Chuck Another One (Medal) Up for Chuckanut…

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Breaking News!

“The US Postal Service will deliver mail throughout the US on Monday.”

The above is an example of the ubiquity of this two-word exclamation and “report” – not only on cable news but the networks. These range from current events of significant gravity to those of the monotonous and mundane.   This trend led Chris Licht, President of CNN, to declare:

“It has become such a fixture on every channel and network that its impact has become lost on the audience.”

That Said…

A December 15, 2021 headline by Oregonian Beer Writer, Andre Meunier, entitled, “Chuckanut Brewery, Washington’s pioneering lager-maker, opens SE Portland taproom,” did qualify as breaking news in the NW Brewery World:

“Portland has no shortage of world-class beer, but Chuckanut’s arrival has even the most snobbish local beer fans excited.

Rarely a year goes by that the brewery doesn’t win at least one award at the prestigious Great American Beer Festival, including four in 2009, the brewery’s first year at the competition, and its trophy case holds numerous medals from the annual World Beer Cup, as well.”

(# External photo attribution at the end of the post #1)

After getting back in full stride on the Beerchasing Trail again in mid-October, the Chuckanut P.Nut Beerhall in Southest Portland was one of the first new watering holes I visited.  I’ve personally mourned the departure of some notable breweries during and after the pandemic such as Sasquatch Brewing, Hair of the Dog, Grixen, Lompoc, etc.. 

Thus, I was heartened by the addition of this Bellingham Washington brewery to Portland – especially given it’s family ownership and tradition in suds.  And based on the breadth and length of experience of co-owners’ Mari and Will Kemper, it’s a story worth repeating – this from their website: (#2-3)

“Mari and Will started one of the first craft breweries in the Northwest Thomas Kemper Brewery back in 1984    At the same time he taught brewing engineering for the American Brewers Guild in Davis, CA. 

They returned to America and he continued to consult with them when the two of them were asked to return to Istanbul to make the first craft brewery. They lived three years in Turkey for the project and when they finally returned to their home in Bellingham, WA they decided to start Chuckanut Brewery.

And so the story of Chuckanut begins in 2008!”

Beerchasing Companion

As followers of this blog know, it’s not really about beer, but rather the places individuals and groups gather to consume this wonderful malted beverage.  I’m interested – and try to tell you – about the brewers, the staff, the regulars or one-time visitors who I meet on my visits.

And besides my wife, Janet, on our road trips, for local jaunts, I always try to take friends or colleagues – most of whom seem to have more interesting stories than mine.  But I enjoy telling them.   

After a visit to the Tabor Tavern in August (review not yet written), my friend, John Limb and I hit the Chuckanut P.Nut Beer Hall on a Friday mid-afternoon in October.  I first met John in 2016, when we both served on the Benedictine Brewery Advisory Committee – a group that worked until the opening of the Brewery and Taproom in Mount Angel in late 2018.

I then joined John on the Abbey Foundation of Oregon Board and we’ve served together since.  He is currently the President of that Board.   John and his wife, Kim, are two of the nicest people one would ever want to meet and typify the members of that Board. (#4 – 5)

John, a native of Louisville, Kentucky, graduated from the University of Louisville where he met Kim and where, after graduation, he worked at a church in the Archdiocese of Louisville.  In 1986, they moved to Portland where he became Editor at the Oregon Catholic Press in Portland. 

The OCP is a non-profit national leader in Catholic and faith-based music publishing and worship resources. Thirty years later – twenty-five of them as publisher – John retired in 2017, and continues to serve as OCP’s Publisher Emeritus.  During his tenure, OCP became the nation’s leading publisher of Catholic worship material. (#6 – 9)

You can see from the first photo below, he began his tenure there as a young guy!  In the fourth photo, he is sitting with his successor, Wade Wisler. 

Why is Chuckanut Notable?

The beer awards for Chuckanut started early with four in 2009 and they were two-time winner of the Great American Beer Festival’s best small brewery their first four four years.  And they have continued – you can see the medals and trophies in the pub and look at the 2021 Facebook post below:

“We did it again, Large Brewery of the Year 2021 WA Beer Awards! We won with:
Gold medal for Rye Lager
Gold medal for Rauch Helles Lager
Gold medal for Asian Style Lager
Gold medal for Old Fest Marzen style lager
Silver medal for Dunkel Lager
Silver medal for Chuck Light
Silver medal for Maibock”  (#10)

The bad news is that Chuckanut sells about 95% of its beer on draft – packaging only about 5% of its production, so you need to go to P.Nut (or their other location in Burlington, WA) and select a brew from one of their twelve beers on tap. 

And the beer is good – take the 2018 opinion of Beervana’s Jeff Alworth, one of the nation’s leading beer experts:

“Chuckanut has won about every award there is to win, and their mostly-German tap-list is a master’s course in elegance through simplicity….. Chuckanut’s beers are absolutely faithful to tradition…

(They) are so good not because they express ‘innovation”’ but because they demonstrate the mastery that comes from honing a craft over a lifetime. On my first visit I ticked off the classics: helles, kolsch, dunkel, marzen, pilsner. It was like a visit to Germany.” 

Neither John or I are beer experts, but we know what tastes good.  John really enjoyed the Dunkel and I reveled in their Kolsch as I love German beer.  They are described as follows and each has won more medals than space permits listing:

Dunkel Lager – Chuckanut’s Dunkel is a deep reddish-brown color, capped by an impressively sturdy tan head.  As in all lagers, the flavors in Dunkel are produced directly by the ingredients; in this case some of the malts have been roasted, giving Dunkel toffee, chocolate, coffee, and even licorice notes.

Kolsch – a blonde, top fermented ale brewed from pilsner malt. Bitterness is restrained, and the palate is light-bodied and dry with a soft malt flavor in the center giving way to a dry finish. (#11 – 12)

The Space at P.Nut

It’s certainly not fancy although according to Brian, our bartender – knowledgeable and friendly – they have enhancements in store.  There is long, wooden community table and smaller tables plus space at the bar. 

Most of the décor centers on the Chuckanut story with medals and news clippings.  A Foosball game and darts are nice additions.  Some outdoor seating is available.  They currently do not have food although food trucks are often available.

It’s a family space and pets are welcome as shown in the photo below.  It had a low key and pleasant ambiance when we were there.   One slight downside is that parking is not plentiful in the neighborhood and you may have to hoof it a few blocks.

Although it’s not a valid sampling, I always try to get a feel for the thrust of reviews and since P.Nut has been open only a short time, there weren’t many, but the two Yelp reviews below were indicative.  The only negative comments were mixed with praise in the same reviews – no bike rack and “parking can be tricky.”

6/7/22 – “Great space, friendly service, tasty beer! What else do you need? This is a great spot especially if you aren’t a big IPA fan. I went to college in Bellingham, so it was such a treat to have some Bellingham brews again here in Portland!”

11/18/22 – “Spot is simple. Beers, TV’s, foosball, darts, tables. All the essentials of a good beerhall. I had the Kolsch and it was excellent. I didn’t see much of a food option which is okay, but I definitely enjoyed the beer option. I’d encourage anyone to get Kolsch or pilsner or stout. Solid options at this corner spot.”

Chuckanut Brewing is admirable – their commitment to sustainability, support of community non-profits, company values and their great beer.  Come out of your shell and hit the P.Nut Beer Hall!

Chuckanut P.Nut Beer Hall

920 SE Caruthers St, Portland, OR  (#13)

Cheers!

External Photo Attribution

#1 – 3.  Chuckanut Brewery Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/chuckanut.beer/photos/a.

10150266616630072/10165515874085072)

#4.  Guidestar Profile (https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.guidestar.org%2Fprofile%2F04-3703021&psig=AOvVaw0WeTpHjkAUTWPxwXJAlhup&ust)  =1670267135873000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=

0CA8QjhxqFwoTCLiypIvU4PsCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAE)

#5.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mt._Angel_Abbey_

(Marion_County,_Oregon_scenic_images)_(marDA0213).jpg)   The copyright holder of this file allows anyone to use it for any purpose, provided that the copyright holder is properly attributed.  Source: Gary Halvorson, Oregon State Archives.  March 2010.

#6.   Oregon Catholic Press – Crunchbase Company Profile & Funding 

#7.  (https://catholicsentinel.org/Content/News/Local/Article/Adjusting-to-rapid-change/2/35/45123)

#8. (https://abbeyfoundationoforegon-annualreport.org/annual-report-2020/)

#9.  (https://www.catholicsentinel.org/Content/News/Local/Article/Former-publisher-John-Limb-honored/2/35/37476)

#10.  Chuckanut BreweryFacebook  (https://www.facebook.com/chuckanut.beer/photos/10165747824365072)

#11 – 13. Chuckanut Breweru Facebook  (https://www.facebook.com/chuckanut.beer/photos/?ref=page_internal)

 

November Nuances – Be Careful of Your Terms

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(If you are seeing this post through an e-mail, please visit the blog by clicking on the title above to see all of the photos and the video at the end of the post and so the narrative is not clipped or shortened. # External photo attribution at the end of the post. #1 – #2)

On Saturday, November 25th the Oregon State Beavers will host the nationally-ranked University of Oregon Ducks at Reser Field in Corvallis for this legendary gridiron contest – known until 2020 as “The Civil War.” 

(See Thebeerchaser post entitled “History, Semantics, Sensitivity and Common Sense”  regarding my emphatic sentiments about this change.)

As stated at the beginning of a wonderful book by the six-time winner of the Oregon Sportswriter of the Year Award, Kerry Eggers entitled, The Civil War Rivalry – Oregon vs Oregon State:

“Thirty-five years after Oregon reached statehood and fewer than 30 years after the end of the Great War between the Union and Confederate States, the University of Oregon and Oregon Agricultural College (OAC) met on the gridiron on a sawdust field in front of 500 curious observers….The Farmers beat the Lemon-Yellows 16 to 0…that cold, wet November day in 1894.”

Politically Incorrect Ribaldry

While acknowledging – although not agreeing – with the view of those who advocated the name change, I’m also not in favor of the milque toast and staid options offered in lieu since 2020 – primarily The Platypus Bowl and The Oregon Classic – the moniker for the last three games.

I think sportswriter and media expert, John Canzano, has the best idea:

” ‘The game formerly known as the Civil War.’ That’s what I’m calling it until they re-name the thing. Our long-standing state rivalry. Two winning teams and a lot at stake.”

Canzano in his most recent column hits the nail on the head in his second column this week on this controversy.

“Meanwhile, it’s been almost 30 months since that joint announcement. UO and OSU have had plenty of time to figure out this rivalry naming business. They’ve left us a mess. It’s time to stop puttering around and name the Beavers-Ducks rivalry.
On that note, I’ll bet most of you still call it “The Civil War.” (#3 – #5)

 

I should disclaim that I graduated from OSU in April, 1971 and my wife of 42 years, Janet, is a 1976 Oregon graduate.  Our older daughter, Lisa, and her husband, Jamie, are both University of Washington Huskies – he a third generation “Dawg.” 

Janet reminds me that Lisa turned down a full academic ride to the U of O and we paid out-of-state tuition because I told her she could go to UW if she was admitted to the Honors College.

I respond that because of my foresight (rather than the rationale being my distaste for the Quackers), we have a wonderful son-in-law (and his family) and two granddaughters and a new grand-puppy who we treasure 

Two Husky alums and family

College Years

I was fortunate to live with twelve of the members of the football team during the Giant Killer era in the SAE House at OSU.  They included my 1970 classmates, defensive back starters, Larry Rich and Don Whitney. 

Craig “The Dude” Hanneman – class of ’71, was profiled as a Beerchaser-of-the-Quarter in 2012.  Other SAE’s footballers during those years were Jim Scheele, Chris Wahle, Clyde Smith, Don Welch, Jim Blackford, Jess Lewis, Roger Cantlon, and Gary and Duane Barton.  

(From left clockwise – OSU SAE’s 1967, Jess Lewis, Capt. Jud Blakely, Dirt and The Dude, Duane Barton)

And the Giant Killer years for us on campus were wonderful – not only from a football perspective, but as a time in our lives that would never be replicated – essentially insulated, carefree and, for the most part, absent adult responsibilities.

And the impact Dee Andros “The Great Pumpkin” had on his players was a foundation for that team and one which shaped their character for the rest of their lives as well as establishing lasting bonds.  https://thebeerchaser.com/2018/05/20/the-1967-osu-giant-killers-beerchasers-of-the-quarter-part-i/

Years Later – Coach Andros with Jossis, Freeburn, Dippel and Hanneman

Post Graduation

After college and the Navy, my employer was Clackamas County for seven years.  I worked closely with County Counsel who were my legal advisors when I worked in the Elections Department and then for the County Commissioners.  I was about the only OSU grad, since most of the lawyers went to the University of Oregon for undergrad or law school or both.

