Total Brewclipse Festival this Saturday!

July 31, 2017 by 4 Comments

If you haven’t heard the news, it is going to a hot week- possibly record breaking on Wednesday and Thursday. And you’ve also probably heard that in just a couple weeks will be the August 21 Solar Eclipse. But did you know that Portland Monthly is throwing a special party, Total Brewclipse PDX, that takes into account the heat by cooling you down with beers from their recent July Beers of Summer issue highlighting the best Portland brewed suds for hot weather sipping? A portion of the Total Brewclipse festival proceeds will benefit OMSI’s crowdfunding campaign to refurbish 25 year old Planetarium.

Total Brewclipse 2017

The entire event is taking place this Saturday, August 5 at The Redd on Salmon Street from 8 – 11 PM (early admission for VIP ticket holders at 7:30 PM). A ticket grants you unlimited beer tastings and access to everything from food trucks by Olympia Provisions and 1927 Smores, live music, to entertainment like the spacey photo booth and astrological chart readings / fortune-telling.

You can see the full 20 Beers of Summer picks at Portland Monthly’s article, and the 12 beers for the event include

  • Rosenstadt Helles Lager, a beer of German influence with malty, clean golden classic Munich Biergarten flavors.
  • Laurelwood Golden Ale, a crisp river beer (it helpfully comes in a can too to take to the river!).
  • Ex Novo The Most Interesting Lager in the World, a beer that combines Germany and Mexico. If you aren’t already, you should be a big supporter of Ex Novo, a brewery where 100% of profits go to charity and they have been doing so since 2014.
  • Zoiglhaus Zoigl-Kölsch, balanced sessionable beer from a German classic brewery in Lents
  • Gigantic Kölschtastic, light and smooth and a “liquid ode to sunshine”
  • Fat Head’s Goggle Fogger Hefeweizen with wheat and banana flavors
  • Base Camp Pilgrimage Saison, a slightly spiced wheaty beer
  • The Commons Petit Classique is slightly funky and is brewed with pink peppercorns
  • Burnside Sakura Gose, a floral with slightly sour beer that does include cherry blossoms with bit of salt per the gose style
  • Sasquatch Barbarella, a rhubarb ale!
  • Ecliptic Starburst IPA combines Northwest IPA flavors and a name inspired by astronomy (as per all the Ecliptic beers)
  • Great Notion Ripe IPA, a juicy hazy IPA

Guests can also expect a Crispin Cider, Portland Sangria, and Reyka Vodka Moon-inspired cocktail. Tickets are $25 ($35 for VIP tickets that provide swag bags and earlier admission and access to a chic VIP lounge area) and are available now! The event is open to 21 and over. I’ll be there (along with a rare appearance of F with me!).

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Snackdown 2016 Recap

June 23, 2016 by 5 Comments

This past Sunday, I attended the closing event of Portland Beer Week, and here is my Snackdown 2016 Recap! Taking place 12 – 4 PM at The Evergreen event space above Loyal Legion, Snackdown was a food and beer pairing event where 10 of Portland Chefs and 10 Oregon Brewers are paired into 10 Brewer/Chef teams to make snack and beer pairing. The atmosphere is styled like a WWF style Smackdown with brewers and chefs hyping their pairing on the mic – possibly while sporting wrestling themed costume – while in the background a large screen played old matches from the days of Hulk – I guess in the mid 80s.
Snackdown Portland Beer Week 2016 Closing Party

DJ Rev Shines was playing fun music to keep everyone grooving while snacking. Everyone seemed to be having fun and in a great playful mood.
DJ Rev Shines was super cool at playing fun music to keep everyone grooving while snacking at Snackdown 2016 P.R.E.A.M. / Ecliptic Brewing was another favorite pairing of mine, see my Snackdown 2016 Recap for more details

Herb of Loyal Legion served as MC and got all the brewer/chef teams to take turns doing a little smack talking throughout the event
Herb of Loyal Legion served as MC and got all the brewer/chef teams to take turns doing a little smack talking throughout the Snackdown event Herb of Loyal Legion served as MC and got all the brewer/chef teams to take turns doing a little smack talking throughout the Snackdown 2016 event

Guests got to vote on their favorite pairing and the winning team will be awarded the Snackdown Belt – which is apparently a wristlet version for the brewery and restaurant,  here being modeled by Co-organizer of the event, Ben Love of Gigantic Brewing.
Guests at Snackdown 2016 got to vote on their favorite pairing and the winning team will be awarded the Snackdown Belt - which is apparently a wristlet version for the brewery and restaurant. Guests at Snackdown 2016 got to vote on their favorite pairing and the winning team will be awarded the Snackdown Belt - which is apparently a wristlet version for the brewery and restaurant.

