Hops from the Land Down Under

Courtesy of Australia Beer

It is known all over the world that Aussies love three things: beer, beaches and barbecues. The ever-growing love for craft beer puts the country’s biggest hop grower in high demand.

With over 400 microbreweries in Australia, hop farms in Victoria and Tasmania are expanding to keep up with this increasing requirement. Australia’s biggest hop producer now has 12 varieties of hops on offer for craft beer makers in the country.

Famous for its bold and intense flavors, American hops have always been very popular around the world. The most widely used variety by craft breweries in the United States is Cascade hops. Cascade has a range of character coming from floral and spicy undertones, as well as its main grapefruit note.

The flavor spectrum of hops can be classified as fruity, floral, spicy, or woody. Those grown in Australia tend to be much fruitier than other hops produced elsewhere, making them well-loved in the United States. The citrus aromatics that they can impart to IPAs, pale ales and other hoppy beers made in Australia, distinguishes them from what is already offered in the United States.

Galaxy has quickly become the most internationally recognized Australian flavor hop. It has a very fruity and juicy note that is most commonly associated with passionfruit, but it can also have a peachy or orange tilt as well.

Australian Brewery’s Pale Ale uses Galaxy hops, giving it a rich aroma of citrus and passionfruit that you cannot find elsewhere. This characteristically cloudy Australian ale is crisp and refreshing, full of truly distinctive aromas that make for a perfect mix of flavor and drinkability.

Australian Brewery beers are available at craft liquor stores and fresh on tap at craft beer establishments across the US.

Price Guide: $13-$16 Per 6 Pack

For more information please visit www.australianbrewery.com

Double Mountain Brewery ReleasingNew Seasonal - Citra Single-Hop IPA

Courtesy of Double Mountain Brewing Co

Hood River, OR - June, 2017 – Double Mountain Brewery & Taproom is pleased to introduce their new seasonal: Citra Single-Hop IPA. Currently available on draft and in bottles at the downtown Hood River Taproom and SE Portland Taproom in the Woodstock neighborhood. Citra can be found throughout the Northwest and British Columbia in early June.

“Citra is fun to work with. It's diverse, and rolls well with the punches. It smells and tastes awesome. I've never been a part of the cool kids club, but at the end of the day, we can all sit down and have a beer” – Matt Coughlin, Brewer

Courtesy of Double Mountain Brewing Co

Citra  

Single Hop IPA

6.3% ABV, 60 BU

Description: Sometimes you invite the cool kid to the party, and they turn out to be, well, pretty cool.  Citra hops bring a festival of stone fruit, dank ruby red grapefruit, and pineapple to the party, keeping the mood light and luminous. 

About Double Mountain Brewery and Taproom: Double Mountain Brewery and Taproom was established in 2007 in the heart of downtown Hood River, OR. Founder Matt Swihart opened the brewery with a clear mission: make great beer for craft beer fans. Their unique location lends to not only using pure and clean glacial water for their beers, but they also take advantage of regionally grown hops. With their reusable bottle program, customers love the softer environmental footprint and know they are part of a solution to sustainability. They can be found on tap and in bottles throughout the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia. Learn more at www.doublemountainbrewery.com

Ecliptic Brewing Announces Portland Beer Week Events

Courtesy of Ecliptic Brewing

PORTLAND, Ore. (May 31)- From June 8^th through the 18^th, breweries throughout the US will come to Oregon to celebrate one of the most anticipated weeks of the year, Portland Beer Week.  Ecliptic Brewing will be celebrating with several events, including the return of Masters of IPA for a third year.

The complete list of Ecliptic Brewing events for Portland Beer Week include:

Brewers and Their Bands

June 15^th, 6pm-10pm at Ecliptic Brewing

For the fourth year in a row, Brewers and their Bands will bring together brewers to perform with their bands on Ecliptic’s outdoor patio, which features 20 tables and seating for 120 with expansive views of the city.  There is no cost to attend.

Music schedules is as follows:
*6-6:45 pm: Roadopossum featuring John Harris from Ecliptic Brewing

*7-7:45pm: The Licklog Disputes featuring Max Skewes from Burnside Brewing Co.