Each year I had a bet on the Oregon vs OSU game with the late Mike Montgomery, who was the Chief Deputy DA.   The loser had to wear a tie to work and buy the winner lunch the Monday after the game and be the brunt of sarcastic comments from co-workers.   I still have Mike’s tie – probably because I was the one who usually had to wear it……

For the last twenty-five years of my career, I worked in an outstanding large Northwest Regional law firm (Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt) and two of our five offices were in Portland and Seattle. 

Since both UW and U of O have law schools, the Washington Husky vs Duck rivalry was almost as heated and perhaps more so than OSU vs Oregon.   

The Schwabe firm had a great culture and an organizational sense of humor was part of it. The week before the Civil War game, electronic missives about important cases and issues at the firm would be actively supplemented by multiple All-Firm e-mails with jokes about the Beavs and the Ducks.

2018-06-06 15.33.32

While the Ivy League law grads who didn’t send similar barbs about the Princeton vs. Harvard game weren’t always amused, most of the firm enjoyed this tradition. The majority of the barbs  could be sent by a fan of either school, but since OSU was an aggie school, many were based on images of country or “hill folk”.

While a lot of them would now be considered politically incorrect, they were done without malice and in the spirit of good fun.  I’ll finish with a sampling.

Q – What did the Beaver say while swimming when he crashed into a concrete wall?     

A – Dam!  (#6)

Q – What’s the best thing to come out of Eugene?

A – Interstate 5. (#7)

A Beaver alum came home and found his house on fire. He rushed next door, telephoned the fire department and shouted, “Hurry over here. My house is on fire!”

“OK,” replied the firefighter. “How do we get there?” “Shucks,” says the OSU alum, “Don’t you still have those big red trucks?”  (#8)

Albert Einstein arrives at a party in Eugene and introduces himself to to the first person he sees and asks, “What is your IQ,” to which the man answers, “241.” “Wonderful,” says Albert, ” We will discuss the Grand Unification Theory and the mysteries of the universe.”

Next, he introduces himself to a woman and inquires, “What is your IQ, to which the woman replies, ” 207.” “That’s great,” said the physicist, “We can discuss politics and the scientific implications of world affairs. We’ll have much to discuss.”

He approaches a third person and asks, “What is your IQ,” to which the guy holding a beer, answers, “51.” Einstein ponders this for a micro-second and says, “Go Ducks!”   (#9)

Q – What do they call 100 John Deere tractors circling a McDonalds in Corvallis.

A – Oregon State Prom Night.  (#10)

An Oregon State Trooper pulls over a Prius in Eugene driven by an Oregon alum and asks, “Got any ID?”

The Duck replies, “About what?”  (#11)

An Oregon grad, a Cal grad, and an Oregon State grad are waiting to be executed by firing squad. The Oregon grad is first, and as he is waiting to be executed, he
yells, “Earthquake!”

The firing squad panics and runs away, allowing the Oregon grad to jump over the wall and escape.

The Cal grad is next, and as he is waiting to be executed, he yells, “Flood!”

The firing squad again panics and runs away, so the Cal grad also jumps over the wall and escapes.

The Oregon State grad is last.  As he is waiting to be executed, he remembers what the other two had done, so he yells, “Fire!”  (#12)

Fire! — Oh Wait?

Two Oregon football players in their dorm rooms were going crazy with excitement as they just completed a jigsaw puzzle in just under one year.

When asked why they were so ecstatic they showed the jigsaw puzzle box where it said 3-6 years and they exclaimed, “We completed it in one-third that time.” (#13)

 And finally, to end on a “neutral field,” of sorts:

A guy in a bar leans over to the guy next to him during the week of the Apple Cup and asks, “Wanna hear a Husky joke?” The guy replies, “Before you tell that joke, besides being 6’2″ and weighing 240, I’m a UW graduate.”

“The guy next to me is 6’5′ 225 and played linebacker under legendary Husky Coach Jim Owens”

“The woman next to him is a UW Grad, a karate black belt and currently coaches at the University.”

Now, do you still want to tell that Husky joke?”

The first guy says, “No, not if I’m going to have to explain it three times….”

In Conclusion

Enjoy “The Civil War Game” or whatever college contest you either attend or watch – and do it with friends regardless of their alma mater. (Some of you might even want to take in the World Cup)…but Go Beavs!

External Photo Attribution

#1.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BennyBeaverPhoto.jpg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.  Author:  Flickr user “VRC Jeremy” – 2 March 2008.

*2.  Wikimedia Commons (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Oregon_Duck#/media/File:The_Oregon_Duck_.jpg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.  Author: Ray Terrill – 19 November 2011.

#3.  Oregon Historical Society. 

#4. Public Domain -Wikimedia Commons ((https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Platypus-sketch.jpg This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author’s life plus 100 years or fewer.  Author: John Gould – 1864.

#5.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pacific_black_duck_P1090215.jpg. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.  Author:  John Robert McPherson 1 January, 2015.

#6.  (Picture of Dam) Wikimedia Common (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:RappbodeLufts.JPG) The copyright holder of this work allows anyone to use it for any purpose including unrestricted redistribution, commercial use, and modification.  Author:  Hahnenkleer  30 October 2013.

#7.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:I-5.svg)   his file is in the public domain because it comes from the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, sign number M1-1. Made to the specifications of the 2004 edition of Standard Highway Signs  16 MY 2007.

#8.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:LFB_Pump_Ladder.jpg)  This work has been released into the public domain by its author, Jackus2008 at English Wikipedia. This applies worldwide. 22 November 2007.

#9.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Albert_Einstein_Head.jpg)  This image is available from the United States Library of Congress‘s Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID cph.3b46036. 1947.

#10.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Deere_8200.jpg)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic license.  Author:  Reise Reise 30 July 2009.

#11.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:North_Carolina_State_Trooper_on_I-85.jpg)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic license.  Author:  Ildar Sagdejev (Specious)  13 March 2008.

#12. Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Up_In_Flames_(18897711).jpeg)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.  Author:  Arun Agrawal  9 September 2012.

#13.   Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jigsaw_puzzle_in_progress.jpg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.  Author: Balise42  10 February 2022.

November News – Back to Beerchasing!

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My idiosyncratic pursuit of new bars and breweries – initiated as a retirement hobby in August 2011 – was waylaid by the pandemic in 2020-1 and major back surgery in June, 2022.

It’s resumed, albeit at a slower pace than the rapid stride that saw me at the end of 2019, having visited and reviewed a total of 366 watering holes of all kinds.  119 were in the Portland metro area and the other 247 scattered throughout Oregon, many of the fifty states and even a few in Europe. 

In 2020, I only added nine – as establishments temporarily closed or went out of business permanently.   While I’ve lost the formal count, going back in my files, I arrived at a new total.

It appears that during temporary breaks in the lockdown in 2021 and after starting the routine again in 2022, I added 25 more – meaning my Beerchasing exploits have taken me to approximately 400 wonderful (at least most of them) watering holes in a little over eleven years.  

Aside from seven listed below in 2021-2 – all in Oregon – I have not written complete reviews on the other eighteen.  That’s because with the exception of road trip visits, I always try to hit a tavern or brewery at least twice before I write up my reactions.

You can read the reviews of the following by clicking on the links below:

(The photos above are in the order shown below)

Falls View Tavern    – Oregon City – August 21

Steeplejack Brewing – Portland – September 21

Breakside Brewery Taproom – Lake Oswego – April 22

Howells’ Bar and Lounge – Oregon City – April 22

McMenamins Old Church and Pub – Wilsonville – October 22

The Helvetia Tavern – Hillsboro – September 22 

Corner 14 – Oregon City – June 21

Since a number of the others in Portland merit at least a mention, in one of my next posts, I’ll give a thumbnail sketch of some of these establishments.

Communication From Former Colleagues

That said, I have to relate an e-mail from one of my good friends from working days – Howard Mudrick – now the Executive Director at Winstead – a large national law firm based in Dallas, Texas  He worked with Schwabe (my firm) as a legal consultant for almost twenty years on a variety of projects from mergers to strategic planning.   

(Mudrick and Peterson below – photos from their respective firms)

Howard and I co-presented at a number of national and regional Association of Legal Administrators’ conferences and, of course, shared many beers and martinis over the year.  He is well aware of my Beerchasing hobby.

Pete Peterson is another consultant and CPA at Maxfield Peterson with whom we worked on a number of great law projects and also made presentations practices with his wife, Catherine, in Ridgeway, Colorado.  He is also well aware of my Beerchasing exploits and raised a mug on numerous occasions.

Howard sent the following e-mail and link on October 28th with a copy to Pete:

“Don – hope this finds you and Janet doing well and staying healthy.  I hope she doesn’t kill me, but this article SCREAMS YOU.  Quite an interesting idea.  Take Pete with you.  I still have to work for a living.”

(Pete replied by e-mail that he had already applied!)

The following article from the October edition of Food and Wine is entitled:

“This Company Will Send You on a Two-Year RV Trip to Visit Breweries:”

(External photo attribution at the end of the narrative #1)

“Harvest Hosts is looking for someone to create the ultimate brewery and distillery road trip across America.  For beer and spirits lovers, the idea of spending two years traveling around the country in an RV hitting up hundreds of breweries and distilleries might sound like a dream come true.

Well, the RV campsite company Harvest Hosts is looking for someone to do exactly that — and will cover a lot of the expenses to make it happen.”

Without being presumptuous, I would suggest that Thebeerchaser would be one of the most qualified people in the US to take on this onerous project.  Howard’s assertion re. qualifications is correct since the requirements – besides being over 21 and having a driver’s license, are:

“Evidence of your love of breweries and distilleries with ‘images and videos highly recommended.'”

The evidence makes a convincing case for Thebeerchaser!

When I enthusiastically showed the article to wife, Janet, she pointed out the wording about them paying “some of the expenses” and the paragraph:

“As for actual pay, the company says they are only offering a daily stipend of $50, meaning that despite all the free drinks and rent-free RV, the effective salary isn’t much more than $18,000 per year.”

(Janet said she didn’t want to kill Howard as suggested in his e-mail above, but I should just send all his missives to my spam folder.)

She also reminded me that I also got very enthused (albeit naively so) in May this year when I saw the following story in Taste of Home:

“The folks at Oscar Mayer are looking for a new Wienermobile driver, or “Hotdogger,” to escort six giant wieners across the nation. It’s a pretty high honor considering the Oscar Mayer Weinermobile has been going cross-country since 1936.

According to Oscar Mayer, there are more people who have gone to space than people who have held the title of Hotdogger.”  (#2)

800px-Oscar_meyer_weinermobile

“The position isn’t just driving, though. The newest Hotdoggers to carry on the legacy will be spokespeople for Oscar Mayer for one year. This means public appearances, some time on the small screen and radio and newspaper interviews . 

As a Wienermobile driver, you’ll also receive a competitive salary on top of the sightseeing bonus.”

So even though I reluctantly gave up the idea, my creative juices started to flow thinking about a term I haven’t used (fortunately) since retiring in 2011 – “Synergy.” 

I would persuade these two firms that they could combine the two positions based on the dynamic and almost divinely inspired relationship between beer and hot dogs as evidenced by just the examples below:

Dog Beer

We all viewed with morbid fascination the video at Yankee Stadium, as explained in the following excerpt from an 8/22 post on NBC Sports.com 

“In a video captured by @NewYorkNico on social media, a Yankees fan at the game was seen turning a hot dog into a straw for their beer.

Yes, you read that correctly. The fan poked holes in both ends of the hot dog before placing it in the beer and taking a sip through the makeshift straw.”

(Unfortunately, all of the images of the guy at the Yankee game are copyrighted, so I’m just alluding to the stunt in the photos below. #3 – #4)

 

 

 

And how many of you – and, of course, broadcast media personalities – tried to replicate this feat of hand/glass coordination yourselves?

Beer Dog

The sacred bond between Brat and beer can be further explored by demonstrating the topic “Hot Dogs Cooked in Beer,” as artfully explained in this mouthwatering article in Bikehike.org:

“Hot dogs simmered in beer are deliciously tender and have a mild flavor that works perfectly with our beer-infused sauerkraut topping. Slow-simmering hot dogs in beer gives them a mellow flavor and tender texture that’s a great alternative to grilling or frying.”

This raises important questions such as how long do you cook the dogs, how much beer do you use and most importantly, what beer is best – a topic which draws diverse views from the experts:

“Miller High Life. Rich Depascale, beverage manager at The Wilson in New York City. Budweiser. Laura Mitchell, bar lead at BEER PARK in Las Vegas. Others: Reissdorf Kolsch. Old Style. Avery White Rascal. Dogfish Head SeaQuench. Coors Light. Dos Equis Lager.”

