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A BRIEF HISTORY OF OREGON AND OF CRAFT BEER IN OREGON

Portland started as a spot known as "the clearing," which was on the banks of the Willamette about halfway between Oregon Cityand Fort Vancouver. In 1843, William Overtonsaw great commercial potential for this land but lacked the funds required to file a land claim. He struck a bargain with his partner,Asa Lovejoy of Boston, Massachusetts: for 25¢, Overton would share his claim to the 640 acre (2.6 km²) site. Overton later sold his half of the claim to Francis W. Pettygrove of Portland, Maine. Pettygrove and Lovejoy each wished to name the new city after his respective home town. On 23 January 1851, this controversy was settled with a coin toss, which Pettygrove won in a series of two out of three tosses. The coin used for this decision, now known as the Portland Penny, is on display in the headquarters of the Oregon Historical Society.

At the time of its incorporation on February 8, 1851 Portland had over 800 inhabitants, a steam sawmill, a log cabin hotel, and a newspaper, the Weekly Oregonian. By 1879, the population had grown to 17,500.The city merged with Albina and East Portland in 1891, and annexed the cities of Linnton and St. Johns in 1915.

Portland's location, with access both to the Pacific Ocean via the Willamette and the Columbia rivers and to the agricultural Tualatin Valleyvia the "Great Plank Road" through a canyon in the West Hills (the route of current-day U.S. Route 26), gave it an advantage over nearby ports, and it grew very quickly. It remained the major port in the Pacific Northwest for much of the 19th century, until the 1890s, when Seattle's deepwater harbour was connected to the rest of the mainland by rail, affording an inland route without the treacherous navigation of the Columbia River.

The most common nickname for Portland is The City of Roses, and this became the city's official nickname in 2003. Other nicknames include Stumptown, Bridgetown, Beervana or Beertown

In the 1840s significant numbers of immigrants began to move to the Oregon Territory. It wasn’t long before they had a thirst for beer, so when German brewer Henry Saxer arrived in 1852, tasted the clear, soft water from the nearby mountains and recognized the prime hop and grain growing potential, he started brewing.

Fellow immigrant Henry Weinhard opened his brewery in 1856. For the next 50 years the new residents of the young state enjoyed the fresh, traditional German lagers brewed by Weinhard and others.In 1888 Henry offered to send beer through Portland fire hoses to the dedication of the Skidmore Fountain a dozen blocks away near the waterfront. But the City’s valuable fire hoses would have run close to Portland’s seedy Skid Road, and civic leaders feared that the rough district’s thirsty residents would puncture the hoses for a free drink.

Things changed when Oregonians voted to ban alcohol in 1914, five years before the 14^thAmendment established a national prohibition. Weinhard’s City Brewery switched to non-alcoholic beer, soft drinks and fruit syrups and managed to survive the nineteen dry years until Congress repealed prohibition in 1933. Along the way City Brewery merged with Portland Brewing Company, owned by Arnold I. Blitz. The resulting Blitz-Weinhard Brewery produced Oregon’s best-known beer until 1999.

During the economic boom following WWII, beer suffered from the same move toward national production and distribution that put more processed foods on American dinner tables. By 1980, the number of breweries in the entire country had shrunk to just 80, “and the prediction was that there would only be 10 left by 1990,” said beer brewer and writer Fred Eckhardt.But American palates were in revolt.

The social upheaval of the counter culture included the rejection of bland, processed, industrial food, and the college students of the 1960s were starting families and looking for alternatives.

In Portland, a group of college friends started Genoa, an Italian restaurant that didn’t even serve spaghetti. Young wine makers were planting Pinot Noir on the red clay hills fifty minutes south of Portland, and two brothers named McMenamin were satisfying a growing demand for beer with flavour with a dizzying array of imports at a little café called Produce Row.

Cartwright’s, Oregon’s first craft brewery, opened in 1980. Aptly called a microbrewery since the production was miniscule compared to the industrial producers, its beer didn’t attract a following and the brewery closed within a few years. But the response demonstrated that Oregon was ready for a different kind of beer, and when the state legislature made brewpubs legal in 1983, the brewers were ready.

Established winemakers Nancy and Dick Ponzi opened what would become Bridgeport Brewing in an old rope factory located in the industrial district in NW Portland. A few blocks away former home brewers Kurt and Rob Widmer were pouring their first batch of Altbier. Mike and Brian McMenamin opened Oregon’s first brewpub in the Hillsdale neighbourhood in 1985.

The beer-friendly Oregon laws, a growing awareness of the high quality local ingredients, and a seemingly voracious thirst for well-made beer triggered a micro-boom in microbreweries. Full Sail opened in Hood River and became the first craft brewery in the Northwest to bottle its beers. What started as a small brewpub in Bend in 1988 evolved into Deschutes Brewery.

The first Oregon Brewers Festival in 1988 drew 15,000 people to sample 16 beers from 13 breweries under a big top tent in Portland’s Tom McCall Waterfront Park. By 1990, with more craft breweries and brewpubs per capita than any other city in the United States, Portland is proclaimed “America’s Microbrew Capital.” Unofficially, it’s Beervana.

Over the past few years, a new generation of brewers has emerged. Trained in the region’s larger craft breweries, they’re opening small, independent brew pubs and making unique, individualistic beers. Oregon’s now home to 87 breweries. There are over 140 places you can go to and drink an Oregon Brewed beer owned by an Oregon Brewery. You can pick up a six-pack of local craft beer at almost any grocery store, and you can try special, seasonal brews right where they are made. Come have a cold one.

