Our most anticipated upcoming Oregon and Washington breweries and taprooms of 2024 highlights an exciting slate of new projects across the pacific northwest.

If you read the news today it is all doom and gloom about the state of craft beer, with breweries closing seemingly every other day. It is true that the economics of nearly 10k craft breweries competing with each other, rising cost of goods and labor raising prices, the younger generation increasingly not drinking at all, have made the 30+ closures in Oregon in 2023 a reality. But there is also a new wave of openings that promises to reinvigorate the industry and pick up where those closures left off. The 2024 new breweries and taprooms have learned from the past, and are largely more nimble, savvy, and competitive, and there are even more exciting new projects then we can even tell you about now.

Milwaukie Old Town City Hall Brewery

Milwaukie, OR

On the inner southeast edge of the Portland metro-area is the suburban city of Milwaukie, the quiet mostly residential area has become a popular place for new homeowners and families to settle down and it is slowly becoming a desirable area of development. In 2022 it was announced that the city of Milwaukie would redevelop their old town city hall building located on the central strip of commerce in the area, into a brewery, bakery, and restaurant with Henry Point Development tackling the renovation. Since then Little Beast Brewing nearly signed on before backing out. But we have it on good authority that another well known and beloved Oregon brewery from outside of Portland will be moving into the building and assuring it will be a hotspot for locals and Portlanders alike. Much, much, much more on this coming soon.

3/8/2024 update: pFriem Family Brewers is moving into the historic Milwaukie City Hall building

Terranaut Beer

Bend, OR

Bryon Pyka was the Innovation Brewer and Head of Barrel Program at 10 Barrel Brewing before he was laid off last spring, which pushed him to fast track his longterm vision for a smaller custom brewery of his own. Pyka is from the Chicago area, where he got into the industry starting at age 21 on the wholesale side of the business. After 20 years in the biz he is taking charge of his own brewhouse.

When Pyka heard that Monkless Belgian Ales was moving out of their current 10bbl brewery in a business/industrial park in north Bend for larger digs, he jumped at the opportunity. Not only was the two bay space already operational not just for production but a tasting room as well, but the brewhouse was actually the original 10 Barrel Brewing location from which the company got their name.

At the upcoming Terranaut Beer, Pyka is looking forward to brewing lagers, both classic Pilsner and modern American takes on the style. At 10 Barrel Brewing he was known for mixed culture and kettle sours, and has a lot of fresh ideas for cocktail-inspired and dessert-inspired beers in that vein that he will explore at Terranaut. Although he doesn’t drink a lot of them himself, he is also excited to be making a multitude of IPAs and trying his hand at the neverending sub-styles and innovations that category brings. “We'll be casting a reasonably wide net, so we'll be sprinkling in some more styles to bring some balance to the lineup. We've got stouts, saisons, and some English-style beers planned, among others,” says Pyka.

Terranaut Beer comprises two 1,500 sq. ft. garages, one with the brewery and the other with a taproom that will have an open, industrial, warehouse feel with thoughtful, eclectic, and colorful decor. “We'll be often spinning records from my personal collection. We'll have at least 11 draft lines available to fill. We expect to do periodic can releases and a few special bottle releases per year,” says Pyka.

Terranaut Beer could be in business by late this Spring, and will start off with limited draft distribution in central Oregon and may even dip into Portland and the Willamette Valley. Much more on this new brewery coming soon!

SteepleJack Brewing on Hawthorne

2020 founded SteepleJack Brewing is not putting the brakes on their mission to bring approachable beer in a vast variety of styles to the people. Since day one, co-owner Brody Day has expressed his commitment to bring easy low cost access to quaffable, often low abv, and often less popular beer styles like dark mild ale to the public. The new SteepleJack Brewing on Hawthorne might be their most accessible point yet, a gutted Bank of America branch at 3757 SE Hawthorne Blvd. that will become a taphouse and small arcade, with 4 food trucks, and the launch of their new Harder Day Coffee Co. concept.

SteepleJack’s original Portland pub features an elevated pub food menu, while their following locations in Hillsboro and SW Hillsdale area both lean heavily on executive chef Lawrence Gable’s pizza concepts. SteepleJack on Hawthorne won’t serve food and instead become a home for community food trucks, though it is possible that chef Gable will open his own food truck on the lot with a different concept like dumplings. “I wanted a place with more outdoor seating, and a place with more diversity of food offerings,” says co-owner Brody Day about what attracted him to this new model. “I have been looking for a place in southeast for years, so I was glad to finally find this one.”

