EYELUVBEER: Ninkasi Pit Stop

We made it a point to stop at Ninkasi on our way to our favorite campground in the Redwoods. Getting to Ninkasi from Interstate 5 was a breeze. It only took a few extra miles and couple of turns before we reached their brewing command center. On approach, we observed that the brewery’s architecture was rather industrial for the neighborhood that it inhabited, but then again, the City of Eugene has a pleasingly eclectic feel, so it made total sense. The main street side attraction for us was the nicely crafted entry gate.

The sweet entry gate and Ninkasi HQ in background

The same industrial feel carried through to the inside. We entered the tap room which was simple and clean, airy in height, but modest in floor space. However, there was ample room outside to accommodate plenty of beer lovin’ folk. We chose to order a sampler from the bar, which included a few beers that we have never tried before; Ice Nine, Vanilla Oatis and Quantum Pale Ale. We were intrigued by the well engineered taster tray that they were presented on; made of a brushed metal, it was one of a kind coolness. We also loved the fact that each taster came with a baseball-like trading card, naming the beer on the front and giving you the stats on the back. The new beers that we sampled lived up to Ninkasi’s well known reputation of producing excellent craft beer.

After finishing our mini-beers on the outside patio, we headed inside to settle our tab. This is when the lure of the taps convinced us to order one more pint before continuing our journey south on the 5.