Portland straddles the Willamette River near its confluence with the Columbia River. The denser and earlier-developed west side is mostly hemmed in by the nearby West Hills (Tualatin Mountains), though it extends over them to the border with Washington County. The flatter east side fans out for about 180 blocks, until it meets the suburb of Gresham. Rural Multnomah County lies farther east.

The "Five Quadrants" of Portland

In 1891 the cities of Portland, Albina, and East Portland were consolidated, and duplicate street names were given new names. The "great renumbering" on September 2, 1931 standardized street naming patterns, and changed house numbers from 20 per block to 100 per block. It divided Portland into five sections: Southwest, Southeast, Northwest, North, and Northeast. Burnside St. divides north and south, and the Willamette River divides east and west. The river curves west five blocks north of Burnside and in place of it, Williams Ave. is used as a divider. The North section lies between Williams Ave. and the Willamette River to the west.

On the west side, the RiverPlace, John's Landing and South Waterfront Districts lie in a "sixth quadrant" where addresses go higher from west to east toward the river. This "sixth quadrant" is roughly bounded by Naito Parkway and Barbur Boulevard to the west, Montgomery Street to the north and Nevada Street to the south. East-West addresses in this area are denoted with a leading zero. This means 0246 SW California St. is not the same as 246 SW California St. Most mapping programs cannot distinguish between these two different addresses. A great guide book to buy is ZINESTER'S GUIDE TO PORTLAND

GETTING AROUND

In Portland, you’ll find an award-winning airport, efficient light rail system, pedestrian-friendly city blocks and miles and miles of bike paths — all of which make getting around town a real pleasure.

No matter how you get around Portland, it helps to know the lay of the land. The city is divided by the Willamette River, which runs south-north, and Burnside Street, which runs east-west, into quadrants: southwest, northwest, southeast and northeast. A fifth region, North Portland, is bounded roughly by the Willamette and Columbia rivers and Williams Avenue.

You’ll also hear the terms “east side” and “west side” in reference to the halves of the city on either side of the Willamette River. The phrase “Central City” is often used to describe downtown, Old Town/Chinatown, the Pearl District, the central east side and the area around the Convention Centre — basically, the neighbourhoods surrounding the intersection of Burnside and the Willamette River, on both sides of the river. Locals also refer to locales near the river, especially on the east side, as “close-in.”

In the central city and most of the east side, streets are laid out in an easy-to-navigate grid. In general, the streets running north-south (parallel to the river) are numbered, and the streets that run east-west (parallel to Burnside) have names. Street addresses go up as you travel away from the dividing lines of Burnside and the river

The words “public transit” may strike fear in the hearts of visitors to some cities — but, in this regard, like so many others, Portland is different. Here, the trains, streetcars and buses are clean, safe and simple to use, making it easy to traverse the city without a car.

MAX Light Rail – This efficient system’s 52 miles of track connect the city, airport and region.

Portland Streetcar – Get around downtown — and beyond — on the sleek, modern streetcar.

Free Rail Zone – There’s no charge to ride the train in this 330-block area in the central city.

Transit Mall - Buses, trains, cars and bikes all share the road on downtown’s Transit Mall.

TriMet Buses – Find tips on riding the bus and popular routes for visitors.

Our first port of call was BridgePort Brewing Co. 1313 NW Marshall St.

Bridgeport Brewing the oldest brew pub in Portland. We were not disappointed, situated in an old warehouse upon entering we were immediately taken aback by the size. Bridgeport is large enough to house four large brewpubs. There are catwalks and multiple areas on two floors. I noticed a lot of families seated to the left and couples dining to the right. The upstairs area seemed to be designated for yuppies drinking after work? Before ordering we took in the artwork modern, expensive looking, and everywhere. Nowhere could one find a brick wall that did not hold at least one painting. Several of them were so interesting that I felt compelled to break out the camera to snap a few photos. What a structure! this is a multi roomed bar with the brewery in the upstairs and also another bar upstairs. There were 8 beers on offer 4 of them over 7% abv my favourite of them was the Blue Heron Pale ale, and Margaret's was the Haymaker Extra Pale. They only had one dark beer on offer and it was a sublime coffee porter Cafe Nero. So after a taster tray and a couple of Imperial Pints! We had some nosh in the form of moules and fries and Corn dog and fries mmmmm.

So then off to the Rogue Ales Distillery & Public House, 1339 NW Flanders St. It is only about 5 blocks walk away. You either love this place or hate it. I am on the love it side of the line. This is a quirky place, with weird decorations everywhere, its poorly laid out and cramped inside. Who cares! Have you seen their labels? This is like being a kid and secretly shown into your best friends brothers room which used to be the garage. All sorts of crap and beer stuck in every available space. But its comfortable with no pretension. The staff are all very friendly and we were given a free sample within 30 seconds of sitting down. We have tried quite a lot of Rogue beers in the UK and previously in the US and we were not disappointed at source. They had over 30 of there own beers on tap and in bottles to take out. They don't have everything on tap but considering how extensive their beer list is I'm not surprised. We started with a couple of pints I had the best seller, the Brutal IPA and M had the Dry Hop St.Rogue Ale both very quaffable. By now the early morning start and the jet lag were taking there toll? So we decided to have a taster try of 4 beers each. This was the way forward as 6 of our choices were over 7% abv again! We both enjoyed the dark beers here not lest the Chatoe Dirtior a black larger at 6% and the Double Mocha Porter coming in at 8.4% abv.

