Craft Beers of the Pacific Northwest: A Beer Lover's Guide to Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia

by Lisa M. Morrison

In the 1970s a handful of brewers in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia were tired of the traditional light and flavorless American beers and began exploring ways to make better beer brewed from local ingredients. The “microbrews” (as they were originally called) caught on, and the Northwest quickly became the center of the craft beer movement that is now flourishing and spreading across the United States, Canada, and the world. Craft Beers of the Pacific Northwest is a suds-soaked adventure through the 115 key breweries and brew pubs in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. Lisa Morrison, aka The Beer Goddess, has included every brewery worth visiting, from pioneers like McMenamins, whose Hillsdale Brewery & Public House in southwest Portland was the first brewpub in Oregon, to a new generation of start ups like Upright Brewing, a production brewery that is creating French-Belgian inspired, open-fermented beers. With 18 walkable pub-crawls, a beer primer and glossary, a list of the best bottle shops, Craft Beers of the Pacific Northwest has everything a beer lover needs to navigate the best of what the region has to offer.

Genres: Travel, Beer, Food and Drink, Nonfiction

208 pages, Paperback

First published March 30, 2011

Reviews

[Sara_G · Rating 5 out of 5]

By far the best beer guide for the NW region.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well put together, great documentation of all things about craft brewing in the Pacific Northwest... except we need a new updated edition as SOOOOO much has changed since Lisa published this book in 2011.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aside from the first chapter, which is a brief introduction to the basics of beer, Lisa Morrison's Craft Beers of the Pacific Northwest is essentially a “beer tourism” guide for Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. As such, there are no segues between chapters or overarching themes, just a simple explanation of where, between breweries, brew pubs, and bottle shops, the best craft beer in each of these states can be found. As such, there is not really much to say about this book, but overall it is well-organized and informative, with a selection of suggested pub crawl routes that adds an additional degree of usefulness and will certainly contribute to what the reader is able to take away from this work. The main emphasis is, of course, on the big cities, where the majority of the breweries are brew pubs are located, but special care has been taken to uncover some of the hidden gems in smaller towns throughout the region. I did find that it tends to focus more on hoppier beers, particularly IPAs, although, as a hop fan, this did not bother me. Those beer drinkers who tend to shy away from hops, however, will still find plenty of suggestions catered towards their needs.

Although there is a lot of information in this work, I never felt as if I were being overloaded with facts. There is a clear sense that the author is an expert who is being selective, because it is easy to see how this guide could have gone on and on for a person of less discerning tastes. Overall this is a very specialized book, but one worth picking up if you are involved in beer culture and planning a trip to one of these regions. The pub crawl maps alone, which will direct you to the best bars in the quickest times, are worth the price.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not sure when but basically finished this months ago; calling it.

The kind of book that is quickly out-of-date but also one that provides a (limited) glimpse of a time and a place/region. Well laid out; graphics are easily under understandable. Hope to try it out in Portland next month (Jan 2014).

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is not as up to date as "Beer Lover's Oregon" so I won't be referring to it on my next trip north. But it will be useful for future trips to Vancouver and Seattle.

[Lorraine · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of a travel guide than a guide to the beers, but helpful as I will be travelling to the Seattle area