The 10 Brewer/Chef teams for 2016 were:

  • Loyal Legion / Portland Brewing & Double Mountain showcased the official 2016 Portland Beer Week beer by pouring a Sub-Continental IPA, a collaboration between Portland Brewing and Double Mountain to create a ~7% ABV northwest IPA brewed with Indian spices like pepper, cardamom, clove, cumin and saffron. Meanwhile Loyal Legion used the Sub-Continental IPA to braise their homemade sauerkraut which they then fried into a krokotten and served along with a spicy beer mustard that also had Sub-Contental IPA in the mustard.
    Snackdown 2016 Loyal Legion / Portland Brewing & Double Mountain showcased the Portland Beer week beer by pouring a Sub-Continental IPA, a collaboration between Portland Brewing and Double Mountain to create a ~7% ABV northwest IPA brewed with Indian spices like pepper, cardamom, clove, cumin and saffron. Meanwhile Loyal Legion used the Sub-Continental IPA to braise their homemade sauerkraut which they then fried into a krokotten and served along with a spicy beer mustard that also had Sub-Contental IPA in the mustard Snackdown 2016 Loyal Legion / Portland Brewing & Double Mountain showcased the Portland Beer week beer by pouring a Sub-Continental IPA, a collaboration between Portland Brewing and Double Mountain to create a ~7% ABV northwest IPA brewed with Indian spices like pepper, cardamom, clove, cumin and saffron. Meanwhile Loyal Legion used the Sub-Continental IPA to braise their homemade sauerkraut which they then fried into a krokotten and served along with a spicy beer mustard that also had Sub-Contental IPA in the mustard
  • Bollywood Theater / The Commons Brewery also combined beer right into the food by pairing the Commons Fleur de Blanc, a Rose and Elderflower White Farmhouse Ale, with Bollywood Theater creating an Indian curry with mussels cooked in the Commons Fleur de Blanc with Indian spices, coconut milk, and rose petals. It was a little hard to eat in such a small little bowl to get the mussels out, but the mussels dish added a little heat while bringing out some of the funky and floral notes in the beer, which I thought made an excellent combo.
    Snackdown 2016 Bollywood Theater / The Commons Brewery combined beer right into the food by pairing the Commons Fleur de Blanc, a Rose and Elderflower White Farmhouse Ale, with Bollywood Theater creating mussels cooked in the Commons Fleur de Blanc with Indian spices, coconut milk, and rose petals. Snackdown 2016 Bollywood Theater / The Commons Brewery combined beer right into the food by pairing the Commons Fleur de Blanc, a Rose and Elderflower White Farmhouse Ale, with Bollywood Theater creating mussels cooked in the Commons Fleur de Blanc with Indian spices, coconut milk, and rose petals.
  • Lardo / Heater Allen Brewing I always love seeing Chef Rick Gencarelli at an event – he’s always excited about what he’s doing which I miss seeing when he gave up the Lardo cart for the multiple successful businesses of his current brick and mortars, but you get a glimpse of how fun he is and what a good hearted guy every time he’s at one of these food events in front of the people again.
    I always love seeing Chef Rick Gencarelli at an event - he's always excited about what he's doing which I miss seeing when he gave up the Lardo cart for the multiple successful businesses of his current brick and mortars, but you get a glimpse of how fun he is every time he's at one of these food events. Here at Snackdown 2016 he somehow kept that awesome wrestling mask on while doling out the most precious and super delicious mini lobster roll to pair with Heater Allen's Das Bier Kolsch I always love seeing Chef Rick Gencarelli at an event - he's always excited about what he's doing which I miss seeing when he gave up the Lardo cart for the multiple successful businesses of his current brick and mortars, but you get a glimpse of how fun he is every time he's at one of these food events. Here at Snackdown 2016 he somehow kept that awesome wrestling mask on while doling out the most precious and super delicious mini lobster roll to pair with Heater Allen's Das Bier Kolsch
    Here he somehow kept that awesome wrestling mask on while doling out the most precious and super delicious mini lobster roll to pair with Heater Allen’s Das Bier Kolsch.
    Snackdown 2016 Lardo created the most precious and super delicious mini lobster roll to pair with Heater Allen's Das Bier Kolsch Snackdown 2016 Lardo created the most precious and super delicious mini lobster roll to pair with Heater Allen's Das Bier Kolsch
  • The Bent Brick which just officially went to a tipless system and is one of six gratuity free restaurants in Portland, presented what they called a Pig Picnic with porky picnicky vibes in a pork and beans stew / Block 15 Brewing brought their Sticky Hands IPA
    Snackdown 2016 The Bent Brick presented what they called a Pig Picnic with porky picnicky vibes in a pork and beans stew / Block 15 Brewing brought their Sticky Hands IPA The Bent Brick presented what they called a Pig Picnic with porky picnicky vibes in a pork and beans stew / Block 15 Brewing brought their Sticky Hands IPA Snackdown 2016 The Bent Brick presented what they called a Pig Picnic with porky picnicky vibes in a pork and beans stew / Block 15 Brewing brought their Sticky Hands IPA
  • Old Salt Marketplace created “Last Year’s Succotash” with alubias gigantes beans, pickled corn, fermented pepper vinagrette, shaved country ham and arugula on a pork rind – sadly I found the pork rind to be old and chewy rather than crispy / Ex Novo Brewing with their Thick as Thieves Dry Hoppped Belgo-American Sour Pale, a collaboration beer they created with Solemn Oath Brewery in Chicago which they just released during Portland Beer week
