Visiting Portland (Fall 2015 update)

Discussion in 'US: Northwest' started by guajolote, Oct 4, 2015.

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  1. John_M

    John_M Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,497) Oct 25, 2003 Washington
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    LOL! No problem. As always, your willingness to put together what is obviously a greatly appreciated, and well used resource, is greatly appreciated!
     
  2. Curb71

    Curb71 Initiate (0) Oct 22, 2012 California

    Planning a Portland/Tillamook trip and mostly am ISO barrel aged & coffee beers. Out of all the breweries mentioned in the OP, which ones, besides the "Almost - Universally Recommended Must-Visit Breweries & Brew Pubs", are my winners? I'm not going to have a car until one is rented to drive to Tillamook and back.
     
  3. John_M

    John_M Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,497) Oct 25, 2003 Washington
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Given that you won't have a car, this will largely be dependent on wherever you're staying in town. There are great spots all over town, so any recommendations would be largely dependent on where you're hotel/hostel/B&B/flophouse is located.
     
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  4. Curb71

    Curb71 Initiate (0) Oct 22, 2012 California

    I plan on booking that where the barrel aged beer is lol. Looks like there's plenty of hotels just west of the river. I assume public transportation to get to the other side where Cascade & The Commons is wouldn't be too bad? Looks like Breakside is too far south. I just really want to know which of the other new breweries, if any, produce sour/wild/coffee/stout beers.
     
  5. vurt

    vurt Grand Pooh-Bah (4,102) Apr 11, 2004 Oregon
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    If you stay downtown, you can catch the A Loop or B Loop Streetcar. Various stops on the line will put you within walking distance of Upright, Burnside, The Commons, Growler Guys, Cascade, Green Dragon, Baerlic, BeerMongers, and Apex. (Off the top of my head.)

    Also: The 8 bus will take you from Downtown Portland up to the Breakside location on NE Dekum in about 30 minutes.
     
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  6. guajolote

    guajolote Maven (1,337) Sep 12, 2008 Oregon

    I'm happy to do it. I just don't even want to entertain the thought of trying to do the update on my phone! Apple store says I should have the laptop back in the next 7ish business days.
     
  7. bfields4

    bfields4 Savant (1,159) Dec 11, 2007 Colorado

    I'm going to be in Portland on Saturday, and I'm originally from KC (before I get flamed I know people don't like breweries with TVs, I get it). Long story short I'm meeting a friend who wants to check out breweries, and I was thinking we could grab lunch at a brewery where I could watch the Chiefs game while still having a nice beer or five. Any suggestions?

    Sorry if I missed it on the threads if this question has been asked before. My beeradvocate search skills are not strong.
     
  8. dirtylou

    dirtylou Grand Pooh-Bah (3,328) May 12, 2005 Oklahoma
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Cascade will certainly work.
     
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  9. digita7693

    digita7693 Initiate (0) Jan 19, 2010 Germany

    Cascade, Deschutes, 10 Barrel?, or go to Beermongers
     
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  10. vurt

    vurt Grand Pooh-Bah (4,102) Apr 11, 2004 Oregon
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Fat Head's has a few TVs too, if I'm not mistaken.
     
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  11. digita7693

    digita7693 Initiate (0) Jan 19, 2010 Germany

    Yeah, I didn't mention fat heads cause I kind of hate everything about the place. The place, their marketing... I don't know , just something about it...


    @bfields4 bonus option:
    pre-game at Commons, first half at Growler Guys, 2nd half at Cascade, this would involve a total of walking about 2 blocks:slight_smile:
     
  12. vurt

    vurt Grand Pooh-Bah (4,102) Apr 11, 2004 Oregon
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Me, I go to Growler Guys when I need a good beer selection and sports on TV. But @bfields4 was specific about wanting breweries, and not just a place with a good beer selection and TVs. Fat Head's, despite my own misgivings about the place, seems to tick all the right boxes.
     