*8-8:45pm Black Lodge featuring Ron Gansberg from Cascade Brewing Barrel House

*9-9:45pm: Mountain Fist featuring Shaun Kalis from Ruse Brewing and John Harris

For more information visit the Facebook event page.

Masters of IPA III

June 16^th, 4pm-9pm at Ecliptic Brewing

PDX Beer Week and Ecliptic Brewing present the Masters of IPA invitational returning for its 3rd year! Fourteen of the best India Pale Ale brewers from across the country will be featured. This year's fest will be held at Ecliptic Brewing in their outdoor space with collectible glassware, 4oz and 8oz pours of beer.

Participating Breweries: Melvin Brewing, Grains of Wrath, Cloudburst Brewing, Breakside Brewery, Boneyard Beer, Barley Brown’s Brew Pub, Great Notion Brewing, Ecliptic Brewing, Block 15 Brewing Co., Beachwood BBQ, Monkish Brewing Co., Fort George Brewery, Comrade Brewing Company, and Ballast Point Brewing Company.

For more information and ticket sales, visit the PDX Beer Week website.

Additional events for Ecliptic Brewing:

Portland Fruit Beer Festival

 June 9^th-11^th at Burnside Brewing

We will be pouring a limited amount of our Barrel-Aged Carina Peach Sour Ale with Brett.  Event details here.

Weird Beer Bonanza

June 10^th, 12pm-11pm at Imperial Bottleshop and Taproom

We will be pouring our Carina Calala Passionfruit + Peach Sour Imperial Wit.  Event details here.

Elephants on Corbett

June 15^th, 12pm-2pm at Elephants on Corbett

Come join us for a free tasting event featuring several of our beers.

Snackdown!

June 18^th, 12pm-4pm at The Evergreen (above Loyal Legion)

We will be pouring our Carina Peach Sour Ale paired with a snack from our Snackdown partner, Loyal Legion.  Event details here.

               

About Ecliptic Brewing

Ecliptic Brewing is a venture from John Harris, an Oregon beer icon whose background is steeped in the state’s rich craft brewing history. The name Ecliptic unites Harris’ two passions: brewing and astronomy, and as such, the brewery celebrates the Earth’s yearly journey around the sun through both its beer and restaurant menus. Executive chef Michael Molitor rotates his seasonally inspired menu every six weeks in accordance with the old world calendar. Harris’ signature beers include Spectra Hoppy Pilsner, Orbiter IPA, Carina Peach Sour Ale, and Capella Porter. For more information, visit: www.eclipticbrewing.com.

Ecliptic beers are available at the brewery (825 North Cook St), in package and on-tap throughout the area, and distributed by: Maletis Beverage (Portland, Salem, Vancouver WA), Bigfoot Beverage (Eugene, Bend, Coast), Fort George Distributing (Northern Oregon Coast), Summit Distribution (Southern Oregon), Click Distributing (Seattle, Tacoma, Spokane, Northern Idaho), Dickerson Distributing (Bellingham), Crooked Stave Artisans (Colorado), Freedom Distributors (North Carolina), BeerThirst (Canada), and Graybeal (Eastern Oregon).

Lompoc Brewing releases Proletariat Red in cans, hosts a BBQ, and announces Barrel Aged Select Series in bottles

Courtesy of Lompoc Brewing

PORTLAND, Ore. – May 31, 2017 – Lompoc Brewing’s award-winning Proletariat Red is now available in 12 oz. cans, sold as a six-pack, joining the flagship beer’s availability on draft and in 22 oz. bottles. The cans can be purchased at the brewery’s Fifth Quadrant and Sidebar locations (3901 N Williams Ave.), and in select stores throughout the Portland metropolitan area.

Courtesy of Lompoc Brewing

Lompoc has announced a BBQ party to celebrate the release of the cans on Saturday, June 17, from 4pm to 9pm at its Fifth Quadrant pub. There will be corn hole games, prizes, BBQ food specials and a fire pit. The six packs will feature special pricing that day, and the brewery’s Lömpocker Hoppy Kölsch and new Lomporter will be available on draft. Admission to the event is free.

