My latest article for The Bulletin is a bit multifaceted, covering both “The Oregon I Am” project initiative (for which I’ve included the press release below) and the latest coolship brew from Crux Fermentation Project: Nothing says Central Oregon like brewing beer next to the river.

On a sunny afternoon in late April, I drove out to the Camp Polk Meadow Preserve near Sisters for a special brew day with Crux Fermentation Project. Crux partnered with the Deschutes Land Trust to bring its mobile coolship to the Preserve, along the banks of Whychus Creek, to create a wild yeast-inflected Experimental IPA. I was invited to join the brewery and the Land Trust to observe the brew in action.

A coolship is a broad, shallow open-top vessel used to cool wort (unfermented beer), allowing it to cool overnight in the open air. Wild yeasts and bacteria settle into it to begin the process of fermentation; these organisms reflect their particular environment and lend a unique terroir to the finished beer.

The wort was prepared at Crux’s brewery in Bend, then trucked out to the Preserve, still hot. As we watched, steaming hot sugary liquid jetted into the coolship. It took about 40 minutes to fill the open tank, and members of the Land Trust added handfuls of juniper boughs and three large bags of Sterling hops to infuse the wort as it cooled.

This partnership and beer are part of a larger project spawned by the Coalition of Oregon Land Trusts (COLT). This project, “The Oregon I Am,” features a first-of-its-kind map highlighting 81 different locations throughout the state that anyone can visit. COLT partnered with eight breweries, including Crux, to brew beers inspired by Oregon’s diverse landscapes.

The full article digs into the details behind the beer from Larry Sidor and the overall project in general.

“The Oregon I Am” is a cool project with its statewide map that reminds of an “Ale Trail” map for the outdoors, and it’s freely available at the website. As for the beer, Crux and seven other breweries created brews that were inspired by Oregon, and in Crux’s case, a coolship beer makes perfect sense. The brewery partnered once again with the Deschutes Land Trust to capture the terroir of Whychus Creek, which will release on June 25.

June 25 also happens to be the date of a virtual happy hour/release party for all eight beers, which will be conducted over Zoom and for which you can sign up here (or link from TOIA website). Here are more details from the project press release:

The Coalition of Oregon Land Trusts (COLT), in partnership with eight craft breweries across the state, announced today the release of eight new beers that celebrate Oregon’s diverse landscapes as part of COLT’s The Oregon I Am project. In honor of the beer release, COLT invites the public to grab The Oregon I Am beers and join brewers and land trusts for a free, statewide virtual happy hour on June 25 from 4:30-6:30pm. Registration information is included below.

Participating breweries are:

• Crux Fermentation Project (Bend)
• Ferment Brewing (Hood River)
• Little Beast Brewing (Clackamas/Portland),
• Ninkasi Brewing (Eugene)
• Oakshire Brewing (Eugene)
• Terminal Gravity Brewing (Enterprise)
• Von Ebert Brewing (Portland)
• Wolves & People Farmhouse Brewery (Newberg)

The beers were inspired by place and celebrate the brand new “The Oregon I Am” map—the first-of-its-kind that features 81 outdoor places across the state that anyone can visit, thanks to the work of land trusts.

Each brewery’s beer label features special artwork directly from the map—designed by the local creative firm Jolby—and an invitation to get the map, which is available for download in English or Spanish when you enter your name and email at www.theoregoniam.org

At the onset of the project, COLT challenged the breweries to make beer inspired by Oregon. Each brewery tackled the challenge in their own way—by using all Oregon-grown ingredients, fermenting beer outdoors in a nature preserve using microbes from the air, capturing the essence of a sunny Oregon summer day, and/or collaborating with a local land trust.

“As Oregonians, we love our trees, we love our deserts, we love our mountains, and we love our beer,” said Kelley Beamer, Executive Director at the Coalition of Oregon Land Trusts. “Many of our land trust members have strong relationships with local breweries because brewers deeply understand the connection between healthy environments and the healthy water, hops, and malt that make great beer. As we built our beautiful map of accessible properties across Oregon we knew that working with like-minded breweries would be the perfect way to celebrate the incredible bounty of our land and give cheers to these hidden gems in our state.”

All eight beers are available now in limited cans, bottles, or crowlers respectively at each brewery’s taproom, and most will receive limited distribution to specialty beer shops throughout the state. [Ed. note: Crux updated its release to June 25 as noted above]

The Oregon I Am Virtual Happy Hour Event Details

Join the breweries and land trusts in celebrating the Oregon landscape through the lens of beer.

• June 25, 4:30pm-6:00pm (PT)
• Via Zoom
• To attend, register at theoregoniam.org

Beer Descriptions

Crux Fermentation Project – Experimental IPA with 95% Oregon-grown ingredients, fermented in the open air at Deschutes Land Trust’s Camp Polk Meadow Preserve, finished with a Norwegian yeast strain. Released in 500ml bottles.

Ferment Brewing – Hoppy Pale Ale brewed in partnership with Columbia Land Trust. The beer is made with Mecca Grade malt from Madras, and hop hash from Crosby Hop Farm in Woodburn. Released in 16oz 4-pack cans.

Little Beast Brewing – Sour ale inspired by the bounty of fruit that grows in Oregon. The beer is packed full of marionberries, Oregon’s “unofficial state berry.” Released in 16oz 4-pack cans.

Ninkasi Brewing – Unfiltered NW Pale Ale brewed in partnership with McKenzie River Trust and inspired by volunteer days at Green Island—a diverse ecosystem where the McKenzie and Willamette rivers meet. Released in limited edition 32oz crowlers available exclusively at Ninkasi’s Better Living Room restaurant and taproom.

Oakshire Brewing – Hazy Extra Pale Ale brewed with all Oregon-grown ingredients in honor of the McKenzie River Watershed and the McKenzie River Trust. Released in 16oz 4-pack cans.

Terminal Gravity – Light and fruited sour ale brewed with huckleberries and wheat, inspired by a favorite Oregon past-time—picking huckleberries. The beer celebrates the important work of Wallowa Land Trust. Released in 12oz 6-pack cans.

Von Ebert Brewing – Designed to remind us of being outdoors in Oregon—the beer includes Mosaic, Incognito, Enigma and Mosaic Cryo hops to mimic flavors of pine, evergreen, berries and cannabis. Released in 16oz 4-pack cans.

Wolves & People Farmhouse Brewery – Unfiltered Farmhouse India Pale Ale with Oregon-grown Mecca Grade estate malt, Oregon-grown Crystal, Meridian, and Cashmere hops, and wild mustard flowers. Released in 16oz 4- pack cans.

What is a land trust?
A land trust is a nonprofit that works with individuals and communities to conserve land.

About the Coalition for Oregon Land Trusts
The Coalition of Oregon Land Trusts (COLT) serves and strengthens the land trust community in Oregon. At COLT, we build connections and advance policies that help protect our natural world—our water, wildlife and open space—for all people, forever. This work helps our 30 coalition conservation members do what they do best: protect wildlife and wild places, defend working farms and forests, provide recreation and parks, drive climate solutions and science, champion clean water for all and engage communities to protect our natural world.

Finally, a few more photos from that brew day: