Belmont Station Gets In Some Pre-Craft Beer Month Fun

If you find yourself needing to kick off Oregon Craft Beer Month a few hours earlier, Belmont Station in Portland is having a little oak/barrel-aged beer on tap event June 30th at 5pm. They are doing this in part, as well, to celebrate the installation of a larger, better tap system.

Special beers on tap will include Ft. George Bourbon-aged Cavatica Stout, Ft George Bourbon-aged Illuminator Doppelbock, Stone Oaked Bastard, Allagash Curieux and BJ's (Portland) Whiskey Barrel Stout. Belmont Station will be open until 11pm that night, which should give you just enough time to rest before the Horse Brass Pub event the next night :)

Oregon Craft Beer Month Days Away

If you haven't yet noticed all the craft brew drinkers around Portland (and Oregon in general) wiping the drool off of their lips in anticipation of this year's Oregon Craft Beer Month, you will shortly. July 1st is just a few days away and the Oregon beer community, including the Oregon Brewers Guild, is gearing up for a rocking fun month of suds.

An advisory which just came across the Beer Northwest news desk lets us know of one kickoff event being held on the 1st at the Horse Brass Pub starting at 5pm. Here are the details of this event - we'll post on other events throughout the month as we get word of details.

"It’s official, with a proclamation from Governor Ted Kulongoski, July is Oregon Craft Beer Month. The Oregon Brewers Guild is ready to get the month-long party started right with an official kick-off event at Portland’s Horse Brass Pub. Don Younger and the Horse Brass team have searched far and wide for a selection of new releases, world premier exclusives, rare and vintage beers to commemorate the special occasion. All told, there will be 25 taps of these truly memorable Oregon beers. The first keg to be tapped will be a firkin of Kolsch 55 from Rock Bottom Brewery by Oregon Brewers Guild President Van Havig.

With more than 100 beer events taking place across the state in July – 21 events on July 1st alone – there are plenty of opportunities for craft beer aficionados to celebrate Oregon’s craft brewing industry at their local pubs."

McMenamins Gets Its Annual Barley Cup On

Now if you find yourself unable to make the North American Organic Brewers Festival this weekend because you live more mid-Oregon and don't want to drive, McMenamins has you covered if you happen to like its brews. The eclectic brew pub chain is having its annual Barley Cup Brewfest on Saturday at its Salem-based Thompson Brewery & Public House location.

The event, which will run from 11am to close, features the various McMenamins brewers competing for the right to be the best in the Kingdom. The winner will be judged by a local homebrewing club, but regular drinkers will also be able to taste and cast their votes for a "people's choice" award. Expect no formula McMenamins beer here - the brewers get very creative for the desire to beat out their brewing brethren.

Organic Brewers Festival Kicks Off Summer Beervana Fun

Let the summer beer festivals in Portland begin! The first major one out of the gate this weekend is the North American Organic Brewers Festival, slated for a 3pm kickoff this afternoon. It will run until 9pm tonight, followed by 12 to 9 on Saturday and 12 to 5 on Sunday. The location it is being held is Overlook Park.

Entry to the festival will be free, but you'll have to pay for those beer tastings buddy! "$5 for a reusable, yet compostable, cornstarch tasting glass and samples are $1 a ticket. A full glass is 4 tickets. Strong beers (over 8% alcohol by volume) and certain imported beers will cost more."

There looks to be a lot of good beers available for tasting. You'll also find "sustainability oriented vendors, live music, and local and organic food. " We are one of the sponsors as well, so we hope to see you there!

HUB Gives Us Some More Belgian Love

Hopworks Urban Brewery out of Portland sent us word about its next locally highlighted artist as well the details about a new Belgian. Enjoy!

Hopworks Urban Gallery - Gimme a (HUG)

Tuesday June 24th 6-9pm

Hopworks Urban Brewery is excited to introduce local Portland artist Nathan Clark.

Nathan Clark earned his BA in Painting from Wabash College in 2003, which he attended on a Fine Art Fellowship. He spent two years with the Gallery 510 Art Co-op in Decatur, IL, and in the fall of 2006 he relocated to Portland, OR, where he now resides.

Nathan's art will be on display in Hopworks restaurant and bar. Please join us tomorrow to meet Nathan and view his gallery. Acoustic musician, Leonard Mynx, will be playing guitar during the art show.

New Seasonal Beer Release!

Diablito

The second beer in our Belgian Golden Trilogy

Essentially the same recipe as El Diablo, with less devil, coming in at 5.7% ABV. Beautiful floral aroma and flavor with a refreshingly crisp finish. So eminently drinkable that you better watch out, or you'll get the horns!

Deschutes Brewery's Traveling Beer Barrel Hits the Road

In a press release from Deschutes, we learn that the tasting barrel is back to tour the Northwest!

"Deschutes Brewery proudly announces the triumphant return of its one-of-a-kind, custom dreamboat, “Woody,” the big wooden barrel. Emerging from a spring training tour through Portland, Las Vegas and the banks of Central Oregon’s Deschutes River, Woody is ready to hit the hot summer streets and quench beer lovers’ thirst for a taste of Bend. Sharing the rich and diverse Deschutes Brewery experience is the barrel’s mission, because the brewery knows it is not always possible to make the pilgrimage to the source. Woody is ready to take the world by storm...or at least one festival at a time.