    Snackdown 2016 Old Salt Marketplace created 'Last Year's Succotash' with alubias gigantes beans, pickled corn, fermented pepper vinagrette, shaved country ham and arugula on a pork rind to pair with Ex Novo Brewing with their Thick as Thieves Dry Hoppped Belgo-American Sour Pale, a collaboration beer they created with Solemn Oath Brewery in Chicago Snackdown 2016 Old Salt Marketplace created 'Last Year's Succotash' with alubias gigantes beans, pickled corn, fermented pepper vinagrette, shaved country ham and arugula on a pork rind to pair with Ex Novo Brewing with their Thick as Thieves Dry Hoppped Belgo-American Sour Pale, a collaboration beer they created with Solemn Oath Brewery in Chicago
  • Toro Bravo / Hopworks Urban Brewery was the winner of Snackdown with their rich Baller Grilled Cheese and “Tomato Soup”, a rich three cheese (truffle cheese, manchego, and mahone on Grand Central brioche) and modernist tomato soup sphere with the HUB Xocolatal Xake Up Belgian Style Spiced Quad to wash it down with.
    Toro Bravo / Hopworks Urban Brewery was the winner of Snackdown 2016 with their rich Baller Grilled Cheese and 'Tomato Soup', a rich three cheese (truffle cheese, manchego, and mahone on Grand Central brioche) and modernist tomato soup sphere with the HUB Xocolatal Xake Up Belgian Style Spiced Quad to wash it down Toro Bravo / Hopworks Urban Brewery was the winner of Snackdown 2016 with their rich Baller Grilled Cheese and 'Tomato Soup', a rich three cheese (truffle cheese, manchego, and mahone on Grand Central brioche) and modernist tomato soup sphere with the HUB Xocolatal Xake Up Belgian Style Spiced Quad to wash it down Toro Bravo / Hopworks Urban Brewery was the winner of Snackdown 2016 with their rich Baller Grilled Cheese and 'Tomato Soup', a rich three cheese (truffle cheese, manchego, and mahone on Grand Central brioche) and modernist tomato soup sphere with the HUB Xocolatal Xake Up Belgian Style Spiced Quad to wash it down
  • Kim Jong Grillin brought the spice with smoked bo ssäm made with smoked pork, a braised pork in Breakside beer Rye Curious, an apple kimchee, ssämjang sauce made with Breakside Rainbow & Unicorns beer, jalapeno, and green leaf lettuce/ Breakside Brewery cooled it down with Rainbows & Unicorns, their session IPA which also seemed appropriate given that it was Pride Festival weekend in Portland.
    Snackdown 2016 Kim Jong Grillin brought the spice with pork ssam/ Breakside Brewery cooled it down with Rainbows & Unicorns, their session IPA Snackdown 2016 Kim Jong Grillin brought the spice with pork ssam/ Breakside Brewery cooled it down with Rainbows & Unicorns, their session IPA
  • P.R.E.A.M. / Ecliptic Brewing was another favorite pairing of mine, starring a Beef Tartare with flavors of cheeseburger with Ecliptic’s chocolatey and malty Capella Porter
    John Harris brewer of Ecliptic dressed in wrestling costume The Snackdown 2016 P.R.E.A.M. / Ecliptic Brewing was another favorite pairing of mine, staring a Beef Tartare with flavors of cheeseburger with Ecliptic's chocolatey and malty Capella Porter John Harris brewer of Ecliptic dressed in wrestling costume The Snackdown 2016 P.R.E.A.M. / Ecliptic Brewing was another favorite pairing of mine, staring a Beef Tartare with flavors of cheeseburger with Ecliptic's chocolatey and malty Capella Porter Snackdown 2016 P.R.E.A.M. / Ecliptic Brewing was another favorite pairing of mine, staring a Beef Tartare with flavors of cheeseburger with Ecliptic's chocolatey and malty Capella Porter Snackdown 2016 P.R.E.A.M. / Ecliptic Brewing was another favorite pairing of mine, staring a Beef Tartare with flavors of cheeseburger with Ecliptic's chocolatey and malty Capella Porter
  • Biwa gave a special nod toward’s Buoy’s coastal origins by creating Clam Chowder Croquettes while chef Gabe Rosen hilariously posed as Bernie / Buoy Beer poured Rice Rice Baby, a wild rice blond ale using wild rice from Minnesota with rye malt to make a nutty blond that is reminiscent of a saison, a special one off beer for this event and only in limited quantities at their tasting room
    Snackdown 2016 Biwa gave a special nod toward's Buoy's coastal origins by creating Clam Chowder Croquettes / Buoy Beer poured Rice Rice Baby, a wild rice blond ale using wild rice from Minnesota with rye malt to make a nutty blond that is reminiscent of a saison Snackdown 2016 Biwa gave a special nod toward's Buoy's coastal origins by creating Clam Chowder Croquettes / Buoy Beer poured Rice Rice Baby, a wild rice blond ale using wild rice from Minnesota with rye malt to make a nutty blond that is reminiscent of a saison Snackdown 2016 Biwa gave a special nod toward's Buoy's coastal origins by creating Clam Chowder Croquettes / Buoy Beer poured Rice Rice Baby, a wild rice blond ale using wild rice from Minnesota with rye malt to make a nutty blond that is reminiscent of a saison Snackdown 2016 Biwa gave a special nod toward's Buoy's coastal origins by creating Clam Chowder Croquettes while chef Gabe Rosen hilariously posed as Bernie / Buoy Beer poured Rice Rice Baby, a wild rice blond ale using wild rice from Minnesota with rye malt to make a nutty blond that is reminiscent of a saison Snackdown 2016 Biwa gave a special nod toward's Buoy's coastal origins by creating Clam Chowder Croquettes while chef Gabe Rosen hilariously posed as Bernie / Buoy Beer poured Rice Rice Baby, a wild rice blond ale using wild rice from Minnesota with rye malt to make a nutty blond that is reminiscent of a saison
  • Nomad with a frozen barley mousse, anise custard, strawberry, and fennel frond/ Gigantic Brewing with their Holy Oak Whisky Sour beer rounded up snackdown with dessert
    Snackdown 2016 Nomad with a frozen barley mousse, anise custard, strawberry, and fennel frond/ Gigantic Brewing with their Holy Oak Whisky Sour beer rounded up snackdown with dessert Snackdown 2016 Nomad with a frozen barley mousse, anise custard, strawberry, and fennel frond/ Gigantic Brewing with their Holy Oak Whisky Sour beer rounded up snackdown with dessert Snackdown 2016 Nomad with a frozen barley mousse, anise custard, strawberry, and fennel frond/ Gigantic Brewing with their Holy Oak Whisky Sour beer rounded up snackdown with dessert Snackdown 2016 Nomad with a frozen barley mousse, anise custard, strawberry, and fennel frond/ Gigantic Brewing with their Holy Oak Whisky Sour beer rounded up snackdown with dessert

I really hope they bring this Snackdown event back for next year – it was a great value I think since for the price with 10 small dishes from high quality restaurants (some which are harder to get into like Nomad). Also, receiving 10 five ounce pours of beers is a lot – after a while I realized I had to start cutting back on my sipping. Congratulations to Toro Bravo and Hopworks on their win this year!

It was a little haphazard trying to find a place to put a plate and glass down in order to be able to eat – just a few more cocktail tables, even along the side wall by the DJ, could have helped as I saw some people take a gamble by placing glasses on the floor to eat. But, there never seemed to be a line of more than a handful of people to get a pour – a combination of the number of people who came this year I think at a manageble size and each of the stations was well prepared with food plates ready. A checklist sheet listing all the beer and food pairings made it easy to know ahead of time who you wanted to visit in what order and track that you enjoyed all ten teams.

It’s also unfortunate there was no award for best dressed brewer –  Gigantic’s Ben Love went all out, Ecliptic’s John Harris and those fly arm bands and velvet cape, and the cozy PJs with hand drawn hop crest of Ryan Pappe of Portland Brewing were all outstanding and committed to a whole wrestler hero vibe experience. And Herb was perfect as an announcer – everyone was so much fun. The friendly tongue I’m cheek smack talking and friendship between the Brewers and various food crafters I think perfectly embodies the Portland spirit in the food and drink community.

What would have been your vote for best beer and food pairing based on this Snackdown 2016 Recap?

