Small Business Profile: Cascade Brewing

Wednesday, August 05, 2015

Chris Franklin, GoLocalPDX Contributor

Photo credit: Chris Franklin

In the heart of the Buckman neighborhood in Southeast Portland you will find several of Portland’s most sought after breweries. One brewery in particular has received national attention for their unique ability to sour beer using locally sourced in-season fruits in cask barrels. Cascade Brewing’s sour beers have quickly become hot commodities in the craft beer market due to their tantalizing tart and acidic flavor.

Souring beer requires a great deal of research and development to produce a product that can add just the right amount of pucker while also showcasing the beer, fruit and barrel. With origins going back to 19th century Belgium, it is not until recently that American breweries adopted this tradition from the old world. Now Cascade Brewing leads the charge with that same pioneering spirit the Northwest is known for.

Cascade Brewing Barrel House offers a rotating selection from 18 taps. The brewery features a wide variety of flavors which can often be significantly diverse from one another, leaving something for every sour beer drinking enthusiast. Whether it is a rich apricot, sweet blackberry or smooth honey ginger lime that calls to you, you might just want to try them all at $2 a taster. You can enjoy your beer with a carefully paired fruit, honey and cheese plate or a New Orleans style muffuletta if you have worked up an appetite. Their large outdoor patio makes for a perfect mid summer hangout.

Wanderer by nature, explorer by trade. Chris Franklin is attracted to the unique and overlooked. His ambition is to showcase what may lay off the beaten path. A love of small business and creative craft guide his path as he continues to discover Portland, Oregon. Follow his journey at LostNPortland.com.

Related Slideshow: The 7 Strangest Beers Around

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#7

Upright Brewing Oyster Stout

Oyster Stout sounds strange, right? Just imagine your stout with a salty kick and a mineral taste at the end. It turns out to be very flavorful, time tested concoction. Locally, Upright Brewing makes a tasty one in their seasonal portfolio and looks like it will be released shortly after the first of the year.

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#6

Rogue Ales Beard Beer

While most beer is brewed with carefully cultivated yeast strains, there are any number of wild yeasts that can be used, though this one is decidedly the strangest. Somehow Rogue Brewer John Maier “discovered” a natural yeast ideal for brewing in his beard. Yuck. Stylistically, an “American Wild Ale, if you are really interested in trying it yourself, you can buy a bottle here.

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#5

Wynkoop Brewery Rocky Mountain Oyster Stout

What started – and should have ended – as an April Fools’ Day prank led to the release of Wynkoop Brewery’s Rocky Mountain Oyster Stout. They only sell it in two packs. Get it? I won’t suggest where you might buy this one, dear reader, because I like you and would not do that to you.

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#4

Rogue Ales Voodoo Doughnut Bacon Maple Ale

Rogue Ales Voodoo Doughnut Bacon Maple Ale has been on the market for a while and is ubiquitous in Portland, as are the other mistakes they brewed to taste like Portland’s biggest tourist trap’s products. Good for Rogue for hopping on the tourist bandwagon by partnering with Voodoo Doughnuts on this uniquely Portland beer. This beer drinker has to admit that drinking this beer forced me to admit that not everything is actually better with bacon.

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#3

Evil Twin Turkish Delight

Me: What does Turkish Delight taste like?

Beer store clerk: Um, it tastes like Turkish Delight.

Me: Um, okay. What is Turkish Delight?

Clerk: Just try it.

Tastes like put coffee and cardamom in my darker ale. Nuff said? I’m not chomping at the bit to try either Turkish Delight or the Evil Twin’s Turkish Delight beer again. It is available locally at Belmont Station if you are interested.

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#2

Bison Brewing Organic Gingerbread Ale

Ginger. Nutmeg. Cinnamon. No I’m not talking about a dessert or even a hot beverage but Bison Brewing’s Organic Gingerbread Ale. Somehow, it works to create a great flavored porter. Yum. Rumor has it that John’s Market still has a few sixers of this one left.

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#1

Rogue Ales Sriracha Stout

Apparently 2014 was the Year of the Rooster, with millions more discovering Sriracha, a simple staple in Vietnamese restaurants (and a product that has stayed stocked in my fridge since at least 2005). Never one to miss hopping on a bandwagon, Rogue Ales brewed a stout with it. Shocking, right? It tastes exactly like you’d expect: like someone pranked you by sneaking some hot sauce into your otherwise tasty stout when you went to the loo. The only place to find this gem is at Rogue Hall until more is released after the first of the year.