Previewing the Portland Fruit Beer Festival

Now in its 8th year, the Portland Fruit Beer Festival returns to its original home at Burnside Brewing on the east side after a one-year excursion across the river. Pouring more than 50 interpretations of fruit beer/cider, the offerings will span a variety of styles from sours and lagers to IPAs and stouts, utilizing all manner of fruits from commonplace to obscure. We recently had the opportunity to try a sampling of the beers/ciders that will be poured at the festival and were impressed both by the brewers' creativity and their skills.

Juicy/Fruited
Cider Riot! Everyday Passionfruit - A back-sweetened, semi-dry cider, it is a less tart version than last year's and displays the mild flavor of passionfruit in an easy-drinking 6% cider.
Claim 52 Skrrrrrt - Using a mild Gose base, one could easily mistake this 4.2% pineapple and passionfruit beer for a glass of juice. A very tasty glass of juice.
Finnriver Berry & Bard - Combining heirloom, organic Washington apples with Olympic Peninsula rhubarb and aronia berries grown at Finnriver Farm the result is a fruity yet tanic/dry cider.
Hopworks Strawberry Milkshake IPA - Light-handed use of strawberries and lactose meld with berry-forward Australian hops and tropical Pacific NW hops in this 7.4% fruited IPA.
Reverend Nat's Blood Orange Viva La Pineapple - Taking things to another level, Nat put his festival-exclusive version of blended apple and pineapple juice into a slushy machine. So drinkable and fun, beware of a brain freeze!
Von Ebert Starcloud - Starting with their Sector 7 IPA made with Mosaic, Simcoe, Citra and Galaxy hops, tropical starfruit was added, resulting in a smooth and lovely 7.1% hazy IPA.

Hint of Fruit
Buoy Saison de Gewurtz - The buckwheat Saison base beer spent five months in Willamette Valley Pinot Noir barrels with house Brettanomyces cultures spiked with Oregon-grown Gewurztraminer juice. For the first mixed culture project released, Buoy is starting off with a bang. Make sure to have this delicate 4.9% offering early on.
Gigantic Brewing Gigantic & Juice - An updated version of the G&J made last year, the lightly juiced beer contains balanced amounts of pineapple, tangerine and grapefruit.
Widmer Strawbarbaric IRA - One doesn't see many India Red Ales in general and this version brings together strawberries and rhubarb with "red fruit nuanced hops" - Hull Melon, Mandarina Bavaria and more. 

Tart/Sour
2 Towns Easy Peasy - The first citrus cider from 2 Towns, it's a limited release offering that drinks like adult raspberry lemonade with a tartness coming from the Meyer lemons and Lactobacillus culture.
Allegory Sunshine Slammer - This POG (passionfruit, orange, guava) was crafted with a session outdoors in mind, deriving its sourness from a Lactobacillus pitch. One of the more [deliciously] sour offerings we tried!
Great Notion Blueberry Muffin - Known for their kettle-soured Berliner Weisses, it has a bright, blueberry tartness that if one has the chance, pairs well with an actual blueberry muffin.

Unexpected
Lompoc/Fruit Beer Fest/Repurposed Pod collaboration Cacao Cream Ale - Cacao pods are generally thought of as the starting point for chocolate but using the juice from the fleshy portion of the fruit and the cacao nibs from the seed portion this beer is a mind-expanding creation. Hazy apricot in color with an aroma that hints mildly of chocolate, this cream ale is perfectly fruity and drinkable. Representatives from Repurposed Pod were involved in the blending process and Lompoc is only the second brewery in the U.S. to use their Cacao Juice (Tired Hands in PA being the other). 
Migration Manhattan Transfer - If you're looking for a cocktail, Manhattan Transfer is the beer to have. The 7.9% cocktail beer was fermented on freshly emptied rye whiskey barrels with "heaps" of cherries and vermouth-infused oak and botanicals.

