Firestone & Nectar Creek Mead 3/27

Double tasting at Uptown! Nectar Creek Mead and Firestone Walker Brewing Company! Nectar Creek handcrafts session meads and barrel-aged meads using the bounty of quality ingredients the Pacific Northwest provides. We combine pure Oregon honey, water and yeast to create a refreshing and one-of-a-kind experience.

It began innocently enough: a couple of brothers-in-law sitting around debating the subject of good and bad beer. Instead, their search for a decent ale led them to brew their own. Given Mr. Firestone’s winemaking bias and Mr. Walker’s complete lack of fermentation experience, they believed 60-gallon oak barrels were the appropriate vehicle in which to create their perfect elixir.

OK, so initial attempts were forgettable. But like so many great ideas, out of that disaster was born a handy invention – the Firestone Union. Based on classic brewing traditions from Burton-Upon Trent, this bizarre and unlikely system of linked barrels has the ability to produce rich and complex ales. In 1996 the accidental duo shelved their endless discussion on better beers and settled for building a world-class brewery that bore their names on California’s Central Coast……the debate was now over.

Join us for this special double-whammy tasting on Friday, March 27th from 5pm-8pm

Reverend Nat's 4/2

 

"As a die-hard craft beer revolutionary, I experimented with beer yeasts, wild fermentations, Belgian ale spices, aromatic west coast hops and local fruit juices. As an historian of cidermaking (I have the largest cider book library in Portland), I recreated forgotten cider styles and practiced juicing and fermenting techniques long out of fashion. Permeating all these experiments was an obsession with flavor. I would cook a dish, eat at a restaurant, drink a beer or a cocktail, or peruse the farmer’s market, and be unable to contain my excitement for flavors. After making cider for nearly a decade, I concluded that, while apple-only ciders define cider for most of my fellow countrymen, my passion was in creative flavor combinations.

I started Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider in my basement, quickly grew into the garage, and in May 2013, moved into an abandoned warehouse in inner Northeast Portland near the Rose Quarter. Now I sell my ciders in five states (if you call British Columbia a state) and have a Public Taproom where I can join locals and visitors alike in enjoying one of my creations."

- Reverend Nat

Check out some awesome cider at this special tasting!

Tasting at Uptown Market on Thursday, April 2nd from 5pm - 8pm

Mazama Tasting 4/3

 

Mazama Brewing is a packaging brewery in Corvallis Oregon own and operated by Jeff and Kathy Tobin. They started home brewing in 1984 and knew they had found a passion in their new hobby. Their brewing pursuits included making beer styles that were once very difficult to find in the United States. This finally led to a long delay trip the Belgium in 2011, which provided the inspiration to start Mazama brewing.

After spending nearly 30 years as an electrical engineer, Jeff left the high-tech world to pursue brewing full-time in 2013. He has found that his project management, engineering and science background serves him well as head brewer at Mazama.

Kathy as recently retired as an executive leading a high-tech printing and computing business unit. Her years of experience have helped create a solid foundation for Mazama Brewing's success.

Tasting at Uptown on Friday, April 3rd from 5pm-8pm.

Dumas Station Wine Tasting 3/4

 

"Dumas Station Wines was started in 2003 by two Walla Walla natives, Jay DeWitt and Doug Harvey, after a few years of making wine in a garage.  Winemaker Jay DeWitt calls himself a "recovering wheat farmer," while his partner Doug Harvey is a "recovering attorney."

Jay & Doug took a humble approach to building a winery and fixed up an old apple-packing shed known as Dumas Station--the site of one of the oldest apple orchards in Washington, started by James Dumas in the late 1800s.

This isn't known as a fancy winery with lots of high-tech equipment; Jay & Doug rely on friends & family for help with the harvest. They spend the rest of the year racking the wine--one oak barrel at a time.

We invite you to visit our humble tasting room at the winery to enjoy our age-worthy red wines and experience the history of Dumas Station."

Come out and enjoy this very special Ladies Night tasting featuring the wines of Dumas Station!  Tasting on Wednesday, March 4th from 4pm-7pm.

Full Sail Tasting 3/5

 

For years, we’d been thinking and talking and dreaming about the idea of becoming an employee-owned company. So many people had put so much work and love and dedication into Full Sail, and we wanted them to share the same pride of ownership we did. But that’s not the whole story. The reason we started Full Sail in the first place was to build a company that was completely different from the ones where we’d previously worked. It wasn’t about business as usual. It was about finding our calling in life -- about truly appreciating our “human resources,” and balancing work, life, family and friends in a way that makes life truly worth living. It was in that spirit that we became an independent, employee-owned company in 1999, divvying up the company between the 47 of us. Of all our accomplishments, this is the one that makes us most proud.

