And, later today I’m attending a media event at the Pub, so there’s a good chance I’ll have more photos (and maybe video) as well.

Update: I also added 3 pictures my wife took of the new pizzas on the menu, and wine.

New and better use of waiting area space (southwest corner of the older part of the Pub)

Older Pub space has been remodeled with an attractive archway leading to a larger bar area (no minors allowed)

What used to be additional restaurant seating in the Pub, now part of the larger bar area; former kitchen is now the bakery and prep area

New, additional station of taps at the end of the bar to better serve the new space

Upstairs banquet area, which I believe will seat 80 people, and has it's own dedicated bar. Yes, workers were still there hanging artwork.

The new banquet bar, with the full 16 taps

The new wine servings; notice they've done away with stemmed glassware and instead are currently serving in "mini pint" style glasses.

Word hit this week than a new brewery is looking to get started in Mississippi, in the Jackson metro area, which would have the distinction of being only the second production brewery in the state: Lucky Town Brewing Company. Event Directory Angela Blackburn sent out an email to (presumably) bloggers detailing the brewery and linking to a Kickstarter project they’ve started to help raise seed money.

Lucky Town Brewing Company is a new planned brewery in Mississippi, and although there is no brewery within 150 miles of Jackson, the craft beer community here is thriving. As many of you know, Mississippi suffers from some of the strictest beer legislation in the country, which is one reason why there is only one production brewery located in Mississippi currently. Since the laws do not allow for many to bring their beer to Mississippi, we at Lucky Town intend to give the local craft beer enthusiasts a broader choice.

And:

Lucky Town’s ultimate goal is to stay true to our home-brewing roots by producing unique, artisanal, handcrafted ales and lagers. We intend to offer at least four year round beers that will roll out in pairs, but we also will be releasing small batch brews throughout the year that will be available in smaller quantities. Small batching will allow us more freedom to experiment with ingredients not normally found in beer that you find in Mississippi, providing for an ever-evolving product range rather than a fixed seasonal schedule. Examples include the southern pit barbeque inspired stout called “Stout of the Rising Sun” which uses smoked grains combined with roasted jalapenos and Lucky Town’s unique take on a winter warmer called “What the Elf?” that has cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, orange peel, figs and vanilla in it to give it a wonderful holiday flavor. Along with these will be the small batch Kaizen Saison, an ever evolving beer used to explore new flavor profiles and push the limits of what beer can be. We will never shy away from using non-traditional ingredients. Expect plenty of things aged in unique barrels, including sour beers that will spend as much as 3 years in the barrel getting funky.

They are looking to raise $20,000, and as of this writing they’ve raised over $7500 and still have 44 days to go. (And, I’m still extremely fascinated with the growing use of Kickstarter to fund beer projects; more on that down the road.)

I think right now it must be something between an exciting and a stressful time for the craft beer community in Mississippi, and it’s definitely interesting to watch it develop (even from afar). Let’s hope Lucky Town reaches its goal and becomes Mississippi’s number two!

In the nearly 24 years our pub has been open here in Bend, one thing has been abundantly clear, we need more room! We need room in the dining room, as no one really wants to wait 2 hours for a table, and we need more room in our kitchen which was never intended to serve the volume of food that has been required of it over the more than two decades its been in existence.

The so-called “quiet opening” has been underway for four days. Preceded as it was by five days of “friends and family” meals intended to give our staff, with 50-odd newcomers (they’re not odd, the number is . . . ) the opportunity to hone their skills in the new space. All our regular friends have managed to find their way back after being turned away for the past 20 days. And, the deft touch of architect and contractor, owner and enthusiast have created a warmer, more welcoming space where our bar has always stood. Additionally, the new space is more; more spacious, more seats, more comfortable, more engaging, more artistic, more . . . well, just more! Whereas we are not done yet, we have more things to hang on the walls, more details of menu and service to work out, suffice it to say, we are very pleased with the results. Even our toughest customers are very pleased with our results (and that is a relief).

I have an opportunity to check the Pub out this weekend sometime, as well as attend a media event on the 31st for the re-opening. From what I’d already seen at the beginning of the month, though, I can already safely predict that the new expanded Pub and menu is going to be a big success.

Can’t wait to see it “live”!

I like it, it’s a strong, clean design with detail but not too much detail.

In addition, there is also a new Facebook page for the brewery here.

Intrigued, I searched for “Elkton Brewing” and came across a skeletal website—elktonbrewingcompany.com—that has photographs that positively identify it as Elkton, Oregon, a small town of 200 about 54 miles southwest of Eugene and 37 miles northwest of Roseburg, on the Umpqua River and Highway 38 between Reedsport and I-5. On the city’s website nothing is listed for a brewery but there are four(!) wineries listed, so out of curiosity I sent off an email to the poster of the Craigslist ad (the email address listed on the website had bounced back).

Owner(?) Eric emailed back with a few hints and ideas of what they’re hoping to do with the brewery, which sounds like (in addition to the brewery itself) they’re wanting to offer a place for homebrewers to brew and showcase their talents (similar perhaps to Coalition Brewing’s “Coalator” program), though they are still in the early stages of things.

From the building picture on the about page (above), this is their location (Google Maps); if you look at it in Street View, it was clearly under construction in 2008 (the date of that particular image on Google). Currently it’s looking like a nice location, right on the main drag through town.