The festival starts on Friday with a five-hour preview session (20-ish beers/ciders) and goes into full festival mode Saturday and Sunday spanning Burnside Brewing's parking lot, a portion of NE 7th Street and the parking lot adjacent on the west side of the street. 30 core beers and ciders will be pouring throughout with three to four rotating rare and special tappings. Pours will range from one to three tickets in cost with additional tickets available for purchase.

Portland Fruit Beer Festival
Friday, June 8th 4 - 9pm
Saturday, June 9th 11am - 9pm
Sunday, June 10th 11am - 6pm
Tickets on sale in advance and at the door, $20 (BPA-free, non-breakable Govino branded plastic cup + 12 tickets) or $25 (collectible branded glass + 12 tickets)

Beer Musing's Picks for PDX Beer Week

Yesterday we looked at the official foods for PDX Beer Week. Today we look at the PDX Beer Week events we're most excited about, most of which also have a food component.

Fruit Beer Festival - Last year was the first year we missed this festival, which temporarily moved across the river. The festival returns to its original home at Burnside Brewing Friday, June 9 - Sunday, June 11 with nearly 30 fruit beers and cider. The Friday session (4-9pm) will offer 20 of those and most likely, a smaller crowd. Ticket options are $20 for a plastic cup + 12 drink tickets OR $25 for a branded glass + 14 tickets and apply to all three days of the festival.

Sweet & Sour Dessert Pop-Up - Taking place at McMenamins 23rd Ave Bottle Shop on Tuesday, June 13, the event features Culmination Peche, Edgefield Dry Hopped Sour and Ruse Noctuary Sour. The three beers will be paired with three delicious desserts from Grains of Wrath Brewing's Chef Fabiola. A limited number of tickets are available for purchase at the Bottle Shop ($16).

Culmination Brewing at the Woodsman Tavern - Also on Tuesday is a beer pairing dinner featuring the PDX Beer Week beer, Hop Berry IPA brewed by Culmination, served with the amuse of Henderson Bay Oysters, along with five other beers and food courses. Tickets are available here for $60.

Sweet & Sour encore - On Wednesday, June 14 Chef Fabiola moves over to Saraveza for a similar event, this time featuring Block 15 Love Potion #9, Fort George 3-Way IPA and Ex Novo Cactus Wins the Lottery.

StormBreaker Beer & Wings Pairing - We haven't yet gotten around to trying StormBreaker's smoked wings but this may just be the push we needed. All day on Thursday, June 15 they are offering five smoked wings, each with a different sauce, paired with five different beer tasters.

Portland Beer & Cheese Fest - We missed this event, which is returning to Culmination for a second year, last year as we were in Silverton taking in the Oregon Garden Beer Fest. In its sixth year the festival take place on Saturday, June 18 and offers 10 beer and cheese pairings carefully selected by our favorite cheesemonger, Steve Jones. In addition to beer and cheese there will be complimentary chocolate and charcuterie samples. General admission ($35) and VIP ($45) tickets here.

Now just because we're excited about these events doesn't mean we'll make it to them all. Just like that letter you sent to Santa as a kid, this is a wish list. We'll see what kind of stamina we have.

Fruit Beer Festival Turns Six & Uproots from the East Side

The Portland Fruit Beer Festival, now in it's sixth year, is putting on its big boy pants and moving from the east side into downtown. Taking place Friday, June 10th through Sunday, June 12th it's festival that has gained in popularity to the degree that a move was necessary. The original space, in the parking lot of Burnside Brewing, worked at first but over the last couple of years, even with the expansion across the street, it was easy to see that the festival had outgrown it's space. Kudos to the organizers for making the much needed move.

Disclaimer: not a representation of this year's glass

The North Park Blocks (bordered by NW Park, 8th, Davis and Everett) will be "30% larger with grass, trees, park benches and more shade." For anyone that's attended the festival those will be welcome changes to the baking parking lot surface as the festival has generally lucked out with beautiful summer weather. A couple other changes are worth noting as well - a change to the tasting glass and an expansion of hours.

