Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
Last month I yawped about some southwest breweries, but since July is Oregon’s time in the sun (literally), I will post about Oregon beers. And I will try my best to focus on non-Portland based brewers.
First though, here is a sampling of beer events that I believe are the highlights of the month.
CRAFT BEER MONTH KICK-OFF – McMenamin’s Hillsdale 7/1
PUCKERFEST – Sour beers at Belmont Station 7/9-7/15
INTERNATIONAL BEER – Portland International Beerfest 7/16-7/18
The kick-off to craft beer in Oregon month starts here for me with the North American Organic Brewers Festival, and it starts TODAY!
Here are some of the breweries you will find at Overlook Park in Portland:
Elliot Bay
Captured by Porches
Hopworks Urban Brewing
Laurelwood
Natian
Oakshire
When I saw the photo of the stately home that is now a grand beer and wine bar. I thought, I wish there was something like this in Los Angeles. After reading this information from their website, you will probably wish you had one in your hometown.
“A journey, we firmly believe, is what you make it. And location, atmosphere and flavor are key ingredients in assuring it’s something exceptional.
Journeys is a friendly, comfortable, smoke-free pub. It’s also a mindset: at once playful and carefree but also contemplative — Where shall we go next? What exotic bazaar remains untrodden?
With quality beers and wines by the glass or bottle all readily available, we hope to enliven this dialogue, providing a perfect perch where you can sketch an itinerary to launch your next travelogue, be it a trip to the Rogue or Moulin Rouge.”
JOURNEYS FEATURES:
6 beers on draft
50+ beers from Oregon and beyond
10+ wines by the glass
75+ wines from around the world
Wine tastings and ongoing specials
An open-air patio for al fresco flavor
OK, Portland! I get it. I need to re-visit. So many new places to try. It is obvious that the web snub of Asheville has pushed Beervana to new heights. Mt. Tabor Brewing is another place to go to.
Dragon Lounge Pale Ale – American Pale Ale with a Chinese twist. Custom Brewed for the Canton Grill. 5.6% ABV/41 IBUs.
Asylum Ave IPA – Bittered with Amarillo and finished with loads of Cascades, this beer will drive hop heads insane. 6.3% ABV/85 IBUs.
Qwest Porter – A hoppier version of the classic UK style. 6.0% ABV/25 IBUs.
Soapbox Blonde Ale – Pilsen malt with a dash of honey malt gives this beer a crisp but sweet taste. Finish that steep descent and this beer will reward you. 5.5%/28.2 IBUs.
Little Bull Stout – Dark, hoppy, and delicious, the only thing “Little” is the name. 7.0% ABV/130 IBUs.
Reinheitsgebot Alt – We pay homage to the German Beer Purity Law with this traditional “Old” German beer. Prost! 6.2% ABV/32 IBUs.
Another NEW brewery in the beer rich City of Roses? Yes, please.
Now it’s Coalition Brewing!
They will be opening sometime this month. Beer start-ups are still accelerating.
More news to follow.
The old adage that you learn something new every day is so, so true.
Just read this bit from the Cascade Brewing folks….Brewmaster Ron Gansberg is somewhat of a visionary, and he’s at it again. This week he’s in the hop fields, picking pounds of fresh hop shoots. Why? He’s going to pickle them, using white wine vinegar and several bottles of Cascade Kriek Ale. Young hop shoots are a culinary delicacy enjoyed in Belgium – they have also been called poor man’s asparagus! Fresh hop shoots are only available from mid-March to late April, after which they develop a bitter taste. Pickled hop shoots make a delicious garnish or tasty hors d’oeuvres. Look for them on the menu when the Cascade Barrel House makes its debut!
A brewery that blatantly loves the Portland Trailblazers. All I can say is Red, Hot and Rollin’
They started with guest taps but will slowly fold in their beers as they are ready. First up is the MPA. Their take on a pale ale. West coast style.
Get the latest news on Migration Brewing HERE
Fruit seems to be the theme of the Reserve series so far. Of course, Widmer is only two beers into it. But first was Cherry Oak Dopplebock (which I still wish I could get a bottle of) and now comes the prickly pear paired with a malty mead. Sounds interesting.
Gose is a little known East German specific style that is one of my favorites. I had it in Leipzig and was hooked. Now there are two brewers in Portland re-creating this forgotten beer. Cascade and now Upright Brewing.
Here are the specs:
Gose – Upright’s first German-style beer. It’s a neat style that dates back nearly 300 years and uses a unique ingredient – salt.
Malts: organic pale, wheat, organic caramel 15
Hops: hallertauer mittelfrüh
Also: coriander, salt
Yeast: French saison
5.2% abv
Reserve beers or special one-off’s are one of the reasons why craft beer is so great. And one of the series’ that I follow is the Big Brews from Bridgeport. Well, here comes one to please the BeerAdvocate crowd, who love it when the label says “barrels” & “bourbon”.
“First brewed in the 1980s as a special beer for the BrewPub at BRIDGEPORT Highland Ambush is making its triumphant return more than 20 years later. Stuart MacLean Ramsay, then pub manager, conceptualized the brew to pay homage to his Scottish heritage. This year’s Highland Ambush takes inspiration from the original ale using NW pale ale malt along with a Scottish crystal and roast malt. The hopping rate of Highland Ambush has been toned down to help highlight the complementing vanilla from the American oak bourbon barrels and caramel-toffee malt nuances. Reddish-Brown in color, Highland Ambush will warm the coldest of toes and noses this holiday season.”