I would add PBR and Sticky Hands IPA (#5).

And in Conclusion….

Should I have been selected for the job, I would have proposed my first trip – driving the vehicle to Toppling Goliath Brewery in Decorah, Iowa.  That’s where Clark and Barbara Lewey – former home brewers – founded this enterprise in 2009.

And one of their collaborations with Hop Butcher for the World of Darien, Illinois, was Hot Dog Time Machine Beer. ( A double IPA brewed with Vic Secret, Sabro, Simcoe, and Mosaic hops, this beer clocks in at 7.8% ABV.)

 

A hot dog fueled time travel adventure.

As Toppling Goliath states in the review by Untapped.com)

“What is a Hot Dog Time Machine? We’re so glad you asked! To begin, we have to explore why it even matters. Our amigos at Hop Butcher for the World shared the same interest as us in exploring the alternate reality of the ‘fluffy’ IPA.

We threw multiple types of wheat into our fluff capacitor, heavily hopped it everywhere except the 88-minute boil, and fermented with yeast primed for trans-temporal travel.

Last year was certainly the wurst of times, but now it’s time to ketchup with us on our journey and relish in this hot dog fueled time travel adventure.

(I called Toppling Goliath to see if they still brewed HDTM Beer.  They don’t and the person couldn’t explain why, but it must have been a good “trip.”

Not totally willing to give up, I said to my wonderful wife of 42 years, “Janet I would relish this job and, to be frank, after a year, they would appreciate what I Brat to the table.”

Before she walked away, she asked me how badly I wanted to get to 43 years…..

Cheers and Happy Thanksgiving  (#7)

External Photo Attribution

#1.  Wikimedia Commons (File:Four Winds Chateau Sport RV.jpg – Wikimedia Commons)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.  Author: Noah Wulf 20 January 2018.

#2.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons: (File:Oscar mayer weinermobile.jpg – Wikimedia Commons)  I, the copyright holder of this work, release this work into the public domain. This applies worldwide.  Author: user:Bachrach44 – 8 January 2006.

#3.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hot_dog_with_mustard.png)  This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.

#4.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki

/File:A_paper_straw_for_bubble_tea_and_the_popular_straw.jpg)  This work has been released into the public domain by its author, WrS.tm.pl. This applies worldwide.  17 February 2022.

#5.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Happy_Saturday_(238576229).jpeg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license. Author: Terry Lucas
9 December 2017.

#6.  Facebook Page – Terra Ferment Image of Hot Dog Time Machine Beer

#7.  Image courtesy of Pam Williams.

November Notes

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(#1 – #2)

Happy  Thanksgiving!

There have been many stories about problems with law enforcement personnel.  It’s important to remember that the overwhelming majority of these public servants are dedicated and conscientious individuals who deserve our support.  Two examples are related below:

City of West Linn

We live in this suburb of Portland.  While it might not seem to be a big deal, I initially contacted the City in 2015 with a letter expressing concern over lack of adequate signage/lights at a crosswalk across a busy arterial two blocks from our house. 

My letter stated, in part:

“There is a crosswalk which is heavily used by a diverse group ranging from school kids to runners to residents like us who use the crosswalk on exercise walks or just to walk to the nearby commercial district….The warning light for the crosswalk is totally inadequate and does not serve the purpose of warning drivers that the crosswalk is occupied…”

As you could glean from the December 2021 post about my Dad’s long battle with the City of Madera, Ohio regarding the sewage system, when I was in grade school, he taught me that one needs to be persistent to resolve a problem. ( (External photo attribution at end of the post #3)

Two appearances at the Traffic Safety Advisory Committee and essentially annual letters  helped result in a speed limit change but no change in the light or signage.

Unlike in Ohio, the City of West Linn was very responsive in communicating and admitted that both the placement of the crosswalk and the light were problems, but budget constraints precluded resolution.  

That is until 2022, when the City informed us that new lighting had been ordered and would be installed in August.  Police Chief, Peter Mahuna and Captain Oddis Rollins also were very communicative about enforcement of speed limits and the plans for a new motorcycle traffic officer.  Supply chain issues delayed the installation until October, but the effort was finally rewarded.

Having worked in local government for seven years, I understand the constraints, but also know when a government unit is just blowing off a citizen initiative.  This was not the case with any of the multiple City personnel with whom I dealt. Take a look at the change! (In the video, the pedestrian had already finished crossing.)

The Chief – Overcoming Bad News with Good News

West Linn had very serious problems with its Police Department prior to Chief Mahuna assuming the position. It resulted in the termination of a sergeant against whom criminal charges were subsequently filed, the former Police Chief was fired and a substantial law suit settlement was paid by the City.

Chief Mahuna realizes a major part of his job is regaining the Department’s credibility with the community and communicating with its citizens.  This effort was quite apparent in my dealings with him as evidenced in these e-mails.  (The first one is an excerpt).

May 26  –  “Mr. Williams,  Thanks for your letter and I completely understand your frustrations.  I wanted to address the speeding and crosswalk concerns you mention in your letter.  The PD conducted crosswalk missions last year and we were able to educate several drivers about the safety concerns in crosswalks. 

Unfortunately, with our severe personnel shortages we don’t currently have enough people to conduct them until our staffing gets back up. 

………Due to the geography of West Linn and access routes, Salamo Road gets more police cars up and down it throughout the day than most streets in our City.  That being said, we will ask our troops to keep an extra eye out on Salamo. Respectfully, Peter”

Sept. 2  –  “This is great to hear.  Thanks for the follow up.  Just a reminder that we will be hiring our motorcycle officer on September 12th.  Once he gets settled in his focus will be traffic related issues around the city to include monitoring crosswalks. Thanks for the email. Peter”

He is a very busy man and I’m a retired guy, so I was impressed with his communication and responsiveness and told him that I hoped to meet him at some point.  Within an hour I got the following response:

Sept. 2  –  “Would love to meet.  Sign up for “Coffee with the Chief” on our website.  We can meet at PD or Salamo Starbucks. Peter”

Well, I signed up and at 8:00 on October 13th, I spent almost forty minutes with Chief Mahuna in his office – we had a great chat, which I both enjoyed and appreciated. (#4)

Chief Mahuna is a native of Maui and a former college athlete (basketball) at Pacific University where graduated with a BS in Social Work.  He has extensive law enforcement credentials and is sincere in his efforts.  For example, he’s asked citizens to participate in interview panels for new officers. 

Soon after I met with him, I saw that two reps from his Department were meeting with a Citizens’ Group and his personnel are getting involved in the community. 

I wish him success in these efforts.

And Speaking of Good Law Enforcement Administrators

In my January 2020 post on our road trip through the Southwest including several days in Pueblo, Colorado (home of some of the best dive bars I visited since the start of Beerchasing), I mentioned having a beer with Kirk Taylor and his family.

At the time, Kirk was the Sheriff of Pueblo County with responsibility for law enforcement and corrections – first elected in 2007 and re-elected three times. (#5- #6)

Kirk is a USMC Veteran and started as a patrolman in the narcotics division for the City of Almarosa, CO.  After earning his associate’s degree and while ranching full-time, he completed his BA.

While working as an investigator for the District Attorney’s Office, he attended and graduated from law school at the University of Colorado.  He has been a leader in law enforcement serving on numerous state task forces in addition to teaching at the State Police Academy.

Kirk is a man of faith, family, an avid outdoorsman.  He coaches youth athletics and is active in civic and non-profit organizations such as 4-H.   He’s also a national authority on the impact of legalizing marijuana including an appearance on a CBS 60 Minutes special.

I’m happy to report that on October 20th, Kirk was sworn in as 31st United States Marshal for the District of Colorado after being nominated by Pres. Biden and confirmed by the US. Senate. He and  his wife are moving to downtown Denver in November. (#7- #8)

Congratulations to US Marshal Taylor!

The Cycle of Life – Puppy Version

As I related in a  June 10, 2022 blog post, Janet and I during the forty-three years we’ve been married, have never had a pet.  That said, our two daughters and their spouses each had wonderful dogs and they became our “Grand-puppies.”   

We always looked forward to our visits with Sullivan – an amazing thirteen-year old Havanese and Wesley – a beautiful six-year old Golden Retriever.

First there was “Sully Bear.”  He lived in Lake Forest Park, WA and always waited with anticipation at the window for his “parents” to come home and was the ultimate lap dog – he loved to cuddle with his two young “sisters.”

“Wesley Walter” loved to run and swim especially at the river near his home in Portland and the beach – a big dog, but he always gentle with the babies at his house.

Our granddaughters and their parents loved these pups and family get-togethers were always enhanced by their presence.  They got along with each other very well.

We were grief-stricken on March 10, 2021, when Wesley, after a few cardiac episodes, died of a heart-attack.  Exactly one year later, his “brother” Sullivan succumbed to multiple health issues based on his advanced years.  

The memorial stones below will always provide memories of these wonderful members of our family.

The good news is that this coming weekend we’ll meet the new addition to the Magnusson family.  Archie was welcomed to their family on October18th as you can see from the photos below.  The new puppy is a Golden Cavapoo 

His appearance brings back memories of Sullivan, who we still hold in our hearts. There will be an extended family welcome with the four granddaughters et. al. in Portland.

Okay, but What About Beerchasing!

The pandemic in 2020-1 and then major back surgery in June this year severely curtailed my Beerchasing exploits other than scattered reviews and one recent road trip, but I’m back on the trail again.  Stay tuned for the next post and I’ll give an update and some future plans.

Cheers and Happy Thanksgiving to Those Who Celebrate It! (#9)

beer picture cRedCruiser- Trader Joes

External Photo Attribution

#1.  Wikimedia Commons – (Male_wild_turkey_(Meleagris_gallopavo)_strutting.jpg (3861×3861) (wikimedia.org)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.  Author: Frank Schulenburg  24 March 2019.

#2.  Courtesy of Pam Williams

#3.   Wikimedia Commons (sewer) – (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wylot_kolektor%C3%B3w_ burzowych_przy_mo%C5%9Bcie_poniatowskiego.jpg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.  Author:  Panek 31 July, 2021.

#4.  Linked-in (images of police chief peter mahuna – Bing images)

# 5 -#6.  Pueblo County Colorado (https://county.pueblo.org/sheriff/kirk-taylor)

#7 – #8.  Photos courtesy of John and Barb Senger.

#9.  Author:   Redcruiser – Trader Joe’s – Monrovia, California.

 

Road Trip Hot Spots – Part II

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(Welcome back to Thebeerchaser.  If you are seeing this post through an e-mail, please visit the blog by clicking on the title above to see all of the photos and so the narrative is not clipped or shortened.)

In Part I, I talked about the first two days of this five-day road trip which ended up at about 1,200 miles.   We traveled from Portland to Lassen Volcanic National Park and then west through the beautiful Trinity Alps to Eureka and up the coast on Highway 101 through the Redwoods with overnight stays in Arcata, CA and Bandon, OR.

  Of course, we hit a few good breweries and bars along the way.

1,200 miles through beautiful and varied scenery

After the road trip, we spent the final three days at the beach in Lincoln City on the Central Oregon Coast before returning home.   We reveled in the scenery of Northern California and the Oregon Coast while also visiting and revisiting some excellent watering holes.

Although we usually listen to music on road trips except for the fascinating Serial Podcast (“The Case Against Adnan Syed”) on a road trip in the Southwest three years ago, we greatly enjoyed listening to Rachel Held Evans’ audio book – “Searching for Sunday Loving Leaving & Finding the Church”. 

It’s an excellent non-fiction choice recommended by Lisa, our older daughter, which made the New York Times bestseller non-fiction paperback list.  

Evans was an American Christian columnist, blogger and author, who tragically died in 2019 at the age of 39 after an allergic reaction to a medication for an infection.   Her book was thought-provoking and worthwhile.   Her legacy, as stated by a contributor to The Atlantic is:

“…..part of a vanguard of progressive-Christian women who fought to change the way Christianity is taught and perceived in the United States….(based on) her unwillingness to cede ownership of Christianity to its traditional conservative-male stewards’ and that her ‘very public, vulnerable exploration of a faith forged in doubt empowered a ragtag band of writers, pastors, and teachers to claim their rightful place as Christians.”  (Wikipedia)

# (External photo attribution at end of the post  #1 – #2)

From Lassen National Park to Eureka

After a wonderful stay at Highlands Ranch Resort just outside the Park which I relate in Part I, we drove west to Red Bluff, CA and then followed a winding and steep, albeit beautiful, highway (CA-36) through the Trinity Alps to Eureka on the California Coast.