Woody will most likely make a stop in your hometown in search of Cliff, Norm, and the rest of the “Cheers” gang. Swing by, say hello and enjoy a pint with the Deschutes Brewery team at one of the events listed below:

• The Bite of Bend - June 21 & 22 (Bend, OR)
• Waterfront Blues Festival - July 3 - 6 (Portland, OR)
• Bend Summer Festival - July 12 & 13 (Bend, OR
• Summer Music Meltdown - August 7 – 10 (Darrington, WA)
• Squaw Valley Jazz & Funk Fest - August 16 & 17 (Tahoe, CA)
• A Day for the River - Sept. 13 (Bend, OR)
• The Fremont Oktoberfest - Sept. 19 - 21 (Seattle, WA)

Woody is the consummate tailgater’s ultimate necessity, Deschutes Brewery-style. Open the gull wing. Pour some tasty beer. Get down with the disco ball. Just follow the barrel to the next festival! Visit www.neighborhoodhops.com for the most up-to-date schedule."

Oregon Brewers Guild Details July Craft Beer Month

A flock of beer writers and some great beer were on hand today as the Oregon Brewers Guild both unveiled its new Web site and also announced the full slate of activities for Craft Beer Month, set to kick off July 1st. I've put the whole press release of this upcoming affairs below, but suffice to say the OBG is doing a great job with the site redesign as well as the events set for next month.

Oregon Celebrates Craft Beer In July
New, Improved Oregon Brewers Guild Website Helps Craft Beer Enthusiasts Maximize Oregon Craft Beer Month Experience

Portland, Ore., June 3, 2008 – Today the Oregon Brewers Guild (OBG) is unveiling a new and improved website. The long awaited website, designed by the creative team at eROI, includes many new interactive features making it even easier for craft beer enthusiasts to find the latest news from their favorite Oregon breweries and stay up to date on events happening around the state. Highlights from the new website include a complete listing of OBG members, upcoming beer events across the state, an interactive blog featuring the latest OBG member news, an extensive photo archive and an online pressroom housing the latest Guild news.

The “Meet a friend for a pint” feature is one of the website’s most innovative components and allows users to send an electronic invitation to friends to meet at an Oregon Brewers Guild member brewery with the simple click of a button. For those of you on Twitter, you can get the latest Oregon Brewers Guild update off the home page or sign up at http://twitter.com/Oregonbeer to follow Oregon Beer. Users can actively participate in the OBG experience by submitting their own photos involving Oregon craft beer.

The redesigned website represents the Guild’s continuing commitment to promoting Oregon’s craft brewing industry and will include a micro-site dedicated section for Oregon Craft Beer Month. Recent numbers released by the Oregon Brewers Guild show that Oregon has the highest rate of local craft beer consumption in the nation and this special month-long celebration offers residents a variety of events showcasing one of Oregon’s iconographic products.

“Oregon is the only state to have an entire month devoted to celebrating the craft brewing industry, and this year we will make Oregon Craft Beer Month an even greater celebration by hosting more than 100 craft beer related events,” said Brian Butenschoen, Executive Director of the Oregon Brewers Guild. “Oregon is an incredibly unique place where we are fortunate enough to have a variety of world class beer, made locally; Oregon Craft Beer Month is an opportunity to celebrate all the amazing beer and people that make the state so special.”

Oregon Craft Beer Month officially begins on July 1st with over 21 events around the state. Other Oregon Craft Beer Month events include Raccoon Lodge & Brewpub's Beer and Sausage Fest on July 19th, Fred Eckhardt’s 17th Annual Beer and Cheese Tasting at Rogue Brewery on July 22nd and the Oregon Brewers Guild Brewers Dinner on July 23rd. Oregon Craft Beer Month culminates with the 21st Annual Oregon Brewers Festival held from July 24th through July 27th in Tom McCall Park in downtown Portland. At least 60,000 beer enthusiasts are expected to sample beer from 72 participating breweries at the Festival during its four-day run.

America’s beer revival in Oregon began in the early 1980s, and the state currently has 63 brewing companies operating 88 brewing facilities. Portland, Oregon has 30 microbreweries within its city limits, more than any other city in the world. Industry pioneers such as BridgePort Brewing, Widmer Brothers Brewing, McMenamins and Pyramid Breweries all started in Portland. Full Sail Brewing, Deschutes Brewery and Rogue Ales were also founded in Oregon and now have regional, national and international distribution. Emerging breweries such as Fort George Brewery, Double Mountain Brewery and Taproom, Block 15 Brewery, Klamath Basin Brewing and Silver Moon Brewing Companies beers can be found around the state and local breweries like Hopworks Urban Brewery, The Mash Tun Brewpub and Clinton Street Brewing/Captured by Porches offer unique beers on tap at their neighborhood pubs.

Pour yourself one soon at one of the Craft Beer Month events and visit the Oregon Brewers Festival in July. For more information about the Oregon Brewers Guild or to view a complete listing of Oregon Craft Beer Month events please visit www.oregonbeer.org.