It’s a cold one today, a good day to grab a hearty beer and sit by an open fire if you can swing it. If not, maybe today’s beer news from around Oregon will help keep you warm! All the news that’s fit to print for Wednesday, November 20. 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 posted as well.

Oblivion Brewing (Bend): If you haven’t yet had a chance to try beer from one of Bend’s newest breweries, the Mountain Jug in Sunriver is hosting a tasting and meet the brewer from 5 to 8pm. Brewer/owner Darin Butschy will be on hand pouring his Porter and Pale Ale and it’s sure to be a good time, so swing on by.

McMenamins Oak Hills Brewpub (Portland) has a limited-edition beer tasting tonight starting at 4pm, featuring Oak Aged Rhino Stout: “The Oak Aged Rhino Stout is a wonderful spin on the old Oak Hills Favorite. First brewed on September 22, 1993 for the Oak Hills Anniversary Party, the original Rhino Stout was well received and became wildly popular. For this special edition keg, the dark, roasty ale has been aged on a healthy dose of French oak. The result is new oak barrel flavor combined with the coffee, and dark chocolate essence of the Rhino Stout. We tip our cap to Rhino Stout designers Keith Mackie and Troy Dockins in bringing back this old school McMenamins classic.”

The BeerMongers (Portland) tonight is hosting Washington’s Schooner Exact for a release and tasting of their Hoppy the Woodsman: “Come down and meet the brewer from Schooner Exact! We will have bottles of Hoppy the Woodsman for sale and be tapping a keg of the rare barrel-aged treat, Hoppy the Woodsman. You will also be able to sample through Schooner’s standard bottled lineup, courtesy of the brewer!” The event runs from 6 to 9pm.

Twisted Snout Brewery (Toledo) has the release of their “Holy Hog!” holiday ale this Saturday, the 23rd, from 6 to 9pm. The beer is made with wildflower honey and spiced with ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, and they only have three barrels of it available—so don’t wait!

Apocalypse Brewing (Medford) announced today on Facebook and a lengthy blog post that they are changing their name, due to a naming dispute with Bend’s 10 Barrel Brewing over the use of “Apocalypse” (since 10 Barrel’s flagship beer is Apocalypse IPA). (Also particularly ironic since 10 Barrel went through the renaming exercise—they were previously “Wildfire Brewing”—in response to a similar dispute back in 2008.) The new name will be Opposition Brewing Company: “And so we wanted to let you know that over the next few weeks, and pending government approval, we’ll be transitioning to a new name. We spent quite some time considering what that new name would be, and feel we have selected a name that best fits the spirit, personality, and ideals we have developed as a brewery, and community, over the past year.”

Crux Fermentation Project (Bend) is preparing a holiday beer that sounds pretty awesome: “Holidays are around the corner. And so is our Freakcake Oud Bruin. With layers of complex fruit notes, this barrel aged Belgian ale pays homage to the fuitcakes granny used to make— with one major difference— you won’t want to re-gift this one.” The beer will appear at the Holiday Ale Fest, and they’ve posted additional details: “Brewed to the Oud Bruin style with orange and lemon zest, then aged in Makers Mark barrels where the brewers added classic holiday fruits such as cranberries, figs, dates and raisins.” And, it’s 10.5% abv.