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Baker’s Dozen Coffee Beers & Doughnuts Next Weekend

March 3, 2016 by 11 Comments

I wanted to give you a heads up before the tickets sell out for Brian Yaeger’s Baker’s Dozen Coffee Beers & Doughnuts Festival!  Taking place next week from 10 AM – 3 PM on Saturday March 12, 2016 at Culmination Brewing, this was a fantastic event I attended last year that had me wired for the rest of the day thanks to all the caffeine from the coffee beers and all the sugar from the doughnuts.

Baker's Dozen Coffee Beers & Doughnuts 2016

This year, the festival again takes place at Culmination Brewing, which just recently won Best  New Brewery of the Year at the 2016 Oregon Beer Awards. With 20 some taps, of which 3/4 of them are their own beers which span a wide variety of styles, it’s hard to believe this brewery is less than a year old but already pumping out classics as well as always tweaking and experimenting too.

Culmination Brewing Chalkboard at Culmination Brewing with the Beer List on June 20, 2015 Bar inside of Culmination Brewing Bar inside of Culmination Brewing
These photos are back before they put the chalkboard on the wall atop the tap – I’ve been visiting since they first opened!

Culmination Brewing is family friendly and dog friendly, and has several comfy outdoor seats to enjoy the good weather (as well as easy street parking in a lot or nearby streets in the neighborhood just off out SE Sandy), as well as a dozen seats at the bar and tables inside as well. It is really like a neighborhood brewpub, but with an impressive list of brews.

Outside seating at Culmination Brewing Outside seating at Culmination Brewing Outside seating at Culmination Brewing

For $24 a person (purchase your tickets online at Mercury Tickets before they sell out – they are only selling 400 of these 21+ beer tickets), at the Baker’s Dozen Coffee Beers and Doughnuts festival you get access to a thirteen 4-oz samples of baker’s dozen (13) coffee beers as well as samples of all thirteen different doughnuts from thirteen different breweries and local Portland doughnut shops all in one place.

Bakers Dozen Coffee Beer & Doughnuts festival (coffee beer and local donuts from all over PDX) at Culmination Brewing  Bakers Dozen Coffee Beer & Doughnuts festival (coffee beer and local donuts from all over PDX) at Culmination Brewing

And, it can be family fun! They are offering a Doughnut Decoration Station for kids and non-kids. Local roasted normal coffee will be provided too, along with live music. You can purchase additional beverages beyond the 13 coffee beers and/or house-made breakfast sandwiches too.

Here’s more of a glimpse of what this upcoming festival can be like, based on the Baker’s Dozen Coffee & Doughnuts Festival last year.  I collected multiple donuts on my plate so I could try pairing them with the various beers on the checklist you get when you check in in whatever order I want.

Bakers Dozen Coffee Beer & Doughnuts festival (coffee beer and local donuts from all over PDX) at Culmination Brewing Coco Donuts Espresso Donuts were my favorite donuts from the Bakers Dozen Coffee Beer & Doughnuts festival (coffee beer and local donuts from all over PDX) at Culmination Brewing Bakers Dozen Coffee Beer & Doughnuts festival (coffee beer and local donuts from all over PDX) at Culmination Brewing Bakers Dozen Coffee Beer & Doughnuts festival (coffee beer and local donuts from all over PDX) at Culmination Brewing Bakers Dozen Coffee Beer & Doughnuts festival (coffee beer and local donuts from all over PDX) at Culmination Brewing Bakers Dozen Coffee Beer & Doughnuts festival (coffee beer and local donuts from all over PDX) at Culmination Brewing

Here’s a pro tip: when I went, I took ziploc bags with me because even with them cutting up the doughnuts into sample sizes of 1/2 or 1/4 of a doughnut, there was no way I could eat 13 doughnut morsels, so I took some home by putting them in the bag!

For a preview of some of the participating breweries brews and doughnuts check out the Brewpublic Article here on the 2nd Annual Bakers Dozen.

Unfortunately I’ll be out of town for the festival so will miss it, which just means I’ve freed up a ticket for you that you should snap up ASAP. Have you been to Culmination yet? Have you paired coffee beer and doughnuts before? Who is your favorite Portland doughnut provider? Do you spell doughnut or donut?

Culmination Brewing

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Portland Craft Beer Festival

July 1, 2015 by 4 Comments

July is Oregon Craft Beer Month, and I will be highlighting every week an event or beer in honor of celebrating and promoting Oregon Craft Beer.

Especially if you live in Portland, there are so many breweries right here just in the city. In fact, the upcoming Portland Craft Beer Festival this weekend July 3 – 5 is focused exactly on that – celebrating just the beers made in the Portland city limits.

Portland Craft Beer Festival poster for 2015, design by Dotzero with illustration by Wilder Schmaltz

I’ve summarized everything up into 10 points you need to know about the Portland Craft Beer Festival (PCBF).

  1. The 5 Ws:
    • What: A beer festival showcasing beers only from within the city limits of Portland. Even though Portland does host many beer festivals, this is the first one focusing only on Portland breweries.
    • When:
      • Friday, July 3, 2015 – 4pm to 10pm
      • Saturday, July 4, 2015 – 12pm to 10pm
      • Sunday, July 5, 2015 – 12pm to 7pm
    • Who: Guests must be 21+ to drink alcoholic beverages. On Friday and Saturday admission is 21+ only, but Sunday is Family Day and open to all ages.
    • Where: The Fields Neighborhood Park in the Pearl District, at 1099 NW Overton St, Portland, OR 97209
    • Why: CaskAide, Inc. and its partner charities are the non-profit beneficiaries of the PCBF. This year, the charities that CaskAide is honored to partner with are The Oregon Lions Sight & Hearing Foundation, The James Beard Public Market and the Oregon Brew Crew
  2. Support Local! The beer list is great – with almost 100 beers being poured from Portland breweries. Even as a beer geek myself there are beers from breweries new or small I have never visited or only heard of,  but PCBF has gathered them conveniently all in one location. Besides the beer being within the city limits, so are the wine and ciders alternatives if you don’t want to partake in beer. PCBF will be offering wine from Coopers Hall and fizzy wines from Hi Wheel, and cider from Cider Riot! and Reverand Nat’s.
    Cider Riot! cider
  3. Portland Made Cheese! PCBF is showcasing two cheesemakers who make their cheese within the city limits, Ancient Heritage Dairy and Portland Creamery
    Portland Creamery sells theirs in pretty small packages Ancient Heritage Dairy, cheese
    Cheeses from Portland Creamery; Cheese from Ancient Heritage Diary
  4. It’s a great value for a beer festival. $20 for a keepsake mug and 10 beer tickets. 1 ticket will yield one 4 oz pour and 4 tickets will buy a full pour. Advance ticket purchasers will receive 15 beer tickets and the mug for $20. which is a BIG DEAL! Additional tickets will be available for purchase at $1.00 apiece. Tickets will be available for advance purchase through Brown Paper Tickets.. It will be cash only at the PCBF festival. Your admission is good all weekend.
  5. PCBF cares about you stretching: they are holding free yoga classes for adults and for children 1 hour before the festival opens (aka the free yoga classes are at 11 AM) on Sunday
  6. There will be plenty of food to go with the drinks. PCBF is making sure we support several local food carts that will be on site, and also the offerings are diverse to satisfy whatever you feel like eating. They include Bunk Sandwiches with their always tasty sandwiches, The Dump Truck with their dumplings, Floyd’s Coffee Shop, Farm to Fire wood fired pizza, and Urban German Grill with their German sausages and pretzels. Additionally on Sunday there will be ice cream thanks to Ruby Jewel.
    Bunk Sandwiches' winter vegetarian sandwich: Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Apple Chutney, Gruyere & Horseradish sandwich. Example sausage from Urban German Grill Potato Curry dumpling on the left which had a burst of pork and ginger with scallions, Mr Ma dumpling on the right which essentially has a Malaysian yellow curry with potato inside the dumpling wrapper Ruby Jewel ice cream sandwich
    Example vegetarian sandwich from Bunk one season that was Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Apple Chutney, Gruyere & Horseradish sandwich; A sausage from Urban German Grill; Sample I had on a food cart tour from Dump Truck with a Potato Curry dumpling and a Mr Ma dumpling; Ruby Jewel ice cream sandwich
  7. On Family Day Sunday, there will be a Children’s Craft Market with craft booths by kids. Support the kids! There will be free vision testing by The Oregon Lions Sight & Hearing Foundation and also face painting as well on Sunday Family Day.
  8. The Portland Beer Hall of Fame will be unveiled on Saturday, July 4 at 3 PM. The inaugural inductees will be announced by the Beer Goddess Lisa Morrison (also known as Beer O’Clock Radio host) and ballots will be available to vote on next year’s inductees.
  9. Thanks to BTU Brasserie there will be beer slushies to keep you cool

    Beer slushies brought to you by #BTUBrasserie will keep you cool at #PortlandCraftBeerFestival next weekend! #portlandbeer

    A photo posted by Portland Craft Beer Festival (@pdxcraftbeerfest) on

  10. It is very easy to not have to drive to PCBF. And there’s a reward for taking your bike to the fest.
    • The Portland Streetcar runs from Downtown, Northwest, & the Inner Eastside and stops a block from The Fields Park.
    • PCBF will be partnering with Lyft for safe rides to and from the festival (use PCBF code to get a free ride up to $20 for signin gup).
    • PCBF will also have a bike valet (bring your own lock) courtesy of Spinlister, The Global Bike Share. Present your valet parking stub inside the festival for a free 4 oz. pour.
    • Pedi-cabs will also be on hand – a scenic trip along the waterfront park for anyone looking to go back and forth from the Waterfront Blues Festival.
    • And for those with designated drivers, there is a parking lot at Station Place Garage Lot 120 at 720 NW Lovejoy Court, at the west end of the Broadway Bridge.