It should come as no surprise to Portland festival goers that the city doesn't allow glass vessels at festivals. When the event was at Burnside they were able to use them but this year it'll be a "branded Govino cup," which according to their website "is made from a crystal-clear, ultra-thin, BPA-free polymer, which accentuates the flavor, color, and aromatics of all types of beers. It is shatterproof, reusable, recyclable and proudly made in the USA."

As for the expanded hours, that's reflected in the festival opening at 11:30am on Friday, June 10th, making for a full day instead of the partial day it has been. For those able to get to the festival before 2pm Friday, you'll be rewarded with four extra drink tickets*

Getting to pricing, walk-up general admission is $25 and includes Govino cup and 12 drink tickets while advanced general admission packages online will get you three more drink tickets (15 total) however as with most online purchases there are service fees ($2.40 in this case). $27.40 for 15 tickets in advance or $25 for 12 tickets at the door is pretty much a wash as additional drink tickets are only $1.

One final note before I leave you to prepare for the festival later this week - 4oz pours will cost 1-3 tickets depending on the beer or cider ordered. Since the festival has started the number of samples that have cost more than one ticket has increased. While it's understandable that certain beers are more expensive to make it would be nice to see in advance how much each sample will cost. Maybe that's just me but if I go to the festival thinking I'm going to spend $25-$30 and end up spending perhaps another $20 in order to try the beers I want to I'll likely be less happy than if I knew up front that the beers I really wanted were primarily going to cost more than one ticket.

Enough of my commentary, get to drinking!

Portland Fruit Beer Festival
North Park Blocks, downtown
Friday, June 10th 11:30am - 9pm
Saturday, June 11th 11am - 9pm
Sunday, June 12th 11am - 6pm
Tickets: buy in advance or at the door (cash only but there is an ATM onsite)

Untappd users: save yourself some onsite hassle and create a wish list for easier check-ins while you're there.

Constructive Criticism for Portland Fruit Beer Festival

Last weekend marked the 5th Annual Portland Fruit Beer Festival, which I've mentioned is one of my favorite festivals. Again this year I enjoyed it (overall) but I noticed more and more issues that are quickly eroding my enjoyment. Generally I play by the old saying, "if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all," so what follows is intended to fall into the realm of constructive criticism instead of bashing/complaining/bitching/being mean.

Tickets per sample
It seemed to me like there were a lot more beers that required two or more tickets for a sample this year. While I haven't specifically counted in the past what I found this year was that of the 27 Main Beer Taplist beers/ciders/others at least seven required two tickets and four required three tickets. That's over 1/3 of the beers, enough to give me the feeling like I'm getting nickeled and dimed. Don't get me wrong, I understand a lot of fruit beers have a higher production cost, all I'm saying is that it's bad enough we have to deal with the OLCC's ticketing crap (entry price covers all, please). If there are that many beers that are more expensive, why not raise the entry ticket price a couple of bucks? With the number of people that attend this event I suspect the numbers would balance.

Lack of shade
It was my bad that I forgot to put sunscreen on before I went to the festival but in my defense I know in past years that by getting there when the gates opened on Saturday I should be able to secure a (usually high top) table that was tucked under a tent. Not so this year. All of the high tops were out in the full sun, even at 11 am, and I counted myself lucky to snag a barrel that at least offered shade for the new ink on my leg, my most important consideration all day. Sure, Burnside has a nice set up with their year-round picnic tables under the tent but there needed to have been another tent of equal size erected for this event. It was a gorgeous, sunny weekend but we all know heat and sun are the enemies of outdoor beer drinkers.

Venue size
It's great that the organizers were able to use the car lot across 7th street (a 40% increase in size by their calculations) but it was still not enough. More specifically, it's the shape and overall layout of buildings and streets that no longer works for a festival as popular as this.

Sidewalk crossing snafu
If you attended surely you saw or were made aware by the alcohol monitors of the "No Beer On Crosswalk. Finish Beer First." signs. Apparently the sidewalk that sits between the car lot and 7th is a "public sidewalk" and the organizers were unable to secure a permit that would effectively close that sidewalk to people not attending the festival. This essentially negated the addition of the car lot space as people were unable to freely roam, beer in glass, between the two areas of the festival. Seriously, how many times has EVERYONE in your group had an empty glass at the same time, allowing them to migrate? I never even went to that area specifically because of this.



