Or, how Britain got the Honorable Order of Bass Drinkers while Americans got the milkshake IPA.

Are GMO yeasts that eliminate diacetyl production a good thing? There’s no “right” answer to this question, but listening to brewers from different generations wrestle with the question turns out to be enlightening in other ways. 

Hamdi Ulukaya bought the Anchor Brewery a year ago. When he did, he purchased both a beer and (sort of), a style. But it might be that the two can’t both survive—one must pass for the other to live.

For most of the craft beer era, Oregon’s major newspaper has assigned someone to cover beer. The accurate, credible information they’ve provided beer fans over the decades probably plays a much bigger role in our beer culture than we appreciate.

Why aren’t Americans drinking beer? Maybe because they’re too busy sucking down water, sparkling water, sports drinks, energy drinks, “natural beverage,” and real and artificial juices.

Last week, a new nonprofit announced the inductees into the American Craft Beer Hall of Fame. They will be familiar to anyone who reads this site, and left me feeling ambivalent. In overlooking less-heralded names, the Hall missed the opportunity to reshape the narrative of American brewing.

They start filling up before five and buzz with the chatter of conversation, the clack of cue balls, and the clink of glassware until long after my bed time. Brewery taprooms are struggling, but my local dive bars are flourishing. Why is this?

Did you know that there’s an American Oktoberfest, distinct from the kinds of beers you find at Munich’s famous fest? Did you further know that it’s a more characterful and interesting beer? Well, it is, and here’s why.

FH Steinbart, the 106-year-old Portland institution, has been sold. This should ensure that the nation’s oldest homebrew shop will carry on for years to come.

One of the great artifacts of brewing culture was saved from history’s dustbin when Chobani founder Hamdi Ulukaya bought Anchor recently. If you had Chobani money, which other important breweries would you save? Our researchers have investigated hte question and have a definitive list.

In my nonscientific surveys of the pubs in which I drink, it seems there has been a transition underway: pilsners replacing pale ales as the standard session beer. I decided to check my work to see if this was really true. 

Cask ale is on life support in its home country, and it’s not because the beer isn’t delightful. When fresh, it is. The problem is that old orthodoxies have defended an indefensible method of serving, one that guarantees the beer goes stale very quickly. It never had to be this way.

A wonderful little trend has been building in Portland for years, but I’ve been hesitant to draw attention, lest the harsh sunlight prove fatal to the delicate shoots. But now it seems safe: cask ale has become a real thing.