2nd Annual Buckman-Kerns Brewfest at EastBurn

Do you have plans for this Sunday?  Do you like beer?  If you answered NO to the first question and YES to the second question, then you should scurry your butt over to EastBurn for the ‘2ND Annual Buckman-Kerns Brewfest’. The festival is taking place this Sunday, January 15 from 12pm until 8pm and celebrates the breweries that are contained within the Buckman and Kern neighborhoods in Portland, OR.  See the map I made below using my mad GIS skills.  It shows the neighborhoods, breweries and where EastBurn is located. Enjoy if you attend this beerepic event!

Click me to enlarge.

Warning Portland: The Pissed LiBEERian is coming!

In a few weeks all hell is sure to break loose in Portland. From November 18^th thru the 20^th, Tacoma beer blogger, The Pissed LiBEERian has confirmed that she will be descending upon our city. Upon arrival, she will be on a quest to hit as many breweries and pubs in (3) days. This will be her second time visiting the Portland beer scene. Her first visit included stops at Laurelwood, New Old Lompoc, The Lucky Lab, Bridgeport Brewing, Rouge and Deschutes. On her upcoming trip, The Pissed LiBEERian’s tentative plans are to hit the following:

Alameda Brewing
Belmont Station
Burnside Brewing
Cascade Barrel House
Coalition Brewing
HUB
HUB Bike Bar
Hair of The Dog
Horse Brass
The Green Dragon
Plew's Brews

Her squeeze and renowned photographer/world beer connoisseur, MGD will be joining her. The two of them are sure to give the Portland Beer scene a run for its money. If you happen to cross paths with them say hello, or better yet, buy them a pint! In the meantime, please check out her well written and highly delectable blog: http://pissedlibeerian.blogspot.com/

The famed Pissed LiBEERian

MGD and The Pissed LiBEERian
Don't be fooled by their cuteness!

Lame Ass Misses The 1st Annual Fruit Beer Festival

This is a long overdue post that has been patiently waiting for me in my ‘My Documents’ folder.  Sorry my loyal (7) followers.  My simple life is just slightly more important than this blog. So without further delay, I leave you with this:

Well, I did not make it to the 1^st annual Fruit Beer Festival at Burnside Brewing.  I actually rode by it on my bike on Sunday after stopping at the Portland Rose Festival Dragon Boat Race to see my friend’s wife kick some booty on the Willamette.  It was my first time ever going to see a Dragon Boat race and I was impressed. I think there were about 90+ teams racing for glory.  All the teams deserve a round of praise, as it takes a lot of dedication and practice to do what they do.  I could actually feel my arms becoming weaker and weaker as I watched them paddle an intense sprint from the Marquam to the Hawthorne bridge.

Lame ass that did not go to the Fruit Beer Festival
(Shown here at the Dragon Boat Races)

Okay, so why am I writing about crap that is not beer related?  Well it is beer related.  I think most of the recreational things I do correlate with beer in some respect.  I did at least ride by the Fruit Beer Festival, right.  I was going to head in, but I was beer-ed out from the past (2) nights.  Occasionally it does happen to the best of us. 

Here is a brief recap of  those (2) nights.  AKA, my lame excuse for not going to the Fruit Beer Festival:

Friday was spent a few blocks from my house with friends at the new Hopworks Bike Bar and Old Lompoc’s Side Bar.  A nice combo by the way.  The Side Bar was a welcomed change after the hustle and bustle of HUB.  The Side Bar is a quiet and warm space to enjoy fine beers and conversation.  It reminds me of a wine bar, but with beer. Saturday, I was out in the Montavilla neighborhood at Thatchers watching the Timbers play.  Thatchers is not a brew pub, but it does have some good taps, plus it has that great neighborhood tavern feel.  According to my friend, they make a great burger as well. So on Sunday I was not game for more beer.  I was a little worried about myself, as this seldom occurs.  I guess my ass is getting old.  Anyway…from what I read, the Fruit Beer Festival was a huge success. I am looking forward to being in attendance next year.

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!