The Bank of America Hawthorne branch closed in December 2022 after suspected arson, and SteepleJack has already begun further demo of the 1952 mid-century modern building to bring it down to the wood joists and rebuild it with reclaimed wood from SteepleJack Broadway’s 110+ year old church building. So while it won’t have the same hallowed aesthetic, custom elements like a handcrafted tile back bar will fulfill the artisan feel they want to sustain throughout all locations. The bar itself will not serve liquor, atleast not to start, but plenty of SteepleJack’s signature beers, including 2 cask engines will be present.

Setting the Hawthorne location apart even further is the new Harder Day Coffee Co., which is an entirely separate business from the same owners as SteepleJack (Dustin Harder and Brody Day) that will share the indoor space. By day they will open as Harder Day Coffee at 7am, serving pour over and drip coffee, and all the popular espresso drinks and snacks. At some point around lunchtime it will transition into more of a family friendly beer bar, and stay open until 10pm on weekdays and 11pm on weekends.

SteepleJack on Hawthorne and Harder Day Coffee Co. plan to be open by summer 2024.

Away Days Brewing relocates to Brooklyn neighborhood

Southeast Portland’s little brewery Away Days has been almost single handedly pushing the revival of cask beers in Portland since 2019 from their tiny taproom at 10th and Hawthorne. 2024 is looking to be the biggest year for Away Days since they opened, as they migrate 1.5 miles south to the Brooklyn neighborhood. The new location at 1234 SE Cora formerly home to Don E. Entwisle painting and remodeling contractor, is just across the street from Array bottleshop and taphouse, and in a more residential area that Away Days was looking for. The current taproom and 5 barrel brewhouse will move to the similarly sized building, which has an extra 2,000 sq. ft. beer garden with hookups for a food truck (Away Days is now looking for a cart to be the food provider if you know anyone.) The remodel of the Brooklyn neighborhood building is in the permitting phase, but once it is up and running it will become Away Days Portland wholesale hub, and where brewing takes place until they can get their large Troutdale project up and running. Away Days co-owner Niki Diamond says they plan to extend their hours in their new home, so that they may be open more days and also incorporate live football and more events they used to host at their former business the Toffee Club into their schedule, ”We're looking forward to being a part of the community and becoming a local go-to for the surrounding neighbourhoods,” adds Diamond. Away Days hopes to be open in their new home in summer 2024.

Away Days Brewing opening 3-level Troutdale brewery, restaurant, beer garden

Troutdale, OR

With Away Days sister pub Toffee Club now closed, and the Portland brewery relocating to the Brooklyn neighborhood, all eyes and growth is focused on Troutdale where the brewery is in an arduous process in bringing a 3-floor Away Days brewpub and production brewery into reality. Vacant since 2012, the Old Troutdale City Hall was sold to Ent Venturex XIV who leased it to Away Days, after many delays they are on the final stretch of the permitting process and much closer to starting the actual work of reconstructing the building. In the interim, Away Days launched a successful SMBX small business bonds campaign with a goal to raise $250k to cover the opening costs of the brewery and taproom in Tualatin, from installing beer lines and setting up a kitchen to sourcing tiles and furniture. The recently completed fundraising round ended up surpassing the original goal and achieving a stretch goal of $266k from 259 individual investors. “Not only are we now funded for opening, we've got an engaged community of investors who will play a big part in helping us bring Away Days to Troutdale,” says co-owner Niki Diamond.

Away Days Troutdale will be a 3-floor brewpub with an expanded brewery, a speakeasy style bar on the lower level, and a spacious elevated brewpub with deck seating and serving European pub classics like Fish & Chips and cottage pies that the Toffee Club was known for.

The Abbey by Monkless Belgian Ales

Bend, OR

Popular Bend, Oregon brewery Monkless Belgian Ales is moving, but don’t worry because their Old Mill District restaurant the Brasserie is staying where it is. Currently Oregon’s only Belgian-style dedicated brewery is proving that old and new world ales alike still have a devoted fanbase, and they are finding enough support and winning over enough new followers that they are ready to increase production and open a second location. The Abbey by Monkless Belgian Ales will be the new brewery tasting room in a more intimate beer forward space at their new production facility at 900 SE Wilson Avenue, Suite E, Bend.