Tugboat Brewery, 711 SW Ankeny St. As we knew this was on the way back as we had found it by accident in the morning. What a place this is! more of a nano brewery the kit looks like a one barrel plant and is well used they have 5 of their own beers on offer and 13 for other micros. Tugboat brewing doesn't really fit the brew-pub mold. In fact, the best way I can think to describe it would be "brew-dive", a cross between a brew-pub and a dive-bar. But at the same time, that's what gives it much of its charm. It's a hole in the wall with no big flashy sign and no glass-walled brew room; it's a dark and cosy library with a small bar that smells like beer and a bit like cigarettes. I love the walls of books and the "stuff" everywhere and I especially like the sparse lighting there are some small booths and all the people were friendly. No taster try in here so we opted for 5 half's of their own beers the Chernobyl Stout being 14% abv this well and truly did us both in.

Deschutes Brewery and Public House, 210 NW 11th Ave; Quite a striking building from the outside, dominated by large multi-paned gallery windows in a white brick facade. Inside fells like a converted barn, high wood lattice ceiling, and beams carved with mountains, rivers and wild life. On entering you see the conditioning tanks and behind the bar the bright copper kettles are very visible. Brewing was in progress during our visit. A well arranged seating plan, with tables and chairs, bench seating for larger groups and tables for two, with bar type stools. We opted for the sampler tray again; with 17 beers to go at this was the best way to try them. It’s rare to find a beer under 5% and very often most are over 6%. We also order food, typical American Pub fare, but they did have a gluten free menu as well as vegetarian options.

Having sampled 12 beers from the range and wolfed down a burger apiece we set off in search of a couple of McMenamin's establishment.

The McMenamin Brothers established their first brew pub in 1974 and they are something of a Wetherspoons type of business, or so we thought, but on a much grander scale. They have approximately 27 brewpubs/breweries and sundry other pubs.

The Ringlers Pub, 1332 W. Burnside Beneath the floating-floored Crystal Ballroom and Lola's Room (which are live music and theatre venues). In downtown Portland, Ringlers Pub is housed in what was once an automotive service garage. How much more convivial it is now! The pub itself spreads across the lower floor of the building and has a real wow factor. We entered via a dining area, wood panelled, with plenty of seating for dining or just drinking. Pass through the stain glass panelled room divided into a room that doubles as the main bar and a pool hall with 5 tables. (Free to play between 1130 a.m. and 6 p.m..) The bar itself is central to the decor of the place, stretching right down the centre of the room and accessible for service from both sides. Heavy wooden pillars and mosaic art work dominate. The walls are adorned with breweriana pictures, music memorabilia and there are even two old Tetley pub lanterns, the large ones that used to hang outside the front door of many pubs at one time. We sat at the bar and did a sampler of six of the beers all brewed on the premises. No brew kit was visible, however, overheard the bar man say that it was on an upper floor. It was a quiet afternoon session and the place was deserted, however, it is easy to imagine the joint jumping of an evening. It's a classic and we will be back.

Inevitably the rain had started, so we did a quick flit to the Ringler's Annex, 1223 S.W. Stark , just on the next block. We entered down some cast iron steps into a subterranean concrete cellar bar, dominated by a copper topped bar, with church pew seats lining the walls along with tables with cast iron legs and chairs in the carver style. Same range of beers, we opted for our favourites from the last pub, Ruby Ale and Irish Stout. It was happy hour so we ordered a slice of cheese pizza each at $1.25 each. Beers were $3.25. The barman in the Ringlers Pub had already advised us that it was happy hour, as we were going to have halves after the sampler which would have cost us more. We left the Annexe by a back staircase which took you to a smaller bar area, there is also a further seating area on the next floor up. These two were certainly pubs with character and style and we returned there a number of times. Note the Happy Hour slices are the best in town and only a couple of bucks.

Lucky Labrador brew pub, 915 SE Hawthorne Blvd; set in another old warehouse this was a vast sprawling place, and was self service! Even including clearing the table yourself! Still it helps to keep the cost down I suppose? It’s not fancy, hell it’s not even close. But the Lab does have a great Portland vibe. Big open ceiling, minimal decorations, long bar (but not stools) and brewery in the back. Outside seating is nice, especially if you like dogs. There were 12 house brews available which we sampled the lot. Plus 4 guest beers. Their beers range from ok to damn good. The Super Dog is fantastic, amazing hops, juicy mouth feel...The Super Pup on the other hand is ok. They serve great sandwiches vegetarian items and snacks. We had soup and butties ($7) that were really good value. Perfect for soaking up a few pints of brew. Worth the trip.

Next stop was the Hair of the Dog brewery, 61 SE Yamhill St. A tasting room in another industrial setting it appears to be a converted warehouse it is pretty spacious, and Not a whole lot to it otherwise.... walls are painted green and blue, with a good size wrap around bar in the middle holding around 20 patrons. There are also a few tables and chairs strewn around, with the dining area probably holding close to 70 or 80 patrons. We sat at the bar and sampled the 7 beers that were on offer the best being Adam a 10% dark chocolaty beer. Also the 2010 Christmas ale coming in at 11.5% called Doggie Claws was something special. Definitely the one of the best breweries IMO in Portland. So now we had a little "buzz" going. (so glad that free pints of iced water is always brought to you when you sit down) Good idea UK pubs take note. So we decided to do one more bar and then head back to base.

So we just nipped into the Green Dragon Bistro & Brewpub, 928 SE 9th Ave. (named as one of America's top beer bars by Esquire magazine), I love the atmosphere here. It's in a real industrial part of town, and it doesn't look out of place. The decor is simple, but comfortable and relaxed plus they have shuffelboard. The outside space is huge too - and bike and dog friendly. They have 50 beers on tap “the front 30 and the back 20” and we hit happy hour? We had a bar snack in the form of Belgian Style fries and Potato Fritters with dip, mmmm just hit the spot. (Owned by Rogue Brewery as of November 2008) The Buckman Village Brewery is located inside the Green Dragon and shares space with the Oregon Brew Crew's one barrel brew system and Integrity Spirits. It is the only place in the country where you can drink and see two breweries and a distillery.