On a future trip we hope to visit this expansive Wilderness – at 525,627-acres, the second largest in California, with over fifty alpine lakes – when the impacts of recent wildfires are not of the same magnitude.  From August to mid-November, 2021, it was one of the California Wildernesses closed to the public because of multiple wildfires.  (#3 – #5)

Driving Up the Coast

In the summer of 2017, we drove down the Oregon Coast to the Redwoods and stayed one night in Arcata, California.   It was a hopping little berg – established in 1860 with a current population of about 20,000. 

We walked around Cal Poly – Humboldt.  It’s a lovely campus.  We vowed to come back and stay at the historic Arcata Hotel – in the center of town right across from the impressive Town Plaza.

Well, the pandemic has evidently and understandably been rough – the same is true of Portland.  And perhaps our memories were a little bit rosy, but Arcata was not really the same.  The Plaza was not very clean and there was a lot of loitering. The shops were non-descript and the downtown area lacked “energy.”

While the Hotel Arcata, (shown below) opened in 1915, was interesting, it did not compare favorably to similar vintage hotels where I stayed in Montana   (#6 – #7)

That said, we returned to the Redwood Curtain Brewery – still a “hot spot” five years later – and Janet and I each had a pint of their wonderful Sticky Fingers IPA.  Later, just walking around town, we discovered a slightly unusual place to have dinner and a beer – but Slice of Humboldt Pie was a marvelous choice.

When Janet suggested it, I shuddered – harkening back to memories of Swanson’s Chicken Pot Pies when we were kids; however, the chicken pot pie  ($7.50) was the best meal on the trip – and a Trinity County Brewing Golden Smash Ale to accompany it was perfect. 

But wait — I haven’t told you about desert.   The apple pie alamode ($10.00) made me beg Janet to return for breakfast or at least argue that “Slice” can be pluralized. Instead, we had breakfast the next morning at the quaint Big Blue Cafe where the staff was friendly and the pancakes to savor. 

Dinner and breakfast made us leave Arcata with better feelings than the afternoon before. (#8 – #9) 

Through the Redwoods

Our time was somewhat limited, but we wanted to take a short hike through at least part of majestic trees, so we stopped at the Visitors’ Center in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park and they were very helpful.

As a result, we took a fairly rough seven-mile gravel road where we were glad that we had our Subaru Cross-trek – the destination Fern Canyon.  The Ranger told us that during the summer one has to apply for a permit to make the trip up to eight weeks in advance.

“A level trail of about one mile follows Home Creek as it courses through the forest. This modest stream has over the eons carved a 50 to 80 foot deep canyon through the rich sedimentary soils. The canyon walls sprout an amazing variety of luxuriant ferns and other moisture-loving plants. On a sunny day, thousands of tiny drops of moisture make the canyon walls sparkle.

We definitely got our shoes wet, but it was a stunningly beautiful canyon. 

We followed the experience by leaving 101 for a diversion up the ten-mile Newton B Drury Scenic Parkway.  While a guy named “Newton” may not have been popular with the A-crowd in high school, he had vision and he:

“……was instrumental in the 20th century for securing hundreds of thousands of acres as parklands.”

Fortunately, we did not come across any aggressive elk – either the largest species in the deer family or members of the fraternal order who had been drinking and were rowdy.

Photo Oct 05 2022, 11 39 24 AM

A Bandon Hope…..

On our 2017 Coast trip, we really enjoyed our stay in Bandon (population 3,100) on the Oregon Coast near the California border (90 miles).

We stayed at the Bandon Inn, a classic older motel, but well-maintained, has a great breakfast and where virtually every room overlooks the Coquille River reaching into the Pacific.  We watched whales surfacing from our balcony.  The Inn overlooks Old Town.

On that visit we also discovered a wonderful bar – the Broken Anchor Bar and Grill and had a long conversation with Jessica Neal, the personable and entrepreneurial owner.  We then had a beer at the Bandon Brewing Company, which had opened the day before.  We could walk to both from our room at the Bandon Inn. ( (#10 – #11)

 
jessica-e1510535254794

Hoping to be able to see her again, I told her by phone when we were going to be in town.  She was leaving the next day for a week in Mexico, but she kindly took a break from packing and came in.  It was obvious when catching up with her over drinks that she has used her work ethic and business instincts to adapt and work through the challenges of the pandemic.

Jessica took a risk a little over six years ago, opening the Broken Anchor after the former bar failed.  We found out chatting in 2017 that she is a Minnesotan, who after college and getting her teaching certification, started working in restaurants and bars after moving to Oregon.  (According to the reviews, she knows how to make an outstanding cocktail).

She had worked at two great Portland bars previously reviewed by Thebeerchaser – Crackerjacks Pub and the Dixie Tavern.  We were sorry to hear that shortly after our first visit, she ran into a few strokes of bad luck with both a fire which destroyed her liquor inventory and her walk-in freezer malfunctioning – the latter resulting in a significant loss not covered by insurance.

She has since changed her menu and entertainment options, developed a loyal Bandon clientele and hired and retained good staff.   We were there at a weekday Happy Hour and the place was filled with an energetic crowd. 

And Rylee, pictured above, the Anchor’s “mixologist,” made the best Bloody Mary I’ve had in years.  The social media reviews are overwhelmingly positive as exemplified by these two excerpts:

3/5/22 Yelp – “This is apparently THE place to be in Bandon after 8pm (and in reality one of the few places open “late”). We got into town around 6:30 and spent about an hour getting settled at Bandon Inn….We’re in town for 4 more nights so we may just end up back here before heading back home.”

2/7/22 Yelp – “Nice clean restaurant with friendly staff.  The food was fantastic and came in good portions.  They have a great drink selection too!  Definitely on my list of places to eat when in town!” 

Cheers to Jessica for her perseverance and a toast to her continued success.

We walked down the block – returning to Bandon Brewing Company and had dinner – we each had a great burger and scrumptious fries accompanied by a pint of their “Everything is Awesome Pale Ale” – which although not awesome, was smooth and drinkable.   We had enough food left over from dinner for lunch in the car the next day.

Photo Oct 05 2022, 6 55 17 PM

The Final Day of Travel

We often travel up and down the North and Central Oregon Coast, but hadn’t seen the spectacular southern part since 2017, so were looking forward to breathtaking scenery and a few short walks in the many Oregon State Parks along the remaining three-hour 150 mile route.

Well our views were not awesome either and we drove through pea soup fog all the way to our place in Lincoln City and for two of the three days we were there before returning to Portland. 

That said, we loved this trip!

Cheers!

External Photo Attribution

#1.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rachel_Held_Evans.jpg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.  Author: Dan Evans – circa 2009-10.

#2.  E-bay – Searching for Sunday (https://www.ebay.com/itm/254525497591?chn=ps&_trkparms=ispr%3D1&amdata=enc%3A1Ycw0sflNSourRZmA0JhUPA19&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-117182-37290-.

#3.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Trinity_Alps_Wilderness_(140359867).jpeg L censed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.  Source: Imported from 500px (archived version) by the Archive Team.  12 August 2011.

#4. Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pinus_balfouriana_Trinity_Alps_01.jpg) L censed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.  Source:  Tom Hilton 4 July 2009.

#5.  Wikimedia Commons: (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pinus_balfouriana_Trinity_Alps.jpg)  L icensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.  Source:  Miguel Vieira from Walnut Creek, CA, 22 August 2010.

#6.  Wikimedia Commons:  (File:ArcataHotel.jpg – Wikimedia Commons) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.  Author:  Cacophony 24 June 2008

#7. Wikimedia Commons (File:Arcata Plaza.jpg – Wikimedia Commons) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.  Author: Terrence McNally   6 October 2005.

#8.  Slice of Humboldt Pie Facebook Page (Facebook)

#9.  The Big Blue Cafe | Facebook

#10 – #11. Bandon Inn (1) Facebook

Road Trip Hot Spots…..Part I

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(Welcome back to Thebeerchaser.  If you are seeing this post through an e-mail, please visit the blog by clicking on the title above to see all of the photos and so the narrative is not clipped or shortened.)

I smiled as we rolled south on Interstate-5 through Grants Pass, Oregon, heading for our first night’s stay in Redding, California – only 285 more miles for what would be a total of 472 or about nine hours from our home in a Portland burb.  (#1- #2 – external photo attributions at end of the  post.)

My heightened spirits harkened back to the great memories from our last road trip – a long one – clear back in in the summer of 2019.  

And was that a road trip!  Fifteen-Days – a 3,700-mile journey through six western states going as far east as the Dakotas. Those who follow Thebeerchaser blog know that besides touring a number of fantastic National Parks and Monuments as well as the impressive Custer State Park, we visited scads of wonderful bars and breweries. 

2019-07-06 18.12.02

While on my own – the first six days driving solo – I visited twenty-three bars and seven breweries including my favorite bar since I started Beerchasing – The Dirty Shame Saloon in Yaak, Montana.  (Don’t worry, at most of the bars I visited those six days, I had a 7-Up while talking to the owner or bartender).

Janet flew into Billings where I picked her up for the rest of the trip.  We subsequently stopped at ten bars and nine breweries for a total of forty-nine memorable establishments where we met wonderful people, had outstanding beer and good food. 

It reaffirmed our appreciation for the National Park Service.  The scenery was varied and stunning.  The complete list can be found at the end of the post below:

https://thebeerchaser.com/2019/07/05/big-sky-beerchasing-the-preface/

Then a Three-year Pause….

We had no idea that a global pandemic would stifle not only road trips for the next few years, but essentially curtail all travel other than occasional trips to the beach and to Seattle.   

One doesn’t fully appreciate these journeys until their absence.  To use a Beerchasing analogy:  Schlitz Beer was always my favorite beer, but I didn’t fully appreciate it until they stopped producing it in 1981 when I learned the meaning of “When you’re out of Schlitz, you’re out of Beer!” (#3)

And while major back surgery this June made us reject extending our trip for several nights in San Francisco, this 2022 journey was still about 1,200 miles.  We reveled in the scenery of Northern California and the Oregon Coast and while also visiting and revisiting some excellent watering holes.

Redding

Since we felt finally felt comfortable dining inside without a mask, we chose Final Draft Brewing for dinner and beer after a walk across Redding’s impressive Sundial Bridge.   

I had some trepidation the name of the brewery evoked based on repressed memories of graduate school which bubbled to the surface.  Both my sister and her husband were high school English teachers at one point in their careers and were kind enough to edit all of my graduate school papers.

When I often submitted what I thought was my “final draft,” it would be returned with a sea of red ink and no smiley faces drawn at the top. It clearly redefined the meaning of “final.”  Dave Booher, seen in the photo below taken recently in Wales, looks like a kind and gentle soul sipping his IPA. 

However, the image on the left shows the volume of red pens he used just to “correct” one paper.  He was merciless (but I guess, in retrospect, he did teach me how to write and perhaps his actions were based on the quality of my narrative……He is also a quality human being. #4)

Dave is a patriot and served in the US Navy Submarine Service –  five deterrent patrols on two Fleet Ballistic Missile nuclear subs and one tour on a diesel boat, USS Dogfish,  launched in the late ’40’s and used as test platform for secret sonar experiments.

He also advised me – a guy who served on Destroyers – that: 

“There are only two types of naval vessels: submarines and targets.”

He still has a sign in their bedroom he altered from the 1950’s.  His version:

 “Better Red than Dead!”  (#5 – #6)

He’s so into scarlet that even though he’s an ardent U of Oregon Duck fan, he wears a University of Alabama Crimson Tide jersey to the games at Autzen Stadium…….you get the idea! (#5 -#6)

Note:  Dave informed me after reading this post that ironically, the photo of him was taken at a pub called “The Scholar’s Bar” in Aberystwyth, Wales.   He also added, “Please note that in these perilous times my current favorite colors are sky blue and sunflower yellow.”

 But I Digress…..

Final Draft Brewing was a great choice and even on a Monday night, this establishment, opened in 2017 by owner, Adam Ward, was hopping with 34 rotating taps including hard cider and seltzer and with an expansive food menu.  There was also a nice outdoor patio and as accurately portrayed on their website:

“Big Screen Tv’s, Exposed HVAC & An Open Area Brewhouse Located Directly Behind The Bar Are All The Unique Elements That Make Final Draft Brewing The “Go-To” Hangout In Downtown Redding!”

Our server, Isaiah, was a nice and helpful chap who had worked there for three years and explained the beers and gave us some samples before we decided to get (4) four ounce samplers – each for $2.  All were the Brewery’s own beers (Passive Aggressive IPA, True Blood Orange Kolsch, Attention Deficit IPA and Miso Blonde – the Kolsch was my favorite although all were good.

