A Memorable Trip

Well I made it, I survived being 40 and cruised on into being 41. Jenn and I celebrated by getting on the road at sunrise to explore the Oregon coast. And although I’ve been semi-joking on this only being a beer trip, the truth was that I was really looking forward to this day to explore the area. So Jenn and I got on the road before sunrise and were rewarded with mild temperatures and no rain. We drove down the coast and saw the beautiful sunlight before a rain storm, followed by a bright rainbow, and then a double rainbow. We checked out the Tillamook Cheese factory (I really liked the squeaky curds and the raspberry cheese Danish) and the Cape Meares lighthouse. And then we were ready for brunch.

The Pelican Brewpub (http://www.pelicanbrewery.com/) was voted best small brewer of the year in 2006 at the GABF, and Jenn and I planned to make it for Sunday brunch. The pub is on the beach in Pacific City, and has a miniature version of Haystack rock right offshore. Jenn had the Eggs Benedict (again) and I tried the homemade corned beef hash. Both were excellent, but the highlight was that I was able to try another sampler. Highlights this time around included the India Pelican Ale, the Tsunami Stout, and the Wee Heavy. We then drove down to Lincoln City and stop by the Lighthouse Brewpub (a McMenamins property). Another sampler; another selection of decent beer. I really enjoyed the Ruby, a raspberry wheat beer. And after checking out the Yaquina Head Lighthouse, we ended up in Newport.

Newport is the home of Rogue brewery, and the Rogue Bed and Brew (http://www.rogue.com/locations-bednbeer.html) allows you to stay the night over the Public House. This was the centerpiece of the trip that I had started planning the year before, and I was excited to get the Public House to check out the room. But we found out that we couldn’t check in, so Jenn went to check out the shops and I went on the Rogue Brewery tour (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFXALoegMR8). I got to be one of the first to try a Rogue IPA. It is kind of surprising that with all the hops that Rogue has used over the years but had never brewed a traditional IPA. The tour guide just went over to the tanks and started pouring. How cool is that? We then went to check in and were happy to find out that we were able to have a 2-bedroom apartment, with a full kitchen and a balcony. There were two beers in the fridge and two souvenir glasses. I had fish tacos for dinner, and was able to try the Issaquah Smoke Frog and the Eugene City Honey Orange (both Rogue properties). Jenn and I celebrated the evening at the movies, checking out Leatherheads at the local theatre.

Plans change, and Jenn and I decided to skip Haceta Head lighthouse the next day (avoiding an extra 100 miles of driving) and head back to Portland. We were both tired, and had planned to dedicate today to the Portland, Oregon “Beer Nutz” episode, visiting each of the places on the show. On the way we stopped at the Willamette Valley winery, discovering the difference between Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir, and having Jenn learn she really likes Riesling. We made it to Portland around 1PM, and had lunch at Higgins (http://higgins.ypguides.net/). Higgins cooks almost all of their meals with beer, and has a fine beer list. That is when they are in stock and the waitress had to admit that they were out of quite a few. I had the pastrami sandwich with a Hair of the Dog Greg (a vegetable beer) and a Ninkasi Solstice (a dunkleweizen). We then went to one of the original specialty beer bars, the Horse Brass Pub (http://www.horsebrass.com/). The placed smelled of smoke (that’ll change next year when Oregon imposes their smoking ban. Jenn and I split an order of fish and chips (this was excellent), and I was treated to having 4 half pints of local beers on cask. I tried the Rogue Younger’s Special Bitter (appropriate for the location), Full Sail Nut Brown ale, Mount Hood Hogsback IPA, and a Deschutes Jubel Ale. What a score! I had expected to find more cask ales on my travels, but was happy with what I had found here.

We finally made it to our final destination of the day, the Edgefield Manor (http://www.mcmenamins.com/index.php?loc=3&category=Location%20Homepage), another McMenamin’s property. The Edgefield is located in Troutdale, about 10 miles east of Portland, and use to be a poor house. The facility has a pool hall, 5 bars, a movie theater, a winery and a distillery. For $50 a night, we got a huge room with a private bath (we had a shower on the hallway). The atmosphere was fantastic. Jenn and I went to the theater that night and watched National Treasure. We split a pizza, and I tried a pint of Hammerhead Ale and Terminator Stout. It was a great day.

I only got to try eight beers, but with four casks and no samplers, it was a very good day. – 4584

"The mouth of a perfectly happy man is filled with beer." – Egyptian Proverb