Tag Archives: Portland

The Rise of the Craft Beer Revolution

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Double Mountain Brews from Bend, Oregon

Double Mountain Brews from Hood River, Oregon

Tell me if this doesn’t completely entice you to want to drink a beautifully crafted Oregon beer:

“Welcome to a place where the water runs pure and clean, from snow-capped mountaintops through lush green valleys. A place where hops grow in such abundance, their harvest is celebrated each autumn by beer makers and beer lovers alike. A place with a metropolitan area that has more craft brewers per capita than any other place on earth. Is it a dream? No. It’s Oregon, home to Oregon Craft Beer. And we’ve been waiting for you.”

This was brought to you by the Oregon Craft Beer Guild.

Oregon is home to over 136 brewing company operating in 61 cities across the state. Did you know that in Portland alone, there are 54 breweries—and over 70, if you include the entire metro-area?  Portland has beat out Cologne, Germany, for the highest number of breweries per capita and has become the Microbrew Capital of the world.  For my German husband, this revelation is a serious blow to his ego.  Good thing for us, we live in Oregon!

Well, if you haven’t heard of Oregon beer, it is time to pay attention. Oregon is home to craft-brewing pioneers such as Deschutes Brewery, Rogue, Hopworks Urban Brewery, Santiam Brewing, Widmer Brothers Brewing, McMenamins, and Full Sail Brewing Co.—all of which make incredible beers that are well worth the trip to visit.  Oregon craft brewers make a wide range of beer styles, so there is always going to be something for you.

Given all of this, it is not surprising that Portland has been chosen as the first place for the launch of the film CRAFT this Thursday, April 3, 2014, at the Hollywood Theatre in Portland.  It will be the first of a multi-city tour; click here for more information on upcoming stops in Denver, Fort Collins, Austin, Oakland, and San Diego.

If you are new to the craft beer scene, this film follows a Cicerone (a beer expert— Cicerone is to beer as Sommelier is to wine) by the name of Craig Noble on his coast-to-coast once-in-a-lifetime journey, from his start as an apprentice at a farm brewery, to his beer schooling in Vermont and then to the development of his own farmhouse ale recipe.  This documentary film also takes a look at how breweries are taking on the mandates of quality, creativity, and integrity expected in this industry and the passion required by the people behind these hand-crafted beers.  Enjoy the trailer!

I am just now discovering all there is to offer in this great foodie-and-beverage capital of the Pacific Northwest.  Local is what is supported here, and Oregonians are very loyal to all things local. Furthermore, if your local brewery is putting on something that supports local causes (as Santiam Brewery supports the local Humane Society), Oregonians will be there.

From start to finish, the beer making process

From start to finish, the beer making process

Visiting Oregon soon?

If you are coming to visit Oregon, make sure to save the dates of upcoming events in the area:

April

April  3            Widmer Brothers Pub Grand Re-Opening in Portland

April 3             CRAFT Film Launch at the Hollywood Theatre in Portland

April 18-19      20th Annual Spring Beer & Wine Fest at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland

April 25-27      10th Annual Brew Fest at Oregon Gardens in Silverton

May

May 2-3          Cinco de Micro Brew Fest at the Salem Convention Center in Salem

May 16-17       Brewer’s Memorial Ale Fest – 8th Annual in Newport (Rogue)

May 23- 31      Central Oregon Beer Week  in Bend

May 30-31       Cheers to Belgian Beers in Portland

June

June 21           Eastern Oregon Beer Festival in La Grande

June 2-29       10th Annual North American Organic Brewers Festival at Overland Park in Portland

July- Oregon Craft Beer Month

July 23-27       27th Annual Oregon Brewers Festival at the Tom McCall Waterfront Park in Portland

If you are looking for great events in your own neck of the woods, visit the Beer Advocate for more information.

A few of my favorite local Brewers

Come support some of the local Oregon Breweries. If you aren’t in the area, take note of these great places, and add them to your Must Visit list!

There are a few of my favorite places:

Portland
Salem
Hood River
Bend

Check out this great page for more info on all there is to offer in Bend: BeerMeBend

Ashland
Pacific City
Eugene

Brewery Tours in Portland

There are tours for everyone here in Oregon. Choose your own adventure below:

Enjoy and drink safely! Cheers!

