The legendary Horse Brass Pub turns 45
the legendary Horse Brass Pub turns 45
One of America’s most legendary beer bars turns 45 next week. The Portland, OR institution Horse Brass Pub was established by Don Younger in 1976 and quickly became known not only as a classic English Pub but as one of the first, and best, beer bars in the country. Behind it’s creaking chamber doors and brick facade in southeast Portland’s Belmont neighborhood, Younger would hold court at the bar dispensing wisdom on everything from pub culture to business and politics. The landmark 1985 Oregon Brewpub Bill that would revolutionize the microbrew scene was brokered in this smoky pub, and Oregon craft beer month was first dreamed up inside. Many of the country’s best breweries sold their first kegs in Oregon here, and Younger established himself as one of the all-time great publicans, paving the way for his induction into the Oregon Beer Awards Hall of Fame in 2017. Don passed away in 2011, but his legacy lives on.
Joellen Piluso had worked at Horse Brass for Don Younger since day 1 of the business. Over Don’s final years she had taken up managing and purchasing for the bar, and when Don passed away she and Jerry Fechter were offered an option to purchase the pub and continue it’s legacy. Fechter had purchased the New Old Lompoc pub in northwest Portland with the backing of Don Younger and turned it into a brewery. The Lompoc Brewing brand would become a local fixture with 4 Portland locations before Fechter retired the brewpubs for good in November 2019. Piluso and Fechter are stewards of the Horse Brass and have kept things running, not like a well oiled machine but more like a familiar family home where every nick, scratch, dent and squeaky floor board brings back fond memories.
Don Younger had famously threatened to shut down the Brass if Oregon’s 2009 bar and restaurant smoking ban was passed, but the pub has now survived not only that but the COVID-19 pandemic as well. Things may have slowed down a bit with reduced hours and draft lines, limited occupancy, and making this famously cozy, dark and intimate pub seem out of date during a pandemic that required social distancing, fresh air, and more than a healthy amount of cleaning. But there were also improvements like a covered streetside parklet and seating in the open air breezeway of the Old Belmont Square building that felt like it should have been there all along.
“The Horse Brass Pub was and still is an integral part of the Portland craft beer scene,” says co-owner Jerry Fechter. “Everyone has been so eager to get back to their old haunt, even more so now that the weather has changed. You actually hear people say upon entry: ‘It's a Horse Brass Day!’"
The Horse Brass missed out on celebrating their 44th anniversary in 2020, but they are making up for it this coming Monday, November 1st with 45 beers for 45 years.
“We are very excited about this year's celebration,” says Fechter. “You can tell our customers are happy to feel a sense of normalcy returning to their daily routines, which thankfully include us! They have been so supportive. We are encouraged about the prospects for not only the pub, but for the entire community.”
The pub recently expanded their hours, inching closer to pre-pandemic levels, they are now open from 12 noon to midnight Sunday to Wednesday, and 12 noon to 1am from Thursday through Saturday. By next week they plan to increase their pandemic reduced taps from 30 back up to 45, and they have been putting more emphasis on new and smaller breweries on top of the classics.
On 11/1 they will begin dusting off rare beers from the cellar, special picks from various local brewers, and putting old favorites on draft. They plan to keep tapping new beers for the rest of the winter in celebration of the holidays and this important milestone. The kitchen is also promising to have Roast Beef & Yorkshire Pudding available all day on Monday for the anniversary.
Some of the special beers being tapped:
Dogfish Head Bourbon Barrel-Aged Palo Santo Marron
Double Mountain Brewery Tenacious Ten
Buoy Beer 2019 Decapitator Doppelbock
Founders Brewing 2019 KBS
Brouwerij Van Steenberge Piraat Rum Barrel-Aged
Green King Abbot Ale
Sasquatch Brewing Bourbon Barrel-Aged Maestro
Monty Python Holy Grail Ale
Upright Brewing Deep Fried Friends
Pilny the Elder
Sixpoint Brewing 2018 Barrel-Aged Big Raspy
Lompoc 2011 Old Tavern Rat
“We just put on a 2011 Old Tavern Rat Barleywine from the Lompoc side of the cellar to test, and it is delicious! Beautiful ruby color and surprisingly clear. Don would be pleased. Tavern rats everywhere should rejoice,” exclaims Fechter.
Horse Brass Pub 45th Anniversary
Monday, November 1st, 2021
4534 SE Belmont St, Portland, OR 97215