Here’s the beer news from around Oregon for Thursday, December 22nd. I’ll be updating this post throughout the day so if you have some news to share, contact me and I can get it posted.

Jeff at Beervana is soliciting votes for this year’s Satori Award, his annual “enlightenment” award that is awarded “for the beer released in the previous year (roughly) by an Oregon brewery (roughly) for a regular or seasonal beer”. It’s fun and since he’s taking votes (rather that simply selecting it himself) it’s participatory; I nominated Bend Brewing‘s Ching Ching for this year’s award, for instance. You can vote on the listed beers (or even suggest one not on the list) over on the Facebook post.

Some good last-minute shopping/drinking deals are to be had: Block 15 (Corvallis) is “allowing growler fills of Figgy Pudding for hte next three days. $20/fill” (this is a great deal!), and Seven Brides (Silverton) is running a “$30 Case Special from now through New Year’s, or while supplies last”.

And Hopworks Urban Brewery (Portland) has a case sale going on today too: “Purchase a case of any of our core brands (IPA, DOA and Stout) for $36 as well as special discounts on seasonal offerings including  Bike Beer Kolsch, Noggin Floggin Barleywine and Abominable Winter Ale.”

Upcoming tastings, releases, and “Meet the Brewer” events:

• Cascade Brewing (Portland) has their ’08 Bourbonic Plague going on tap today at the Barrel House. This ultra-limited special (12.7% abv!) will be selling for $8 per glass.
• Hopworks has their Kentucky Christmas going on tap starting at 4pm today: this is their bourbon barrel-aged Abominable Winter Ale that previously was released at the last couple Holiday Ale Festivals. Once it’s gone today, it’s gone for the season.
• Fort George Brewery (Astoria) is holding a Meet the Brewer event at the Hawthorne Hophouse in Portland tonight from 6 to 9pm: “Meet the Fort George Brewers, Fort George beer specials all day and a holiday sweater contest. Schwag giveaways all night and a raffle drawing at 9pm. The raffle winner will walk away with a $50 gift certificate to the Hawthorne Hophouse and a $50 gift certificate to Forge George Brewery. Must be present to win.”