As I mentioned earlier, I’ll be at PCBF on Friday, so check my Untappd profile at pechluck to see my thoughts on some of the beer, and my Instagram @pechluck or Twitter @pechluck for any pictures!

What do you think of the ideas of the Portland Craft Beer Festival –  do you find it so very Portland like I do? What are your holiday weekend plans?

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My picks for Portland Fruit Beer Festival 2015

June 10, 2015 by Leave a Comment

I had an opportunity to sample a few of the beers at a Media Preview, though a few of my picks are also based on the description of the beer and reputation of the brewery. If you are attending the Portland Fruit Beer Festival 2015 this year, which runs Friday June 12 to Sunday June 14, here is a quick summary of the logistics and my picks of the most interesting beers for Portland Fruit Beer Festival 2015.
Portland Fruit Beer Festival 2015

Portland Fruit Beer Festival Main Facts

  • Days and Hours of Operation:
    • Friday June 12th 4pm – 9pm
    • Saturday June 13th 11am – 9pm
    • Sunday June 14th 11am – 6pm (special kegs will be tapped Sunday)
  • Location: 7th and NE Burnside, which is at Burnside Brewing and also the extra lot (Sat and Sun only) to give more room this year to spread out!
  • Cost: $20 for for one 21+ entry  12 tickets and a collectible 16oz glass. Purchase and print your ticket in advance for faster entry at Stranger Tickets (so they say anyway – it does add processing fees but at the door is cash only). Re-entry on all festival days is allowed as long as you get your wristband and the glass.
  • Admittance: The festival is all ages, though you must be 21+ to drink alcohol. There will also be non-alcoholic drinks and food available for purchase
  • Food Situation: from Burnside Brewery’s brewpub all three days, and/or from food carts on Sat/Sun such as Bunk Sandwiches and Taco Pedaler and the Fifty Licks Ice Cream truck. As extra credit, you can also take a little walk to Bar Vivant/Pix Patisserie and present your receipt, wristband or festival glass from the Portland Fruit Beer Festival and get a token for a FREE beer in their beer garden.

Pech’s Portland Fruit Beer Festival Beer Picks

The reality is that I plan to go more than 1 day, and I will probably taste everything (and re-taste even the ones I previewed as it’s been an additional week so it could have changed). But, I thought by giving a few highlights you can get a little hint at what’s in store this year, and make you want to check out the full beer/cider list here yourself!