Growing from a 10 barrel brewhouse in the original 10 Barrel Brewing location (when they were just a tiny startup) in north Bend, Monkless Belgian Ales is now moving into the former Avid Cider production facility (as the cidery in turn moves to the former Silver Moon production facilty.) The new building is in the craft beer under-served eastside area of Bend, and has multiple suites for new brewing, sales, and marketing offices. The warehouse area with truck loading dock, has a new 15bbl, 3 vessel, steam fired brewhouse from Oneills Brewing Systems currently being installed, with 2 new 15bbl fermenters and a 60bbl brite tank, and several 30 and 40 bbl unitanks coming from Monkless’s existing facility. This will at least double or possibly even triple their current output of 1,800 barrels over the next several years. To help manage that transition and keep them in the highest quality beer as they grow, Monkless has promoted Ale Apothecary veteran Hans Schopen to the role of head brewer.

The Abbey will be a community taproom and flexible event space with an old world 14’ ft abbey doors with iron strapping leading from the tasting room to the brewery and cellar. The interior will feature a few nods to the impressive woodwork and chandeliers that can be found at The Monkless Brasserie, but be a more back to basics space for hosting both corporate and private events and that can flow from The Abbey into the brewery itself offering a unique opportunity to dine and stroll amoungst the brewhouse and vessels. 

Battery 245 Brewing

Warrenton, OR

Only last year we were wondering whatever happened to Battery 245 Brewing? The brewpub coming to Warrenton, just outside of Astoria, was featured in our most anticipated new breweries of 2021 but then went silent. We were then pleased to learn that the project is back on track at a new location alongside the Warrenton Marina, not far from the previous building they intended to move into which was formerly a Fenton Grocery on First Street and Main Avenue.

“The old location had some structural issues to where the building official of the city of Warrenton said he wanted the 100yr old building brought up to code, and we don't own the building,” said Battery 245 co-founder Jonathan Elliot, who has partnered with Jeff Kilday, the owner of Wine and Beer Haus in Seaside. In the meantime they brewed collaborations with Seaside Brewing and Public Coast Brewing, and sold merch to raise funds.

Elliot says they are now close to submitting plans to the city for review and approval. Phase 1 of their plan is getting the production brewing side of the business open, phase 2 is opening a restaurant and taproom with a full-service bar and an outdoor deck overlooking the marina at the new location 69 NE Heron Ave #9628, Warrenton, OR 97146.

Prime Tap House opening 3rd, 4th, and 5th locations

Portland, Sherwood, Hillsboro, OR

The unbelievable runaway success of Prime Tap House in Hillsboro, Oregon has found the beer bar and Asian-inspired wing and drinking food become a favorite locals and industry destination that they pivoted into location #2 in Beaverton last year. As the New School first reported in December 2022, Prime Tap House is set to be the alcohol provider for the upcoming but much delayed Ritz-Carlton food hall in downtown Portland that is now called the Flock. That project was supposed to open last spring, but is now looking like Spring 2024. While waiting for his Portland location to come together, Prime Tap House co-founder Dong Khounphachansy both found and was brought onto two new previously unannounced projects:

Prime Tap House at Hillsboro newest food cart station, Foodlandia, is slated to open in early April. There will be 16 food carts and Prime will be the only alcohol vendor on site, but forego their famous wings and food menu so that the mobile food vendors may shine.

In Sherwood, Prime will open a new full concept family friendly food and drinks bar at the new Parkway Village South development which comprises 275k sq. ft. of space with 4 retail lots, a drive-thru, a 100 unit hotel, and a 94k sq. ft family fun center. Located near the confluence of W Tualatin-Serwood Road and HWY 99W and situated directly to the south of Parkway Village Phase I (including Walmart, Starbucks, Chipotle, Killer Burger) and Langer Farms Shopping Center (including Target and Red Robin), Parkway Village South is anchored by Langers Entertainment Center, a one-of-a-kind indoor family fun center which acts as a year-round regional destination.

“We will be focused on creating a warm and inviting atmosphere with comfortable seating inside and outside. A patio area for families to gather and enjoy live music, trivia, and movie nights during the summer months,” says Khounphachansy about the ways Prime Tap House in Sherwood will be different from his other locations.

Brewery XO

Toledo, OR

Longtime McMenamins Thompson House brewer Jen Kent is set to leave the oldest brewery in Salem, to open Brewery XO near her hometown of Newport. Kent has been with McMenamins for 24 years and has been a brewer for the last 18 of them, making her a storied legacy Oregon brewer who has been helping push the boundaries for a long time.

