Beer and Wine Festival April 22 & 23, 2011 Friday & Saturday 12:00 noon till... Read More »

Editor's Note: Before we continue with our regularly scheduled program, I just wanted to introduce our newest contributor, Rachael Bennett! Rachael has come to us from Boise, ID and is excited to learn about our beer culture here in PDX. Through her uncorrupted, starry eyes, she'll be posting about her new adventures as she explore the wonders of the Portland beer scene. This week, she gets to hang out with Lisa Morrison and cut her... Read More »