1. Oregon
California
and Washington might have more brewers, but dammit, they’ve also got more
people. More importantly, they don’t have the density of Oregon’s offerings. Or
the quality. Oregon’s long been at the forefront of the craft industry, with
brewers like Widmer Brothers, Rogue, Full Sail, and Deschutes leading the
national charge as gateway beers for people who want something more out of
their pints. But they’re just the OGs of what might be the epicenter of the
craft beer movement.
Much ballyhoo has been made of the sheer number of breweries in the Portland metro area, which tops out at more than 70 and counting... but this isn’t a case of quantity over quality. It’s a case of quantity meeting quality head on. Portland houses an insurmountable number of great breweries -- not good, pretty good, or wonderful, but effin’ great breweries -- that are changing the landscape of modern brewing. Hair of the Dog, Breakside, Cascade, Upright, Ecliptic, the Commons, Burnside, Lompoc... it just keeps going. Even the “crappy” breweries by Portland standards would bury most of their peers based on pure deliciousness.
But that’s just one city in a state full of amazing brewers dotting the state, from the coastal Pelican to the high desert’s 10 Barrel, mid-state’s Ninkasi, Southern Oregon’s uncleverly named Southern Oregon Brewing, Mt. Hood’s Double Mountain... basically, if you enter a city or town in Oregon without a solid brewery, you’ve probably crossed into Washington or Idaho. Or maybe the capital of Salem... which sucks. But you’ll still find a great brewpub serving some of the best beer in America, made in Oregon, with Oregon hops, by a bearded Oregonian who’s probably in a band that sucks... that’s the Oregon way. Oregon beer, more than any, has helped introduce the masses to the potential of drinking great brews, and, with new breweries seemingly opening on a weekly basis, it’s the best damn place to be a beer lover in the US.
Much ballyhoo has been made of the sheer number of breweries in the Portland metro area, which tops out at more than 70 and counting... but this isn’t a case of quantity over quality. It’s a case of quantity meeting quality head on. Portland houses an insurmountable number of great breweries -- not good, pretty good, or wonderful, but effin’ great breweries -- that are changing the landscape of modern brewing. Hair of the Dog, Breakside, Cascade, Upright, Ecliptic, the Commons, Burnside, Lompoc... it just keeps going. Even the “crappy” breweries by Portland standards would bury most of their peers based on pure deliciousness.
But that’s just one city in a state full of amazing brewers dotting the state, from the coastal Pelican to the high desert’s 10 Barrel, mid-state’s Ninkasi, Southern Oregon’s uncleverly named Southern Oregon Brewing, Mt. Hood’s Double Mountain... basically, if you enter a city or town in Oregon without a solid brewery, you’ve probably crossed into Washington or Idaho. Or maybe the capital of Salem... which sucks. But you’ll still find a great brewpub serving some of the best beer in America, made in Oregon, with Oregon hops, by a bearded Oregonian who’s probably in a band that sucks... that’s the Oregon way. Oregon beer, more than any, has helped introduce the masses to the potential of drinking great brews, and, with new breweries seemingly opening on a weekly basis, it’s the best damn place to be a beer lover in the US.
2. California
Manifest
Destiny gave us California, and it gave us back beer. Literally, the entire
state makes the stuff, from Weed Alehouse & Bistro in a city called Weed
(seriously) about 40 minutes from the Oregon border, all the way down to San
Diego, which we’re gonna go ahead and deem the most dominating beer city in
world history -- thanks to Stone and Green Flash of course, but also Port,
Coronado, Lost Abbey, Ballast Point, AleSmith (find their Wee Heavy), and the
other 70+ operations brewing flawless beer with abandon.
God, there’s just so much to talk about here. Without hoppy vanguard Sierra Nevada, 99% of the beers we’re lauding (and... this story!) probably wouldn’t exist. Lagunitas’ commitment to growing national distribution while maintaining quality is second to none. 21st Amendment has a Watermelon Wheat to lure the beer-scared in, plus a perfectly portioned canned Lower De Boom barley wine to finish them off. Anchor’s been making whatever the hell steam beer is for almost 120 years. Firestone Walker’s Double Jack is probably the most deceptive 9.5-percenter you’ll ever accidentally drink too much of. And then, of course, there’s Pliny. Pliny, Pliny, Pliny! Pliny. And no, it’s not overrated.
God, there’s just so much to talk about here. Without hoppy vanguard Sierra Nevada, 99% of the beers we’re lauding (and... this story!) probably wouldn’t exist. Lagunitas’ commitment to growing national distribution while maintaining quality is second to none. 21st Amendment has a Watermelon Wheat to lure the beer-scared in, plus a perfectly portioned canned Lower De Boom barley wine to finish them off. Anchor’s been making whatever the hell steam beer is for almost 120 years. Firestone Walker’s Double Jack is probably the most deceptive 9.5-percenter you’ll ever accidentally drink too much of. And then, of course, there’s Pliny. Pliny, Pliny, Pliny! Pliny. And no, it’s not overrated.
3. Colorado
Everywhere
you look in Colorado -- literally everywhere -- there is beer. There is no
escaping the beer. This is a good thing. Everyone with a beard brews beer, and
everyone has a beard, which, by the law of syllogism or something, means
literally everyone brews beer. And, damn, do they do it well.
Oskar Blues started the craft can revolution, and if you haven’t had a GUBNA, change that. Avery has an entire run of bombers called the Dictator Series. New Belgium is distributing with the big boys thanks to an amber ale and a cruiser bike. Crooked Stave is souring things that man previously assumed un-sour-able. Great Divide has proven once and for all that the Yeti exists, and he will eff you the hell up. And the whole state’s in on it -- even the guy who just had a frozen chocolatini with dinner can rattle off 10 upstart breweries you won’t hear of for years. Beer is everywhere. Everywhere is beer.
Oskar Blues started the craft can revolution, and if you haven’t had a GUBNA, change that. Avery has an entire run of bombers called the Dictator Series. New Belgium is distributing with the big boys thanks to an amber ale and a cruiser bike. Crooked Stave is souring things that man previously assumed un-sour-able. Great Divide has proven once and for all that the Yeti exists, and he will eff you the hell up. And the whole state’s in on it -- even the guy who just had a frozen chocolatini with dinner can rattle off 10 upstart breweries you won’t hear of for years. Beer is everywhere. Everywhere is beer.
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