  • This year, the Portland Fruit Beer Festival is releasing a special collaboration beer bottle that will only be available in limited quantity at the fest in draft and bottle form. I had a chance to taste this beer, named Fruit of the Garden of Good and Evil, at the Media Preview and it is spectacular. The beer is a collaboration between Burnside Brewing Co. Sweet Heat and Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider Ghost Chili Tepache. The way I would describe it is that it has the nose and tastes vaguely similar to when you go to a Brazilian steakhouse and they have those grilled pineapples that are juicy and sweet with a bit of sugar and spice with cinnamon… well this beer is like that but better because of the spicy heat from the Ghost peppers, Scotch Bonnet peppers, and Aji peppers that are contributed by the chilis usually present in Sweet Heat and  Ghost Chili Tepache.
    Portland Fruit Beer Festival bottle label for Fruit of the Garden of Good and Evil
    Available in 22 ounce bottles only at Burnside Brewing during the Fruit Beer Fest for $7 (only 60 cases made), with limited draft poured at the festival, Reverend Nat’s taproom, and special events in the future TBD… I would get the bottles right away when entering myself, but be wary because of the heat that this might blow your palate away so maybe save to drink later after you’ve had all the lighter fruit beers.
  • I can’t help but go “squeeee” whenever I see female brewers, and the Peaches of Immortality Farmhouse Ale Burnside Brewing is pouring at the fest this year is nicely tart and sour where finally I can taste the peachy flavor (peaches are so delicate and often get lost in beer) along with the French saison yeast. Yay Natalie! She has already put some in a Ransom Gin Barrel with peaches and other goodness that she is setting aside so I look forward to stalking to see what becomes of that batch in a few months.
    Natalie Baldwin of Burnside Brewing talks about Peaches of Immortality at the Media Preview for the Portland Fruit Beer Festival
  • Ecliptic Brewing‘s is premiering Ultra Violet Blackberry Sour Ale which don’t worry, is not very sour. It has just enough sour to be crisp and balance the Oregon blackberries to make for a very refreshing beer that is dangerous because it tastes much lighter than the 7.5% ABV it punches at. Also, though this is probably no big deal to brewer John Harris ha ha, I thought it was the prettiest beer at the Media Preview.
    The lovely color of the Ecliptic Brewing Ultra Violet Blackberry Sour Ale at the Media Preview for the Portland Fruit Beer Festival John Harris of Ecliptic Brewing talks about Ultra Violet Blackberry Sour Ale at the Media Preview for the Portland Fruit Beer Festival
  • For an entirely different take on berries (though John used Oregon Fruit Products puree, while Brendan used Columbia Fruit frozen berries), try the ballsy Alameda Brewing‘s Berried By Night Marionberry CDA. Brendan took a big risk by combining Marion blackberries with 7 varieties of hops into this Cascadian Dark Ale – dark and roasty like a porter, some of the hoppiness of the IPA but balanced by those blackberries which you can definitely taste at the tail end after the initial hops and caramel malt. What a surprisingly winning combo.
    Alameda Brewing's Brendan Ford-Sala talks about Berired By Night Marionberry CDA at the Media Preview for the Portland Fruit Beer Festival
  • I love dark beers, so seeing a stout on the list will get my attention. Upright Brewing is presenting their B.B. Stout, which is a stout with over 200 pounds of blueberry.
  • I haven’t had a chance to taste it yet, but I generally enjoy the beers of Breakside Brewery so their Tropical Fruit Salad Quasi IPA Six Fruit Blend is making my list for it’s attempt to reverse engineer to match the flavors and aromas of fruits that hops sometimes have with six actual fruits.
  • The Widmer Brothers Brewing Fresh Strawberries Farmhouse Saison with Strawberries is a tasty collaboration with Coda Brewing from Colorado, the winner of the startup brewery challenge to travel up to Portland and become Widmer’s “Brother for a Day”. This takes the Sleepyhead Passionfruit Imperial Kolsch that Coda does (and which took home a silver medal at the 2014 Great American Beer Fest) and combines it now with strawberries and French Saison yeast
  • Not a beer, but I’m a big fan of 2 Towns Ciderhouse of Corvallis as they are always creating interesting combinations with their ciders. For the fest they will debut the Peach Saison Cider that blends a mix of a blend of several northwest apples (many which don’t admittedly taste good on their own in apple form, but great as a cider) blended with Oregon white peaches and French saison yeast. It’s simply a mix of “good fruit, good cider” Kevin explained.
    Kevin Hood of 2 Towns Ciderhouse talks about Peach Saison Cider at the Media Preview for the Portland Fruit Beer Festival
  • One of the reserve kegs tapping on Sunday only is the Bogman’s Cranberry Brett Cider by Cider   Riot! with traditional Yamhill county English cider apples, Oregon cranberry and inoculated with Cherry cider. At 3pm Sunday they’ll tap their firkin.
  • Other rare beer tapping on Sunday to lure you in included Hopworks One Tun Tomato Michelada made with Totally radler, chili powder, Worchestershire sauce, house made blood mary mix, and tabasco and (questionable qualification as fruit beer,though the beer itself is interesting to me) New Belgium Brewing Bourbon barrel-aged Salted Chocolate Stout Nitro keg poured through a Randall filled with black cherries
  • I haven’t had this yet, but the idea of the Hi-Wheel Wine & Mead Co. Kiwi Lime sounds super refreshing. I love lime-ade, so their beverage for the fest of a tart fizzy wine made from fresh lime juice and kiwi that is carbonated seems like a promise to cool off with deliciousness.

Definitely a theme I saw this year is a lot of kettle souring (read more about kettle souring at this great article at the New School website “How Kettle Souring Is Making Sour Beer Cheap and Affordable”), a lot of Nancy’s yogurt (yay choose and support local!), and French saison yeast.

Are you a fruit beer fan? What fruit beers from the Portland Fruit Beer Festival (or cider) sound intriguing to you?

Disclosure: I attended a Media Preview so I was able to taste the beers for free, but I purchased my own ticket to the Portland Fruit Beer Festival with no discount and this post was written because I enjoyed the beer – I was not asked or required to write it. I will always provide my honest opinion and assessment of all products and experiences I may be given. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own.

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