Here is the Oregon beer news for Thursday, the 7th of February. As usual, I’ll be periodically updating this post throughout the day with the latest news, so check back often. And if you have news to share, please contact me and I can get that updated as well.

Golden Valley Brewery (Beaverton): Today is the Beaverton release of the special anniversary Valley Red Collaboration Brew that GVB Brewmaster Mark Vickery brewed recently with John Harris: “Bold, zesty Red Imperial rises with assertive hop bitterness using English Target and Australian Galaxy hops. Mid palette softens to fruity esters and a late addition of Goldings and more Targets. Dry hopped with a blend of galaxy/golding hops; the Valley Red finishes truly Imperial.” The release is from 5 to 7pm where you can meet the brewers and get pints from the first keg for only $2 (until that keg blows).

And Mark Vickery had a cool statement about the collaboration:

John Harris’s career in brewing spans 20 + years and 3 brewing empires. Many brewers and brewery’s today stand on his shoulders. One of the first pub brewers at McMenamins, John’s Hammerhead remains to this day one of there best selling ales. The first Brewmaster at Deschutes Brewery, John originated the recepies for Mirror Pond Pale, Black Butte Porter and Jubelale. In a long run at the Pilsner room for Full Sail Brewing Johns creativity lifted off. Too many to list seasonal beers and experimental explorations.

I first met John at Bridgeport Brewing in 1988 where I bartended and began my love affair with craft beer. He had just started at a new pub called Deschutes Brewery in Bend. I started at Deschutes a month later in January of 1989 bartending and assistant brewer. Little did we know what we were in for.

Life long friends along with many shared pints.

McMenamins Old Church & Pub (Wilsonville): They have a meet the brewer and  limited-edition tasting today starting at 5pm for Widow Maker, a rum barrel aged version of the seasonal Black Widow: “This is a 2012 edition Black Widow Porter aged for 75 days in a ‘Three Rocks’ rum barrel, then cold-conditioned for another 45 days. This well-traveled barrel started out aging ‘Hogshead’ Whiskey for 3 years, and then it was used to condition the new ‘Three Rocks’ rum for 6 months.   This version of the Widow Maker starts with a sweet booziness of spiced rum on the nose followed by robust notes of vanilla, dark chocolate and dark fruit and further spirited with ethereal wisps of caramel and licorice. Both substantial and sublime, this rare elixir is sure to slake the most fiendish of thirsts.” Be sure to get some while you can, because when it’s gone, it’s gone.

McMenamins Fulton Pub & Brewery (Portland) also has a limited-edition tasting tonight at 5pm, featuring Black Happy, a Cascadian Dark Ale: “Black Happy is a black IPA.  In the Pacific Northwest black IPA’s are sometimes classified as Cascadian Dark Ales.  Black Happy is a very dark beer with a garnet hue when held to light.  It first greets the drinker with an aroma that is citrusy, piney, and a faintly toasty.  The flavor is mellow at first with toasted and chocolate notes.  From there, an aggressive citrusy, piney, spicy and resinous hop character takes control.”

Oakshire Brewing (Eugene) is doing a tasting at Bend’s Broken Top Bottle Shop tonight from 7 to 9pm: “Sample Oakshire beers, win swag & talk all things craft beer with Kevin!”

Pelican Pub & Brewery (Pacific City): Pelican has introduced a new line of “Lone Pelican Draft” beers that are “hatched collaboratively by our whole brewery team rather than being solely one of Darron’s creations.” (Brewpublic has more details.) The first beer in this series has been released: Keg Monkey, an unfiltered pale lager, 5.5% abv. “The entry-level position in a brewpub or craft brewery almost always involves cleaning and filling kegs. It is the job most of us in the brewing world started with. The Keg Monkey. This beer is dedicated to all who have labored on the keg line: washing, racking and rolling! Keg Monkey is a special lager beer inspired by the brewing traditions of Germany, yet faithful to none. A fusion of the Dortmunder and Pilsner beer styles, and served Zwickel-style (unfiltered), Keg Monkey is a lager beer that crosses style boundaries. Aroma hops from Oregon and Germany give a clean, hoppy flavor profile. Melanoidin and light caramel malts provide a wonderful balance to the beer. Using Bohemian lager yeast sourced from our friends at Breakside Brewery and fermented cold, Keg Monkey displays a classic lager character. Raise a glass to salute the hardworking Keg Monkey!” It’s definitely to be found at Pelican’s Pacific City pub, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a few kegs showing up around the bigger markets in Oregon (Portland, Eugene, Bend).