“After hunting for buildings for quite a few years, a good friend of mine named Bud Shoemake (of Siletz Brewery, back in the day) helped me find my dream space. With it being a two story building that has a ball room it is perfect for me to bring together all that I love to do in one space,” says Kent. Brewery Xo is to be located just 7 miles east of Newport on HWY 20 in Toledo, Oregon.

That building at 161 SE 2nd St Toledo, was a Fraternal Oregon of Eagles #2219 club for many years, and much of that history is written on the exterior and interior walls that still carry many of the elements of a previous generation, including a diner style bar room and a 50’s style dance floor. Kent produced a dance retreat for 10 years, and is beyond excited to bring a little bit of that part of her life back into the world alongside her love of brewing, and community. Part of that commitment is honoring the original aesthetic of the building, and adding in inspirational shapes and colors of Morocco. There will also be a large art presence featuring artists collections, workshops and music as well as a full service bar and restaurant serving homemade blue collar comfort food and fancier date night dishes.

The beers at Brewery XO will be both approachable classics and “art beers” the term Kent uses to describe her experimental brews inspired by things that fall outside of the traditional brewing realm. The beers will be brewed off-site on a small 3-barrel system, leaving the brewpub to be the heart of the operation that she hopes to get going in early summer 2024.

Wayfinder Beer’s The Highlands

Troutdale, OR

Portland’s favorite lager and west coast IPA house, Wayfinder Beer, is bringing their gothic metal vibes and clean beers to Troutdale with a mini food hall/taphouse and food cart pod called The Highlands. The project announced on the New School last May, involves a complete ground up development of a lot at 105 SW 2nd St, Troutdale, OR 97060. The latest update on the highly anticipated second location for Wayfinder, is that the indoor space will feature not just a full liquor bar and 10 taps, but Nico’s Ice Cream and Checkerboard Pizza. There will be six carefully selected food trucks outside (and there is still an opening or two left for the right fit.) Impressive additional features of Wayfinder’s The Highlands are the dog friendly space with heated indoor and outdoor beer garden, ability to host events, four outdoor fire pits, kid friendly, and a seamless single point of sale ordering, which simplifies ordering for groups that want to try every food cart.

Brujos Brewing and Saint Lovejoy’s Kitchen opening in NW Portland

Portland, Oregon

Update 2/27/2024 Brujos Brewing’s dark gothic church taproom is Now Open

The old and new gods alike have been good to us, as the mysterious presence of Brujos Brewing will be summoned into a physical space in NW Portland this Spring. The illusive Brujos weaves ghostly black magic and occultist inspired imperial stouts and triple dry-hopped hazy IPA’s that have captivated beer nerds attention for years, but the hard to find releases were only available in ethereal releases brewed at buzzworthy breweries from across the country and to limited membership clubs. It was enough to build an rabid fanbase, who got their first chances to line up for Brujos specific branded beers when their creator, Sam Zermeno, landed a partnership with Great Notion Brewing in 2021. In the past two years Brujos has brewed and released beers from Great Notion, and Living Haus Beer in Portland, but as the New School exclusively reported in August 2023, the brewery is now moving into the former Hammer & Stitch Brewing at 2377 NW Wilson St, Portland, OR 97210.

The latest whispers from beyond the earthly plane, say that Brujos has found a kitchen partner for the forthcoming brewpub after an exhaustive search meeting with food truck owners, and chefs. Colin Murray, was a chef at the popular Carnitas Snack Shack in San Diego, California, and a clasically trained chef who has worked at more than half a dozen restaurants from California to New York. Murray is developing a new concept for Brujos called Saint Lovejoy’s, that will specialize in an evolving blend of Baja Mexican, Asian, and Mediterranean inspired small plates starting off in small quantities and expanding further as their confidence in the service model grows. The name Saint Lovejoy’s is inspired by the founder of the city of Portland, Asa LoveJoy but also brings in elements of The Simpson’s character Reverend LoveJoy who is featured in the logo. The reverend aspect plays off of Brujos unholy, gothic/fantasy inspired creative direction that emulates the design you might imagine finding in a satanic medieval church.

Brujos Brewing will open fully to the public for a grand opening on March 2nd, 2024, but before that will host one final bottle release for both a new solo brew and a Brujos Structures collab on Saturday, February 27th, when they will have Machete PDX serving food from their food truck and from the kitchen.

