Before then, though, I thought I’d grab a couple of pictures of the land that Worthy will be occupying, before any buildout starts:

Worthy Brewing land, at the northeast corner looking southwest

Worthy Brewing land, at the west edge looking east

Not much to look at now but it’s a nice big chunk of land that’s easily accessible and will develop out nicely. The land fronts Highway 20, the main east-west route in and out of Bend, and in the immediate area there is a movie theater (kitty-corner to the southwest, Pilot Butte Cinemas), a lot of residential housing, a large restaurant and smaller dining and fast food options immediately adjacent (The Phoenix, along with a Subway, Taco Bell, China Doll, Starbucks, a frozen yogurt shop), several hotels within a few blocks, and a larger shopping center across the street to the west that includes Barnes & Noble, Safeway, Whole Foods, Costco, Old Navy, and more. In short, it’s a good location for a (much-needed) eastside brewery.

And it should be an impressive facility; here are their plans, and a design mockup:

And in the latest email newsletter the following features are listed:

• A 22,000 square foot production brewery
• Pilot brewhouse for nailing recipes and concocting experimental beer styles
• 4,000 sq. ft restaurant anchored by a wood fired oven
• Bar top sourced from reclaimed old growth Doug Fir sourced from the Oregon State Hospital, featured in Kesey’s “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”
• A 1/3 acre low trellis hop garden showcasing Oregon-grown experimental hops and a herb garden
• Top of the line European-made rotary head canning line
• Greenhouse named after Dr. Al Haunold, America’s greatest HopMeister
• Solar Panels and a Thermal Water Heating System
• Bavarian beer garden with picnic tables, two firepits and shade trees festooned with lights…and more hop vines
• Bike racks, bottle filled Gabion boxes and of course a full sized VELODROME!
• Just kidding on the Velodrome, but hey, we’re dreaming, right?

It’s very ambitious and will be interesting to watch the progress, which will culminate in a finished brewery by (tentatively) January 2013.

If you wanted to attend the ceremony, follow the RSVP directions on Facebook. (I’ll be there.)

Surviving the Zombie Apocalypse: Beer Brewing

Friday, February 10, 2012 from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM (ET)

Durham, NC

Beer is an important food group for most college students, so knowing how to make your own if things go south is essential. Learn about the basics of homebrewing in this hands-on workshop.

Hosted by Duke Campus Farm:

The Duke Campus Farm is a one-acre fruit and vegetable farm that provides the Duke community with fresh, delicious, sustainable produce and an educational facility around all things food related.

Alas no, just missed it. It’s hard to tell if it was simply a beginning homebrewing class or if they were taking the “brew in any situation” angle. I hope it was the latter, especially considering they have a whole series of “Surviving the Zombie Apocalypse” events.

Ezra commented on my post yesterday concerning Fire on the Mountain has actually been established and brewing beer for several months now: indeed I got this wrong. They’re still new, but not “yet to open” new!

Cascade Brewing (Portland): Today is their Tart Fruit Extravaganza which I’ve been drooling over, celebrating tart fruits and tart beers all day long (starting at noon when they open). They have some 29! fruit beers to tap, and they’ll keep them on tap for a week or until they blow the keg. It’s a pretty amazing lineup they’ve posted, with beers like Winter Gose, Apricot, The Vine 2011, Live Chocolate Raspberry, and  Rhubarb Crisp. Be sure to stop in today to try some of these amazing beers!

Continue reading “Oregon Beer News, 02/21/2012” »

Remember, for the most part we are focusing on the post-apocalyptic aftermath: there’s no sense in trying to find time to brew beer while the fires are still raging and bearing down on you, so to speak.

Continue reading “Apocalypse Beer: Which apocalypse?” »

Worthy Brewing (Bend): This Friday the 24th at 3pm is the groundbreaking ceremony for the new brewery and beer garden headed up by Roger Worthington and Chad Kennedy on their land on the east side of Bend. In addition to (I believe) a 30-barrel brewery there are also plans to build out an educational facility and—best of all, in my opinion—a beer garden. I’ll be in attendance and will be posting pictures, stop by if you’re in Bend!