Tasting at Uptown Market on Thursday, March 5th from 5pm to 8pm

Wild Ride Brewing 3/7

Wild Ride Brewing is a production brewery and Tap Room located in the heart of downtown Redmond, Oregon. Planning began in late 2011, and the beers began flowing from the taps at Wild Ride Brewing on May 10, 2014. We are now open 7 days a week with food options available from the food cart community located in the parking lot just off our patio outside of our family-friendly Tap Room.

 Our Wild Ride began when the idea of creating an awesome brewery came alive. A group of life-long friends, who grew up in Redmond, started plotting the course. With no professional brewer on the team, priority one was finding the right person to create the brews. Through the ups and downs and twists and turns, we met many interesting and special people along the way. One of these people, Paul the Brewer, ultimately joined the team and became our partner and Beer Maestro. His past experience includes years at Kona Brewing and Laurelwood Brewing, and he just so happens to brew those awesome beers we were looking for! 

Tasting at Uptown on Saturday, March 7th from 3pm-6pm.

10 Barrel Tasting 3/6

Tasting on Friday, March 6th from 5-8pm!

Alameda Tasting! 2/5

 

Located in Southeast Portland, Oregon, Alameda Brewing's new brewery is a state of the art facility with equipment sourced almost entirely from regional manufacturers. The new facility has a 20-barrel capacity and a grain silo and was built by Global Stainless Systems of Canby, Oregon. It supplements the original 5-barrel brewery located right inside the Alameda Brewhouse.

Tasting at Uptown on Wednesday February 5th from 5pm-8pm.

Ground Breaker 2/12

 

It was a big shock when we first heard we were going to have to change our name, but if it had to happen, it couldn't have happened at a better time. We had just reached a milestone in recipe development, and were in the process of rolling out new recipes for our beers. To celebrate, we were also working on a new look for our labels.

The recipes we started with in 2011 were developed in the garage of our head of R&D, James Neumeister. They were great recipes and they got us started, but with gluten-free brewing still being in its infancy, we know that there are still many things to learn, ingredients to discover, and techniques to develop.

Since opening, we have heard from many people asking that we discontinue the use of certified gluten-free oats in our beers. Finding a suitable way to make good beer without oats was difficult, but never one to give up, James eventually found a solution. Lentils provide us with the proteins we need to maintain a nice head and carbonation without the avenin protein found in oats. The ability to roast lentils to different levels also provides us with another palette of flavors that wasn’t previously available to us.

Try some gluten free beers at Uptown on Thursday, February 12th! Tasting from 5pm-8pm.

Epic Brewing 2/13

 

David Cole and Peter Erickson are the founders and co-owners of Epic Brewing Company. Cole and Erickson, originally from California, started an international aquaculture company in Utah in 1992. In 2008, Utah law changed allowing these two entrepreneurs to pursue their longtime dream of opening a strong beer microbrewery in Utah, like those they frequented in the Golden State.

Together, they have teamed with Brewmaster Kevin Crompton, formerly from Bohemian Brewery. Crompton has been brewing for more than 20 years (since 1994) and has brewed for three Utah breweries and another in Hawaii.

Admittedly, beer geeks, foodies and "Epic" adventure junkies, the three share a passion for making and drinking fine ales and lagers. The Epic team has a strong belief in doing everything "all out."

Tasting at Uptown Market on Friday, February 13th from 5pm-8pm

Pelican Brewing 3/13

In 1995, Jeff Schons and Mary Jones purchased an old brick building on the oceanfront in Pacific City.  Over Sunday morning coffee, Jeff and Mary came up with the idea of opening an oceanfront micro-brewery.  As they knew almost nothing about the brewing process, they decided to attend a Craft Brewers conference in Portland.

While at the conference it occurred to Mary that there might be a brewer there that might be interested in joining the Pelican Pub & Brewery.  On a hand-written 3 x 5 notecard tacked to a bulletin board, Mary scribbled the details of what they were looking for.

It was this notecard that caught Darron Welch's attention.  After several eager phone calls to Jeff and Mary, Darron and his fiance moved to Pacific City and Darron began brewing test batches of beer down the street in mini-storage units while the Pelican was under construction.  On May 4, 1996, the Pelican opened its doors and the rest is history.