Hopefully the search for a brewer will pan out and Elkton Brewing will happen, joining the ever-growing rank of Oregon’s breweries. If you’re interested in being a part of it, send along your resume and help get them off the ground.

Elysian is releasing “12 Beers of the Apocalypse” once a month through the rest of year; from the press release:

In a year-long run-up to the end of all time (according to the Mayan calendar), Elysian Brewing Company and Fantagraphics Books, both of Seattle, are planning a series of twelve beers, issued on the 21st of each month in 2012 and featuring the label artwork of Charles Burns. Taken from Burns’s weirdly apocalyptic work “Black Hole,” the labels will adorn Elysian’s “Twelve Beers of the Apocalypse,” featuring the creativity and unusual ingredients for which its brewing team is known. What twelve beers would you brew (and drink) if you knew they would be your last?

The three beers announced so far are:

• January: Nibiru, “named for the mysterious planet X supposedly on a collision course toward Earth”, a Belgian-style Tripel with yerba maté;
• February: Rapture, an ale flavored with heather tips;
• March: Fallout, a pale ale made with green cardamom.

They are kicking off a Nibiru release party on Saturday the 21st from 4 to 7pm at the Capitol Hill location.

Cascade Brewing, meanwhile, is holding their annual “Four Goses of the Apuckerlips” event coming up this Thursday the 12th; Gose is of course the soured and spiced (typically with salt and coriander) wheat beer that’s been seeing something of a niche revival. From their release:

Our four Goses are designed and spiced for each season; they are light, slightly soured beers, all brewed with sea salt and various spices. Each comes in at about 5.5% ABV. Enjoy tasting how the different spices can affect the flavor profile. We’ll be serving them in teardrop glasses for $4.50 ($5 for the vintage Autumn), or grab a vertical flight of all four for $8. These will pour until they are gone. Spring Gose 2011 is spiced with wild chamomile, lemon peel and culinary lavender; Autumn Gose 2010 is spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg and orange peel; Summer Gose 2011 is spiced with coriander; and Winter Gose 2011 is spiced with rose hips, orange peel and cinnamon.

How can you pass up an event called “Apuckerlips”? I wish I could be in Portland Thursday afternoon to try all of these, they sound pretty amazing. That tasting starts at 4pm.

Big Horse itself is housed in a large, picturesque multi-level lodge of a building that is built into a hill and backing Winans Park. To get to it you either park on the street below and climb a good number of stairs, or come in from the upper level (through the park presumably); however once you’ve made the climb you are rewarded with fantastic views of downtown Hood River and the Columbia River.

Continue reading “Big Horse Brew Pub / Horse Feathers” »

Golden Valley should be a welcome addition to the Beaverton-Hillsboro area, which is relatively brewery-sparse (especially when compared to Portland just a few minutes away!). Aside from a few McMenamins locations, the Raccoon Lodge (Cascade Brewing), Vertigo and Ambacht in Hillsboro, there’s really not much else (aside from bars). I’m pretty comfortable predicting that Golden Valley will do extremely well there.

The new location is at 1520 NW Bethany Blvd. in west Beaverton, just off the Sunset Highway (Highway 26).

We regret to inform you that our recently released Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout with Coffee, Hellshire II, has been found to contain some flavors that we did not intend. Through our own QC/QA program, we suspected there could be a problem. It has now been discovered through lab results conducted by our colleagues at Widmer Brothers Brewing in Portland that this beer may contain lactobacillus. In most beers, this is known as a beer spoiler and can lead to acidic and tart flavors.

Again, I’d like to apologize to you for not meeting the mark we set at Oakshire in terms of quality and consistency. We’ve assessed the situation and are confident that we can avoid similar challenges in the future. Also, please be patient with us as we traverse through this first time situation and correct it.

This sort of thing happens from time to time, even with the big breweries; remember that Deschutes Brewery’s 2009 Reserve Series (The Abyss and Mirror Mirror) dealt with a brettanomyces infection—and they’re one of the largest craft breweries in the country. It’s an inherent risk is dealing with barrels, and for my money it’s an entirely forgivable situation (unless of course it’s repeated over and over again).

Oakshire is stepping up to honor returned bottles of Hellshire II for unsatisfied customers, as well, offering the following options:

1) Keep your bottle, but consider storing it cold so that it doesn’t build more acidity.
2) Bring your unopened bottle to us at the brewery during the next Hellshire release and give us another chance. We’ll swap it out.
3) Bring your unopened bottle to the tasting room during open hours and we will trade you for an equal dollar amount of our regular bottled beer.
4) Bring your unopened bottle to the tasting room during open hours and we will reimburse you for your purchase.

You will need to bring your bottle in person, however, and do not ship it—the brewery can’t accept bottles shipped directly. Nor should you return it to your retailer, unless they accept returns on bottled beers.

I’ve had the Hellshire II (split a bottle with friends) and found no flaws with it. Though personally, in the same way that I actually liked a bit of brett in the Deschutes beers, I think I might well like a bit of lacto in this one—for me sometimes the unintentional flaws result in something new and not entirely unpleasant.

Regardless, I certainly commend Van Wyk and Oakshire for the handling of this situation—there undoubtedly are (or will be) the predictable complaints from some people about “bad” beers, but Oakshire has gotten out in front of it and is willing to accommodate folks without question, and that’s a class act.

Continue reading “Video and photos of Deschutes wall smashing” »