Fire on the Mountain Brewery (Portland): This new entry into Portland’s brewing scene isn’t open yet but I noticed on the latest Oregon Brewers Guild 2012 guide it was listed to open this spring; looking it up (linked on the OBG) reveals that it’s going to be Fire on the Mountain wing company’s new Fremont location: “Under the guidance of Brewmaster Ben Nehrling, we strive to provide consistently high quality ales and lagers. Ben has been brewing professionally for seven years splitting his time between McMenamin’s Highland Brewery and the Concordia Brewery at the Kennedy School. He is very excited to be on board with long time friends at Fire on the Mountain. Together, they are committed to matching fine quality beer with fine quality food in a relaxed and communal atmosphere.” Should be interesting to watch this one develop.

Continue reading “Oregon Beer News, 02/20/2012” »

Continue reading “Zwickelmania Bend notes” »

2012 President’s Day weekend, dozens of Oregon breweries and brewpubs will open their doors to visitors for the state’s 4th annual Zwickelmania. Zwickelmania, hosted by the Oregon Brewers Guild (OBG), is a free statewide event that offers visitors a chance to tour Oregon breweries, meet the brewers and sample their favorite beers.
When: Saturday, February 18th, 2012 from 11-4 pm
What: Oregon Brewers Guild Brewery Open House.

I’ve been mentioning this all week in my Oregon Beer News posts because I think it’s a fantastic way to get people interested in beer and brewing and it’s such an easy way for breweries to participate. And many go above and beyond just offering tours as well: sampling rare beers, offering food, glassware and other swag, and much more.

And don’t forget the three big beer regions have shuttles running too: Portland, Eugene, and Central Oregon. The schedules for those can be found on the Zwickelmania page.

Read on to see the full list of participating breweries

Is everybody set for Zwickelmania tomorrow? This year’s (fourth) edition looks to be the best yet, with lots of breweries participating and many going above and beyond to offer up a great experience. And remember, if you’re in Portland, Eugene, or Central Oregon there are shuttles that can take you touring to the various breweries.

GoodLife Brewing (Bend): In addition to the Zwickelmania festivities, tomorrow they are also holding their bottle release party celebrating the release of their Mountain Rescue Pale Ale in 22-ounce bottles.

Continue reading “Oregon Beer News, 02/17/2012” »

McMenamins (Portland): Saturday the 25th is the Hillsdale Brewfest, and this year it’s the 19th annual edition of this “grandaddy” of McMenamins beer events. This is the fest where 22 original McMenamins beers are entered from their different breweries, the winner of which (based on people’s choice) represents McMenamins at the Oregon Brewers Festival. Read the full press release here.

Lompoc Brewing (Portland): Tomorrow, Friday the 17th, is Lompoc’s Batch 69 Baltic Porter Release Party from 4 to 10pm at their main Lompoc location. In addition to this perfect cold-weather beer, they’ll have a number of other delicious-sounding beers on tap: “Batch 69 Baltic Porter is a strong dark beer with hints of chocolate and black licorice. It was brewed with a lager yeast, giving it a much cleaner smoother finish than a traditional porter. We’ll also be serving up New Olde Ale, an old ale brewed with an English style Windsor yeast resulting in a beer that’s rich and full bodied with a deep mahogany color and rich malt fruitiness; Sour Willy, a blend of five different beers for a light, complex, slightly sour beer with a fruity aroma and mellow cherry, oak flavors; Rosemary Stout, our Sockeye Stout that sat on rosemary sprigs for five days, lending a slight rosemary aroma with a licorice and chocolate flavor; C-sons Greetings; and Fool’s Golden Ale.”

Continue reading “Oregon Beer News, 02/16/2012” »

PORTLAND, Ore.—On Saturday, February 25, 2012, the notorious “Battle of the Belt” rages for the nineteenth time at Hillsdale Brewery & Public House (1505 SW Sunset Blvd.). McMenamins’ Hillsdale Brewfest is a day-long event featuring 22 original brews such as Mad Hatter Imperial IPA, 4K Lager, Mexicali Rose Wheat and The Girl Next Door Belgian Blond, along with food specials, revelry, merriment and – most important – a competition for the coveted Belt. The Hillsdale Brewfest is free to attend, begins at 11 a.m. and is open to guests of all ages; those 21 and over may taste the ales.