We shared the Filet Mignon Steak Salad ($17.99) and three Cod Tacos for only $12.99 and both were excellent as was the service.

Another Great National Park!

Lassen Volcanic National Park was only an hour from Redding, so we were able to spend a full day in this geologically splendid example of the sixty-three areas of discovery and beauty maintained by the National Park Service.

Photo Oct 03 2022, 2 52 43 PM (2)

Notwithstanding my consumption of the Attention Deficit IPA the night before, I learned from a film in the Visitor Center that  Lassen Peak is the largest plug dome volcano in the world.  Lassen Volcanic National Park is also one of the few areas in the world where all four types of volcano can be found – plug dome, shield, cinder cone, and stratovolcano.

Another striking feature of the Lassen National Park and on our subsequent trip from I-5 to Highway 101 on the Coast through the beautiful Trinity Alps Wilderness (the second largest in California) was the devastation caused by wildfires. 

Much of the Park was closed last year because of fire and the lodge where we stayed was evacuated although fortunately not destroyed.

Photo Oct 03 2022, 2 49 56 PM

At times, one could drive down the main road through the Park and on Highway 299 to Eureka on the Coast and on one side would be lush green forests while the view on the other side was blackened stumps, spindly remains of once lofty firs and no undergrowth.

Fortunately, the beauty of Lassen Peak itself and the marvelous story of the modern-day eruption in 1915 and the movement of massive rocks to end points miles away transcended what one hopes is the temporary devastation by the fires. (The Hot Rock in the picture below weighs 30 tons!)

“At rest for over 100 years in this location, the larger boulder here was once in the vent of Lassen Peak. A violent lahar, or mudflow, carried this 30-ton rock speeding down the slopes of Lassen Peak in a slurry of mud, earth, and rock. 

Visitors to the altered landscape reported that Hot Rock was hot to the touch even months after the eruption. The rock’s internal temperature is estimated to have been 1000°F when it came tumbling down Lassen Peak.”  (National Park Service)

And lest one become too complacent about the past and present volcanic history of the Cascade Range, take a look at these photos in what is appropriately called the “Sulphur Works.”  These can be viewed (and smelled……) right by the highway.  Others require some walking.

“The remarkable hydrothermal features in Lassen Volcanic National Park include roaring fumaroles (steam and volcanic-gas vents), thumping mud pots, boiling pools, and steaming ground.

Water from rain and snow that falls on the highlands of the park feed the hydrothermal system. Once deep underground, the water is heated by a body of hot or molten rock beneath Lassen Peak. Rising hot water boils to form boiling pools and mud pots.”   (National Park Service)

Highlands Ranch Resort

We had reservations that were canceled last year when the Lodge had to be evacuated because of the destructive Dixie Fire, and on this trip couldn’t get into one of the seven multi-room cabins of this magnificent lodging option on 175 acres only fifteen minutes from the Park. 

Fortunately, a nineteen unit motel (The Village at Highlands Ranch) – right across the highway – also operated by the Lodge owners, proved to be very comfortable. 

and

All the amenities of the Lodge were available including the expansive patio with unforgettable views of the meadow and mountain forest,  a rustic dining room and spectacular walnut bar and fire pits to enjoy our after-dinner drinks. 

It was one of the most relaxing and pleasant afternoon and evenings we spent since 2019.  The staff for the Lodge and the dining room and bar were outstanding and friendly.   

Onward to Additional “Hot” Spots….

So ended our first two days on the road trip and we then headed west to Red Bluff through the Trinity Alps to our next nightly destination – the Historic Arcata Hotel in Arcata, CA on 101 – a nice jaunt of 190 miles.   We left volcanic and geothermal country, but now searched for Beerchasing Hot Spots!

Cheers!

External Photo Attribution

#1. Wikimedia Commons: By Chad K – Sundial Bridge, from the south, CC BY 2.0, (https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=108094668)   Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

#2.  Wikimedia Commons:  File:Flag of Redding, California (pre-2018).png – Wikimedia Commons).

#3. Wikimedia Commons: (File:Old Schlitz Beer advertisement in Milwaukee Wisconsin.JPG – Wikimedia Commons)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. Author: Victorgrigas   4 January 2014.

#4.  Wikimedia Commons: (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Several_empty_red_pens.jpg)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Author: DigitDiva   16 May 2014.

#5. Amazon.com  (https://www.amazon.com/Better-Dead-Than-Communism-Slogan/dp/B07PYXSHXH).

#6.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alabama_Crimson_Tide_logo.svg)  This logo image consists only of simple geometric shapes or text. It does not meet the threshold of originality needed for copyright protection, and is therefore in the public domain.  Source: University of Alabama – (https://rolltide.com/documents/2018/6/28//Alabama201819LogosCopy.pdf?id=12116)

McMenamins’ Old Church and Pub

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(Welcome back to Thebeerchaser.  If you are seeing this post through an e-mail, please visit the blog by clicking on the title above to see all of the photos and so the narrative is not clipped or shortened.)

Since starting Thebeerchaser blog in 2011, I’ve avoided reviewing bars or breweries that are primarily restaurants rather than neighborhood watering holes or dives.  I’ve made a number of exceptions for the McMenamin venues based on several factors. (See the end of the post for pictures and reviews of those exceptions)

First, the McMenamin venues I’ve reviewed are all historic structures or are significant in the development of Oregon’s Craft Brewing Industry.  Secondly, the McMenamin brothers have made incredible economic, cultural and social contributions to the Northwest.   

The fact that Brian and Mike are both fellow Oregon State University graduates also doesn’t hurt. (Photos #1 -2 below – attribution at end of the post.)

And I fondly remember working with their dad, Robert, at both the Oregon State Bar and the City Club of Portland when he was on the boards of those organizations. 

The late Bob McMenamin was an outstanding lawyer (he received the Bar’s highest honor – the Award of Merit in 1975 ) and wonderful man known for his contributions to his profession and community.

The elegant “Bob’s Bar” in the basement of McMenamin’s Grand Lodge is named his honor.  He loved Hammerhead Ale and once said:

“When you’re out of Hammerhead, you’re out of beer!”   (Bob can be seen holding his favorite beer in his namesake bar below. #3)

Their commitment to history is commendable as reported in The Oregon Encyclopedia article by Tiah Edmundson-Morton.  (How many breweries have their own historian on staff?):

“Historic preservation is integral to McMenamin’s business model. A small history department, led for nearly thirty years by historian Tim Hills, researches the buildings and neighborhoods and gathers community memories.

Their work is incorporated into each property’s art, food, and architectural details. The department also sponsors a well-established program of public talks, with presentations that range from science to social justice to Oregon history.” (#4)

The Oregon Encyclopedia provides definitive and authoritative information about the State of Oregon and its history.

The Wilsonville Old Church

As with Steeplejack Brewing in NE Portland in 2021, a more than century-old church was saved from demolition for condos or a shopping mall by transformation into a brewery and pub which retained the historic structure.

(When the congregation moved in the 1990’s, the property was sold to Fred Meyer Corp.)

“The simple, but graceful church, which literally celebrates its centennial during the same month of its opening as part of the new McMenamins’ location, was completed in  August 1911 by the Wilsonville Methodist Society. 

It’s just like poetry to learn that its first minister, John W. Exon, had formerly been (and would be again) a respected riverboat captain, whose career had taken him on many journeys up and down the Willamette River, with regular stops at Wilsonville.” (McMenamin’s History Flyer)  (#5)

I laughed when I read that the brewery is located in the church basement where the nursery used to be operated during Sunday services.  And the expansive structures and grounds are more than just a brewery and pub:

“Linking the old and new is a grassy amphitheater, ideal for quiet conversations and rollicking music performances…”

There is also event space for weddings, reunions and anniversary parties.  They haven’t had live music since COVID “but we’re working on bringing it back.”

I didn’t have the chance to explore the grounds in depth, but there is a wealth of nice patio space and the inner eating area – in a separate building in back of the church – is nicely maintained and comfortable. 

(You can see by the sign below at the entrance that hiring food and beverage industry staff is still a real challenge.)

My friend and former Beerchaser-of-the-Quarter, Dwight (The Godfather) Jaynes and I had lunch inside and the service was courteous and efficient.  Check out his new gig on Rip City Radio – 620 with Chad Doing in the afternoons from 3 to 5 PM.

What About the Food?

Dwight had a two-piece Fish and Chips ($20.50) and I had a large Blue Bayou Salad (romaine, bacon, chopped egg, blue cheese crumbles, tomato, blue cheese dressing)  – $17.50 – I took almost half of it home – for our lunches and both were very good and presented well.

A Tillamook Cheddar Cheese Burger is $17.25 and I was almost sorry I didn’t order it because I could have told my wife that in the interest of budgetary prudence, I got the Tator Tots as a side because a green salad was an extra $1.75!

Their Happy Hour is daily from 3 – 6pm and 9pm until close.  A pint of any of the McMenamins’ ales is $1 off and they have a good offering of bites and appetizers. (#6)

450px-Happy_Hour

Happy Hour – It’s always 5:00 somewhere….

I always check out the reviews on Yelp and Trip Advisor just to get a sample of comments and with the realization that a number of people who do these ratings should have adult supervision when writing them based on the substance of their comments.  But I was impressed with the assessments overall.

McMenamins’ has sometimes been viewed as having good food and great beer, but service which is slow.  That doesn’t seem to be the case at the Old Church Pub and the majority of the reviewers appreciated the attentiveness of the servers – even during the pandemic.  

I’m always impressed when there are complaints on social media and Management responds (when they appear to be legitimate) and either apologizes or takes steps to remedy.  Such was the case with this McMenamins’. 

Cajun Tater Tots and Starters

The most emphatically positive comments on food were about the “Starters” and included the Soft Pretzel Sticks ($14.25) and Cajun Tots. ($10.25 and $15.25)

“I ordered the pretzel sticks as an appetizer just because I was starving, and man… they did not disappoint. The cheese sauce here is absolutely delicious! I ordered an extra order of the cheese sauce to go and took home the leftover pretzels.” (Yelp 5/8/22)  (#7)

Now, I learned something from the review below.  Although banks, schools and government offices aren’t closed, each February 2 is National Tater Tot Day:

“We stopped by to celebrate Tater Tots Day and a birthday dinner. We love the Cajun Tots and always split a Small basket between us; by the way a large Tot is 2 lbs of Tots! “  (Yelp 2/3/22)

Even going back to August 23 2019, people were effusive about the Cajun Tots:

“But what really stole the show, was the Cajun Tots. HOLY COW THESE ARE THE BEST TOTS IN THE WORLD IF YOU LIKE TOTS ORDER THESE RIGHT NOW BECAUSE ITS LIKE CRISPY HOT CAJUN HEAVEN IN YOUR MOUTH. Not joking guys. We shared a large order for the 5 of us and it was a large serving and even the pickiest eater of the group enjoyed them.”

So I plan to return to the Old Church and have a beer and some tots at Happy Hour in the Undercroft Bar which is in the basement and has been closed because of COVID.  One can’t go wrong at any of the McMenamins’ and the Wilsonville Old Church Pub certainly affirms that premise.

Previous McMenamin Establishment Reviewed by Thebeerchaser

McMenamins now has more than 60 establishments throughout the Northwest and I’ve been to a number.  The following are those I’ve reviewed with historic significance.  To see the review, click on the link over the name.

And I encourage you to visit them not only to enjoy the food and beer, but to grasp the historical import of these buildings that are preserved due to Mike and Brian’s efforts.

The White Eagle Saloon – 2012

We visited with friends Pat and Leona Green to see his brother, Beerchaser-of-the-Month Forrest Green, play a gig at the bar during JAM-O-Rama.

“The White Eagle originally opened in 1905 and is now on the National Historic Register. Did you know the White Eagle is called ‘one of the most haunted places’ in Portland?

……. Set in North Portland’s industrial neighborhood, underneath the mighty span of the Fremont Bridge, the legendary White Eagle Cafe and Rock ‘n’ Roll Hotel echoes with tall tales of resident spirits, poker games and Shanghai tunnels……”

The St. John’s Pub – 2015

Two former Beerchasers-of-the-Quarter, who both worked at the University of Portland nearby, joined me for an afternoon drink.   Dr. Sam Holloway, a professor of business and also an internationally recognized consultant on the micro-craft industry, and the late and critically acclaimed author, Brian Doyle and I enjoyed the historic ambiance with our drinks.

“Built in 1905 as the National Cash Register Company’s exhibit hall for Portland’s Lewis and Clark Exposition, this spectacular building was barged down the Willamette River after the expo to its current location.

