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TARZANA, CA, United States
Hello food, wine & beer pals! Welcome to my photo-journal of food, wine and beer adventures. I'm pictured on the right and my home brewing pal, Aron is on the left. Years ago I started watching the Food Network, saving recipe's, making recipe's, trying new things, tasting new things, and it's all blossomed from there, including the weekly tastings (beer & wine) at BevMo. I'm hooked on variety and continuing my search for tasty goodness all over the world. Please feel free to email me with comments and ideas at FoodieWinonBrew@yahoo.com Bon Appetito!

Thursday, October 14, 2010

THE BIER STIEN, EUGENE, OREGON & LAURELWOOD BREWING CO., PORTLAND, OREGON


This is me and my uncle Conway at The Bier Stein in Eugene.  What a fabulous place!

 If I were to die tomorrow, I would hope that there’s a Bier Stein in heaven, especially since that’s what it felt like being there. Visiting my uncle last week brought me to this haven; the only vexation is I live in Tarzana, California. If I only lived in Eugene! [Sigh!] I was inspired to order--by Yelp advocacy—their “Beer-Cheese” soup. My soups rich, creamy, fondue texture was amplified when I dipped the sourdough bread into it. God, it was good. I’m going to try and recreate it at home for a fondue party in future. Along with that I had the Gouddhist Panini on a crunchy grilled chiabatta with turkey, smoked gouda, tomato, pesto and garlic aoli. I paired that with Laurelwood Public House (a brewpub in Portland) Workhorse IPA, which was on tap. In the Portland Airport, Laurelwood Brewing Company has a small restaurant/brewery stationed there, on my flight “stop-over” I also tried their Hop Monkey IPA which I preferred to the Workhorse IPA for it’s balanced hops. I wish there was a Laurelwood Brewery near my place; that Hop Monkey is still on my mind. Maybe I can find it at BevMo....hmmmm.
The Bier Stein’s mind-bottling (pun intended) selection of over 800 bottled beers was another vexation that I don’t live in Eugene, so many beers in one place. A great variety of German beers (a homage to the name sake) mixed with a healthy number of national micro breweries, many I recognized some new to my knowledge. And there was also a wall filled with a lovely selection of Belgian brews.
I had the opportunity to chat with Eric, one of the employees there that was also a beer enthusiast. I was checking out their refrigerated selection when he approached me for help. I asked about Pliney the Elder, a Russian River Brewing Company double IPA that’s eluded me (a friend recommended it years ago) only to learn they didn’t have it in bottles but were serving it at a tasting Thursday, October 14th. Another vexation! My stay in Eugene would be over then. By the way, if you buy bottled beer there to take home it’s 15% off; the other option is drinking it there without the discount, but still a value.
One of the cool novelties of the Bier Stein are pub glasses (including a ½ yard glass) available for purchase at the front; I wanted to buy a few for my collection. There’s nothing like a frosty glass with the name of favorite brews at home to enjoy your favorite brews in; you feel like you’re in your own private pub!
Oh Beer Gods, please make a Bier Stein within staggering distance of my home!
Craft Beers and Breweries of the Pacific Northwest: A Beer Lover's Guide to Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia

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