Only 22 minutes into the festival on Saturday

Line length
Again, I applaud the festival organizers for creating such a hugely popular festival. The problem (compounded by the aforementioned issues) is that very early in - I'm talking within two hours of gates open on Saturday - the lines to get beer were already an issue. An hour later I switched to full pours because I couldn't stomach the wait (in the hot sun no less) for just a sample.

That concludes one of the very few disparaging posts you'll see from me. And as I said at the beginning I hope that if the festival organizers read this they'll take it as constructive criticism, as it was intended, and make significant changes to the event before next year. I'd really like to continue attending.

Coming Up: 5th Annual Portland Fruit Beer Festival

Attending this year's media preview for the Fruit Beer Festival, one of my favorite Portland beer festivals, it was interesting to hear how many of the nine beers we sampled used Eugene's own Nancy's Yogurt. Yogurt is one of the ways brewers are able to affordably kettle sour beers, something you can read more extensively about it over at the New School. For the purpose of this post suffice it to say that as a sour beer lover I'm all for the use of yogurt and enjoyed the beers represented at the tasting that used it.

One of those delicious brews was Ecliptic Ultra Violet Blackberry Sour Ale, a beer I feel obliged to warn you about. John Harris brewed it to showcase Oregon blackberries and it's a beauty with a secret. She'll whisper 3.5% sweet nothings when in fact she's concealing a full 7.5% ABV. Enjoy, but make sure to enjoy with caution and don't say I didn't warn you.

Fruit beers in general often have a sessionable ABV and use a lighter base beer but those looking to visit the dark side can count on this festival to come through with something. Darker fruits like blueberries and Marion blackberries were used by Upright and Alameda, respectively, in the brewing of a stout and CDA.

In addition to those dark beers there will be offerings for those interested in exploring equal opportunity drinking. If that describes you, you can look forward to cider offerings from 2 Towns, Reverend Nat's, Cider Riot and a head scratcher hybrid, Kiwi Lime fizzy wine from Hi-Wheel. What I've had from Hi-Wheel to date has been delicious and if you haven't yet tried them, you'll want to do so.

The festival runs two and a half days starting with a Friday night session. Last year it was a VIP-ticketed event but this year it will be general admission and in addition to more space across 7th Street, will hopefully help to alleviate the crowds that are sure to show up for this rapidly growing festival. My recommendation, as always, is still to get there early.

As an added bonus the non-profit beneficiary of the festival this year is the Portland Fruit Tree Project. They're one of my favorite organizations in town, one that aims to put the bounty of underutilized fruit trees to use. Volunteers scout neighborhoods early in the season and then volunteer pickers show up when the fruit is ripe. The majority of each harvest is donated to local food pantries; volunteers get to take home some of the fruits of their labor.

Portland Fruit Beer Festival
Friday, June 12 - Sunday, June 14
Burnside Brewing, 7th & E. Burnside
Tickets: $20 for a taster glass and 12 tickets

June Preview

July may officially be Oregon Craft Beer Month but with the 10-day run of PDX Beer Week and other events in June it certainly rivals July for beer geeks' attention. There are too many things going on in June for me to list them all but there are some I'm really, really looking forward to. Expect more in depth preview posts throughout the month but for now, a quick snapshot of where you can expect to see me.

Friday, June 7 5:00 - 8:00 pm: Red Duck Ketchup Day at Coalition Brewing
I don't like to play favorites but Coalition is one of my favorite breweries in town and the idea behind this event, to celebrate National Ketchup Day, is a fun one. If you haven't heard about it, make sure to click the event link to read about the beer and more that will be there.

Friday, June 12 - Sunday, June 14: 5th Annual Fruit Beer Festival at Burnside Brewing
I've attended three of the last four years of this festival (had to miss one year due to a beercation to Colorado) and I always look forward to the creativity of the brewers that use not only traditional, sweet fruits but also less traditional fruits (that are sometimes miscategorized as vegetables) like tomatoes.

