Oregon Brewers Festival Recap
And what a weekend it was. As we look back on a great weekend at the Oregon Brewers Festival, it's pretty amazing to think that there's still nearly an entire week left to enjoy Oregon Craft Beer Month. But before gearing up for the home stretch, I wanted to offer up my impressions of the OBF.
Having moved to Portland just after last year's fest, this was my first Oregon Brewers Festival experience. Overall, I thought the festival was great. While beer obviously plays a central role in any beer festival, I appreciated the fact that OBF includes a variety of festivities and experiences that work to create a real festival atmosphere. Unfortunately, I missed the opening day parade and keg-tapping, but in reading reviews from others in attendance, it's obvious that the opening ceremony really helped set the tone for a great weekend.
Before the festival got started on Thursday, I had posted my picks for the Oregon Brewers Festival. These were all beers I had never had before. And after visiting the fest a couple times this weekend, I'm pretty happy that I was able to try all but one on my list (sadly, the beer I wasn't able to try was Flying Fish Exit 4 - which was well received and made several peoples' best of the fest lists).
Photos: Camping & Beer
Sierra Nevada Southern Hemisphere Harvest at Scott Lake, OR
Deschutes Hop in the Dark at Scott Lake
Silver Moon Hop Knob IPA at Natural Bridge, Rogue River
On the Road: Providence, RI
Julian's in Providence
For the second time in as many weeks, I found myself on the East Coast again last week; this time it was Providence, Rhode Island. I had never been to The Creative Capital before this trip and, despite the relatively limited brewery options in the city, I was really looking forward to exploring what Providence had to offer. Coincidentally, I was in Providence when our friends at Brewpublic published the first part in a series about beer in Rhode Island. While I wasn't able to explore beyond the city limits, I did find a few great beer spots worth checking out in town.
The most notable of my stops was Julian's. I had first heard about Julian's from a fellow Oregon Beer Odyssey classmate a few weeks ago. Described to me as a place worth checking out, but somewhat off the beaten path, it ended up being only about a mile walk from my hotel. And as Portland was getting rained on, I enjoyed the walk on a nearly 80 degree evening in Providence.
