Happy Friday! I hope your weekend is shaping up with holiday baking, Christmas shopping, and beer (of course) as we get close to Christmas. Here’s the news in Oregon beer to help you work out that beer part—up to date for this Friday, December 15, and the weekend. 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 let me know and I can get that updated as well.

Friday, 12/15

Worthy Brewing (Bend) has the third release in their X-Hop Experimental Hop beers dropping on Friday: “The 3rd experimental hop beer will be tapped on December 15th! Stop in, give it a try, and tell us what you think. This is a rare opportunity to try beers brewed with experimental hops from Indie Hops/Oregon State University. Each beer will be available at the pub for two weeks until the next one is tapped. **Taste to Win!** Ask your server for a punch card and a tasting note sheet. Fill your punch card and exchange for great prizes. One punch per each of the x-hop beer varieties you try.”

McMenamins is releasing 500ml bottles of their Longest Night of the Year Barrel-Aged Barleywine once again this year, and on Friday they are hosting tastings of the beer at several locations: Old St. Francis School in Bend, Kennedy School in Portland, the Edgefield in Troutdale, and Portland’s 23rd Avenue Bottle Shop. About the beer: “After aging in Hogshead Whiskey barrels, this beer is a true example of a classic, barrel-aged English Barleywine. Already a formidable ale in its own right, it has matured into a flavorful, complex behemoth. It offers flavors of toffee, caramel, and a warming alcohol character that’s been rounded and accentuated by notes of raisin, vanilla, and oak from its aging.”

The Bier Stein (Eugene) is hosting a Weissenohe Monchskeller Gravity Keg Tapping all day on Friday: “It’s not every day we get to tap a keg of German beer conditioned and served in the Old World method– from a cask on the countertop. We will tap this unfiltered Marzen lager in the morning, and hope to blow through it by the end of the day. Hoist a mug to tradition, and enjoy!”

The BeerMongers (Portland) is hosting a Firestone Walker vs Fremont night starting at 5pm on Friday: “You’ve already guessed what’s going on. These two breweries make decent stuff and we thought we would host a battle royal featuring barrel aged beers: FSW vs Fremont! ”

Kells Brewery (Portland) is hosting a rare barrel release Friday from 5 to 8pm for The Selfish Giant: “Join us Friday from 5-8pm for the release of The Selfish Giant! Bourbon barrel aged stout with tart cherries! Music starts at 8pm! This Rare Beer is named after Oscar Wilde’s children’s story: The Selfish Giant. The Selfish Giant owns a beautiful garden which the neighboring children play in but this annoys him and he builds a wall to keep them out. He posts a notice board “TRESPASSERS WILL BE PROSECUTED” and quickly the garden falls into perpetual winter. Eventually the Giant shares his garden and the fruits and flowers grow back.”

Widmer Brothers Brewing has the Alberta Street edition of their Russell Street IPA Pub Crawl taking place from 4 to 8:30pm Friday: “Join us for an evening of celebrating and imbibing our newest beer, Russell Street IPA. We’ll be hopping from bar to bar on Alberta Street around 4pm, after a pint at the pub starting at 3pm. A portion of the proceeds from the crawl will benefit Solve Oregon, and will be used for street clean ups in the spring for Alberta Street. In addition, $5 from each 1/2 bbl keg of Russell Street IPA sold between now and April 30, 2018 will be donated to Solve Oregon. Come out and drink good beer for a good cause!”

Wild Ride Brewing (Redmond): Their 12 Days of Christmas deals in the taproom continues through the weekend, and for Friday they are offering deals on visored hats: “Happy Friday everyone! Today you can pick up any or all of these flat bill hats in the Tap Room for only $8.00 each!!”

The Growler Guys Westside Bend location is tapping a couple of big beers from Deschutes Brewery on Friday at 5pm—Black Butte XXIX and The Abyss 2016! I don’t know if growler fills will be available for these but even so I imagine they won’t last long.

Eugene’s Agrarian Ales has a special flight of their Field Bier available starting on Friday, and lasting through the entire weekend. “Field Bier defines our sense of place out in the countryside doing what we do. From our farmhouse brewery to our field-to-table kitchen to our hop and vegetable farm, we are all farmhands turning the cogs of this unforgettable experience. Intentionally created as a simple, defining beer for inspiring reflection after a day of working in the field, Field Bier is: organic Belgian pilsner malt, French saison yeast, Agrarian nugget hops and fresh well water. We will have the original version of Field Bier in the flight as well as a Bourbon Barrel version of it called “Oak in the Field” that is still light and crisp with a subtle influence of the Bourbon Barrel throughout it. For the third selection on the flight, we will be taking the original Field Bier and making a Cask out of one of our estate Hubbard Squashes, which will add unique squash-like flavors throughout. Truly a Straight-out-of-the-Field experience!”

Saturday, 12/16

Wolves & People Farmhouse Brewery (Newberg) is releasing two bottled beers for their holiday release party on Saturday starting at noon: “Join us for the long-anticipated release of two very special beers: Goldberry and Vale Reserve! GOLDBERRY is an American wild saison aged a year in French oak Pinot noir barrels with our Amigos house sour culture and refermented with absurdly plump local golden raspberries from Sunshower Hill. The aroma of summer sunshine has officially been bottled! Just 420 flaggons of this little wonderbier are for sale ($15/500ml). VALE RESERVE is our own traditional biere de garde aged fourteen months in French oak Pinor noir barrels with house sour cultures and gently bottle-conditioned. With its rich and diverse grain bill and three-hour boil this beer’s complexity and depth of flavor is truly something to celebrate. Just 233 bottles available ($20/750ml). We’ll have a deep tap list of other special and rare brews for the day. All-ages! 6-bottle limit on each.”

McMenamins 23rd Avenue Bottle Shop is hosting a sparkling wine tasting on Saturday from 2 to 4pm: “Join us to sample a selection of sparkling wines from Galaxy Company’s portfolio. During the event, all to-go bottles of sparkling wine will be 10% off.”

Portland’s Imperial Bottle Shop is hosting a Christmas cookie pairing with Block 15 Brewery at both of their locations on Saturday and Sunday this weekend: “One of our favorite events of the last two years has been our annual Christmas cookie & beer pairings, and we couldn’t be more excited that this year we are serving up homemade Christmas cookies with beer from Block 15 Brewing Co.! The 2017 cookie/beer pairings include:
“Hoppy Holidays” Imperial IPA & Golden Pineapple Tarts
“Ol’ St. Nick” Winter Warmer & Chipotle Gingerbread Men and Women w/ DIY icing
“Figgy Pudding” Brandy-Barrel Olde Ale & Pecan Fig Bars
“2015 Super Nebula” Bourbon-Barrel Imperial Stout & Double Chocolate-Cherry Espresso Drops
The pairings include a 4 oz pour of beer and a cookie, and you can buy individual pairings ($3.50 – $5) or all 4 at a discount ($16). We’ll also be giving away a prize for best decorated Gingerbread person!”

Coin Toss Brewing (Oregon City): Their 12 Beers of Christmas release takes place Saturday starting at noon: “We’re pulling out all the stops for our holiday celebration, releasing SIX NEW BEERS during an all day extravaganza!
* Pie Hohl Cherry Ginger Stout
* Coffee Pie Hohl
* Black Hohl Cascadian Dark Ale (it’s BACK!)
* Oh Hohly Night Winter Warmer
* Kranberry Kolsch
* Fire in the Hohl
Big Fat Weiners will be slinging gourmet dogs and burgers starting at 4 p.m.”