A silver medal winner at the 2015 Great American Beer Festival, Proletariat Red is deep chestnut in color, and features toasted malt with biscuit undertones leading to caramelized pear and cinnamon. It strikes a complementary balance between malt and hops, and weighs in at 6.2% ABV.

Courtesy of Lompoc Brewing

Lompoc is also debuting a new Select Series later this month: Barrel Aged Red on Rye will be released in 500ml bottles and on draft on Thursday, June 22 at 4pm at Sidebar. Barrel Aged Red on Rye was aged in Heaven Hill Rye Whiskey barrels for 10 months. Crimson in color, it features oak in the nose to complement a malty body with caramel flavors. It was brewed with Rauch malt, giving off a touch of smoke and acidulated malt giving off a slight tartness (6% ABV).

About Lompoc Brewing

Lompoc Brewing creates eight flavorful year-round beers, plus a ridiculous number of seasonals. You can find Lompoc Beers in 12-ounce and 22-ounce bottles, 12-ounce cans, and on draft at locations in Oregon and Washington, and at its five Portland neighborhood pubs: Fifth Quadrant and Sidebar in North Portland, Hedge House and Oaks Bottom in Southeast, and the Lompoc Tavern in Northwest. Proudly brewed in Lompoc, Oregon, a state of mind; if you’re here, then you're already there.

Kells Brew Pub in Northwest Portland Rebrands Itself At Kells Brewery

Courtesy of Kells Brewery

PORTLAND, Ore. – May 30, 2017 – Kells Brew Pub, located at 201 NW 21st Ave., has rebranded itself as Kells Brewery, including the introduction of a new logo, an updated website, and renamed social media handles.

Originally established in August of 2012, Kells Brewery has seen massive success over the last five years. Its original intent was to produce three styles of beer in-house for the Kells restaurants in Portland and Seattle.

Today, the 10-barrel brewhouse has a standard lineup of eight year-round styles, a number of seasonals, and 500ml bottles of its IPA and Irish Red Ale on shelves at bottles shops and specialty grocery stores across town. The 10-barrel stainless steel brewhouse produced more than 1,200 barrels of beer in 2016, and is on track to produce over 1,400 this year.

“The brewery has really taken off, and now has much more of a presence outside of the pub than it did in the beginning,” explained owner Garrett McAleese regarding the reason behind the rebranding. “As we keep growing in distribution, it makes more sense to focus on the brand versus the venue.”

The brewery’s new logo features a clean Celtic knot in the shape of a shamrock, an homage to the brewery’s Irish roots. The logo is featured on all new pint glasses, menus and signage.

Coinciding with the rebranding, the brewery has announced its summer hours, with all ages welcome from 11:30am to 12am Sunday through Thursday, and 11:30am to 1:30am Friday and Saturday. It has also brought back the return of its popular late night happy hour.

Kells can now be found at www.kellsbrewery.com and @kellsbrewery on social media. For more information, call 503-719-7175.

Bale Breaker Announces Full Time Summer Food Truck Line Up

Courtesy of Bale Breaker Brewing Co

May 30, 2017 - Summer has arrived in the Yakima Valley, and the Bale Breaker Taproom is the perfect gathering place to enjoy fresh brews, fresh food, and that golden Yakima sunshine. There will be a local food truck at the brewery’s taproom six days a week from Memorial Day through Labor Day. And summer seasonal beers include Raging Ditch Dry-Hopped Blonde and Lazy L India Pale Lager.

Especially exciting this year is a partnership with Guerra’s Gourmet on Wednesday nights. Chef Chris Guerra will prepare a unique menu with ingredients carefully sourced from the Yakima Valley. These Fresh off the Farm Dinners will be a great mid-week reason to come out to Bale Breaker. 

“Our beer is fresh off our hop farm, and Guerra’s food is fresh from the farms of the Yakima Valley. It’s the perfect partnership,” said Meghann Quinn, business manager at Bale Breaker. Bring the kids and the dogs and come see us! 