It’s subsequent incarnations included a Lutheran church, an American Legion post, a bingo parlor and a home for Gypsy wakes. The ever-evolving domed structure was later reinvented as Duffy’s Irish Pub and finally, St. Johns Theater & Pub.” 

The Fulton Pub – 2016

I didn’t review this historic pub opened in 1988 by the McMenamin brothers until 2016 although my initial visit in 2012 was the first time I met Brian Doyle for an interview and when we struck up a friendship.

Brian said it was his favorite bar, in part, because he loved Hammerhead Ale.  According to the McMenamin website, “…..legend has it that the brew’s hallowed recipe (Hammerhead) was perfected here.”

“(The pub) dates back to 1926, when it was a Prohibition-era hangout serving home-cooked meals, pinball games, stogies, candy and ice cream. Speculation says that during Prohibition the pub might even have provided patrons the odd pint as an unadvertised special.”  

In Closing

Every time I reminisce about my Beerchasing exploits and interaction with Brian Doyle, it is with profound sadness that I reflect on how this remarkable human being left us far too soon in 2017 from brain cancer.   

His accomplishments transcend what most people could do in three lifetimes as does the impact he had on those who knew him.  My tribute to him was in the post: 

 https://thebeerchaser.com/2017/06/09/brian-doyle-beerchaser-eternal/

The post will give you an idea of his wonderful writing talent and sense of humor and I’ll leave you with the words of Fr. Mark Poorman, then President of UP, where Brian worked for twenty-six years.

“He was a man filled with a sense of humanity and wonder, who was interested in everyone’s story and who saw everyone’s potential. His warmth, humor, and passion of life will be deeply missed and his loss will be acutely felt here and beyond.”

External Photo Attribution

#1.  The Oregon Encyclopedia (https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/mcmenamins/#.YzeHvXbMKUk) Article by Tiah Edmundson-Morton.   (Oregon Historical Society)

#2.  McMenamins’ Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/mcmenaminsbreweries/photos/10159113704914864)

#3.  McMenamins’ History Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/McMenaminsHistory/photos/a./) 

#4.  The Oregon Encyclopedia Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=532027042257551&set=a.532027008924221)

#5. Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Methodist_Church_Wilsonville.JPG)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.  Author:  M.O. Stevens 14 May 2009

#6.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Happy_Hour.jpg)  The copyright holder of this work, released this work into the public domain. This applies worldwide.  Author: Hovev  2008

#7.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tater_tot_hotdish_8286689740_o.jpg) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.  Author: Tony Webster 9 March 2014

Harvey Duane “Thumper” Barton – Beerchaser of the Quarter

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(Welcome back to Thebeerchaser.  If you are seeing this post through an e-mail, please visit the blog by clicking on the title above to see all of the photos and so the narrative is not clipped or shortened.)

While in college at Oregon State University from 1966-1971, I had the good fortune to live with about 75 guys in the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house which was about 1/2 mile from campus.   The popularity of the Greek system on US campuses, ebbs and flows, but at that time, fraternities and sororities were strong.

SAE beaver logooooo

Not only were they an opportunity for enhanced social interaction, but one which imparted adherence to academic discipline – study tables for freshman (Rooks) from 7 to 10 each weeknight – and a routine which helped one succeed in college life initially. 

For example, Rooks also got up each weekday morning and did chores at 6:30 AM.   These  ranged from sanitizing the communal bathrooms to vacuuming and cleaning the house.  They also served as waiters and kitchen help each weekday night at dinner.

I established lifetime friendships during those years..  Three of my fraternity brothers were the Barton boys from Baker, Oregon. Duane – class of ’69, Gary (71) and Ronnie (73).  They were from a great Eastern Oregon family.

All those who knew him, mourned Duane’s passing from Alzheimer’s on May 14, 2020 at the age of 72.  Because of COVID, his Celebration-of-Life was postponed until this August. As stated in his obituary:

“His love for life, Faith in Christ and heart for people was ever present. He was never too busy to stop and encourage others. His impact has left an imprint on our hearts forever; he will be deeply missed.”

Periodically in this blog, I name a Beerchaser-of-the-Quarter (BOQ). During my career and in retirement, I have met (or read about) many fascinating and wonderful people with compelling stories and notable exploits and accomplishments.  Those I’ve featured may or may not have anything to do with bars or beer.  I’ve known most of them personally.

This disparate group comprises academicians, athletes, authors, clerics, consultants, developers, environmentalists, friends/family, media personalities, military veterans, musicians…..well you get the idea.

The late Duane Barton is my newest BOQ and joins two of his former Beaver football teammates who’ve received that “honor” – Craig (The Dude) Hanneman (8/12) and Billy (Rabbit)  Main (5/20) in addition to the legendary 1967 Oregon State Giant Killer Football Team as an entity. (5/18).  (To read these posts, click on the links above.)

Renaissance Man?

The SAE’s were involved on campus, to say the least.  We had athletes from all sports (ten were members of the Giant Killer Team), student leaders, ROTC guys from the three military branches, honor students and musicians, etc. – a talented group of individuals.

I suggest, however, that Duane Barton was the epitome of the well-rounded college student. Now you may laugh at the analogy, but during his life, he could be considered a contemporary Renaissance Man!   Let’s define that term:

“Embodying a basic tenet of Renaissance humanism that humans are limitless in their capacity for development, the concept led to the notion that people should embrace all knowledge and develop their capacities as fully as possible.

This is expressed in the term Renaissance man, often applied to the gifted people of that age who sought to develop their abilities in all areas of accomplishment: intellectual, artistic, social, physical, and spiritual.”  (Wikipedia)

Ben Franklin #1

Founding Father, Benjamin Franklin would fit in this category.  Now comparing Thumper Barton to Ben Franklin may seem like a stretch.  Duane didn’t sign the Declaration of Independence, isn’t credited with any inventions such as bifocals or the lightning rod, didn’t publish a newspaper, wasn’t a freemason nor did he serve as a University President……

However

Ben Franklin did not play the accordion, guitar and piano, nor letter in football, basketball and baseball in high school and go on to be a skilled college football running back who also punched holes in defensive lines for Earthquake Bill Enyart.

Ben didn’t meet his future wife while coaching Powder Puff Football (although Franklin did sport a pretty cool powdered wig at times). 

The Founding Father didn’t have a wonderful tenor voice which garnered a lead in the Baker High School production of Oklahoma and finally, Franklin, never landed a Navy fighter jet on an aircraft carrier at night in rough seas off Japan or serve as an instructor for other Navy aviators.

Both of them were recognized for their superb humor – Franklin mixed cynicism with optimism and stay tuned below for examples of Duane’s mirth.. The bottom line is that both were remarkable men who made significant contributions in a wide variety of pursuits, were admired both for their achievements and relationships with others and left a lasting legacy.

A Note on the Accordion!

Not a “Babe Magnet” Instrument….#2

One of the great stories his brother, Gary, told at the Celebration was Duane learning to play a wicked version of “Lady of Spain”   Perhaps, he became fascinated with this tune while watching the Lawrence Welk Show (It was the theme song of Myron Floren, the accordionist on the show), but everyone there loved the story.   

One has to ask, “Did Duane learn to play the accordion to impress the girls at Baker Union High or for the purpose of culturally enhancing his own life (although maybe not those around him…..)?”  Fortunately, he abandoned this hobby in college or at least only resumed it on academic breaks at home.

Faith and Family

Duane’s faith in Christ was a critical part of his value system as was his family.   Jan and Duane were married for fifty years and had two beautiful daughters (Kylee and Jamie) who I had the privilege of meeting at the Celebration.  

As might be expected, both inherited their parents’ athletic abilities and were elite soccer players. Kylee went to University if Portland on a full scholarship. She played for the U16 and U 20 National Teams  Jamie went to Willamette University and was inducted into  the Hall of Fame at Willamette in 2010.

Both young women have successful careers – Kylee has worked at Nike for seventeen years and is a Global Strategic Product Management Leader, while Jamie is a Vice Principal for an international school. After Kylee entered college, Jan had a successful 17-year career as a realtor with Windemere.

Jan asked me to say a few words at the Celebration of Life.   They are inserted below with some pictures that help convey Duane’s personality and amazing life experience:

“I was privileged to know Duane through both the SAE house and the Navy ROTC program.   Duane and his good friend and football teammate, Billy Main were both in NROTC – one year ahead of me.

Shortly after Duane passed away, I talked on the phone with Billy about the 1967 OSU Giant Killer Team. We both reminisced about Thumper – Duane’s nickname.  Coincidentally, Billy’s nickname was “Rabbit.”

Here are a few of Billy’s comments because they are memorable

Duane Barton was the back-up fullback to Bill Enyart in 1967 and 1968. He knew Buff well – they were roommates when the team traveled.  Thumper was physically very different:

Enyart was 6 feet  4 inches – 235 pounds   —-   Duane was 5 feet 8 inches – 210 pounds.

Duane was one of the great players from eastern Oregon that were part of that Giant Killer team.  He was a skilled and proficient runner and blocker — the purest essence of the spirit and ethos of those teams…Had Buff gotten injured, we would lose very little. He was loved and respected by all of his teammates.”

Let’s talk about Naval Aviation and the Airlines

Being selected for Naval Aviation was a real honor for a midshipman.  Both Duane and Billy learned to fly in college at the Corvallis airport and went to flight school at Pensacola after commissioning.  Rabbit reminisced and said:

 “We were also in the Navy summer camps in LA and Pensacola. We were together on Aircraft Carriers: the USS Randolph and USS Lexington.

USS Lexington (CV-2) leaving San Diego, California #3

During that summer in Pensacola and when we had a few days leave, Thumper had a bright idea.  He suggested that we jump a freight train and just see where it was going. Duane always pushed to try something new. (Fortunately, Billy talked him out of this plan).

Duane was a skilled pilot but Thumper had an outrageous sense of humor.  He was constantly pinching your ass when you weren’t looking – then he would laugh like hell.”

After commissioning and flight school in 1969, he served in the Vietnam War as a Navy pilot. Flying planes was always a dream of his, so he was then thrilled to continue that work as a commercial pilot for Continental.

In 1985 he began a career with Alaska Airlines, which lasted until his final flight in June of 2007; he had a respected and distinguished career. He was also very involved with Airline Pilots’ Association International for 30 years.

And at the SAE house, the Barton boys were active and appreciated.  Not only were they standout athletes on our intramural teams, but also talented vocalists—-although Duane had a much better voice than Gary…..

The SAE’s won the men’s competition in OSU Interfraternity Sing in 1968 and placed second in 1967.  It was a big event on campus every year and the Bartons were a key factor in the both victories (along with our white slacks……).

Duane and Gary are standing next to each other in the lower right.   (Thebeerchaser is upper row third from left and Danny Riley – stay tuned below – is fifth from the left in the upper row).

Given my propensity to save (hoard) items, I still have the vinyl LP’s from both years and you can hear our winning number “Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor” (Rather timely wouldn’t you think….) and hear the Bartons’ dulcet tones. (If there is not an arrow on the photo below, click on it to play the video).

As I knew he would, Billy Main flew up for the Celebration of Life in Portland and ten of Thumper’s fraternity brothers were there as well – obviously all still retained their youthful looks and demeanors.

Finally, let’s talk about nicknames.

Some of you, are probably asking about the derivation of the moniker, “Thumper.”   Gary offered this explanation:

“The Thumper nickname came from the Disney movie Bambi.  There was a cute little cottontail named Thumper living in Bambi’s forest.   Among the burly football jocks at OSU, Duane was like their Thumper – both in size and perhaps even more so in personality.

That said, he gave one a memorable ‘thump’ when he hit you on the football field….”

Thumper: “Hey Rabbit (Billy), I’ll take out the linebacker and you go off tackle.” #4

At the SAE house almost everyone had a nickname.   You know Duane’s.  Gary Barton was known as “Golden Boy” – I think he got that name from his hair color although Gary always  thought it was because of his accomplishments.  But  that’s a story for another time……

There was also “Foghead,” “The Dude,” “Cheater,” “Buns” and some that can’t be repeated in mixed company.  My nickname was “Dirt” and when my younger brother pledged the house several years later, he became known as “Dust.”   Those nicknames – in many cases – stuck for the rest of one’s life.   I’ll close with an example:

Scene — Portland International Airport (PDX)

In 2007, my law firm was having merger discussions with a Seattle firm. I was flying to Seattle each week and one weekday morning I was seated in the  Alaska Airlines waiting area for my 6:30 AM flight.

I looked at the couch across from me about four seats down and saw a pilot in his uniform waiting to catch a hop to Seattle. I was pretty sure that it was Duane; however, I hadn’t seen him in more than 20 years.  His hair was white and he had a mustache.

