I’m not sure how I missed Brewpublic breaking this news five days ago, but a hat-tip to Foyston for pointing me to it: brewer Chad Kennedy is leaving Laurelwood Brewing in Portland and is planning on opening a new brewery in Bend. Yes, another new brewery here.

Today Brewmaster Chad Kennedy of Laurelwood Brewing announced that he will leave his post at the NE Sandy Blvd. brewery in Portland in July to began work on a new production brewery in Bend. Kennedy’s last day at Laurelwood will be July 1. He half-jokingly states that he is going to “see how many breweries this state can handle.” Kennedy says more details will come next month.

In a statement to Brewpublic via email, Kennedy informed us of his new brewery: “Suffice it to say it’s a production brewery so you’ll find the beer in Portland too.” This is good news for Portland, though the charismatic and talented brewer will certainly be missed around the Rose City.

And Foyston ran the Laurelwood statement:

As many have heard Laurelwood Brewmaster Chad Kennedy is leaving to open his own brewery in Bend Oregon. Chad has been with Laurelwood for 8 years and has been a great asset to the company. With Chad’s at the helm Laurelwood has become recognized as one of the great craft breweries not only in the Northwest but in the country. We are sad that Chad is leaving, but very proud of his new adventure! Bend is very fortunate to have one of Oregon’s best brewers coming to their town to bring yet another great brewery to our state! We are very excited for him and wish him the best of luck!

We’re getting to the point where it’s getting ridiculous trying to keep track of all the breweries (active and planned) here in Bend. So much so that I’ve added a sidebar list of all the breweries, active and proposed or in development, for Central Oregon—crazily enough, there are now 10 active breweries in Central Oregon with another six in various planning stages.