Friday, June 19 - Sunday, June 21: 11th Annual Oregon Garden Brewfest in Silverton
This will be my third year attending this festival and although the change in date from spring to summer puts it in greater competition with other beer events I'm excited to visit the gardens (traditionally our Friday morning post-breakfast, pre-festival plan) when they're in full bloom. Like the Spring Beer & Wine Fest, this is one where some of the smaller breweries that you won't see at larger festivals make an appearance.

Sunday, June 21 12:00 - 5:00 pm: 4th Annual Beer & Cheese Festival at The Commons Brewery
I waited too long last year and the event sold out before I could buy my ticket. Having greatly enjoyed this festival in the past this year I made sure to snag my ticket early. Some are still available if you haven't gotten yours but do expect it to sell out again this year.

Looking Forward...To Portland Fruit Beer Festival

PDX Beer Week starts today and one of the events I'm looking forward to the most is the Fruit Beer Festival. We went the first two years but were out of town for it last year (in our defense, we were on a beer trip in Colorado). I recently had the opportunity to sample nine of the beers that will be at this year's festival and while I enjoyed all of them there were three that really made me smile.

Deschutes Peach Slap
This sour ale goes beyond just fruity, venturing into the land of spice with the addition of one pound each of juniper berries and pink peppercorns during brewing and habanero syrup at the end. The small group of us that were chatting as we sampled each beer agreed that the first sip is like Squirt soda. Not a bad thing, especially considering it's a 3.2% beer. Assistant brewer Jason Barbie used lactobacillus to sour it and while I don't know if I've had any of his creations before I'll certainly be on the lookout after the bang up job he did on this.

Laurelwood Orange You Glad I Didn't Say Banana?
I have to admit that the name had me a little scared with the mere mention of banana. Boy was I wrong! Starting off with a great aroma, this is a tart wheat that uses a Belgian wit yeast strain and required 600 lbs of citrus fruits to be processed for their zest and juice that were added post fermentation. As for the name, Brewmaster Vasili Gletos, said that they had been making hefeweizens for a few months and he has a five year old son with which Knock, Knock jokes are very popular.

The Commons Citrus Royale
I wasn't surprised to find that one of my favorite beers of the tasting came from one of my favorite breweries. Citrus Royale is a take on Biere Royale (another delicious beer), using the same base with spelt and flaked wheat and soured with Nancy's yogurt. It's tart, fruity and overall delightful!

If you haven't been to the Fruit Beer Festival before it's well worth going, even if you don't think you're a fruit beer fan. Fruit doesn't = sweet and isn't bound by the use of typical base beers. In the tasting alone there was a Belgian Dark Golden and a Grapefruit White IPA; I expect that our talented and creative brewers will surprise you with all kinds of creations at this festival.

4th Annual Portland Fruit Beer Festival
June 7th 11 am - 9 pm
June 8th 11 am - 6 pm
701 E Burnside, Portland, OR
Tickets: $20 (includes 16 oz glass + 12 drink tickets) available in advance and at the door
Beers: Standard line up + rare & rotating beers

Prepping You for the Portland Fruit Beer Festival

The Portland Fruit Beer Festival is coming your way this weekend (June 8th and 9th) and it's one you don't want to miss. I had the opportunity to sample a handful of the beers that will be offered at this year's festival and while it came as no surprise, I was still astounded by the creativity and craftsmanship that went into these beers.

Some of the previewed beers were of the variety that probably first comes to mind when you hear "fruit beers" - light in color and very refreshing. Among these were two collaboration beers - Upright with Bushwhacker and Hopworks (HUB) with Automatic Brewing - and an offering from The Commons.

The Barrel-Aged Citrus Wit, the collaboration beer from Upright Brewing and Bushwhacker Cider, offers a light aroma and flavor from the Seville and blood oranges used. A refreshing beer, I suspect this will be a crowd favorite.

