If Helen of Troy’s was the face that launched a thousand ships, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale was the beer that launched a thousand (or 7,000, by today’s count!) breweries. First released by the pioneering Chico, California brewery in 1980, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale introduced the world to the grapefruit punch of Northwest-grown Cascade hops, and […]
Zach Beckwith, Head Brewer, Bend Brewing Company
Posted inFood & Drink
Festival Season Begins with Central Oregon Beer Week
Back for its seventh year, Central Oregon Beer Week begins with a kickoff party Friday night at Kobold Brewing‘s The Vault Taphouse. The festival, now under the direction of the Central Oregon Brewer’s Guild, runs from Friday May 17 to Sunday May 26. The “Beer Week” phenomenon began in 2007 with Philadelphia Beer Week. It […]
Posted inFood & Drink
It Ain’t Easy Brewing Green
Cannabis beers continue to evolve and gain popularity, despite challenges
Beer and cannabis have been informally linked for generations. With the growing legalization movement and general mainstreaming of cannabis culture, the relationship has become formalized. From early hemp beers to modern CBD- and terpene-laden IPAs, cannabis and beer together has become more than a novelty and is poised to be a trend. It comes as […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Are One-Offs Killing Year-Round Beers?
As a brewer, the question I get asked most often is, “What are you working on next?” Apparently, the old Hollywood axiom that “an actor is only as good as their last picture” rings just as true for brewers. People no longer seem to think about the beer they’re drinking; they’re too busy thinking about […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Promoting Passion
New Oregon Brewers Guild co-director on Zwickelmania
Every year, February brings Valentine’s Day, Presidents Day and of course, Zwickelmania—the annual statewide brewery open house, organized by the Oregon Brewers Guild. The Guild has recently undergone a number of changes, including the hiring of new co-directors Tony Roberts and Bend local Christina LaRue. I recently sat down with LaRue over a glass of […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Keeping It Real (Ale)
Cask-conditioned beer, done properly in Central Oregon
Few things in the world of beer are as passionately loved and at the same time misunderstood as true cask-conditioned “real ale.” Rescued from near extinction in the 1970s by the Campaign for Real Ale in its home country of England, cask-conditioned ales have remained an odd curiosity in the U.S. In recent years, a dedicated […]
Posted inFood & Drink
The Rise and Fall of the 22-ounce Bottle
The bottle that helped fuel the expansion of small brewpubs appears to be in decline.
Posted inFood & Drink
Dortmunder Export
The Next Trendy Lager
Introducing Craft: New brews, industry news and takes on other drinks of note. Starting in the late ’80s and through the early 2000s, “micro” and “microbrew” were the terms du jour in the beer industry. Deschutes Brewery and Widmer Brothers were the upstarts in an industry long dominated by macro-breweries. In a little more than […]