Beer Unites them All

Jeff Alworth

Thursday's a fairly packed day, activity-wise.  It's St. Paddy's, it's the kick-off for the NCAA men's basketball tourney (Go Zags!), and it's the first day of the inaugural Shamrock Ale Festival.  If you wish to seek a through-line for these activities, I suggest beer.  We no longer care much about the snakes of Ireland, so St. Paddy's central ritual is beer (but please, no dye in your IPA).  Ale festivals speak for themselves, and the tourney?--I don't know about you, but I find them more entertaining in a pub.  If you wish to further unite the activities, buy a Michigan State t-shirt, and you'll be looking festive in green.

Shamrock Ale Festival
Just what Portland needs--another beer fest!  Actually, this appears to be focused as much on the tipple as on the tippling.  Unlike other fests, there is no commemorative glassware--it's a cash bar arrangement.  I don't have any idea how many beers are available, but I got hold of a list that includes some interesting-sounding selections: New Old Lompoc is bringing Dagda Irish Ale, Tuck's (an under-the-radar Portland brewery) will have kegs of something called Vanilla Cream Porter, and Raccoon Lodge offers Celtic Copper, probably a nicer version of the Irish tradition than Harp, which will also be pouring.  In another departure from beer fest protocol, hooch will also be available--Jameson, among other non-Irish offerings.  It kicks off on Thursday and runs through Saturday at Pio Courthouse Square.  All drinks are five bucks a pop.

Spring Beer Fest
No doubt the Spring Beer Fest feels a little challenged.  After ten years, they probably felt they had the Spring sewn up, and now they must compete with the Shamrock upstarts.  No matter, the SBF is widely considered to be the best beer-lover's event of the year.  It is a smaller version of the summer Oregon Brewers Fest, but with a better selection of beer.  This year's lineup seems slightly thin (for maximum boredom, many of the big breweries plan on just sending their flagships), but with 100 beers on offer, it's hard to complain.  Must-haves: Grant's Hopzilla (rare and tasty), Redstone Mead, Rogue Chipotle Ale (I don't vouch for it, but I'll try it), Walking Man Somnambulator (a doppelbock), and Young's Special London Ale.  You'll find these beers at the Convention Center on Saturday and Sunday, March 25-26.

As for the Tourney, I can offer little advice there.  I haven't picked a national champion in recent memory, and last year only got one final four pick in.  I'll be pulling for dogs--Bulldogs and Huskies--and all double digit seeds.  And of course, I'll be enjoying a beer as I watch.

Oh, what the hell: Illinois will beat NC in a thriller, breaking Roy Williams' heart once again, but cheering the souls of luckless Illini.

By Jeff Alworth March 15, 2005