Twenty-two of the finest ales from McMenamins’ breweries are sent into battle, their brewers vying for bragging rights, the notorious championship belt and a berth in the annual Oregon Brewers Festival. Patrons order “trays” of beer, arranged from lightest to darkest – each of the two trays offers eleven 4-ounce samples. It is our guests’ duty to decide who deserves the coveted title. With seventeen ales from Oregon and five from Washington, these beers cover the spectrum of brew styles – from steam beer to American brown ale, imperial stout to black IPA and beyond. Each taster casts one ballot that lists his or her top three choices.

The victorious brewer at this year’s Battle of the Belt will represent McMenamins at the 25th Annual Oregon Brewers Festival in downtown Portland on July 26–29, 2012. For more information, visit www.oregonbrewfest.com.

And now… [drumroll, please]… the 19^th Annual Hillsdale Brewfest entrants are….

Cornelius Pass Roadhouse Brewery (Hillsboro, OR) * Steam Beer
Steam Punk

West Linn Brewery (West Linn, OR) * Special Bitter
Green Eyeshades Special Bitter

McMenamins on Monroe (Corvallis, OR) * Wheat
Mexicali Rose Wheat

Mill Creek Brewery (Mill Creek, WA) * Pale Ale
Hop Loops

McMenamins on the Columbia Brewery (Vancouver, WA) * Amber
Four Winds Amber Ale

McMenamins Queen Anne Brewery (Seattle, WA) * Belgian IPA
Intemperate Disposition IPA

Old Church Brewery (Wilsonville, OR) * Imperial IPA
Mad Hatter Imperial IPA

Old St. Francis Brewery (Bend, OR) * American Brown Ale
Parson Brown

Oak Hills Brewery (Portland, OR) * Black Wheat
Darth Weizen

Lighthouse Brewery (Lincoln City, OR) * Imperial Stout
Black Pearl Imperial Stout

High Street Brewery (Eugene, OR) * Porter
Mon Cherry Porter

Concordia Brewery (Portland, OR) * Northwest-Style Pilsner
4K Lager

East Vancouver Brewery (Vancouver, WA) * Wheat Ale
Southern Sun Wheat

Six Arms Brewery (Seattle, WA) * Belgian Blond
Girl Next Door Belgian Blond

Highland Brewery (Gresham, OR) * American Pale Ale
Portlandia Pale Ale

Edgefield Brewery (Troutdale, OR) * ESB
The Reformation

Thompson Brewery (Salem, OR) * Northwest Amber
Treme Northwest Amber

John Barleycorns Brewery (Tigard, OR) * IPA
Freewill IPA

Crystal Brewery (Portland, OR) * Doppelbock
Obamanator Doppelbock

Roseburg Station Brewery (Roseburg, OR) * Multigrain Stout
Umber Waves of Grain

Fulton Brewery (Portland, OR) * Black IPA
Black ‘Ops

Hillsdale Brewery (Portland, OR) * Porter
Mojo’s Mocha Porter

******

About the Hillsdale Brewery & Public House

Opened in 1986, after state legislation was passed that allowed brewers to sell their product onsite, the Hillsdale was among the first to try fruit beers, unfiltered wheat ales and other concoctions that have become hallmarks of the Pacific Northwest craft brewing industry. It is McMenamins’ third location (following the Barley Mill and Greenway pubs). Additional history is available at mcmenamins.com.

About McMenamins Hotels, Pubs & Breweries

The name “McMenamin” is well known throughout the Pacific Northwest, signifying a great place to enjoy handcrafted ales, wine and spirits and Northwest pub fare with family and friends. The dream began more than 20 years ago and continues to grow in the hearts of brothers Mike and Brian McMenamin. With 57 properties (and counting), the siblings are considered to be among the pioneers of the Pacific Northwest microbrew and historic hotels industries. See mcmenamins.com for photos, history, events and more.