Here’s the news in Oregon beer for Wednesday, the 25th of September. As usual, I’ll be periodically updating this post throughout the day, so check back often. And if you have news to share, please contact me and I can get that updated as well.

Vertigo Brewing (Hillsboro) is celebrating their 5th anniversary this Saturday the 28th with a party starting at 4pm and featuring food, live music and of course beer! Brewpublic has an extended writeup; in addition to a special Superdude Imperial Stout and Tropical Heat Wave (habanero lime blond ale) that will be on tap special, there will also be their limited Fresh Hop IPA available. Head out to the Vertigo Taproom on Saturday to help them celebrate five years!

McMenamins Old St. Francis School (Bend) has their monthly O’Kane’s Cask Series Release hitting the taps today, featuring Golden Sparrow Fresh Hop 2013 Firkin starting at 5pm: “A light bodied and very easy drinking golden ale. The Sparrow has a nice malt flavor that is complemented with a mellow hop feel. Fresh hops were picked by hand from the hop vines at the D&D Ranch in Terrebonne. These hops were added towards the end of the boil to release mild bitterness and flavor of the fresh hops. Conditioned in our Firkin keg, this allows the mellow hop flavor to fly around your taste buds like a sparrow. Enjoy a pint of this once a year style of ale as well as in a unique way of conditioning and pouring the drink. A fun day of picking hops in the afternoon of late summer was all that a brewer could ask for. Throw in the singing of the sparrow and the day was almost perfect!” I need to get over there today to try that!

McMenamins Cornelius Pass Roadhouse (Hillsboro) has a fresh hop beer tasting tonight featuring three offerings: Thundercone Fresh Hop Ale both in cask and on nitro, and Solar Sail IPA made with a mystery hop: “A mystery in the making as this brew will be damp-hopped and only revealed the night of the event as to which hop variety was used. Hold your pint up to the light and you will see sunshine in a glass. Tip it back, and enjoy the journey.” The tasting starts at 6pm and will last until the beer is gone.

Lompoc Brewing (Portland) has their seasonal Monster Mash releasing today: “Monster Mash Imperial Porter release today at Sidebar from 4 to 10pm! No graveyard bash is complete without a batch of this monster brew, a full-bodied, full-flavored mash up of a half dozen dark specialty malts. Also on tap, Port Barrel Aged Big Bang Red, AwayDays IPA, Oktoberfest, Sticky Wicket ESB & Kick Axe. All this plus free appetizers while they last!” Perfect timing, since it’s nearly October already.

Here’s a cool event that wasn’t on my radar until this afternoon: OMSI in Portland is holding their 3rd annual “Science is Brewing” Brewfest at their “OMSI After Dark” event today from 6 to 10pm, and this looks fabulous: “Don’t just drink beer, learn beer! At our 3rd annual brewfest, sample beers from local breweries while learning how beer is made, why yeast is important and how to grow hops.” With a ton of beer-related science demonstrations, features, and shows, this looks like a steal with the pricing (“$25 Non-Members, $15 Members, $8 OAD Members (includes admission, souvenir pint glass, and 10 tasting tokens)”) and I wish I was in Portland tonight to go to this! From what I can see this should be highly recommended.