Are you tired of the big cities? Spend too much time driving around trying to find parking or waiting for mass transit? The stench of homeless urine getting in the way of smelling sweet grain and hops? Then head on over to biggest little city…wait, that’s Reno. Whatever, just drive on over to Bend, Oregon and you won’t be disappointed.
I moved to Bend from California at the end of 2011 and I haven’t stopped smiling. I knew the area was a haven for craft beer, similar to the likes of Denver, San Francisco, or Portland…but I had no idea that a town this small could embrace what I consider a passion, to such a degree.
The Big Guy
Deschutes has been a staple in my beer diet since I started really appreciating craft beer; right around 1998. So I was already familiar with the year-arounds and the seasonals (Abyss, Dissident, Mirror Mirror) and I knew they could be considered the grand daddy of the Bend beer scene. With a massive production brewery just off of the river and recently expanded brewpub in downtown, everybody knows their name. What I was not aware of was the recent explosion (not exaggerating) in local brewpubs and that even the most recently opened were looking to expand. And with Bend being a tight-knit city of only 80,000 (I am originally from Fresno, pop. 500,000 & 2 brewpubs), almost everything is within walking, or at least biking distance. This can make a night on the town seem endless and a bit dangerous to the liver.
The Established
Some of the more established brewpubs are Bend Brewing, Silver Moon, Cascade Lakes and McMenamins.
- Bend Brewing is right downtown, has a view of Mirror Pond on the Deschutes River, and brews the best sour (Ching Ching) and the best spiced beer (Sexi Mexi) in town.
- Silver Moon rocked Stout Month in February by taking their award winning Darkside Stout and adding jalapenos one week and chocolate & macadamia nuts the next week (separate beers).
- Cascade Lakes seems to have a location about every two blocks up here so they are easy to find and they rock some great seasonals.
- And if you aren’t familiar with McMenamins then you haven’t spent any time in Oregon. They currently run 56 separate locations in the state and a good portion of them are refurbished hotels, theaters and even a catholic school (sorry no school girls). One of my favorite afternoon things to do is grab a pint and their delicious hamburger, kick back on a classic beat-up Victorian couch and watch a movie on the big screen for $11. Cold winter nights are spent around the multiple fire pits in the back of Old St. Francis at O’Kanes Pub while sampling limited edition brews.
New Guys
The new guys in town all started brewing with a vengeance. Boneyard, 10 Barrel, GoodLife, Old Mill Brew Werks, and Three Creeks have all made their mark.
- The Boneyard guys are the bikers working out of a metal garage. They won my award for biggest flavor smack-in-the-face with the Notorious Triple IPA at 12% and their liquid dessert called Suge Knite Imperial Stout at 14%. If Death Row Records was still around they would probably be in litigation.
- 10 Barrel seems to be selling their bottles in every location on the planet except grade schools and churches. They have grown so quickly that their name was only relevant for a short time; they now have a 50-barrel system on the east side and are opening a brewpub in Boise, Idaho.
- GoodLife Brewing has been open less than a year, originally planning to just brew beer using the owners as workers, but they now serve food, have a dozen employees, and have created a huge biergarten in the back that I am sure will be as packed during summer as the Lagunitas party pad.
- I am about to host my 2nd tasting event at Old Mill Brew Werks in a few weeks so I know first hand that not only do they brew solid beer, but they back it up with a great guest tap list. In March we blew the keg of Elysian Dragonstooth Stout and they replaced it with Bridgeport’s Raven Mad Imperial Porter. No one was disappointed.
- Three Creeks has a decent showing with their lineup, but their best attributes have to be their location in the cozy Western town of Sisters, with amazing views of the nearby Cascade peaks, and their brewpub atmosphere.
On The Drawing Board
The in-planning and out-of-their-garage guys don’t seem to care that the beer flows like water in Bend. Phat Matt’s, Solstice, Below Grade, Worthy, Crux Fermentation Project, The Ale Apothecary, Sun River, and Rat Hole are all either currently bottling or planning to be in the market by the end of 2012.
- Phat Matt’s is just north of here in the town of Redmond, also home to two Cascade Lakes locations. They have three current styles that are circulating around the area, their Golden Ale being one of them that stopped the burning in my stomach after eating too much at the Chili CookOff earlier in the year.
- Below Grade is making amazing beers out of their basement on the west side. The Dangerous Kate Black IPA was ridiculously good as was their Volksvitzen South German Weissbock I had at GoodLife.
- Crux Fermentation Project has everyone holding their collective breath. Or at least I am. Larry Sidor is a partner and he is known as the previous brewmaster at Deschutes that gave us some of our favorite beers including The Abyss, The Bond Street Series of hopped beers, and Black Butte Anniversary beers. Additional partners include Dave Wilson of 21st Amendment fame and Paul Evers who is responsible for the branding of 21st, Deschutes and Odell.
- Paul Arney is brewing in secret as The Ale Apothecary and has almost as many of the Deschutes beers on his resume as Larry does. I feel like this place will be a combination of Dogfish Head (off-centered ales) and Lost Abbey/Port Brewing (barrel-aging).
- Worthy Beer is being opened in part by Chad Kennedy who came from Laurelwood up in Portland. Talking with him, he expects to be open by the end of the year, or at least have amazing aromas wafting out of the building.
I don’t have any information on Solstice (already open in Prineville), Rat Hole, or Sun River but tidbits seem to be leaked weekly regarding this bourgeoning scene. I even heard rumor of another brewery in planning up in Redmond but I have zero info to substantiate that.
In this town even the barbershops pour you a perfect pint of beer while you are getting a trim. The homebrew shop is also a great bottle shop and a Cheers-style pub in the basement (trifecta!) Needless to say I am really excited to see what happens over the next six months as summer puts construction into high gear. So get your happy ass up here and come drink some beer with me!
Miles Wilhelm
www.whydrinkbeer.com
miles@whydrinkbeer.com
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