About the author: April Yap-Hennig

April Yap-Hennig is a wine lover and marketer with 12 years of experience in International Marketing and Communication in Europe and the United States, and with life experience also in the Caribbean and South America. She holds a Masters in Viticulture and Enology from the University of La Rioja, Spain, an MBA from Purdue University, and B.A. from University of Utah. She is also a Certified Wine Sommelier from the International Wine Guild in Colorado.  April was born in Utah, raised in the Dominican Republic and Ecuador, and has lived and worked in The Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, and Spain. Her love of wine started when she studied in La Rioja, Spain, during her undergraduate studies. This is where she fell in love with the country, the region, the people, the culture, and, finally, the wine–thus changing her life and eventually her career.

She is now the co-founder and owner of Epicurean Media, a beverage-and-food artisan public relations and marketing consultancy; she also founded and writes the Sacred Drop Channel at www.sacreddrop.com. She is forging a new future in Oregon with her husband and their hilarious French bulldog, Guapo.

Check out her websites:www.about.me/aprilyaphennig,  www.sacreddrop.com, and www.epicureanmedia.com.

Unique Portland: The creation of the Urban Winery and Restaurant: Cyril’s at Clay Pigeon

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As part of my Unique Portland series on things that make Portland strange, different, and wonderful, I had the chance to sit down with Sasha and Michael of Cyril’s at Clay Pigeon Winery for an interview about how to bring two passions together into one location. Learn here all about Sasha and Michael and their adventures in creating a successful Portland Urban Winery and Restaurant: Cyril’s at Clay Pigeon.

Sasha, a self-proclaimed cheese BFF (best friend forever), and Michael, a wine connoisseur and now winemaker, have created a great place. Clay Pigeon, an urban winery run by Michael in Southeast Portland, specializes in Pinot Noir and Syrah wine from this great state of Oregon. Cyril’s, run by Sasha, is the restaurant, wine bar and tasting room.

Michael started Clay Pigeon originally in their basement in Portland; when they found the right space, they moved the winery to where it is today on Oak Street, on the other side of the wall from Cyril’s.

Michael and Sasha have even created a great video themselves about their passion:

The Fixe Lunch Special

The Fixe lunch of your dreams! Eggplant Involtini with a glass of Bourougne Chardonnay.

 

Make sure to check out Cyril’s Fixe lunch menu, which is priced at $14-$18 for a three course European-style lunch. You choose whether you’d prefer a glass of wine with your meal or whether perhaps you’d rather have a sweet finish with a delectable dessert. Check back every week as the menu changes.

This is comfort food to the extreme. You can’t help but leave here with a full belly and a content heart.  Cyril’s is open Monday through Friday for lunch, and it is open for dinner Tuesday through Saturday.Clay Pigeon Winery Syrah 2012

Because we live in this phenomenal foodie town, there is a time, once a month. when over 30 top-notch restaurants offer varying three-course meals throughout Portland for a mere $29 per person. Cyril’s is also a part of this great culinary event.

While you are at Cyril’s, I would highly recommend tasting their Sunshine Salad and cheese boards and enjoy a glass of Michael’s very own Clay Pigeon 2012 Syrah.  At this link you will also get a chance to view the bottling of this beautiful Rogue Valley Syrah.

 

Cyril's Dining Room

Where you can kick back and relax: Cyril’s Dining Room

 

Where to find Cyril’s at Clay Pigeon Winery:

815 SE Oak St (@Sandy), Portland, Oregon

Phone: 503.206.8117
Hours of Operation:
M: 11.30-4P
T-TH: 11.30-9P
F: 11.30-10P
S: 4P-10P
SUN: CLOSED

For more information: visit Sasha and Michael at www.claypigeonwinery.com/ and www.cyrilspdx.com.

Follow Sasha and her passion for food on Twitter @CyrilsPDX

Follow Michael and his adventures in wine on Twitter @ClayPigeonWine

Cheers!

 

About the author: April Yap-Hennig

April Yap-Hennig is a wine lover and marketer with 12 years of experience in International Marketing and Communication in Europe and the United States, and life experience also in the Caribbean and South America. She holds a Masters in Viticulture and Enology from the University of La Rioja, Spain, an MBA from Purdue University, and B.A. from University of Utah. She is also a Certified Wine Sommelier from the International Wine Guild in Colorado. April was born in Utah, raised in the Dominican Republic and Ecuador and has lived and worked in The Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Spain. Her love of wine started when she studied in La Rioja, Spain during her undergraduate studies. This is where she fell in love with the country, the region, the people, the culture, and finally the wine. Thus changing her life and eventually her career.  She is now the co-founder and owner of Epicurean Media, a beverage and food artisan public relations and marketing consultancy as well as writes for the Sacred Drop Channel at www.sacreddrop.com. She is forging a new future in Oregon with her husband and their hilarious French bulldog, Guapo.

