A bi-coastal beer love affair...

In January of 1993, when I turned 22 years old, I received a 5-gallon dual plastic bucket home brewing kit for my birthday and a copy of Charlie Papazian's "The Complete Joy of Home Brewing." The world of beer for me would never be the same again. My early attempts at home brewing were done with reckless abandon. I took a very Jackson Pollock approach to brewing. If this recipe works, how much better would it be if we turned the % ABV up to 11? I'd look around my kitchen for "secret ingredients" like coffee, table sugar, Kool-Aid, lemon aid, fruit, molasses, spices or whatever there was. This lead to exploding bottles and many a bad batch of beer. In the early 90's I drank a lot of east coast Canadian beers that we would drive up to Canada to buy because they were stronger and more tasty than the macro beers available at our local supermarkets. Around 1992 I would frequent Rohrbachs Brewery with my Father and my friends where my appreciation for local craft beer was fostered. I recall drinking some Pete's Wicked Ale in the early 90's and In 1994, I started drinking Saranac beers. I fell in love with Guinness stout on draught and Foreign Extra Stout followed by Murphy's Irish Stout. One day while at a specialty beer store near Rochester, NY I discovered Wild Irish Rogue, a stout by Rogue brewery in Newport, Oregon and my quest for PNW beers was awakened.

 

My wife and I high tailed it out of Buffalo, NY just a few hours after we were married and flew to Portland, Oregon for our honeymoon. On our actual wedding day I had saved 1 bottle of beer (Goat Scrotum Ale - a porter from The Complete Joy of Home Brewing) from my very 1st batch of home brew & it was delicious. I could even float a beer cap on top of the head. We headed right to Rogue in Newport, OR to see what these west coast Oregon beers were all about. What a sensory wakening. Many of the beers were much hoppier than what I was used to and I loved them. Next we headed to The Pelican Pub and Brewery in Pacific City, OR and had what could only be described as a nirvana-like beach and beer experience with a view that still takes my breath away today so many years later. Pelican IPA which is now called Imperial Pelican Ale as it is 8% ABV and technically a IIPA would become my house beer on tap in my garage from 2003-on for many years, until they had production and distribution challenges.

 

In 2003 I purchased the domain PortlandBeer.com with the goal of giving back to the beer community. I had ideas of lobbying to change Oregon laws to allow for same day beer delivery service to individuals and eventually a craft beer mail delivery service for those who craved Oregon beers but couldn't buy them locally. While Oregon beer delivery service laws have since changed and there are plenty of beer mail delivery services I have chosen a different way to give back to beer lovers. I host a monthly event called Portland Bottle Share or on Twitter known as @PDXbottleshare. Link I have also served as a brand ambassador and craft beer advocate for local breweries, cideries and festivals. @PDXbottleshare events have been held in the US and Canada. I've served as a judge in some beer and cider competitions. I have helped local brewers get their beers into new markets and venues like Providence Park for Timbers matches, helped get Oregon beers shipped to bottle shops and growler fill shops in Asia, and helped organize beer festivals and a collaboration between a celebrity and major Oregon craft brewery. I am always looking forward to new opportunities to share the craft beer and cider love and share a pint or three with friends both new and old.