Cascade Brewing Barrel House, 939 SE Belmont St. This is just around the corner from the Green Dragon! (I cannot believe we missed it last time we were down there. WOOOW. If sours are what you worship then this place is your Mecca. Over 15 taps of beautiful sours. All of their rarities can be found here, and they even sell bottles to go. The staff are extremely friendly and do not mind the many questions people have. We even had a tour of the barrel rooms wow over 100 barrels all with some mega sour ale aging away. This place is amazing they even serve 2 of the beers straight from the wooded barrel! The first 2 barrels behind the bar are actually on a still-age in the cellar the others are just barrel fronts for the taps.. After all we were in the "house of sour" we sampled 8 beers and then had a couple of really great sour ales (again the US have taken a style Belgian lambics and improved on it and made it their own) A must go for any beer geek visiting Portland

Rock Bottom Cafe, 206 SW Morrison St. is located in an older corner building. There are two main areas. There is dining to your left and the bar and more dining straight ahead. I like the very high ceilings with the exposed old wood rafters. They use half walls to add a sense of space. They use lots of copper, wood and plants for decoration. I like the rustic lighting in the bar room. Even though part of a big group of bars/restaurants they still have their own identity along with the 6 core beers each brewer then has free range. Which is good, we had the Fire Chiefs Red (charity beer) and a few others that were specific to this bar. We also had our main meal here (bit of a mistake!) I had battered cod and fries and "M" had enchiladas both of which were very good;{But at $15 a bit over priced as we later found out we could have had the same for under $10 a plate!} So we live and learn, Rock Bottom equals Drink Beer BUT don’t eat!

New Old Lompoc. 1616 NW 23rd Ave Nob Hill, (or as i would say the shack that Jack built!) Top bar (I EVEN OVER TIPPED!!!!) main bar area with seating in small booths to one side and a main room with booths and big group/party tables in the centre, along with a large patio in the back, furnished primarily with picnic tables. another "shack" this is one atmospheric bar. Also you can see the brew kit from the patio and they have a wall full of photos of "bald brewers" LOL. They have Happy Hour all day Sat/Sun!..and 3-6pm weekdays $3.25 a pint [£2] The Lompoc is located in an upscale neighbourhood packed with trendy restaurants and chi-chi boutiques. The brewpub's atmosphere doesn't resemble its neighbours at all. It's a pleasant, casual place.

Another McMenamin's Tavern and Pool Hall (these bars are the way forward Personally I thick "Spoons" bars in the UK are based on them?) Most are old building done up to reflect the old use of the building the cinema bars still show films daily and the theatre bars still do live performances. This one was an old pool hall and was not found wanting very friendly people as usual in US bars (No Chavs) This place is a maze of small booths and rooms the main bar and pool area are at the bottom and there is some class artwork around the walls. This place is well worth a visit.

Lucky Labrador Beer Hall, 1945 NW Quimby, is located in an old Freightliner Trucking warehouse in the final frontier of inner Northwest Portland. With it's wide open feel and the pub resident five ton crane hovering above the tables, the Lab makes for a very casual place to hang out for a pint. Serving pizza, sandwiches, and salads, our pub is a great place to chill out by yourself or congregate with a group of friends, family, or associates. 4 different brews on offer also an IPA on cask, plus the great value food menu, [we had pizza slices for £2.25 that really hit the spot] and also in this bar a live soul band that were second to none.

Pix Patisserie, 3901 D N. Williams Time for a little bit of chocolate indulgence. The chocolate and dessert selection here is mindboggling, it’s so varied and outstanding (and believe me, it's fantastic). Margaret had the Shazam! Rich and creamy caramel mousse, salted almonds, dense chocolate almond cake, and more caramel…Shazam! I opted for the Aphrodite, a Cherry mousse, chocolate mousse, a single drunken cherry and moscato-soaked chocolate flourless biscuit all hidden inside a crisp chocolate shell. Both with pints of Rogue Chocolate Stout a match made in heaven, mmmmmmmmm. It also boasts a chocolate laboratory! Were you can peek in on their mad scientists in the kitchen through little windows. All grown up and chic, Pix’s North Portland location has an upbeat fancy demeanour that’s dotted with monkeys and flocked red wall paper. The best part about this place is their Belgian beer bottle selection along with a huge variety of other bottles. Not something you would expect. They also carry proper glassware for all that Belgian beer so enjoy! A little bit expensive but everyone deserves a treat once in a while!!

Now after you chocolate fix you may be wanting a beer or two and you don’t have far to go as New Old Lompoc have another brewery on the same block and at weekends there is the Side Bar 3901A N Williams Blvd. we will start with the side bar first. This is where they host special events, parties, and serves as a barrel aging facility where they'll pour their specialties, one-offs, and new releases. Featured a 6ish seat bar and table room for 30-40. Very dark inside, barrels on racks around perimeter of the room. The barman was very insightful, willing to offer up tastes of whatever was on tap. Lompoc's bottles were also available for sale, including products not seen in stores. This is most certainly worth a stop, when they are open. Next is Fifth Quadrant, 3901 N Williams Ave, On the corner of N. Williams and 39th, the place has sort of a modern, minimalistic vibe to it, with a wall of windows facing 39th. There are a number of booths and tables if you walk in from the side street (39th), along with a moderate size bar on the right (looking to hold around 10 people). Beer quality here was pretty good, they had 10 beers on tap, including 2 seasonal. Service was fine, with the staff friendly and familiar with the local crowd.