Check out her websites www.about.me/aprilyaphennig and www.epicureanmedia.com.

FoodWorx, the Future of Food: Part II

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FoodWorx PDX is an annual conference focused on how the world of food is evolving and the challenges involved in this evolution.  As laws change, as people change, as cities change, the world around them changes. This is part two of the conference regarding food insecurity, Chefstable, and My Street Grocery.

Dana Gunders of the Natural Resources Defense Council threw some hard-hitting facts at us.  I was stunned to learn that in the United States one in six people are food insecure.  What does “food insecure” mean? It means that on a daily basis, approximately 16 percent of Americans do not have access to food and are therefore hungry or in fear of starvation. On top of that, did you know that 40 percent of the food in this great nation is not eaten?  I was astounded by this fact.  That means that on your plate, you will eat 60 percent of your food, and the rest will be wasted while there are one in six people starving.  Dana pointed out, “If food waste were a country, then it would rank 3rd in Green House Gas emissions.  This food is actually the number one contributor to landfills, and because of it creates an incredible amount of methane.“

Did you know this simply means the food is at it's peak and not an expiration date?

Did you know this simply means the food is at its peak and not an expiration date?

Another interesting fact is that the size of a standard cookie has quadrupled in size since the 1970’s.  Again, compared to the 1970s, Americans waste 50% more food than they did back then.  So what can we personally do to remedy these issues of food waste?  Dana’s recommendations were the following: 1) create a shopping list and plan your meals;  2) avoid the massive bulk purchases;  3) use your freezer to store additional meals;  4) learn your labels and really know for a fact when your food is bad (the “Best by…” label simply means that the food is at its peak, not that it should be thrown out);  5) stop demanding perfect food—an incredible amount of food is thrown away for simple imperfections in color.

Following Dana’s talk came Kurt Huffman from Chefstable, discussing what sells and what doesn’t. Chefstable was created to allow chefs to focus on what they are good at—their passion, which is food—and not on running the business. He emphasized three principal components of making a restaurant “hot:”  1) Environment, creating a space that is comfortable;  2) Service, which is what is most written about;  enthusiasm is key, because, in Kurt’s words, “ it is better to be an enthusiastic idiot” than just an idiot;  3) Product–Yes, product is sadly the least important but still necessary.  Kurt then went on to talk about what investors look for:  1) Team—what they are really investing in; 2) Neighborhood—does it make sense;  3) The story—what is it. and is it likely to draw others;  4) The risk—because 90 percent of investments fail, are they willing to lose their money?

The conference concluded with some stunning storytelling videos by Rob of GLP Productions and an inspirational mobile grocery concept by Amelia Page of My Street Grocery aimed at providing fresh food access to all.

Rob Holmes, founder and chief storyteller of GLP Productions, talked about the four key elements of storytelling. Every story must have a purpose, a location, a journey, and a character. He used several videos to demonstrate each of these aspects. The one that I enjoyed the most was the emphasis on the key character of a story.  He or she doesn’t have to be a CEO; the key character just has to be a person who is authentic and easily relatable, and who has a great story to tell.

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Amelia Page, a young twenty-something, came on stage and talked about the fact that over 23 million Americans don’t have access to fresh food, creating food deserts.  Her solution?  It was to create a mobile grocery truck called My Street Grocery, which visits these food deserts and provides neighborhoods with a chance to buy local, seasonal fresh food at reasonable prices. She uses this as a way to educate people on food as well as to help them with planning their meals through meal kits that cost approximately $2 to $3 per serving. This enables people to eat healthy without having to rely on unhealthy food alternatives such as fast food restaurants. She started in Portland and hoping to expand this to other food deserts in the United States.

Overall, this conference was a very interesting and eye-opening event in which I was motivated to “heed my call,” eat at home more with local food, and waste less, and, when I feel adventurous, visit and support the local food vendors in Cartopia.

Thank you for joining me. For more information on the event visit: http://www.foodworxconference.com/

April Yap-Hennig is a wine lover and marketer at heart. She is co-founder and owner of Epicurean Media, a beverage and food artisan public relations and marketing consultancy as well as writes for the Sacred Drop Channel at www.sacreddrop.com. For more information on April, please visit her website www.about.me/aprilyaphennig and www.epicureanmedia.com.