“Thumper??”

Taking a cautious approach I said in a very low voice, “Thumper?”  Well, the lady sitting next to me was horrified…..But Duane turned abruptly towards me, got a big grin and said enthusiastically:

“Dirt!”.

“Dirt???”

We had a great conversation.

The Celebration was a wonderful and healing time for reminiscing and I enjoyed meeting Jan, Kylee and Jamie.  And it was a real treat seeing Gary again and hearing his heartfelt and eloquent tribute to Duane.

A Naval Aviation Family

And speaking of tributes, I want to close with recognizing another SAE who was also in NROTC and my best friend in college.

Dan Riley

Foghead and Dirt ready to drive to San Diego for summer Midshipman cruise during college.

Dan (Foghead) Riley also took his commission in Naval Aviation and was a legacy member of an outstanding family of Navy pilots – Mike (’59), Dave (’63), Steve (’69) and then Danny (’71).   All were NROTC at OSU except Dave who was a US Naval Academy grad.  Dan, like Duane Barton, left us too soon and passed away from a long illness in 1997.

It’s ironic and funny how Dan got his nickname at the SAE house in light of the fact that he subsequently landed many times on aircraft carriers – obviously this task takes a clear head!

Dan, Dave and Mike Riley
Steve Riley

At the SAE house, there was a week-long initiation to become a member- usually in the spring of the sophomore year, if one made the required GPA.   “Hell Week” did not involve any physical hazing but there was a lot of good-natured psychological grief for the prospective members and  “assignments” – some of which were essentially impossible to carry out, but for which there was grief it not accomplished.

One of mine which still brings a laugh – I was supposed to surreptitiously place a unit of hay on the study room desk of the House President, Ronnie  “Root Beer” (he didn’t drink) Holloway.   I talked a kid in the neighborhood of the SAE house to let me borrow his Radio Flyer wagon. 

I took it to the OSU sheep barns (we were an aggie school…) – about 3/4 mile from the house and told one of the workers that I was doing a science project and needed a unit of hay which I would pay for.  He laughed and gave it to me.

#5
#6

I pulled the wagon and hay through the back streets to return to the house and waited until everyone was at dinner and Dan Riley helped me get it up to the second floor on the desk.   Root Beer was astonished when he came in.

The “birth” of Fog Head –  On the first night of Hell Week, they lined us up single file at attention in the hall (about fifteen of us) after dinner.  The upperclassmen were all puffing on cigars and the smoke was so thick, it probably could have held up the ceiling.    We were all nervous and not wanting to screw up as they lectured us about how we didn’t live up to SAE standards, were flakes, etc.

One senior – a big guy who played football came up, puffed his cigar and stuck his head in Dan’s face and said, “Riley, this probably doesn’t mean anything to you does it?”  With all the yelling Dan didn’t hear him so figuring he had a 50/50 chance to be correct, he replied “No Sir!”

All the upperclassmen then laughed uproariously and one of them yelled, “Come on, Riley.  Get your head out of the fog!”

Perhaps that night in 1967, in some small way, prepared Dan for a scenario like that below that he may have faced on one of his Navy air patrols!  #7

US_Navy_101105-N-5684M-121_The_aircraft_carrier_USS_Ronald_Reagan_(CVN_76)_maneuvers_through_fog_in_the_Pacific_Ocean

I’ll finish with this tribute to the Navy aviators mentioned above – Duane, Billy, Danny, Steve, Mike and Dave.  The song is by the OSU Chapter of the Sigma Chi Fraternity  – winners of the 1967 OSU Interfraternity Council Sing. #8 (If there is not an arrow on the photo below, click on it to play the video).

Cheers

External Photo Attribution

#1.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Benjamin_Franklin_1767.jpg)  This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author’s life plus 100 years or fewer.  Source:  The White House Historical Association.

#2. Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_convertor_free-bass_piano-accordion_and_a_Russian_bayan.jpg)  Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.  Author: Henry Doktorski  30 September 2008.

#3.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:USS_Lexington_(CV-2)_leaving_San_Diego_on_14_October_1941_(80-G-416362).jpg)  This file is a work of a sailor or employee of the U.S. Navy, taken or made as part of that person’s official duties. As a work of the U.S. federal government, it is in the public domain in the United States. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/en:Naval_History_and_Heritage_Command

#4.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Thumper_Bambi_Screenshot.png) This work is in the public domain because it was published in the United States between 1927 and 1963, and although there may or may not have been a copyright notice, the copyright was not renewed.  Source: The Walt Disney Company 1942.

#5.  Radio Flyer Wagon – https://www.amazon.com/Radio-Flyer-Classic-Red-Wagon/dp/B00000IS6G/ref)

#6.  Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hatzir_in_dalton(2).JPG) Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.  Author: קרלוס הגדול4 May 2013.

#7.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (http://File:US Navy 101105-N-5684M-121)  The aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) maneuvers through fog in the Pacific Ocean.jpg –  A work of a sailor or employee of the U.S. Navy, taken or made as part of that person’s official duties. As a work of the U.S. federal government, it is in the public domain in the United States. 5 November 2010.

#8.  

The Helvetia Tavern

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(Welcome back to Thebeerchaser.  If you are seeing this post through an e-mail, please visit the blog by clicking on the title above to see all of the photos and so the narrative is not clipped or shortened.)

Visitors from out-of-state often inquire, “What classic watering hole should we check out?”  In Oregon, one will often hear the response, “The Helvetia Tavern.”  This quaint rural bar was established in 1946 and has been a favorite of both locals and tourists ever since.

Whether one is from out-of-state, on a country ride by auto or cycling or just making a short stop off Highway 26 on the way to the Oregon Coast, it’s a destination with a reputation that draws robust crowds especially in Oregon’s good weather months.

An Oregon Classic

So when our friends, John and Barb Senger, from Boulder, Colorado came to town recently for Barb’s and my wife, Janet’s 50th McMinnville High School Class Reunion, they asked for a Beerchasing recommendation. The Sengers immediately agreed that we should try the Helvetia Tavern although they’d been there before.  Janet hadn’t been there since shortly after college.

I’m a bit embarrassed to say that although it’s been many years since I became eligible to raise a mug in its legendary quarters, I’d never been there.

The Sengers both had outstanding careers in educational administration and in retirement, we have visited them both in Boulder and Pueblo Colorado where John has relatives.  His daughter, Cassy, is married to Kirk Taylor, the Sheriff of Pueblo County and they were wonderful Beerchasing companions in a pre-pandemic trip..

And besides the highlight of seeing the Oregon State Beavers beat the Colorado Buffaloes in Boulder in a thrilling overtime victory for the Beavs on a perfect autumn day in 2018, we’ve visited some memorable bars and bistros together. (John is also known to make a great martini……)

Our favorite was The Sink, a famous, historic dive just off the University of Colorado campus, once visited by President Obama.  His unannounced visit on a 2012 campaign trip resulted in a new pizza – The POTUS Pie.   Although I digress, some info about this and some of the other bars is context for my comments on The Helvetia below.

Helvetia is a small unincorporated community in Washington County, Oregon along Highway 26 about forty-five minutes from Portland.  According to Wikipedia:

“It was named by Swiss immigrants to Oregon in the 19th century. Notable features are the church, cemetery, the Rice Rocks and Minerals Museum, Helvetia Vineyards and Winery, Roloff Farms, and the Helvetia Tavern.”

When a cemetery and a church are enumerated as “notable features,” in a community, it makes one pause and I have to admit that the “prospect” of a mineral museum did not seem that exciting. The Rice Museum, however, is affiliated with the Smithsonian and after I investigated, it’s worth checking out (on a future trip……):

“The Rice Museum of Rocks and Minerals houses a world-class collection recognized as the finest in the Pacific Northwest and one of the best in the nation….The Museum showcases not only fine rocks and minerals, but also fossils, meteorites, lapidary art, and gemstones from both the Pacific Northwest and all around the world.”

(# External photos attributed at the end of the post. #1 below)

And of definite historical interest – the Holcomb Creek Trestle, purportedly the highest (90 feet) and longest wooden railroad bridge currently in use in the United States, located only about a minute or two from in the Helvetia Tavern.

“This 110 year old beauty was used by the Portland Western Railroad!  If you like railroad trestles, you’ll love this one!   Built back in 1905 for the Oregon Electric Railway by United Railways, the timber stringer type bridge is a classic wooden trestle.

Since fire is always a danger with wooden trestles and bridges, this one was constructed with well spaced concrete partitions to prevent the uncontrollable spread of a fire, should one occur.  No one really knows how many board feet of lumber is included in the 1168 foot long span of the bridge.” (https://trainfanatics.com/holcomb-creek-wooden-train-trestle-still-standing/)   (#2)

One can’t help wonder if any inebriated patrons of the Helvetia Tavern have ever tried to scale the structure or walk across it – that’s almost four football fields. Obviously, it’s not one that you could make a fast exit over the side if a train appears like the classic scene in movies!

Okay, but let’s get back to the Tavern……

While we enjoyed our visit and the company was outstanding, based on my visits over the last eleven years – to almost 400 watering holes in Oregon, throughout the US and a few in Europe – I would not rate the Helvetia Tavern as a “classic” or one of the more memorable.

Now I will admit this assertion is based on only one visit – and that one shortly after a global pandemic, but hear me out…..This may shock some of its fans, but I’ll set forth my reasons below:

The Ambiance and Character – The inside is clean and spacious and has a long, attractive bars and numerous booths and a pool table. There are also some old beer signs and memorabilia.  It reminded me of a typical sports bar without as many televisions. (#3 – right)

The main element of character is the ceiling which is bedecked with numerous colored baseball hats – obviously left by patrons over the years.

I asked a waiter about the origin and he thought it was because  years ago, they had  unmatched sections of the ceiling and decided that the headgear would “hide” the discrepancy. 

There was nothing on the website which provided any insight and while it was an attractive and interesting touch, it doesn’t compare with the effect and the stories of some others I’ve seen in my journey – at least from the information available.  

I would suggest that a number of other “ceiling accoutrements” I’ve seen overshadow the hats.  Two examples are the bras that adorn the ceiling of the Dixie Tavern in Portland’s Old Town and the Bacaro Jazz – just over the Rialto Bridge in Venice.  From my Beerchaser reviews:

At Bacaro Jazz:

“The tradition is all the women walking in who donate their bra to the collection tend to get a free drink and a rise from the crowd.  The Bar has every drink you can think so if your intent is to walk in sober and  leave the same way, forget about it.”    

At Dixie:

“Evidently, when female patrons dance on the bar – a tradition at The Dixie – they inconspicuously  remove their bras and attempt to throw them on the antlers of the large moose-head hanging on the wall.  Then each year, Dixie’s donates $5 for each bra on the ceiling to the Susan Komen Race for the Cure – a great cause.

(There were also about an equal number of baseball caps on the ceiling which I assume were worn by the male patrons chose not to wear a bra, but didn’t want to feel left out.”)

And it doesn’t have to be apparel – for example, the traditional Christmas lights – which have never gone out on the ceiling along with University of Portland students’ signatures throughout the years at the Twilight Room or the signatures, graphics and comments on the ceiling at Gil’s Speakeasy in SE Portland

The Deck and Patio – One of the best aspects of the Helvetia is both a covered patio and an adjacent deck area with large umbrellas which drew most people the night we were there.   Although it was hot, the shrubs and trees around the deck provided some respite. On it’s website, it states “voted best patio” but it doesn’t quote the source. (#4 – left)

That said, given the weather during much of the year in Oregon, in my opinion, one can’t rely on the outside seating areas to provide the ambiance one needs to be considered a “classic” bar.

The Food – The menu is pretty much pub food and the prices are very reasonable.  On its website, Helvetia prominently displays “Home of the Jumbo Burger,” and the burger has a reputation for excellence, as do the fries and onion rings.   For example, this Yelp review:

“Old school tavern that my family has been visiting since the 50’s – when Fred and Boots owned it.  Then it was a tavern, grocery, and gas station.  The burgers are old school, fresh, simple, wonderful.  The  1/2 &  1/2 fries and onion rings are simply a must.”

Willamette Week in its March Burger Madness in 2017 which evaluated 100 burgers from Portland bars and bistros, wrote of Helvetia’s offering  (It lost to Mike’s Drive-in‘s burger in the first round):

“The famous Jumbo Burger – with two thin beef patties, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle and mayo stacked inside a giant bun – the whole thing is like a Big Mac the size of your face…if your face were maybe a little bigger.”  (#5 – 6)

I’ve eaten at quite a few of the places in the competition such as Slow Bar, Interurban, Ecliptic, McMenamins, Grain and Gristle and Expatriate and a few not on the list such as Stanich’s which one reviewer called “a national treasure” and Thrilllist rated in 2018 as the “Best Burger in America.”   And don’t forget The Sink Burger from Boulder.  Helvetia’s Jumbo does not compare favorably 

The legendary Slow Burger from Slow Bar

Most of the food reviews’ however, are good and the onion rings and fries were excellent with plentiful servings; however, my assessment of the burger was similar to the two below – (Yelp on 8/6/22):  

“The food was ok and the service was excellent. Had the jumbo cheeseburger and it was OK. Don’t really understand the hype.”

