Happy Friday! Here’s the news in Oregon beer for the weekend before Thanksgiving. As usual, I’ll be periodically updating this post throughout the day, so check back often for the latest news. And if you have news to share, please contact me and I can get that updated as well.

Belmont Station (Portland) is holding a tasting for Colorado’s Great Divide Brewing today from 6 to 8pm: “Denver’s Great Divide Brewing Co. has been brewing up incredible award-winning beers since 1994. And West Coast rep Tannea Musselman will be in the bottle shop for two hours so you can taste some of Great Divide’s, well, greatest. She will be sampling a variety of Great Divide beers to showcase the brewery’s variety: Colette Farmhouse Ale, Claymore Scotch Ale, Peach Grand Cru and Hercules Double IPA.”

2 Towns Ciderhouse (Corvallis): It’s easy to forget that beer and cider is a seasonal, agricultural product (cider more so) subject to fluctuations in quality—sometimes yielding undesirable results. 2 Towns is experiencing that with this year’s pear crop: “We have had some issues with this year’s pear fruit, and this has affected the quality of our perry, “Peardise”. Using 100% fresh-pressed pears is important to us, which means there will be natural fluctuations in flavor; however, this year’s fluctuations have proven to be too great to guarantee a product that consistently meets our standards of “Damn Fine Cider”. We understand that some people really enjoy this year’s Pearadise, but after considering the overall feedback from our fans, we have decided to discontinue the Pearadise.” So if you were hoping for Pearadise this year, you’ll have to wait to see about next year instead.

Twisted Snout Brewery (Toledo) is having the release party for their Holy Hog! Holiday Ale tomorrow (Saturday the 23rd) from 6 to 9pm (though they will start early at 5pm, as they subsequently posted on Facebook). They have a mere three barrels of this beer, brewed with wildflower honey and spiced with ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, so make sure you find your way to some.

And speaking of Saturday releases, Santiam Brewing in Salem has their Twig and Berries coming out tomorrow: “This glowing beauty is and an 8.3% ABV 25 IBU Belgian style Farmhouse Ale aged in Rogue gin barrels. As always, all mid-month releases will be $1 off pints on release day. Available just in time for your Thanksgiving table, this beer is a perfect compliment to Turkey and Cranberry.” This definitely sounds like an interesting brew, and makes me wonder how well it would work for brining your turkey?

Widmer Brothers (Portland) tonight is teaming up with Portland’s Grand Central Restaurant & Bowling Lounge to put on the Big Chill starting at 9pm, described as “an evening of local craft beer — including Brrr, the brewery’s winter seasonal — music, art and fashion.” It’s free admission and you can get special Widmer glassware for free with the purchase of a Brrr Seasonal Ale (while supplies last). And in addition to the beer the Bill Chill will be featuring a fashion show of the latest winter styles and a silent auction benefiting Snowdays Foundation. Should make for a fun night!

4th Street Brewing (Gresham): I don’t believe I’ve had the opportunity to mention 4th Street in the beer news before, but tomorrow (Saturday) they have a beer release party featuring their new K&F  Coffee Stout, made with Café Jondo from K&F Coffee Roasters. To celebrate they are offering $3 pints of the beer all day long.

16 Tons (Eugene) is holding their third annual Coffee Ale Fest today, from 5 to 10pm: “Our 3rd annual and always a favorite! 20+ Coffee infused ales! Stout, IPAs, Porters, Barrel Aged Coffee Beers and more! We’ll be cold brewing up some killer single origin coffees from Water Avenue Coffee and pairing them with beer!! Free Entry, Cash Only, $1-$2 for tasters!” Sure to keep you awake all night!

Worthy Brewing (Bend) has their Firkin Friday going on today starting at 4pm! “This week’s is our Powder Keg Winter Ale, dry hopped with Mosiac hops. So tasty.” They’re featuring $3 firkin pints and $3 snacks that last until the firkin is gone.