Hopworks Urban Brewery (HUB) collaborated with Automatic Brewing out of San Diego, CA to create HUB-O-Matic Brewing Tiger Tonic. This "Cascadian Fruit Wit" is loaded with tropical fruit aroma and flavor coming not only from the fruits used in brewing but also from the hops and yeast. You can geek out with the full details by clicking on the picture to enlarge it or just trust me when I say that if you're a fan of tropical fruits, you'll enjoy this.

One of my favorite beers of the preview came from The Commons - Biere Royale. This beer is one for the tart/sour beer lovers. It was made with spelt, flaked wheat, black currants, two lacto strains and get this...Nancy's yogurt. Check out Sean talking about the beer for more on the yogurt part and add this to your "must drink" list, my sour friends.

There were also a couple that used darker fruits - Burnside Baltic Porter and Lompoc Barrel-Aged Cherry Wheat. The brewers at Burnside combined dates, figs and blueberries with a California Common yeast and then barrel-aged the beer. The result is an 8.5% ABV beer that while dark in color and loaded with fruit flavor, avoids feeling heavy.

Bryan Keilty, head brewer at Lompoc, also barrel-aged his beer. Starting with a base of Willy's Wheat and then adding 200 pounds of sour cherries, the beer spent two months in Port barrels, followed by another 18 months of aging. As with Burnside's beer, the color may lead one to think the beer will be heavy but it remains light and drinkable at 5.5% ABV.

In addition to beers, there will also be some ciders at the festival, including an outstanding one from 2 Towns Ciderhouse. Their Rhubarbarian started out with two and a half tons of fresh rhubarb being put through an apple press and resulted in a 6.9% ABV funky, tart rhubarb cider. Watch yourself with this one though as you'll hardly detect any alcohol in it and it'll go down so easy you'll be cueing up for more.

Portland Fruit Beer Festival
Saturday, June 8th 11 am - 9 pm & Sunday, June 9th 11 am - 6 pm
Burnside Brewing Co., 701 E Burnside
Ticket info & beer list

Looking Ahead to Festival Season

This past weekend, Memorial Day, was the unofficial start to summer and while the weather in Portland has been slow on the uptake, the beer festival scene is moving forward regardless.

June kicks off with the third annual Portland Beer Week, which includes the Rye Beer Fest and the Portland Fruit Beer Festival. Rye Beer Fest will celebrate its second year with a new venue, more beers and expanded hours. Held at EastBurn on Friday, June 7th, you can find a full beer list and additional details on their website.

Portland Fruit Beer Festival is in its third year, as a two-day festival taking place at another East Burnside establishment, Burnside Brewing, June 8th and 9th. "Main Stage" beers will be available for most of the festival (although going the first day is your best bet to make sure you don't miss out on anything) while the "Rare & Rotating" beers will be on two to four at a time, being replaced as the kegs are emptied. If you think are fruit beers are fru-fru, just take a look at the beer list and you'll soon find out otherwise.

After two festivals focused on beer flavors, the North American Organic Brewers Festival shifts focus and invades Overlook Park in North Portland. The festival, in its ninth year, offers three days filled with organic beer and ciders, live local music, organic food and more. Starting on Friday, June 27th and running through Sunday, June 30th, the festival bridges the gap between the younger, shorter duration festivals that started June and the larger, longer, more established "Big One" in July.

That "Big One" is none other than the Orgeon Brewers Festival which comes at a time when summer *should* be in full swing. Now in its 26th (!) year, the festival has expanded to a full five days running Wednesday, July 24th through Sunday, July 28th at Waterfront Park. Over 80 craft beers will be available, hailing from across the U.S., and for the first time those beers will be poured into glass tasting glasses. These replace the plastic mugs that are so prevalent at Oregon festivals, a move which I'm hopeful will continue to spread.

These four festivals are just the tip of the iceberg in terms of beer events, especially during Portland Beer Week, but they offer a chance to try a multitude of beers that are often not available elsewhere. So mark your calendars, put your liver on notice and enjoy the bounty of the Portland summer beer scene!