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  13. guajolote

    guajolote Maven (1,337) Sep 12, 2008 Oregon

    The NE Dekum Breakside location has TVs and shows sports. I'm sure they'll have the playoff games on. Like @digita7693 said, Deschutes does too, but you'll need to sit at the bar, and you'll probably need to get there within the first 30 minutes of opening to get a bar seat. They open at 11am on Saturday. Lompoc 5Q has TVs if I'm not mistaken, but it's been a couple years since I've been there.
     
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  14. derftron

    derftron Pooh-Bah (1,651) Feb 8, 2012 Oregon
    Pooh-Bah


    personally, I wouldnt limit yourself to breweries if you want to catch the game. Unfortunately, most of the best breweries to not have TVs.

    Good news is that many bottles shops/beer bars DO have TVs. on top of that, you will be treated to an insane amount of Portland brewery options either on tap or in bottles that you can drink on site.

    BeerMongers has a TV or two. small spot, but taps are always great, service is friendly and prices are right.

    Roscoes on Stark street always has a kick ass taplist and at least 3-4 TVs.

    Concordia Ale House will also have lots of great beer options and plenty of TVs.

    Breweries would include Deschutes, Breakside, FatHeads, and probably 10 Barrel.
     
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  15. John_M

    John_M Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,497) Oct 25, 2003 Washington
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    I don't normally throw out this type of suggestion, but will this one time.

    For those locals who aren't a fan of Fatheads, it would really be helpful if you did a short review of the place. While I also have some misgivings about Fatheads PDX, looking over some of the reviews on BA (almost all of which are from out of state), one would conclude that it's one of the best brewpubs in PDX. Personally, I continue to feel the brewpub is a bad fit for the PDX market, and from reading over some of the periodic posts I see in this forum, I gather that's a near universal opinion about Fatheads. However, as not one person from PDX has reviewed the place (and only one person from Oregon - yours truly), I doubt many folks from out of town are going to understand or appreciate that viewpoint.

    Just my two cents on this... but my guess is that most folks reading over the posts from Vurt and Digita7693 are going to have a very hard time squaring their comments with the reviews they read on BA.
     
  16. dphi

    dphi Initiate (0) Apr 14, 2013 Oregon

    For people traveling to Portland, I doubt many care whether locals consider a place to be a "bad fit" or not. I haven't actually been back after the first time I went when it first opened, but I thought the tap list was excellent and the atmosphere was pretty inoffensive, even if the food wasn't my thing. Very family-friendly as well.

    I get where people are coming from but lots of people thought the gentrification of the Pearl and the condos that came with it was a bad fit for Portland too. I actually kind of like that Fat Heads offers something different from what's expected and maybe caters to a different crowd than us here on the PNW BA forum.
     
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  17. TheBungyo

    TheBungyo Pooh-Bah (2,025) Dec 1, 2004 Washington
    Pooh-Bah

    Well, you convinced me to write a review.

    EDIT: Ha, forgot I already did!
     
  18. distantmantra

    distantmantra Pooh-Bah (2,954) May 23, 2011 Washington
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Fat Heads PDX makes fantastic beer. I was skeptical at first, but I'm impressed after trying a bunch of their stuff.

    Everything else about the place is a massive turn off. Gaudy decor, ridiculously large portions of food, etc.
     
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  19. John_M

    John_M Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,497) Oct 25, 2003 Washington
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Maybe we're just talking semantics here, but repeatedly I see folks coming from out of town who read over this thread, note the recommended locations, but will then ask for places that are considered favorite "local" hangouts and spots, or where they can go to find someplace with a local vibe. I see places like Lardo, Roscoe's, NWIPA, Saraveza, Hop and Vine, Grain and Gristle recommended frequently, but never Fatheads.

    Again, perhaps this is just my take, but there really seems to be something of an animus when it comes to many locals impression of Fatheads. At least that's the impression I get from reading over numerous posts about the place.
     
  20. digita7693

    digita7693 Initiate (0) Jan 19, 2010 Germany

    Thus my rec of Commons, Growler Guys, Cascade.
    Hit 2 of the best breweries PDX has to offer, and a stop at a great spot for growlers, beers on tap and place to watch sports. I can't imagine anyone would be averse to such an awesome prospect:slight_smile:
     
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