The is also Hopworks BikeBar, 3947 N Williams Blvd. That is just a short walk away. Sitting on a main bike commuter route in the ecoFLATS building, visitors to the pub are reminded of Hopworks’ and Portland’s passion for cycling. Features include 40 bike frames displayed over the bar that are the work of local custom frame builders and for many, this is one of the few locations where they can display their work. Additional bike-centric touches include a water bottle filling station, 99 bottles of beer on the wall in bike cages and two Plug-Out stationary bicycles that actually generate electricity back into the building’s grid when pedaled. The pub serves pizza, salads, sandwiches and a happy hour menu, all made with locally sourced ingredients. And of course, 10 different HUB organic beers on draft and one on cask.

M*A*S*H + T*U*N. 2204 NE Alberta St What a great place, the brew dude was in full flow when we arrived and the place smelt terrific. They had 5 of their own brews on offer including the statutory West Coast IPA (mmmm hop head dream) and a stout that was very different in quite a good way. Also 5 guest beer which included 2 from Ninkasi Brewery (Awesome brewery IMO) Mash Tun occupies a storefront just off of popular NE Alberta St. on NE 22nd. Its front facade is like wood that has been aged to a warm coppery, caramel-brown colour. Large windows display the copper and stainless brewing equipment. Inside is like a refurbished industrial garage, with high exposed ceilings with several skylights and bare concrete floors. Sheetrock finishes have been added in front of otherwise concrete walls and have been painted a warm tan colour; the artwork (quirky paintings of cats) is for sale. There are about 10 wooden tables (seating around 30-35) and 10 stools at the bar. Behind the bar is the brewing room, with gigantic windows that give the whole space a very open feel. Adjacent to the bar is a large garage door, which opens onto a quiet covered patio. Corrugated metal separates one side of the patio from the neighbouring home and another wall is festooned with a colourful landscape showing several mash tuns in front of Mt. Hood. There's one TV (above the bar), a pool table (which appeared to be free), a jukebox (by the pool table) and a dart board (adjacent to the restrooms).

Almededa Brewhouse, 765 NE Fremont St. This is set in the "burbs" and is quite an up market place all the staff are in black and the seating is all pine and high tech with steel topped tables, but the beer was not found wanting 10 on offer including 1 cask ale and 2 others on "nitro" of the main offerings the IPA and the stout, so quite good we hit it at happy hour (3-6pm) So we had a taster try of all the beers 5 over 8% abv and 5 pints (shame not to at $3 a go :-) also we took advantage of the discounted food and had nacho's loaded with olives, onion, tomatoes, Jalapeño peppers, cream cheese and melted cheese $5 (£3.50) mmm great beer food (even though it made our eyes water).

So then we set off for another bit of a walk only about 15 mins this time to the Laurelwood Public House & Brewery, 5115 NE Sandy Blvd; what a place this was "Hop Head Heaven" 12 beers on offer including 4 dark and dangerous beers one at 9% and 5 variations on an IPA the 10th anniversary one coming in at 9.9% and it was so easy supping; the Organic Tree Hugger Porter was smoky and chocolatey; the Space Stout was chocolate and roasted burnt goodness.

A long "L" shaped bar seating 15 sits off in the side room, with a pair of towers of 12 taps each sporting a few empty handles here and there at different points along the way. The bar back has a centre window looking over the brew room, and shelves of booze over mirrored backing to both sides of centre. Tap selections listed on a board above, mounted flat screens in the corners, drop oblong cylinder lighting over the bar and spots on the booze. A half dozen short booths and raised round tables adjacent to the bar and along the front windows, a half dozen more tables in an area down past the bar to the rear, and a doorway there leading to a 4 table outside off parking lot seating pen. A single bench sits in a small shoebox room up front looking lengthwise down the brew room. Brushed cement floors in splotch shades of brown, copper, orange and gold, the walls dark brick and beige over wood slat lower pieces. Open wood rafters show plank ceilings, and exposed ductwork borders the rooms. GABF and North American Beer awards to the rear, World Beer Cup awards up front over the windows. An adjacent seating area lies just past the front entrance counter; massive dessert cakes and a wall of brewery swag hats and shirts. 8 booths along the walls, 4 tables down the centre of the room, and a kiddie nook in the corner (Shhh, you play quiet now, daddy's drinking grown up juice). A side dining room holds a dozen plus tables & booths and a larger kiddie play area. This place was hard to leave but time was getting on and we had one more place to visit in this area.

So we headed 2 blocks down to the recently opened Columbia River Brew pub, 1728 NE 40th Ave; and were we glad we found this place? (only opened in December 2010 and we only found on the net the previous night). We were greeted warmly by two of the employees (who turned out to be the brew dudes wife and daughter) upon entering, despite the fact that the place was almost empty. They had 9 beers on tap all unpasteurized and unfiltered, we got talking to the landlady/owner of the bar who introduced us to her husband the brew dude/owner, whose first beer brewed was an ESB @5.7% as a home brewer over 30 years ago! So having retired!!! They found themselves at a loose end and opened this awesome brew pub. We were then given the VIP tour of the brewery and even got a pre release sampler of their latest Belgian Style beer, at 8% with was not found wanting and in 4 more weeks when it has conditioned more and is released on ""cask" it will be a winner. The pub is a well lit place with large windows looking into the street, several tables, a nice bar, and the brewery on display in the back of the room. The beer was outstanding. There are two different American style IPAs, both of which are great. It was impressive to have two beers in the same style with wildly different flavours brewed by the same brewer. We tried all of their beers, our favourites were the Paddler's Porter (an 8.4% Baltic Porter) and Hop Heaven IPA (a 7.5%, 78 IBU tasty IPA). The food menu was extensive. The service was great and we were given an excellent description of the beers we were interested in.

