The Year in Pictures
Over the course of a year, we mobile modern humans often range far and wide across this sapphire planet of ours, and our travels offer a tiny window into the currents and trends stippling the beer world. At least among those of us who direct our gaze toward things beery. As I ramble about, I take snaps on my wheezing iPhone 4 and post them to Twitter. Below are a selection of the choicest cuts. See what trends you can divine. (Yes, cider looms large.)
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| My year started in Salem, as I joined EZ Orchard's Kevin Zielinski as he milled and pressed apples. |
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| It was then off to Europe on research for Cider Made Simple. First stop--Tom Oliver in Herefordshire. |
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| Hecks in Somerset. |
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| Cyril Zangs' cidery in Normandy. |
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| Isastegi in the Basque Country. Txotx! |
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| A warm day in April as viewed from Solera Brewery. |
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| Exciting new product! "Beer brewed with spice, blue agave nectar and caramel color added." (May) |
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| Tepache (fermented pineapples) at Reverend Nat's. (May) |
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| Hop-grower Gayle Goschie speaking at BridgePort's 30th anniversary. (May) |
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| Cider Summit. (June) |
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| Reverend Nat displaying the cup in the Portland International Cider Cup (which Rogue won). |
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| In the Shanghai Tunnels under Old Town Pizza. (July) |
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| Stan Hieronymus and Niki Ganong at the OBF. |
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| McCall Brewing in McCall, Idaho. (July) |
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| What a bead on that Breakside pils. (August) |
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| One of the new cideries now studding the lush Hood River Valley. (August) |
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| Lucky Lab hop harvest (September). |
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| At the cooperage of Pilsner Urquell. (Sept) |
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| The town of Zatec (Saaz) during the hop harvest in the Czech Republic. (Sept) |
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| Bohuslav Hlavsa, master brewer at Kout na Šumavě in the Czech Republic. (Sept) |
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| The temperature gauge for the hop kilns at Sodbuster Farms. (Sept) |
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| Full Sail co-founder and brewer James Emmerson at the hop harvest at Sodbuster Farms. (Sept) |
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| Beer in Victoria, BC. (Sept) |
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| A selection of the foraged-ingredient beers made for the Beers Made by Walking project. (October) |
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| Fat Head's opens in Portland. (October) |
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| The illustrious Ron Pattinson visits Portland in promotion of his book (and is joined by illustrious local, Bill Schneller, who made one of the beers in that book). (November) |
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| One of my favorite places on earth--Portsmouth Brewing in NH. The mussels and helles were amazing, as expected. (November) |
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| Surprise tasting of a 25-year-old beer. (December) |
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| Another amazing helles at another great coastal brewpub--the new Astoria brewery Buoy Beer. (Two days ago) |
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| Coming full circle--a Calvados I bought back in January. (Christmas Day) |