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More breweries in Portland than in Munich

More breweries in Portland than in Munich

One of Portland's nicknames used to be "Munich on the Willamette." But that's so last century. With 29 breweries in the city limits and 34 breweries in the metro area, Portland now has more breweries than Munich, that Bavarian burg once regarded as the world's beer capital. And, as a matter of fact, back in 1997 the total of craft breweries in the United States surpassed the number in Germany. There are nearly 1,400 craft breweries in the United States; Germany has about 1,250.

Association of Brewers, 303.447.0816, www.beertown.org

 

Home-grown ingredients set Oregon brews apart

Oregon's mild climate, similar to that of Europe's growing regions, is ideal for producing plentiful hop crops. Oregon produces 17 percent of the nation's hops and 5 percent of the world's hops. Recognizing these benefits granted by Mother Nature, breweries throughout the United States and the world look to Oregon for hops that will satisfy the tastes of today's sophisticated beer drinker. In the Willamette Valley alone, 10 different hop varieties are grown. Among the most popular are Cascade, Nugget and Willamette, developed at Oregon State University under the direction of the USDA. Some interesting hop facts: Hop vines can grow up to a foot a day in the summer sun; the vines climb clockwise only around a guide wire; and their roots can grow 15 inches deep.

Oregon Hop Commission, 503.982.7600, www.oregonhops.org

 

"Collaborator Project" – Home brews are on tap at Widmer Brothers

They're called collaborator beers because the journey from a beer-stained recipe card to a frothy glass poured at the Widmer Brothers Gasthaus is the result of a friendly partnership between the brewery and local homebrewers who are members of the Oregon Brew Crew. The members come up with the recipes; Widmer Brothers Brewing produces the brews in commercial quantities. The brewery markets the beers for limited, draft-only release and donates a portion of the profits to the Bob McCracken Jr. Memorial Scholarship Fund, which benefits students of the fermentation science program at Oregon State University who have shown a demonstrated interest in the brewing profession. A few of the collaborator beers have been such big hits that they have gone on to win gold medals in beer competitions, including Collaborator Milk Stout, which won gold medals in the "Sweet Stout Category" at both the 2002 and 2004 Great American Beer Festival.

Widmer Brothers Brewing Co., 503.281.2437, www.widmer.com
Oregon Brew Crew, 503.493.4134, www.oregonbrewcrew.com

 

"Dogtoberfest" offers a twist (and a shake) on Oktoberfest

During "Dogtoberfest" at Portland's canine-friendly Lucky Labrador Brewing Company, the suds aren't found just in the pint glasses; they're also found on the dogs that line up for baths. Each September, the Lucky Lab celebrates its anniversary – and Oktoberfest – with a $5-per-dog wash that benefits Dove Lewis Emergency Animal Hospital. The event is complete with doggie treats, celebrity dog washers and a specialty brew for the occasion.

Lucky Labrador Brewing Company, 503.236.3555, www.luckylab.com

 

See where it all began: Portland's Brewery Blocks

Until 1999, when the venerable 143-year-old facility called it quits, the Blitz-Weinhard Brewery was a Portland landmark. Plans were underway immediately to develop the brewery property along West Burnside Street between Northwest 11th and 13th avenues. Now known as the Brewery Blocks, the development includes upscale shops, restaurants and condos. But the red-brick 1908 brewery building lives on as the home of Henry's 12th Street Tavern, a restaurant renowned for its vast brew selection and the icy refrigerated strip on the bar that keeps patrons' beers chilled.

The Brewery Blocks, www.breweryblocks.com
Henry's 12th Street Tavern, www.henrystavern.com

 

The McMenamin brothers: Beer barons and preservationists too

Mike and Brian McMenamin were pioneers of Portland's craft brewery renaissance, opening Oregon's first brewpub (Hillsdale Brewery & Public House in southwest Portland). In time, they began looking around for unusual locations for their breweries and restaurants. Then they began adding new features, such as movie theaters and lodging. Now the brothers have a well-deserved reputation as preservationists, saving old churches, schools and various other buildings in Oregon and Washington from uncertain fates and giving them new life as McMenamins properties. Good examples around Portland are McMenamins Edgefield, a 38-acre beer-lovers' resort that was once Multnomah County's poor farm; the Crystal Ballroom, with its magical "floating" dance floor; and the Kennedy School, a 1912 grade school where you can sleep in class (thanks to the bed-and-breakfast rooms on-site) and drink in detention (a former janitor's closet is now a hole-in-the-wall bar).

McMenamins, 503.669.8610, www.mcmenamins.com
McMenamins Edgefield, 503.669.8610, visit www.mcmenamins.com and click on "Hotels"
Crystal Ballroom, 503.225.0047, visit www.mcmenamins.com and click on "Music & Events"
McMenamins Kennedy School, 503.249.3983, visit www.mcmenamins.com and click on "Hotels"

 

Organic Beers

Both Roots Brewing Company and Laurelwood Public House & Brewery brew a selection of certified organic beers. These ales are made with 100 percent organic barley malt grown without synthetic fertilizers or pesticides.