One of the best pubs in Portland and #7 of the 125 places to have a drink in the world before you die’ ~ All About Beer Magazine the Horse Brass Pub, 4534 SE Belmont St. This place is located in a mixed residential/commercial neighborhood. The building itself is pretty nondescript form the outside...judging from the architecture and small amount of signage you would never know there was a pub inside unless you already knew about it.

Entering was like stepping into another world. an American attempt at a "British" pub, and not a bad one at that (it has a sister pub in London) Oak beamed, low ceilinged, lots of brass, beer memorabilia and photo's of the Royal Family and various politicians - Winston Churchill etc. Very dim lighting, lots of well worn woodwork, and loads of English pennants and other "bits and bobs" hanging around. Real dartboard’s in the corner, and no TVs in sight. Great atmosphere! The pub is well known in Portland and has over 25 taps with beers from local, national and international brewers. Specialises in British cuisine. After partaking of a few beers, including the rare "Russian River - Pliny theYounger" at 10% and only brewed once a year, we set off in search of the Hopworks Urban Brewery 2944 SE Powell Blvd. The "HUB" is an environmentally friendly brew pub in an industrial unit that used to be a tractor sales show room. The place is "bike" friendly having parking for over 50 cyclists (includes free puncture repair kit and also has a mobile brewery on a bike). The place has 4 main areas, which include a family area, a banquet suite upstairs, the main "bike" bar and a beer garden. We opted for the sampler, as they had 10 beers to try, then we had pints of our favourite. They cover just about every style, have some barrel and oak aged brews, and some great seasonal brews. All these beers more than hold their own in one of the greatest beer cities. All of their beers are brewed with organic ingredients! The food is also very good and made with organic ingredients and sustainable. Pizza,( which were yummy) natural beef burgers, sandwiches, soups, salads. The atmosphere is great. The place is very modern, well designed, bright, and clean. There's a large bar with bike frames suspended from the tall ceilings over the entire length. Just a really cool vibe there you are made to feel welcome and at home.

We were headed for another McMenamins, this time the Bagdad Theatre and pub. 3702 SE Hawthorne Blvd. We opted to go round the back to the "Back Stage" bar, rather than in the main restaurant. There is also the "Greater Trumps" which is a dedicated bourbon and cigar bar!!

As you enter the Back Stage Bar there is a couple of small booths and what looks like a pool hall, until you walk forwarded into the main bar area. It is one room, with the ceiling over 100ft high, two very large wall hangings, chandeliers, 4 pool tables and more seating booths. There are also two other rooms with pool tables and a bar on a mezzanine level. As the yanks say "pretty awesome" so I will not try and describe it further as you really need to visit this place.

Widmar Brothers brewery, 929 N Russell St - The largest brewery in the area. So we were a little apprehensive. But we were not disappointed. We started with a sampler tray of 6 x 5oz glasses and it was the taster tray from hell! With most of them over 8% abv! beers such as W,11 KGB an Imperial Russian Stout @9.3% abv and a Belgian Trubbel @ 8.5% brewed in collaboration with local home-brewers. They may only be small but that’s were the trouble starts quick to drink and then 2 pints have been quaffed without thinking about it! So a couple of other beers "M" had the signature beer the Hefeweizen (the first wizen brewed in the USA?) which would give the best German one's a run for their money. I had the Drifters Pale Ale - a classic of the style @ 5.7%.

So a short walk to the next bar of the day (minute). To another McMenimans the White Eagle Saloon, 836 N. Russell St. - another classic bar in the set in North Portland's industrial neighbourhood, underneath the mighty span of the Fremont Bridge, the legendary White Eagle Cafe and Rock 'n' Roll Hotel echoes with tall tales of resident spirits, poker games and Shanghai tunnels, as it has since its opening in 1905.

Originally a hub for Portland's Polish immigrants, today the place is known for its vintage charm and nightly rock 'n' roll shows. The Holy Modal Rounder’s and blues man Robert Cray helped launch the bar's live music tradition. Others like the Isley Brothers, ZZ Top and Big Walter Horton were followed in the '80s by Northwest music icons Paul de Lay, Curtis Salgado, Norman Sylvester, Steve Bradley and more!!

Upstairs, the Eagle's 11 original guestrooms offer simple charm. Named for a variety of Holy Modal Rounder tunes, historic photos of the band's performances line the walls and painted lyric adorn the walls of each room. With its nightly live music tradition, the hotel is not for the light sleeper! IMO.

An outdoor beer garden is popular during warmer months and inside the Saloon, a massive oak back-bar serves up McMenamins' handcrafted ales, wines and spirits along with a menu of pub fare. The original ceramic-tiled floor, corner stage and artwork all contribute to the strong sense of places that envelopes visitors to this Portland legend. They had 4 different stouts on offer and we sampled pints of them all after all we were in the happy 3 hours, also there were to guys playing old time swamp rock on acoustic guitars and harmonica "awesome".

Full Sail Brewery at Riverplace / The Pilsner Room, 0307 SW Montgomery St - this is a cooperative owned by the employees. It's now more of a general seafood place with a riverfront view that happens to have a few Full Sail beers on tap. Most people were there for the seafood. The brew kit is located to the rear and was quite an impressive kit, but the beers were a little disappointing, they had a malt extract type of taste? Either way, that aspect was very, very disappointing. It is also linked to a restaurant McCormick & Schmick's, that is quite up-market. Seems like the brewery is just an additional pull to get people in they have 10+ guest beer taps as well. So visit it and make your own mind up.