Human People Beer

Seattle, Washington

Contrary to the name, this new Seattle, Washington brewery won’t make beers with people in it ala Soylent Green, but will make beer FOR the People! But why should you be excited about another new brewery you have never heard of? Because this one is from Tim Kamolz, Mallorie King, and Andrew Schwartz. King worked in the malt and hops industries, including international experience with hop farms in Slovenia, and will be a valuable resource from supply side of the business. Kamolz and Schwartz are both Modern Times Beer veterans of San Diego. Kamolz started at Modern Times as his first job in brewing, and over the course of 8 years worked his way up to become the director of brewery operations where he managed both beer and coffee production teams across multiple facilities. Schwartz got his start at Ithaca Beer Co. as the lab manager, and then also had an 8-year stint at Modern Times doing everything from brand management to overseeing the world-class wild and sour program and barrel-aged beers, and most recently as director of product innovation and development at Craft ‘Ohana, Modern Times new parent company.

Human People Beer will be tenants in a project called the West Canal Yards in Seattle, Washington. The project site includes the adaptive reuse of a 109,000 sq ft fish processing plant on nine acres of Lake Washington Ship Canal waterfront. The Human People brewery and tasting room will exist in 7,700 sq ft of this larger building. The brewery will have a 3,300 sq ft tasting room inspired by communal cozy and welcoming spaces like “milk bars” and the all day cafes of European mountain towns.

Human People Beer is targeting a summer 2024 opening, read our full longer article about the brewery with images and bios here.

Dalliance Beer Project

Yakima, WA

Single Hill Brewing veterans Andrew Pytel and Tristan Karosas have recently launched a new side endeavor with artist Jamaica Zoglman called Dalliance Beer Project. Their goals are to meet the ever-growing demand for new beers by PNW customers while using the platform to showcase beautiful art, which in turn will help the customers choose their beer. To get Dalliance off the ground, they partnered with Single Hill Brewing to essentially license their brand IP while Karosas brews it alongside the beer he already brews for Single Hill, while Pytel sells and markets it, and Zoglman handles the visual artistry.

“We knew early that the way for this to work was to be art-first, and that making beer to match the quality of the art would be a driving force,” says Pytel.

The Dalliance Beer concept revolves around long-form liquid and visual art projects— everything is a one-off, everything is a series that spans a significant amount of time. Their first releases are part of the Tarot Project, where they will be covering an entire tarot deck. Beers will be inspired by not only the 22 Major Arcana cards in a typical tarot deck (such as 'The Hanged Man', 'The World', 'The Empress'), but also the 56 Minor Arcana Cards (which are split into four suits, Wings, Cones, Stones, and Shells.)

Their first beers on sale now are The Fool, a German-style Pilsner, and Five of Wings, a hazy IPA. They plan to release two beers at a time as they work their way through the project. Dalliance Beer is so far self-distributing in Yakima and Greater Seattle areas, and are looking into selling in Oregon next.

PLAY Food, Drinks & Fun

Eugene, Oregon

Holly Emery-Walen Muckerman earned her bonafides as Belmont Station’s biercafe manager a decade plus ago, she then returned to Eugene and opened Hop Valley’s brewpub, and ran Beergarden, before opening her own food truck Bounty Meat and Cheese (currently parked at Oakshire Brewing.) This year Holly and her husband Drew are opening their own brick-and-mortar interactive family friendly taproom called PLAY.

Similar in concept to places like Birdie Time Pub in Portland, or the Flatstick Pub chain in Washington, the PLAY concept with batting cages and a VR golf experience, and of course a huge selection of 30 taps and a full kid-free 21+ cocktail lounge. We've got all the ingredients to clear your mind and fill your cup, literally and figuratively - is the tagline. Families can comfortably enjoy the age-specific adventures with a kid zone and small arcade area with an extensive nonalcoholic line up for all ages.  Not just booch, soda and juice but probiotic, adaptogen yummies and craft mocktails both hand crafted as well as in the can.  Adults can grab a drink at the bar with seasoned manager Shannon Tarvin at the helm of the liquor program and setting up a thoughtful seasonal drink menu with a focus on quality ingredients.  

For food, there will be a fenced in, southern facing back patio with Bounty Meat and Cheese moving over as well as a TBA lineup of 3 local food trucks. The back patio will also have some seasonal, classic outdoor bar activities like corn hole and giant jenga.  

“We are basically opening the place we want to grab dinner and beer at with our own family,” says Holly. PLAY is planning for a spring 2024 launch at 232 West 5th avenue, Eugene, OR 97405.

The Noble Fox Restaurant & Brewery

For a thriving little arts and culture college town like Ashland, only one brewery is not nearly enough. In May 2022 Ashland’s Standing Stone brewery closed leaving only Caldera Brewing, but we are happy to report that Silverton, Oregon gastropub and cocktail bar the Noble Fox has picked up the building and will breath new life into it.

