What does it take to be a truly dedicated fan of craft ale and liquor? A well-trained palate? A temperature-controlled cellar? A bank account the size of the moon? All three help—but exploring the upper tier of alcohol requires some education, too. When it comes to beer, the biggest indulgence purchase you can make is […]
Kevin Gifford
Posted inFood & Drink
Stop and Smell the Beer
Bend’s Bouquet of Beer, the thoughtful gift for craftheads
Like beer? Fed up with all the pesky driving around and going to the store required to purchase beer? If you live in metro Bend, your prayers have been answered. Bouquet of Beer, founded this summer by Andrew Gorman and Daniel Brewster (with a last name like that, it’d be a crime if he wasn’t […]
Posted inFood & Drink
When is Craft No Longer Craft?
Buyout deals at Lagunitas and elsewhere give drinkers pause
“Budweiser bought 10 Barrel Brewing in Bend, OR,” wrote Lagunitas Brewing Company founder Tony Magee on Twitter last November (spelling and grammar cleaned up for this article). “Not because they love craft. Because they wanna control craft beer. Friends of 10 Barrel cheer its owners’ ‘success’. I can’t blame them for being scared of doing […]
Posted inFood & Drink
How The Bruery Got Its Groove Back
The Terreux line hits Bend en masse
The Bruery, the Orange County-based craft beer maker founded by Patrick Rue in 2008, has nothing if not a colorful lineup. Known for intense experimentation (and, often, equally intense pricing on its 750-milliliter bottles), The Bruery’s beers run the gamut from light, refreshing saisons to enormous beasts like Black Tuesday, their bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout—2015’s […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Make Your Beer Humm
Kombucha & beer combine for one hot shandy
Humm Kombucha, the unassuming fermented-tea maker in the little building off NE Second Street is beginning to make its presence better known around town and beyond. Not in terms of new success—it’s already got plenty of that, with flavors like Apple Sass and Blueberry Mint now available in grocery stores across not just Bend, but […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Fresh Hop Season Begins Early
Harvests take place across Central Oregon
Hops, if you’ll pardon the easy pun, are hopping around here. It’s been a challenging summer for growing something that requires as much attention as hop vines—harvests across the region are taking place a good week or two earlier than usual this year. But the hopes are still flowing, and local brewers can’t get enough […]
Posted inFood & Drink
A Bigger Kid on the Block
Corvallis’s Block 15 completes a sorely-needed expansion
Walk into Block 15’s brand-spanking-new production facility on the far south side of Corvallis, and you’ll think they are a much larger brewery than they actually are. Originally opened in early 2008, Block 15’s brewpub in downtown Corvallis has been pumping out brews of exceptional quality for thirsty OSU students and other mid-Willamette Valley dwellers. […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Bend Brewfest: The Cheat Sheet
Grab your tokens and try these beers first
Ladies and gentlemen, get your livers ready. Run a couple extra laps around the block. Invest in a good water bottle. Maybe some pretzel necklaces, too. It’s gonna be a long weekend. Bend Brewfest is back, kicking off at noon sharp on Thursday and running (or staggering, depending on how much you indulge) all the […]
Posted inBest Of Central Oregon
Best Brewer
Paul Arney—Ale Apothecary
This year, the vote for Best Brewer gives particular insight to Bend’s brewing scene because it so accurately reflects the two directions the industry is going right now. The runner-up: Tony Lawrence, brewmaster and co-founder of Boneyard Beer, a man whose IPAs flow in seemingly every bar in Oregon and Washington. And, the winner, by […]
Posted inFood & Drink
A Beer-cation in Sunriver
Two taprooms make for one worthy trip
The Mountain Jug is the kind of place any beer lover wishes was their local watering hole. Wood-paneled walls. Comfortable couches. An AC/DC pinball machine in the corner, and a ’70s-era VW Thing parked semi-permanently outside. A few hundred vinyl albums for you to freely choose from. And, of course, lots and lots of local […]