USDA National Organic Program, www.ams.usda.gov/nop/indexIE.htm
Laurelwood Public House & Brewery, 503.282.0622, www.laurelwoodbrewpub.com
Laurelwood NW Public House, 503.228.5553, www.laurelwoodbrewpub.com
Roots Organic Brewing Company, 503.235.7668, www.rootsorganicbrewing.com

 

Join the crowd: Become a craft brewer

Realize your dreams of becoming a brewmaster at Let's Brew. Buy a starter kit and use one of the two kitchens to cook up your own brew. As it's fermenting, you can be thinking up a fantastic name for it.

Let's Brew, 8235 S.E. Stark St., Portland, OR 97216, 503.256.0205, www.letsbrew.net

 

Homebrewing enthusiasts in Oregon supported by Brew Crew

The Oregon Brew Crew is a nonprofit association dedicated to the advancement of homebrewing, which was signed into legal existence by President Jimmy Carter on Feb. 1, 1979. About three-quarters of the volunteers who serve beer at the Oregon Brewers Festival in July are enthusiastic members of the Oregon Brew Crew.

Oregon Brew Crew, 503.538.5227, www.oregonbrewcrew.com

 

Oregon Brewers Guild

Formed in 1992, the Oregon Brewers Guild is a trade organization representing more than 40 member craft breweries around the state. The guild's mission is to support Oregon's craft brewing industry and provide education about craft beers, with a primary focus on marketing and promotion. Besides brewery members, other membership categories include associate members, retail members and "enthusiastic" members known as SNOBs (Supporters of Native Oregon Beer).

Oregon Brewers Guild, 503.288.2739, www.oregonbeer.org

 

Oregon Quality & Integrity Mark

Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but when brewers around the United States started slapping "Oregon" on their labels to leverage the cachet of Oregon's craft beers, true Oregon brewers were rightly miffed. To combat this trend, Oregon's craft brewers worked together to create the country's first craft beer quality-assurance program. To date, more than 100 beers from 13 breweries have passed the intensive laboratory and sensory taste tests designed by the Oregon Brewers Guild to earn the Quality Mark designation. These brews proudly feature the Oregon Quality & Integrity Mark logo on their labels and point-of-purchase materials to assure consumers that this is indeed a high-quality Oregon-born beer.

Oregon Brewers Guild, 503.288.2739, www.oregonbeer.org

 

Portland's beer on the silver screen

American Beer, a 2004 documentary film by independent filmmaker Paul Kermizian, details Kermizian's 40-day road trip to 38 American craft breweries, including the Hair of the Dog Brewing Company in Portland.

 

Portland's beer on the bookshelf

Travels With Barley: A Journey Through Beer Culture in America, a 2004 book about America's craft brewery movement by Wall Street Journal writer Ken Wells, devotes an entire chapter – "At Last, Beervana" – to Portland. In The Oregonian newspaper, reporter John Foyston writes about beer every Friday in his "Beer Notes" column of the A&E section.

 

Beer Appreciation 101: ladies only, please

Tired of all the testosterone that tends to come with a six-pack? Local beer writer Lisa Morrison, aka "the Beer Goddess," answers back with a class called "Sisters of Suds: Beer Appreciation for Women." In this series of two-hour seminars, attendees both taste and talk craft beer. According to Morrison, the seminars are all about expanding women's palates and discovering craft beers that don't carry "that nasty moniker of chick beer."

Lisa Morrison
1923 S.E. 32nd Place, Portland, OR 97214
503.233.7491
beergoddess@comcast.net

 

BREW TOURS

Eco Tours of Oregon

Tours of craft brewpubs are usually scheduled in the evening from 6–10:30 p.m., with your guide taking you to three breweries for tours of the facilities, beer tastings and information.

503.245.1428, www.ecotours-of-oregon.com/brew.htm

 

McMenamins Cosmic Bus Tours

Take your choice of eastside or westside tours of McMenamins' historic properties, complete with hors d'oeuvres and tastings of McMenamins' signature brews. Eastside tours visit McMenamins Edgefield, Kennedy School, the White Eagle Rock 'n' Roll Hotel, and the Crystal Ballroom. Westside tours stop at the Grand Lodge in Forest Grove, the Rock Creek Tavern, and Cornelius Pass Roadhouse and Imbrie Hall.

503.492.2777, visit www.mcmenamins.com and click on "Group Sales"

 

BarFly Mystery Bar Bus Tours

Sign up online for occasional bus tours of Portland's bars, which, depending on the night – and here's where the mystery comes in – may or may not include craft brewpubs.

BarFly Mystery Bar Bus Tours, www.barflymag.com/bus.html