I'm planning a vacation the first week of July. 2 nights in Bend, 1 night in Newport, 1 night in Pacific City, 1 night in Hood River, and 2 nights in Portland. So given this schedule of locations and days, I guess Rogue in Newport and Pelican Pub in Pacific City are kinda obvious in this itinerary. It's going to be an awesome beer-cation! As far as brewery tours go, I've been to several. There aren't enough that really stand out. So which brewery tours should I be sure to get in on, and which should I pass? Will I need reservations for any of the tours I really will want to go on? Thanks!
While they're not exactly BA darlings, Widmer offers excellent tours on Fridays and Saturdays. Very knowledgeable guides, a lengthy trip through the brewing facilities, and some generous sampling. Also, their Gasthaus always has some interesting brews on tap that will open your eyes if you think of them as just a sixer of Hef/Drifter at Freddy's brand. When I lived in the neighborhood, I'd always work in a tour trip for company when possible. Tour reservation info here: http://widmerbrothers.com/brewery/ Edit/clarification for the OP: "Freddy's"= Fred Meyer, a regional grocery store chain.
I'll also recommend the Widmer tour that PDXhops mentions, with Friday afternoon preferred over Saturday (Friday the bottling line may still be running, Saturday it's quiet). The tour starts with a short video on Widmer history, a 30 min+/- tour of the facility across the street and ends with a few tastings and (maybe) some schwag (like a keychain or pint glass). Not great, but pretty good. In Portland, check with Bridgeport. I believe they still give tours, but don't know the hours/days. Never been on theirs. Other tours I HAVE been on: Full Sail - Hood River: pretty basic (lasts <1 hour), but you see the bulk of the brewery plus the bottling/packaging area. When we went on the tour last August with our friend from Tennessee, the guide actually gave our friend his FS brewery work shirt (sweat stains & all!) after the tour. Memorable for sure. Taproom is good, too, and always has a couple one-offs. And it's around the corner from Double Mountain, so be sure to visit them, too. Deschutes -Bend: granted it has been 5 years since I took this tour, so it may have changed. Huge(!) tastings in the upstairs taproom before the tour even began, then a pretty lengthy tour of the facility, including climbing around in the catwalks above the enormous tanks. When I toured it was not long after the first release of The Abyss (they talked about their 'new' barrel-aging program at length) and word was out about a new sour ale (The Dissident) they were working on. So that puts it into perspective. We are going to Bend next weekend and may try to tour again, so I can report back if we do. Brian
The Deschutes tour is well worth attending in Bend. It's amazing to see the scale of the tanks. However, when I was there in 2010, the tastings were held at the front of the production brewery in the lobby, and I think there were 5 or 6 taps. Headed back to Bend in a couple weeks, though I don't know if I'm going to be able to convince my wife to take the tour again. Will probably have to settle for Bond Street.
Thanks! I'm taking notes and shuffling the schedule. I'll be watching the Craft Beer Month website for more events! Can't wait!
In Bend you can do the Ale Trail and get your "passport" stamped; when full, you get a souvenir silipint(silicone pint glass). At Rogue(any of them) if you join and get your Rogue membership card, you will get discounts on beer. If you're there on your birthday you will get a free 32 ounce beer of your choice and a T-shirt!!
dang it! My husband's birthday is on the 18th, so we'll just miss getting in on some free swag. Is the Rogue discount on beer the same as AHA benefits? I'll need to review the pub discounts in Oregon!