Our 2017 Food Truck Partners include: 

·      Guerra’s Gourmet

·      Staci’s Catering (look for her Taco Tuesdays and Cheese Zombie nights)

·      Kim’s Got Smoke BBQ

·      Hop Town Pizza

·      Chronic Foods

·      Twisted Sisters

The complete schedule can be found at https://www.balebreaker.com/events/

Pike Brewing Releasing Pike Seafair Summer Ale - New Summer Seasonal

Courtesy of Pike Brewing Co

Two Seattle icons pair up for a hoppy summer.  Pike Brewing Company announces our summer seasonal beer release: Pike Seafair Summer Ale. A light and lemony summer ale, Pike Seafair Summer Ale has a clean and round mouthfeel that pops with citrusy hops. Crisp and bright in your glass with a white head, this session ale is ready for your summer adventures and toasts Seafair, a 67 year old Seattle tradition.
“I wanted to brew a beer that tasted like summer sunshine and would go well with the outdoors and Seafair fun,” notes Pike Head Brewer, Art Dixon. “That’s why I chose to use newer Lemondrop hops from nearby Yakima Valley. Their fresh, citrusy and lemony flavor really shine through in the beer.”  
“Seafair is a celebration of the best that Seattle has to offer, whether that be our clean waters, unique neighborhoods or community wide celebrations,” said Richard Andersen, Seafair President & CEO. “We’re happy to share this tradition with Pike Brewing Company, a locally owned company that is known for their locally-sourced beers and for giving back to the community.”
Pike Seafair Summer Ale is available as a limited seasonal release starting in mid-June, on draft and in 22 oz. dinner bottles.

Courtesy of Pike Brewing Co

ABV - 4.2%   IBU - 26  OG - 1.046  °L - 2

MALT VARIETIES: Organic Pils, Munich, Aromatic, Malted Wheat, Rolled Oats
HOP VARIETIES: Centennial and Cascade. Dry hopped with Lemondrop hops.

Courtesy of Pike Brewing Co

About Pike Brewing Company: The Pike Brewing Company is an independent and family owned craft brewery located in the historic Pike Place Public Market neighborhood. It was founded in 1989 by craft beer pioneers, Charles and Rose Ann Finkel. Pike Brewing handcrafts beers of character including the Pike Place Ale, Pike IPA, Naughty Nellie, Hive Five, Space Needle IPA, Kilt Lifter, Monk’s Uncle, and XXXXX Stout along with seasonal and limited release offerings. The Pike Pub is known for local, sustainable and seasonal pub fare and for housing the world-famous Micro-Brewery Museum, illustrating 9,000 years of beer history.

Courtesy of Seafair

About Seafair: Nothing is more synonymous with Summer in Seattle than Seafair. The annual festival spans ten weeks and touches more than two million people through 75 sanctioned events. Now in its 68th year, Seafair connects and celebrates the community spirit, offers affordable fun and provides memories that last a lifetime. For more information, visit Seafair.com.

Portland Beer Week announces 2017 Seminar Series

Courtesy of Portland Beer Week

Portland Beer Week SEMINAR SERIES

presented by Oregon State University and The HR Group Portland Beer Week (presented by General Distributors Inc.) is pleased to announce the 2017 Seminar Series as presented by Oregon State University and The HR Group. This annual series is of five, casual, educational but fun seminars held throughout beer week (June 8-18th) at various locations for both amateurs and pros.

Each seminar is about two hours long and the location and ticket price varies. Please purchase your ticket in advance as many of these sell-out!

From Garage to Pub: Startup Seminar
Sat. June 10th 11am $10 (includes a pint and tip!)
The Commons Brewery - 630 SE Belmont St Portland, OR 97214

This seminar is designed for aspiring and/or new startup brewers interested in taking their hobbies from nano to successful tasting room, brewpub or production brewery status. We will speak to those who did and have built successful businesses from their detached garages to fully distributed draft and bottle production and successful brewpub operations. Speaker/panelists include Mike Wright (The Commons Brewery), Tomas Sluiter (Culmination Brewing & Brewery Consultants), and Colin P. Rath (Migration Brewing.)

