Brewvana Tour

Have you experienced Brewvana yet? If not, you are missing out. I have to admit I was a little skeptical at first. I mean, I have been to most of the breweries, craft beer bars and bottleshops in Portland, so why did I need to take a special tour? To challenge my own question and stubbornness, I booked a tour with fellow friends and did it! Looking back, it was one of the most memorable Portland beer experiences I have ever had. The bus, Angel, our guide, Ashley and the tour combined to create a trifecta of fun.

Angel, the bus, was the coolest thing I had ever ridden in. It was equipped with drink holders, a fridge, interior rope lighting, a great ceiling mural and lots of other groovy, beer related knick-knacks. When you go, make sure you read the 'The Rules' of the bus above the rear emergency exit; serious, but entertaining. I think Shaggy Rogers, the owner of the Mystery Machine would proud of Ashley's decked out Beer Machine.

The Goonies with Angel.

Only the cool people got to ride in the back.

Ashley, our brew-venture guide was awesome. She knew mucho about beer and the brew scene in Portland. She has worked at Hopworks Urban Brewery (HUB) since it sprouted up on Powell and has been involved in the industry since age 17. You can not shake a stick at that. Ashley did an excellent job at sharing information with us along the tour, but she was never overbearing. If you asked her a question, she had the answer. She kept the tour relaxed. It actually felt like she was part of the group; something we all appreciated.

Our kick ass guide and owner, Ashley.

The overall tour schedule was well planned. We started at HUB on Powell in their downstairs, secret brewing empire. From here, we were handed over to Brew Master guru, Walker who filled our complimentary Brewvana glasses with samples and lead us on an amazing tour of their environmentally friendly facility. I thought this was a great way to kick off our outing. It was the educational section about how beer was made and the different tastes that result from combining various ingredients; it was the prelude to the rest of the afternoon. Our hats go off to Walker who did an outstanding presentation job.

Walker was da man!

Drinking from the source...it doesn't get
much better than that!

The next stop was Belmont Station. Not a regularly schedule stop on the tour, but Ashley can arrange whatever you like. At Belmont Station, we enjoyed a full beer of choice and were given ample time to chit-chat. Everyone was amazed at the incredible draft and bottle selection and loved the beer paraphernalia that scattered the walls. Before leaving we snagged (2) bombers of Hale's Supergoose to enjoy on our ride to Breakside Brewery. I think I forgot to mention that you can drink on the bus! Yet another reason why Angel is so cool.

The crew at Belmont Station

Breakside Brewery was our lunch and beer pairing stop. Ashley phoned in our lunch order in advance to make sure Breakside would have our food ready to go when we arrived. Sure enough, the food was promptly delivered after we were seated and it looked incredible. As we began to dig in, Scott, the owner, and Ben, the Brewer came by and provided each person with their own (6) glass taster tray. Each beer was explained to us by Scott; a nice touch.

Awesome Mac-n-Cheese + Great Beer = Happy Belly

Breakside's main man, Scott delivering the goods.

With our bellies happily full of Breakside's delicious food and brew, we set off to our final stop, Old Lompoc's, Sidebar. The Sidebar was a perfect way to wrap up the tour. The intimate setting gave us a chance to talk about what an excellent day we had while enjoying a few more generous pours of fine beer.

Serious beer talk.

Thanks Brewvana for a great time!

A Microhopic Saturday!

Saturday!  What a day!  The sun was out and it was surprisingly temperate.  Not only that, but the Trail Blazers won their second home game of the finals.  GO BLAZERS!!!  As nice as the day was, I was looking forward to the evening.   We were going out with great friends for dinner and for an event taking place at Migration Brewing called Microhopic.  Microhopic is Brewpublic’s baby.  This would be their third installment of the ongoing series and it was fantastic.  The affair showcases new and interesting breweries and beer styles from around Oregon.  Brewpublic did an excellent job at hosting the event and the breweries represented all brought something different to tantalize the taste buds.

The evening began early; around the 4^th quarter of the Blazers game.  My friend showed up with a case of 22’s of his latest homebrew; a super hopped IPA that is to die for.  I think he said it was around 108 IBUs.  Yowza!  He has been brewing beer for over a year now and has it dialed in.  It would be great to see him advance to nano brewery status.

A delicious homebrewed beverage

After a few pints of scrumdiddlyumptious home brewed IPA, the nail biting Blazer game wrapped up in our favor and lifted our already good spirits even higher.  It was now time to take the jaunt to Ken’s Artisan Pizza for dinner.  We waited for a table for about an hour, but it was well worth it as always.  Our friends had never been and thought it was delicious.  A must visit if you like pizza, just do not get in the way.

Our hour wait at Ken's was soothed with
a variety of fine beers

Where's my pizza!

With our bellies full of pie and pints, it was time to hit the main event:  Microhopic at Migration Brewing.  We arrived to find it not as busy as we had anticipated.  There were some staples from the beer community present, including Angelo and crew from Brewpublic, Carl from Belmont Station and several brewers.  Ashley’s Brewvana bus, Angel was parked street side with a dog in the driver’s seat.  I asked the dog if it knew Ashley’s whereabouts, but the furry little fellow was too busy trying to figure out how to get the bus started so he could hit the nearest Petco.

Hop on the bus Gus

Brewpublic's mastermind, Angelo and
some random guy

We seated ourselves at a table in Migration and my hop goddess ordered us a taster tray of the (5) beers being represented.  Breakside Brewery furnished a Rye Kolsch and used their famed randall filter to give us a special treat; a beer infused with juniper berries and cucumbers.  Our neighborhood favorite, Amnesia, provided a fine dry-hopped ale called Red Handed.  Burnside Brewing presented their Stock Ale, which I tasted at their headquarters a few weeks ago.  The Stock Ale is a nice ESB that is rich in copper color and goes down smooth.  My favorite of the evening was Migration’s baby dubbed PDX.  It was similar to a Kolsch, but had a hoppy bit and well balanced flavor.  I have only been to Migration a few times before this evening’s event and had never taken a strong hold to any of their beers, but this one had me at hello.  Beetje, a nano brewery that operates out of their garage and relatively new to my vocabulary was also in the house.  They brought forth a Belgian Inspired Ale that was favored by the patrons.

The crew at Migration

This was my first Microhopic event and it was a good one.  I am looking forward to the next one Brewpublic graces us with.  Thanks guys!