Noble Fox owner Jeramie Mykisen says the Ashland location will have some similarities to their Silverton original like the emphasis on craft cocktails, “Our goal will be for comments like ‘this is the best old fashioned I’ve ever had in a brewery, wait anywhere.” But the Ashland pub will differ in being more family friendly with approachable elevated pub food and great beers. “Being a brewery, our top priority will be our beer program. The Noble Fox team has high standards and lofty expectations.  If we are making a Porter, it should be the best Porter we can absolutely make.”

To that end, they have hired Maui Brewing and Napa Brewing veteran Tim Campos to be their head brewer. Noble Fox Brewery will target 6-8 flagship beers in their year-round lineup, and a handful of seasonals to debut throughout the year. The Noble Fox Restaurant & Brewery is set to open this Spring, and are shooting to be ready by April at 101 Oak St, Ashland, OR 97520.

Funky Fauna Artisan Ales opens The Doom Lounge

Bend, OR

Ashland, got their first new brewery, second overall, in 2022 as Funky Fauna Artisan Ales added a distinct wild and rustic flavors of farmhouse ales and mixed-culture sours to the central Oregon beer scene. The initial showcase for Funky Fauna owners Michael Frith and Danielle Frith was their own taproom, but last year they pivoted to packaging, a membership club, and self-distributing their beers, while opening the taproom just one Saturday per month. The efforts have paid off, as a cult like status has developed for their beers from many people who have never visited. But starting this late winter/early Spring, the next step in Funky Fauna’s plans takes off with the opening of a Bend, Oregon taproom called ‘The Doom Lounge’ that will take advantage of the larger growing city with an educated beer crowd and constant flux of tourists. ’The Doom Lounge’ will be located at 1124 NW Newport Avenue Bend, OR 97703, inside of ’The Pantry’ a mini communal type co-op space that sells baked goods and coffee in the morning, and is shared with ‘Grey Duck Ice Cream’ and ’The Broken Angel’ Vegan food cart. 

Funky Fauna will run 7 taps at The Doom Lounge, and will start to unveil some ‘clean’ beers that are fermented with a wild saccharomyces strain we isolated from our mixed culture. The taproom experience will have lots of outdoor seating and a cozy and intimate interior space reminiscent to their Sisters taproom which is now closed, but will reopen on Saturdays only starting this March.

Hood River Brewing opening taproom in downtown Hood River

Hood River, OR

As previously reported by the New School, Hood River will get its aptly named 7th brewery this year when Hood River Brewing Co. opens a taproom at 101 4th St, the former space that was once Logsdon Farmhouse Ales and more recently Wicked Sushi, Burgers, Bowls. Focusing on easy drinking classic staples of pub beers, Hood River Brewing has already been self-distributing in the area for the latter half of 2023. Owner/brewer Christopher Vincenzo has updated us that the Hood River Brewing taproom should be open by the end of January with 3 of their beers on tap, plus local cider and 1 or 2 guest taps. “Right now we’re focused on creating a space where people can chill and feel welcome. A lot of last minute details, sourcing local art, getting the lighting right. We really want to get the vibe right,” says Vincenzo, who empasizes it will be a welcoming, family friendly, community gathering spot for locals and tourists alike.

Wolf Tree Brewery coming to Central Oregon

Seal Rock, Oregon central coast brewery Wolf Tree Brewery is famed for their spruce tip ales. Unfortunately we reported on the closure of their off-site Newport taproom in our 2023 recap of 30+ breweries, cideries, and beer bars that are no longer with us. The good news is that Wolf Tree Brewery is still in operation, distributing beer in Oregon, California, and Washington, and has plans to open a new taproom at a TBA location in central Oregon in 2024.

Fizziology brings craft soda and housemade beers to Astoria dairy building

Astoria, Oregon

Oregon is without a doubt the gluten-free brewing capital of the world, currently boasting 4 dedicated gluten-free breweries (down from 5 with the recent closure of Moonshrimp Brewing) and another called Fizziology on the way. Renovations are now under way to the Sunflower Dairy building at 1310 Duane St, Astoria, OR 97103, to turn it into both a soda maker and craft brewery. Astoria architect John E. Wicks designed the Sunflower Dairy building in 1928, and it was a milk distribution plant until 1950. Fizziology founder Dan Salenski owns a commercial flooring company with his parents, and they teamed up to buy the building for their new dual concept. The narrow, but spacious building is well suited for a long bar for the incoming taproom which will serve a pub food menu, with modest production outputs on display behind a glass window. Salenski is gluten intolerant, but also a big homebrewer of craft beer and soda, and hopes to begin selling the latter this spring and begin making beer in the summer. A potential third phase of the business could third phase could include a rooftop deck.

Astro-Zombie Bio-Labs

McMinnville, OR

Known primarily as a winemaking and farming town, McMinnville has six breweries, and the upcoming seventh addition to the club is the most eccentric yet. Astro-Zombie Bio-Labs is a creative makers space for artisans utilizing ceramics, 3-D printing and scanning, laser cutting, vacuum forming, CNC machines, physical/digital arts, metal working, textiles….and beer. The monthly membership based community that signs up for Astro-Zombie will have use of their space and equipment, while they also offer classes on wiring/robotics, ceramics, 3-D printing and scanning, and possibly brewing as well. One of the many many features at Astro-Zombie Bio Labs will be a fully licenced 1-barrel nano brewhouse, with 50-gallon kettles, primary fermenter, secondary, and racking tank with even small batch canning and kegging equipment. So while you may not find Astro-Zombie Bio-Labs on draft at your local taproom anytime soon, you may be able to buy and sell your own to your friends or private beer clubs.

Bauman’s Cider opening Portland production and Taproom

Portland, OR

Oregon’s most award-winning cidery, Bauman’s Cider, is expanding out of the spacious confines of the Bauman’s Farm in Gervais and into southeast Portland. At the farm, they operate a full greenhouse, farmers market, store, cidery, and host regular events and grocery hours. While the farm has been a great home for the cidery offshoot, the time has come to upgrade the production infrastructure and capacity and as such founder/cidermaker Christine Bauman Walter has secured a new location in the former Ecliptic Brewing Moon Room. The primarily production oriented space will open a taproom and host events in Spring 2024.

Loyal Legion beer hall at the PDX Airport

Portland, OR

Loyal Legion is the popular Oregon beer hall concept opened in southeast Portland by Chefstable group in 2015, that has since expanded to a Beaverton location, and an ill-fated Sacramento, California location which has since closed. The Oregon concept is alive and well however, winning best beer bar/taphouse at the Oregon Beer Awards in 2023, and now opening a new location among 20 new hospitality or retail businesses opening in the Portland International Airport in 2024 and 2025. All 20 businesses were selected as part of a formal Request for Proposals (RFP) process in late 2022. The Port selected brands that demonstrate a commitment to having a positive impact on their communities, being quality employers, and practicing environmental sustainability, alongside strong business concepts and designs. Loyal Legion PDX at the airport is described as being being a combination beer hall, speakeasy, TV viewing room, and kids' play area, and is one of the select brands scheduled to open in May 2024.

SteepleJack Brewing taproom, arcade, and lodging on the Oregon Coast

Manzanita, OR

The big SteepleJack experiment on the Oregon coast is currently in limbo, awaiting arbitration from state officials on parking requirements for the three bed-and-breakfast/airbnb style suites that will occupy the upper floor of a new taproom restaurant and arcade in Manzanita. The impressive plans will likely bring new visitors to the sleepy Manzanita town, and introduce a lot of people to SteepleJack beer and the charms of the area.

Function Pop-Up Taphouse opens second floor expansion and new location

Portland, OR

Popular northwest Portland brewery pop-up events space Function Pdx is making big moves in 2024, as detailed in our earlier full report, the bar will open a second level expansion of their current location and a second location on NE Alberta St. both coming in February. The concept is to feature breweries (and the occasional cidery or winery) from across the nation and sometimes world that are not usually available in the pacific northwest. They take over the taps, and even rebrand the space, so it essentially becomes a temporary taproom outpost for different brands for approximately 30 days.

Function is closed for the month of January, in preparation for the big expansion. Their in-house members to the Basement Beer Club will get a sneak peek at the new second floor expansion at the OG location in northwest Portland on February 1st. Then the following day on February 2nd will be the grand opening of both NW and the new Function second location on Alberta St. Pop-Up barbecue restaurant HarBQ will be doing the food for the opening weekend at Alberta, and Highland Park Brewery out of Los Angeles will be the opening pop-up brewery taking over both spaces for February 2024.

Canby Beer Library by Oregon City Brewing

Canby, OR

Oregon City Brewing is one of the biggest success stories of Clackamas County, almost single handedly putting the old town of Oregon City back on the brewing map for new prolific award-winning beers like Coming to Fruition. A few years back Oregon City Brewing emerged victorious from a bidding process to redevelop the closed since 2014 Canby Library building. Their ambitious plan is for a barrel aging cellar with 120+ barrels and a post-pandemic friendly taproom with a sliding glass wall for seamless flow indoors and outdoors to a massive patio with seating for 257. That plan has seen consistent delays based on approvals, costs, and permits, that saw the original plan to open in 2022 pushed to late 2023 and featured in our most anticipated new breweries and taprooms last year. But it was again restructured and delayed to 2024 where it is beginning to take shape with a few updates and changes.

“That previous timeline ended up being way off!,” says Oregon City Brewing owner Bryce Morrow. “I was notified in early Feb. 2023, that a traffic impact analysis was required and this added 6 months.

So he broke up the project into two phases and completed the work he had approval for which included the structural / seismic upgrades, new 36 ft. glass storefront, above deck insulation, and a new roof.

The Canby Beer Library finally received approval from Canby Planning Commission on Oct. 23 for phase II to finish construction. They have also made the decision to retain a section of the existing roof and convert it to a covered patio area with radiant gas heaters and big skylights. They also decreased the space for carts from 8 to 7, but still plan to have 3+ of their own Oregon City Brewing beers on tap. Morrow hopes to get back under construction soon and be open in early Summer 2024.

Silver Falls Brewery opening Barrel House in Eugene

Eugene, OR

Silverton, Oregon’s only current brewery, Silver Falls Brewery, embarked on a 10 barrel expansion project that greatly increased their brewing capacity while the pub has become one of the last great places to get local beer in town. Armed with more awareness of the brand and interest from the college town community, Silver Falls is opening their second location in the quadrant of Eugene, Oregon’s 5th Street Public Market. Their second location will stand out with a more customized build out, and a menu that emphasizes New York Jewish Deli food alongside pub classics. Read our full length story on the Barrel House here.

Von Ebert Brewing in former Ecliptic Brewing mothership

Portland, Oregon

Ecliptic Brewing closed their brewpubs in Portland, but it didn’t take long for them to find new stewards. Acclaimed Portland brewery Von Ebert is moving into the mothership Ecliptic location that was opened 10 years ago on N. Mississippi and Cook, and is installing an even larger brewhouse to put far more Von Ebert beer out into the world. The location will no longer be a restaurant, but the expansive parking lot will become a beer garden for food trucks and potentially events.

Assembly Brewing comes to Alberta St.

Portland, OR

Update 2/8/2024: Assembly Brewing Pizza Annex is Now Open

One of Portland’s premiere Detroit-style Pizzeria’s is undoubtedly Assembly Brewing, but the spacious inner southeast Fo-Po neighborhood brewpub has been confounding families by staying resolutely 21+ only since opening in 2019. This February will be a big month for Assembly, as they open their second location on northeast Portland’s Alberta Arts District as a satellite pub which for the first time ever will welcome those under the age of 21. Five different pizza by-the-slice options (including a vegan slice) with a pint of Assembly beer or a fountain drink will be on the menu, along with whole pies, salads and breadsticks. The Assembly Brewing Alberta location is taking up shop in the former Bella Pizza at 2934 NE Alberta Street, close in proximity to the Alberta Rose Theater. The latest on this location, is an opening date will come as soon as February 9th, possibly even earlier.

Breakside Brewery’s 31-acre Gresham Beer Playground

Gresham, OR

Will 2024 be the year that Breakside Brewery gets their planned Gresham expansion underway? Probably not, but its still fun to dream of. The New School first broke the news about this project in November 2021, and beer fans and Gresham and Troutdale residents have been eagerly awaiting an update ever since. In that time, the vision for the 31-acre beer playground has only become more ambitious - now growing to potentially include an amphitheater and partner with a nationally recognized concert promoter.

The Breakside Gresham project would most likely mean the brewery would relocate the bulk of their brewing from Milwaukie to the new space where they could also offer a larger taphouse and beer garden experience bolstered by food trucks. Not only does the natural and relatively untouched and developed land have plenty of space for walking trails and disc golf, and bocce ball pits, but even a duck pond, even talk of miniature sailboat racing. And while there have been no updates on Breakside Gresham’s path to becoming reality since we first reported it, Breakside owner Scott Lawrence assures us “It’s still alive. We own the land. It’s just going to take time and more money than we currently feel comfortable risking.” So maybe 2025?