Sustainability Talks
Mon. June 12th 6pm $10 (includes samples from each brewery)
Hopworks Urban Brewery - 2944 SE Powell Blvd Portland, OR 97202

Learn how a few local breweries approach sustainability through community outreach, ingredient sourcing, and activities within the brewhouse. Presenters and topics include: Jack Lamb (Aslan Brewing CEO/Founder), Christian Ettinger (Hopworks Founder/Brewmaster), Ben Parsons (Baerlic Brewing co-Founder/Brewer), Renee Johnson (Fort George Sustainability Director) and moderated by Heather Sorenson (Plugged in PR.)

Sour & Wild Ale Seminar
Tues. June 13th 5:30pm $45 (includes 9 sour beer pours)
Zoiglhaus Brewery - 5716 SE 92nd Ave, Portland, OR 97266

Learn from and taste the best from Ryan Fields (Beachwood Brewing Blendery Brewmaster), Trevor Rogers (Brewers/Owner at De Garde Brewing), Andrew Schwartz (Modern Times Beer's lead Sour Bug guy) and Ben Edmunds (Brewmaster at Breakside Brewery.) Attendees not only get a one-of-a-kind learning experience but will get to sample two or three rare, specialty sour, wild and mixed fermentation ales from each brewer over the course of the roughly two hour seminar. Time will be allotted to ask questions and mingle with the brewers and Zoiglhaus Brewery will be open for post beers and dinner after the seminar.

Barrel-aged Beer Seminar
Wed. June 14th 5:30pm $40 (includes 9 sour beer pours)
Zoiglhaus Brewery - 5716 SE 92nd Ave, Portland, OR 97266

This seminar features four brewers/brewmasters with potent skill in barrel-aged beer representing Sierra Nevada Brewing, Founders Brewing, Bear Republic Brewing and Breakside Brewery. The discussion will follow techniques, styles and other theories on aging beer in barrels as well as covering multiple kinds of spirit barrels from rye whiskey to vermouth. Attendees not only get a one-of-a-kind learning experience but will get to sample two or three rare, specialty barrel-aged beers from each brewer over the course of the roughly two hour seminar. Time will be allotted to ask questions and mingle with the brewers and Zoiglhaus Brewery will be open for post beers and dinner after the seminar.

Branding for Beer
Fri. June 16th 5pm $10 (includes a pint and tip!)
Baerlic Brewing - 2235 SE 11th Ave Portland, OR 97214

In the increasingly competitive craft beer market, whether your opening a taproom, brewpub or hard cider, branding and design is more important than ever to stand out and define your business. The "Branding for Beer" seminar will cover everything from logo design to merchandising to label design and standing out on supermarket shelves to a brewpub or t-shirt. A panel of branding and design experts will speak on the subject, moderated by Oregon State University instructor Ryan Wheaton and including Blaine Fontana (Muralist, designer of Breakside Brewery's new IPA, Wanderlust & Pilsner labels), Andy Morris (Creative Director who lead Stumptown Coffee's branding and more recently Little Beast Brewing) and Dave Bourne (IGNITE Beverage Branding, responsible for Base Camp Brewing & others).

Courtesy of OSU

Oregon State University’s Brewing Science experts partner with beer industry pros to provide on-site and online workshops for brewing industry professionals, craft beer and cider entrepreneurs, cider makers, home brewers and more. Drawing upon expertise as the leader in hops and brewing research and experience with the nation’s Fermentation Science degree programs, our workshops include: Craft Brewery Startup Workshop, Craft Cidery Startup Workshop, Beer Quality and Analysis Series for Pro Brewers, Cider Making Workshop, Cider Quality and Analysis, Sensory Evaluation of Wine and Origins of Beer Flavors and Styles. Take advantage of 15% savings on OSU beer and cider programs with code BeerWeek (through June 30).   You’ll find alumni of our degree and workshop programs among the ranks of those leading the craft beer and cider boom. Participants in our workshop benefit from the expertise, insight and guidance of industry leaders and our own experts in hops, brewing, beer quality and sensory analysis. Our team is pleased to serve as the education sponsor for Portland Beer Week 2017, and we look forward to meeting both old and new friends alike at this year’s events.