Or from 12/27/20:

“Interesting concept of the larger burger. The burger was simple and good. It’s because there was no ‘wow’ in burger I got, seemed pretty basic.”

Our servers were courteous and efficient.  By the way, Helvetia only takes cash or checks although there is an ATM located on site.

The Story – Perhaps the most disappointing (and lacking) element for an establishment that has been a community fixture since 1946, is any meaningful attempt to convey its history.  The website is woefully deficient and in the “About” section has a scant paragraph – only revealing the 1946 inception date.

The last entry on the Facebook site is dated December 26, 2021 and states:

“Due to the snow..We will be closed today.”

The element may not be a priority of the owners or important to most patrons; however, to be considered a watering hole icon, the story needs to be conveyed.  Regardless of whether the bar or brewery is relatively new or has a rich history (I assume) from having been around for almost eighty years like Helvetia, the legacy should be communicated on site and through social media.  And the staff should be oriented on it when they commence employment.

Earlier, I mentioned our visit with the Sengers in Pueblo, Colorado for an outstanding weekend of Beerchasing.   One of the highlights in visiting Gus’ Place, Eilers’ Place, Walter’s Brewery, the Greenlight Tavern, Shamrock Brewery and the Star Bar was that all of them emphasized the tradition and legends which preserve the sagas though narrative, photos or memorabilia.

One of my favorites from the eleven years of Beerchasing was from Eilers’ Pace (above) where after I mentioned my Beerchasing hobby to the bartender, she came back with the old photo below taken in the late 1940’s.  The bar was a family place and mom’s often brought their infants for a visit.  

She then said, “See that guy over there?” pointing to one of the guys in the booth by the door.  “He’s the second baby from the end on his mom’s lap in the photo.”   I went over to meet him and He stuck out his hand and said:

“I’m James “Horse” Mohorcich.  But you should just call me ‘Horse.’  I live across the street and I’ve been coming here for at least forty years.”

Later when we joined the Sheriff and his family, I told them the story and showed the picture and Sheriff Taylor said, “Oh yeah, that’s Horse.  I know Horse!”

So in Closing

I hope to return to the Helvetia Tavern at some point and the Lampros family who own it should be commended for maintaining a thriving small business through the years including during a pandemic.

They have a loyal following in the community and the region.  I just hope they make some additional efforts so the full story is not lost in the future.

Cheers

#7

External Photo Attribution

#1.  (https://ricenorthwestmuseum.org/)

#2. Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Holcomb_Creek_Trestle_(15448696156).jpg)        Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.  Bob from USA  4 October 2014.

#3 – 4.  (https://therealhelvetiatavern.com/)

#5 – 7.  (http://(1) Helvetia Tavern | Facebook)

  

Summer Cheer(s)

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(Welcome back to Thebeerchaser.  If you are seeing this post through an e-mail, please visit the blog by clicking on the title above to see all of the photos and so the narrative is not clipped or shortened.)

As fall approaches, take a look at two topics which I think you will enjoy:

First – An update on a former Beerchaser-of-the-Quarter

and

Secondly – Both a celebration of the fourth birthday of the Benedictine Brewery and St. Michael Taproom at the Mount Angel Abbey and a recollection of the “foundation” of that inspired enterprise back in 2017

*****

Godfather…..!

When one sees or hears the term above, the image usually crossing the mind is either a pizza or for Baby Boomers, Marlin Brando in his unforgettable role of Don Vito Corleone in the three-time Academy Award winning film The Godfather (1972) uttering his memorable threat:

“I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse!”

(# External Photo Attribution at the end of the Post – #1 and #2 above)

For those in the Northwest who have an interest in sports and have followed their teams and related issues in the print and broadcast media, the name Dwight Jaynes comes to mind.  Dwight for many years has been known professionally as “The Godfather.”  And for good reason. 

In 2010 he was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame and has been named Oregon Sportswriter of the Year five separate times. In 2013, he was named Sportscaster of the Year  – the first person in Oregon to win both awards.

Linked in

The Godfather  #3

He’s also co-authored two books, The Long Hot Winter: A Year in the Life of the Portland Trail Blazers (1992)  with former Blazer coach Rick Adelman and Against the World: A Behind the Scenes Look at the Portland Trail Blazers’ Chase for the NBA Championship (1992) with fellow journalist Kerry Eggers. (#4 – #5)

He had been working for Comcast SportsNet Northwest and not regularly on the air since 2011, when the trio of Dwight, Chad Doing and former Trail Blazer, Antonio Harvey hosted a talk show on radio station 99.5 The Game.

Dwight and I have periodic lunches and at one in July, he seemed energized and told me that “Something is in the Works”.  He then added that if he revealed anything, he’d have to shoot me. The Godfather had that Brando look of malice in his eyes when he mumbled this utterance, so I did not press him further. 

 (As an aside, we ate at the McMenamins’ Wilsonville Old Church – a nice establishment that I will cover in a future post.)  

The next day, it was announced that Dwight and Chad would be back together (“Chad & Dwight Ride Again In Rip City” from 3 – 6 PM each weekday on Rip City Radio 620. #6

Now, admittedly I’m biased, because I named Dwight as one of my Beerchasers-of-the-Quarter in 2016 and I love his historical grasp of NW Sports. 

Chad Doing also has a great radio background including a stint as a sports radio host in San Francisco as well as an interesting history including working as an Alaska Airlines flight attendant for three years.   He’s worked his way up in the radio profession and seems to be a genuine nice-guy with a broad knowledge of sports – especially the Trail Blazers.

“Doing, who lived 27 years in the Pacific Northwest before moving south, came up through the radio ranks in the Portland market, starting by doing high school football for Vancouver’s KVAN. From there, he got an internship with KFXX, at the time the market’s lone all-sports station, and moved up to board operator, then to reading sports updates.

In 2008, when a second all-sports station, KXTG, opened, he moved over, first as a behind-the-scene guy, then just four weeks in, taking over on-air on the morning show, along with Gavin Dawson and, later, Dwight Jaynes.”  (Oregon Live 3/24/15)

You should check them out at https://ripcityradio.iheart.com/featured/travis-demers/  These guys complement each other really well and they cover a broad range of topics. 

On the first few shows Dwight talked about meeting both Bill Russell and Vince Scully, they reminisced about Portland wrestling and had good discussion about recent Blazer issues such as the potential sale and the unwise decision to have Blazer TV broadcasters call the games remotely rather than traveling with the team.

Note:  About one week afterwards, the Blazers reversed this decision:

“Team president Dewayne Hankins joined Portland’s Rip City Radio 620 to discuss the decision with hosts Chad Doing and Dwight Jaynes on Monday. And during the interview, Hankins quickly acknowledged the Trail Blazers heard the backlash and responded accordingly.”   (Awful Announcing.com)

The Godfather is also known for the integrity of his written and spoken opinions through the years and taking deserved shots at Management when it’s deserved, be it that of the Blazers, written or broadcast media execs, referees, etc.

Chad and Dwight are more focused on sports then the rambling and almost irrelevant babble on their Portland competitor in the same timeslot.  

Happy Birthday to the Benedictine Brewery – Thanks be to Father God!

I’m proud to be part of the history of this wonderful Brewery on the grounds of the Mount Angel Abbey and one of only three Benedictine breweries owned and operated by monks in the US.  The Brewery and Taproom under the guidance of Head Brewer, Fr. Martin Grassel has thrived even during the pandemic and Fr. Martin and his trainees brew a robust group of beers. (#8 -14)

I still remember the wonderful community gathering (about 125 monks, priests, seminarians, Abbey staff and volunteers from the Mount Angel community) at the structure raising on a cloudy and cold November 11 2017, when we started the morning with a cement slab.  

By the end of the day, there was a structural frame with six bents ( two-dimensional transverse rigid frames and the building blocks that define the overall shape and character of a structure) using 14,000 board feet of Douglas Fir timber harvested from the Abbey tree farm. 

That day was also the occasion of the first prayer in the Benedictine Brewery and Taproom – held at noon before we ate and in lieu of the standard noon-day prayer in the wonderful Abbey chapel.  Fr. Vincent Trujillo, O.S.B., the Prior of the Abbey,  led the service which was “uplifting” – very consistent with the theme that day!  (#15 -19)

The monks sang and were joined by the other participants. Before getting back to work, we feasted on a spread of delicious barbecued chicken, baked beans, potato salad and green salad – all of which boosted the energy and spirits of the workers. (If the videos, don’t have arrows to start them, click your mouse in the center of the photos)

As stated in my Beerchaser post entitled: “The Benedictine Brewery – Beam Me Up”:

“There were 305 pieces of wood that were joined for the structure.  Besides the 14,000 for the structural components, another 11,000 board feet of lumber was used for the siding  and the tongue and grove boards for the top of the structure.  It will also be used for the actual bar in the Taproom.  It took seven truckloads of logs for the Brewery and Taproom and additional load that went in exchange to the plywood mill.  

Besides the source of the wood, there was another unusual aspect of the construction process:

The timber was harvested, cut, dried, milled using mortise and tenon joinery, which is secured with wooden pegs — an age-old traditional craft — and prepared for a seamless, no-hammer, no-saw construction.”  http://www.capitalpress.com/Orchards/20171113/unique-brewery-raising-at-abbey

The volunteers that day know that their labor would be “captured” in the structure for its duration based on the fact that all were encouraged to sign the pegs that secured the bents before they were put in place.  Thebeerchaser eagerly participated.

It was a truly remarkable day of spirited and spiritual effort by the entire Community and portended the success of what has become a NW regional destination spot with a devoted constituency for Fr. Martin’s beers.

As you will see from the video below in which the largest timber section – 80 feet in length, requiring forty workers was raised, Jonathan Orpin, the President of New Energy – the contractor for the structure raising – was the equivalent of land-based coxswain for his “crew” team.  His enthusiasm and energy was inspiring to all present.

Fall is one of the best times to visit the St. Michael Taproom surrounded by the Abbey’s hop fields. 

Try what has become one of the most popular brews – Hairshirt IPA ( 7.1 ABV | IBUs 56).  As one reviewer in the site “On Tap” stated, “I feel so penitent while drinking this.”

Although the Brewery’s website countered this on Father’s Day stating:

“This Father’s Day, why buy dad another tie when you could buy him a hairshirt? Taking its name from a garment worn as an act of penance, Hairshirt IPA is now available for the first time for sale in bottles, and drinking it is hardly a penitential experience.”

So let me indulge you.   Cheers and here’s to guilt-free drinking!  #20 -21)

External Photo Attribution

#1. Wikimedia Commons:   (http://File:Godfathers Pizza – Hillsboro, Oregon.JPG -) Wikimedia Commons icensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic license. Author: M.O. Stevens 8 September 2012

#2.  Public Domain – Wikimedia Commons (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marlon_Brando#/media/File:Marlon_Brando_publicity_for_One-Eyed_Jacks.png)  By None visible/Paramount Pictures – Publicity photo for the film One-Eyed Jacks (1961), Public Domain.

#3.  Linked-in (https://www.linkedin.com/in/dwight-jaynes-68956b6a/overlay/photo/)

#4.  (https://www.amazon.com/Against-World-Behind-Scenes-Championship/dp/0915611678/ref=sr_1_1?crid=GJB72IUBR6L&keywords=against+the+world+dwight+jaynes&qid)

#5.  (https://www.amazon.com/Long-Hot-Winter-Portland-Blazers/dp/0671748521/ref=sr_1_1?crid)

#6.  Dwight Jaynes Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=10160255999956894&set=basw.Abpv_1MIIzZM8NJkopm-)

#7.  Linked-in (https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-doing-35477868/)

#8 – 14.  Benedictine Brewery Website and Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/BenedictineBrewery)

#15 – 17.  Benedictine Brewery Website (https://www.benedictinebrewery.com/) Courtesy Brother Lorenzo.

#18. New Energy Works Website (https://newenergyworks.com/)

#19 Benedictine Brewery Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/BenedictineBrewery/photos/a.168624736681758/)

#20 Wikipedia Commons (http://(Ivan the Terrible’s cilice 02 by shakko – Cilice – Wikipedia)  By shakko – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16218870.  Llicensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.