So then to a new brewpub the Burnside Brew Co, 701 E Burnside St only a tram ride and a 15 min walk away - what a place, poseurs abounded! Burnside has a modern somewhat upscale atmosphere to it. There is a nice large bar that looks on to the open kitchen. It can seat around 86 people We had a sampler tray of the 6 beers on offer that were medico at best (but still better than most UK offerings!) the best was the stout followed by a sour Belgian table beer. Pints were imperial but at $5 a shot they were the most expensive bar we have been in so far. We did not bother so asked for the bill, gasp, shock, $0!!

Another day another McMenimins this time the Kennedy School, 5736 N.E. 33rd Ave, one of the biggest locations. Remember when the worst thing you could imagine was being kept after class? My how things have changed! At Kennedy School, you'll never want to leave. Here you can have a pint in a classroom, enjoy an aged whiskey and a cigar in detention; enjoy a movie in the old auditorium.... The possibilities here are endless. (Just don't run in the hallways, please. You might spill your beer.) Since its 1915 opening, this historic elementary school has been a beloved fixture of its Northeast Portland neighbourhood. McMenamins renovated the once-abandoned scholastic gem and turned it into Portland's most unique hotel. Here you'll find 35 comfy rooms fashioned from former classrooms (complete with original chalkboards and cloakrooms, private baths and telephones), a restaurant, multiple small bars, cinema, spar pool, gift shop and a brewery (just wait until the principal hears about this!). Extensive original artwork and historical photographs cover the walls, ceilings, doorways and hallways. The sun was even out so we sat in the beer garden!

Amnesia Brewing, 832 N Beech St, and it is as unpretentious as they come: a converted warehouse with a covered beer garden where patrons quaff craft ales while watching the "Historical Mississippi District" pass by. Inside, you find a large area with a few picnic tables and a small bar off to the left. The brew kit and conditioning tanks are to the rear there is a corner bar serving up 8 of their beers mostly IPA's, pale ales, ESB's. All were sampled and not found wanting so we stayed and had a couple more pints. They do a limited range of food burgers and sausages that are cooked on the BBQ outside! Seating is of the picnic bench style. Overall a good beer experience.

Next of after a short bus ride was Upright Brewery and tasting rooms, 240 N Broadway St, Suite 002. Is set in the basement of an office building, it is quite hard to find as there is a little sign outside on the side walk and then a sign in the building that is closed at weekend saying take the lift to the basement, once down there you will be so surprised it is awesome. You walk into the brewery and there is a little tasting area in one corner that sits about 20 people and a couple of barrel tables to stand at as well, background music from an old record player sets the scene old blues and jazz. It is a casual place where you can: Enjoy sample trays or twelve ounce glasses of their beer; Enjoy photographs, drawings and paintings from local artists; Play Upright’s official game with your friends, Rack-O! Walk around and tour the brewery and hear live 20′s and 30′s style blues performed by Steve Cheseborough most Sundays. We were also lucky to meet the brewer and have him explain about the beers he specializes in farmhouse inspired beers rooted in France and Belgium but made with local ingredients and a Pacific Northwest twist. The name is a reference to Charles Mingus and his primary instrument. Mingus was a musician whose compositions defy categorization. At Upright we use special saison yeast and open fermenters to produce beers that are a true hybrid style, sharing Mingus’ spirit of exercising creativity and craft. The year-round beers are named after their starting gravity in Belgian brewing degrees. This method is a nod to the days when breweries solely distributed to their respective neighbourhoods with nothing but a number on the cap to distinguish the beers – a time before the overly branded, packaged and global products of today. We hope that you appreciate the absence of gimmicks at Upright and enjoy the beers simply for what they are. We thought this was the second best place of our trip to Portland and bought a couple of t-shirts and a hoodie.

Onwards and upwards to the recently opened Breakside Brew Pub, 820 NE Dekum St, quite a distance out of town and when we got there around 6.30 place was packed and seating at a premium we eventually got 2 seats at the bar. Atmosphere is great, it was real nice outside when we went so they had the doors up with people sitting outside eating and drinking. The place was full of 30 some things (in place to be seen) but was not as pretentious as the Burnside the previous day. We had a sampler try of all there beers that were all quite nice. The beers brewed here are for sure different, they like to experiment a bit which is cool. Food portions are sizable and the menu has expanded to include more salads and sandwiches to go along apps that vary in scope from steamed clams to smoky blue cheese waffle fries to fried dill pickles to stuffed jalapeño halves. The stuffed burger is, quite simply, one of the best foods I've ever enjoyed at a pub - don't let the $14 price tag scare you off, because it's wholly worth every cent.

Henrys 12th Street Bar, 10 NW 12th Ave .Set in the old Weinhards brewery. This is a massive building that is quite up-market and seems to be food centred as you walk in but do not let this fool you make your way to the bar are to the left and down a couple of steps the beer selection is huge (106 taps), highly varied, and outstanding. It has something for everyone and in various price ranges, macro US lagers, Euro-lagers, good quality European classics, great craft beers of all styles, and all beers are listed by the style, that the knowledgeable staff choose weekly. We sampled 5 of the dark side beers the best being Walking Man - Black Cherry Stout and &7 Brides Oatmeal Ellie, plus Monks Blood at 8.4 from 21sr Amendment Brewery a strong dark Belgian style ale. Well worth a visit.

