Friday Fun: How Far Will Home Brewing Take You?

Have you ever wondered where home brewing could take you?  Brewer's Friend created this impressive infographic illustrating just how far you could go!  Happy Friday!

Click Graphic to Enlarge

Note:  All spelling and grammatical errors are intentional.

Natian Meet The Brewer & Tasting at Belmont Station

Believe it or not, I was in Southeast again last night for a ‘Meet The Brewer & Tasting’ event at the place I wish I lived next door to, Belmont Station. Ian McGuinness, Owner and Brewmaster at Natian Brewery was on hand pouring cans of Old Grogham IIPA, Undun Blonde, and CuDA Cascadian Dark Ale to a constant flow of folks wanting a taste. For a solid 3 hours Ian answered questions about his beer; something you can tell he enjoys doing. Meanwhile, in Belmont’s Biercafé I enjoyed Natian’s draft selections, Lumberjane Imperial Stout and Elephante India Red Ale. I’ve tried most of Natian’s standard brew, but tonight I was treated to a new-ish release, the Elephante IRA. I will say, IRAs haven’t caught on with my taste buds, but they did enjoy the 8.45350568 ounces of Elephante. It was dry, hoppy, not real sweet, and had a pleasant bitterness brought on by the use of Zythos Hops. If you’re a fan of this style of beer I think you’d be pleased. After the IRA I went on to Natian’s Lumberjane; an imperial stout that ranks up there with the best. It has incredible sex appeal. You’ll want to gaze at it for a few minutes in the glass before you wet your tongue with its smooth, smoky, coffee roast flavor. I’ve had Lumberjane before, but I forgot how much I enjoyed it. Lumberjane made my Monday. Of course, it was also a pleasure to catch-up with the Natian crew, see my friends and fellow band mates, Ross and Teresa, and speak with Carl, who introduced me to former, long-term Full Sail Brewmaster, John Harris.

Photo Gallery 

(Taken with my Hasselblad H4D-200MS)

Temple 

Ian in action 

Natian's Elephante India Red Ale 

David and Ian of Natian, Nameless Gent, and
Belmont's CBO, Carl Singmaster 

Always a great draft selection at
Belmont Station

Note:  All spelling and grammatical errors are intentional.

Giganitc Brewing - Finally!

Finally! We made it! Saturday evening we conquered the impossible. We crossed East Burnside and entered SE. Destination --- Gigantic Brewing. For some reason NE Portland never wants us to leave. Yet, miracles occasionally occur, like the one on ice in 1980 when the U.S. defeated The Soviets at the Winter Olympics. In our delusional minds, we felt we beat the odds and went on to take the gold.

After days of driving (7.3 miles, 19 minutes according to Google Maps) we arrived at Gigantic’s industrial, pre-fab building, which brought to mind Amnesia Brewing’s N. Mississippi location. However, Gigantic’s location is actually in an area zoned Industrial. There are indeed benefits associated with this: parking was a breeze, the tasting room wasn't crowded, finding a seat was easy, and grabbing a pint was painless. The only drawback - lack of food. We would've stayed longer if Gigantic offered something to eat, or if we could’ve brought some food in from a non-existent, neighboring restaurant. In Gigantic’s defense, I did read the following on their website under FAQs: