Best Beers

The Perfect Oregon Case

By John ChandlerWith contribution from Brian Barker

How did we determine our absolute favorite Oregon beers? We chatted up brewers, bartenders, and beer geeks of all stripes. We studied who won awards. And then we made some decisions: We wanted an even mix of Portland-area brews and others from around the state. We didn’t allow the region’s most prevalent beer style—the India pale ale, or IPA—to dominate. We eliminated most seasonal beers and hard-to-find brewer one-offs. And we made it a bottom-line demand that all the final pours be available by tap or bottle here in Portland. (OK, we made two exceptions well worth a drive to sample.) But from the 100 or so beers on our ultimate short list, we made the final cut solely with our taste buds—no ifs, ands, or buts.

We invite you—no, we encourage you—to disagree. Argue with us. Tell us about beers we missed. Just do it nicely, and do it on our website: portlandmonthlymag.com/beer-vote. What better way to celebrate Beervana than to refine our tastes together?­