So it you fancy a trip out of town? You can’t to better than visit Tigard. We caught the Max Light to Beaverton TC (Transit Centre) and then a 76 bus to Tigard TC. Our first port of call was Max’s Fanno Creak Brew House, 12562 SW Main St, about 5 or 6 blocks down from the Transit Centre.(The 45 bus stops at the door)

The brew house is a large open plan space with pillars decorated with murals of mountains, barley and hops, very bright and cheerful, also lots of bright murals around the mustard/yellow walls. It was early and very quiet, although it did pick up there wasn’t really any striking atmosphere. I can imagine it being quite lively of an evening or weekend when full of locals, but not exactly your cosy pub, quite utilitarian in feel.

Happy Hour is 3pm-6pm when beer is $2 a pint. The lunch time special was a burger quarter pound burger for $1.50. There were 11 beers to try, ranging from 5.2% abv to an I.P.A at a massive 9.8%, awesome and so easy to drink, we had a sampler of the main 10 beers and then shared a half of the I.P.A. Lunch was Fish and Chips for Mark and a Tuna Melt for Margaret, both very good.

The bus stop for our next ride was right across the road; the 54 to take us to The Old Market Pub and Brewery, 6959 SW Multnomah Blvd. Again this bus stops at the front door. This bar as a large main room with booth seating and a corner bar to the rear there is an area to play board games and also has 3 shuffle board tables “cool” then there is a separate pool room with 5 pool tables and some gaming/slot machines. There were 14 beers on offer 6% abv being the main strength, Otto’s favourite was the Hop It as nice refreshing pale ale and Margaret’s was the Raspberry Wheat (like liking raspberry vinegar off ice cream as a kid) Both of these two brew pubs had excellent beer; but were a little lacking in atmosphere and ambiance IOM.

So we headed closed back to our digs and got back on the 45 bus again to be dropped off (yes your guest it at the front door of the next brewpub) the Most excellent Raccoon Lodge and Brewpub / Cascade Brewing , 7424 SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy. This is a 2 floor building the brewery and the oak barrels for again in on the lower ground floor with a sports type bar. The upper ground floor (built on a hill) is more of the main dining area with hunting trophies on the walls and animal pelts. The seating is table and chairs and booths the booths covered with native America tapestries.

The regular core beers here were great I thought, with the spiced stout and Rain de Brugge the clear standouts. The bartender was happy to arrange a look around the brewery for us of the awesome barrel room at Cascade. The beers we were able to sample were nothing short of mind blowng, with a bourbon barrel aged triple, the "red," and the raspberry the most memorable of an incredible afternoon of tasting.We sampled 10 different beers, The folks here were incredibly friendly and knowledgeable.

What the brewers here are doing with their wild ales (infected with lactic acid I believe; they do not use brett infections) is nothing short of amazing. The beers here are incredible and worth a special effort to find. Also, while they typically have around 10 beers on tap, on this day they also had bottles of the cuvee, kriek and apricot (and one other - I forget what it was now) for take out or on premise consumption.

The beers here, at least the barrel aged sours, are nothing short of amazing and deserving of all the accolades this outstanding brewery has received of late. It's a bit out of the way from downtown Portland (probably 55 minute on public transport), but is well worth the effort to visit

There are two pubs a 5 min walk back down the hill from the Racoon Lodge The Dublin Pub, 6821 SW Beaverton Hillsdale Hwy. The amazing selection of microbrews on tap, with a current selection of 59 taps, they offer a wide-ranging selection of porters, stouts, lagers and ale as well as import drafts. And I was totally impressed to see Lindemans Framboise on draft as well. Pints of microbrews were only $4.50, and they offered a 4 Beer sampler for $6.50 which was a good idea with their selection. But there is not too much exceptional about the exterior of this sports bar, however what is memorable about the interior environment, is the inviting glow of the actively burning stone fireplace and the authentic appeal of the low wooden beams throughout making a large place cosy.

The McMenamin's Raleigh Hills Pub , 4495 S.W. Scholls Ferry Rd. Another day another McMenamin’s pub; there's no brewery here. This is your basic neighbourhood joint with sandwiches and salads, plus 8 or so freshly brewed beers on tap. 1 nitro tap, 2 guest micro, 1 mega lager. The McMenamin’s beers are mostly sourced from the John Barleycorn brewery in Tigard. The room itself is standard McM decor with murals and odd fixtures, plus some very cool vaulted ceilings. There's a patio, as well as plate glass windows along the side of the building which is very nice. A crude sort of trellis thing is constructed around and above the bar - it's cool. The beers are standard McMenamin’s, they're not always excellent but they always have lots of flavour. I had a chocolaty porter and Margaret had her favourite the ruby ale.

This is a fine spot to get some serious beer-drinking done, Dublin Pub is right across the street, and Raccoon Lodge just a block or 2 further down Hwy 10. All in all a great place to rest and recuperate.

View Portland Pubs in a larger map

Here are a couple of "G" maps of "Pubs" above ^

and the "Brewpubs" and "Breweries" below v that we visited in 2011

View Portland Breweries and Brew Pubs in a larger map

So thats the low down on Portland hope you will find this good "gen" if you are thinking of going there, any comments please feel free to let me know.

One last note Portland is famous for its Food Carts. These are small vans; carts or stalls that appear around car parking lots, or in there own lot with a central dining area they are all independently owned and you get a small plate of food for the $5 - $8 mark they are really good value and range of food is phenomenal.

Here is a useful web site relating to them; http://www.foodcartsportland.com/

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Our first port of call was BridgePort Brewing Co. 1313 NW Marshall St.

Here are a couple of "G" maps of "Pubs" above ^

and the "Brewpubs" and "Breweries" below v that we visited in 2011