Tasting at Uptown on Friday, March 13th from 5pm-8pm

Elysian Tasting 2/20

 

"The Elysian was founded in 1995 by principals Dick Cantwell, Joe Bisacca and David Buhler. Our first Seattle location, a 220-seat beer hall and our main brewery, opened in 1996 on Capitol Hill, Seattle’s most populous neighborhood. In 1997 Elysian was chosen to operate a pub and small brewery at Gameworks—a large entertainment complex owned by Universal Studios, Dreamworks & Sega. Elysian left this partnership in 2002 upon expiration of the five-year contract. A short year later Elysian opened TangleTown, an 80-seat neighborhood brewery/bistro. With a 3-bbl pilot brewery, Elysian-TangleTown acted as the brewers’ test kitchen, fueling the creative fires and helping cement Elysian’s reputation as Seattle’s top brewpub. The most recent addition to the Elysian empire, Elysian Fields, opened in August 2006. Perched next to Seattle’s two sports arenas, Fields seats 400 and packs the house at lunch and on gamedays. It is typical for us to offer over twenty different Elysian beers between the three locations.

From our very first day, when we poured the beers of each of the breweries we had all worked at in the past alongside our own beer, Elysian has honored the efforts of other brewers and brewing cultures. Uniquely among brewpubs, we have offered rare German and Belgian beers at our own taps along with those of our friends, some of whom at times have joined us to brew special commemorative beers. In a way our collaboration with New Belgium is a development of this spirit of fun and mutual respect. From 2008 to early 2011 we were able to produce large batches of our Immortal IPA and seasonal specialties at the New Belgium facility in Fort Collins, and New Belgium’s brewers would produce small-batch, experimental beers in their “Trip” series at our Capitol Hill brewery. In fall 2011, we opened our new production brewery in Seattle’s Georgetown neighborhood, allowing us to bring all our brewing back to our hometown. Despite this change, The Trip series and the spirit of collaboration continue on. We look forward to further growth and innovation in our brewing adventures as we devise not only new and interesting beers, but a new and interesting future for the craft brewing industry."

-Elysian Brewing

Tasting at Uptown Market on Friday, February 20th from 5pm-8pm

TRINITY MEET THE BREWER TONIGHT

 

Surprise! Trinity Brewing event tonight at Uptown! From 5pm-8pm, stop by Uptown for a special "Meet the Brewer" -style tasting featuring Colorado's finest & funkiest artisanal brewery. We will have Red Swingline IPA available on tap and will have the rest of the Trinity line-up available in bottles. This is gonna be awesome.

ALEbriated Tasting! 1/22

This Thursday! Stop in to try the beers from Alebriated Distribution, a company bringing in beer from Oregon, Washington and Idaho!

We will have beers from Crooked Fence, Airways Brewing, Arch Rock, and more!

Tasting from 5pm-8pm

Base Camp Brewing 1/23

Base Camp Brewing Company is the result of brewmaster Justin Fay’s determined vision and years of hard work.  His and brewer Paul Thurston’s combined decades of professional brewing experience are evident in each of Base Camp’s recipes.  Each of our beers have been crafted with an eye toward innovation and creativity as well as consistency and balance, making for awesome brewskies that are at once approachable for any beer drinker and satisfying for the most adventure-minded palate.  

Tasting at Uptown on Friday, January 23rd from 5pm-8pm.

Portland Cider Tasting 1/29

 

"What do you do when you’re frustrated by the quality of the commercial cider available?  You start making your own!  What do you do when friends and family keep telling you it’s the best cider they’ve ever had?  You start a business!  That is the essence of how the Portland Cider Company got its start.  Founded by Jeff Parrish, an Oregon native, and his wife Lynda, an ex-patriot from the Somerset region of England (the Mecca of cider), the Portland Cider Company is based on the belief that good cider comes from good fruit, honest practices, and attention to detail.

Our cider starts with fresh pressed juice from Northwest grown apples.  We then carefully ferment it using yeast that protects the delicate characteristics of the fruit.  The results are cider blends that are easy to drink, refreshing, and downright delicious.  Drink it, it’s good!" - Portland Cider Company

Portland Cider tasting at Uptown Market on Thursday, January 29th from 5pm-8pm.

Three Creeks Tasting 1/30

"Where we utilize only the finest ingredients available for all of our food and brewing activities, while striving to impress even the most sensitive of palates, Our menu of excellent yet casual and unpretentious pub food is served in a family-friendly, smoke-free environment that all patrons will enjoy. Our old west livery stable provides a comfortable, warm and rustic atmosphere that includes a full restaurant, 10 barrel brewing system, comfortable bar area complete with large screen TV’s and pool tables as well as a large patio for the enjoyment of our hand crafted ales." -Three Creeks Brewing Co.

Tasting at Uptown Market on Friday, January 30th from 5pm-8pm.

Woodchuck/Wyders Cider Tasting 1/31

 

"A long time ago, way back in 1991, there was a little winery in the town of Proctorsville, Vermont. Back then, we made our living producing a variety of apple wines, something not many wineries do. We also made a little cider called “Vermont Old-Fashioned Hard Cider” – not the most catchy name, yet pretty darn appropriate.

The Vermontiest of Vermonters are sometimes called “woodchucks” and this seemed like a pretty good name for our small-batch, Vermont-based cider. As you may know, the new Woodchuck cider tasted pretty darn good, and it quickly found distribution. Soon, our winery-turn-cidery was struggling to meet the demand for the cider.

It may sound hard to believe, but when you spend 23 years crafting cider it becomes more than just a job.  We like to think of ourselves as modern day craftsmen, and we believe in what we do.  So while most of our bigger competitors spend a lot of time and money on all of the things that go on outside their bottles (advertisements, promotions, Clydesdales) the hundred or so of us here in Middlebury will just keep focusing on what goes on inside our bottles." - Woodchuck Cider

Reposado. The name given to tequilas aged between two and twelve months in oak barrels. The wood aging smoothes out the tequila while infusing it with subtle oak notes. Wyder’s® Reposado Pear cider is an adventurous tango with the classic blue agave based spirit. Traditional Wyder’s® Pear cider infused with smooth subtle oak laden tequila notes. Refreshing pear cider crafted with some inspiration from south of the border.

Tasting at Uptown Market on Saturday, January 31st will feature ciders from Woodchuck and the much anticipated Wyder's Reposado Pear, now available in bottles! 3pm-6pm

Lost Coast Tasting 2/26

The Lost Coast Brewery and Café began with a common dream.  In 1986 Barbara Groom, a pharmacist, and Wendy Pound, a family counselor, wondered what it would require to start their own brewpub.  After years of experimental home brewing, planning and studying, which included visiting scores of pubs in England & Wales, Barbara and Wendy were ready to transform their dream into a reality.

With the 1989 purchase of the Pythian Castle, a 100-year-old building in Eureka, California, the café was ready to open.  The building, a restored wood frame structure constructed in 1892, was purchased from the original owners, The Fraternal Order of the Knights of Pythias.   After spending the winter and spring engaged in extensive remodeling, the Lost Coast Brewery and Café became a living dream in July of 1990.

The cool maritime climate of the Humboldt Bay region has proved to be very conducive to brewing quality ales.  The year round average temperature of 55º Fahrenheit is ideal for top-fermenting ale yeast.  While embracing the rich tradition of English-style ales, Master Brewer Barbara Groom has added a distinctive West Coast flavor to her ales by brewing with Western Plains barley and wheat and the exceptionally clean water of Humboldt County.

Since its humble beginning in 1990, the brewery has outgrown the original facilities in the Pythian Castle and moved production to a larger site down the street. After a record breaking year in 2005, producing over 24,000 barrels, Lost Coast Brewery had expectations of breaking the 30,000-barrel mark. In 2009, it broke that record producing over 50,000 barrels making Lost Coast Brewery the 33rd largest brewery in the United States. Lost Coast Brewery distributes its fine ales in 22 states, in Puerto Rico, and in three Canadian Provinces! Lost Coast Brewery has plans to move to a new location where it can barrel to greater heights!

Tasting at Uptown Market Thursday, February 26th from 5pm-8pm.

Burnside Tasting 2/27

 

"When Burnside Brewing Co. opened its doors in 2010, the vision was concise. Focus on easy to drink beers that accompany and enhance the culinary experience. Brew master Jason McAdam is a creative trendsetter in brewing, bold enough to take risks and smart enough to leave a creative impression on your taste buds. He balances our desires for tradition such as the Oatmeal Pale, then throws in food inspired beers such as the Sweet Heat, an apricot wheat beer dry hopped with scotch bonnet peppers that is reminiscent of a Caribbean chutney. "

Tasting ta Uptown Market on Friday, February 27th from 5pm-8pm