Iconic Horse Brass Pub Celebrates 50th Anniversary Milestone w/ opening of Pony Room, Collaboration Beers, & Bands
The iconic Horse Brass Pub (4534 SE Belmont St) is celebrating their 50th anniversary and the opening of the new Pony Room. The classic Portland, Oregon pub marks a half-century as a craft beer landmark with collaboration beers from near and far, live music, longtime regulars, Oregon luminaries, and nightly celebrations from July 10–16th, 2026.
The 50th anniversary celebration kicks off on Friday, July 10 with the tapping of a series of special anniversary collaboration beers and cider brewed or blended with friends of the pub. The lineup includes an exclusive new Russian River Brewing beer, and collaborations with Double Mountain, Solera, Everybody’s Brewing, Ninkasi, Ecliptic, Gigantic, Fort George, Lompoc, Breakside, Sunriver, Bauman’s Cider, McMenamins, Widmer Brothers, Migration, Puff Coffee, and Georgetown, among others. Beers will rotate throughout the week, with the newly opened Pony Room available for overflow.
Founded in 1976 by Oregon Beer Awards 2017 posthumous Hall of Fame recipient Don Younger, Horse Brass played a vital role in shaping Oregon’s beer culture. Long before the city’s craft brewing reputation turned it into a beer-lovers’ destination, Horse Brass was pouring imports, cask ales, and the earliest Oregon microbrews. It gave fledgling local breweries a place to be discovered and provided brewers, drinkers, writers, regulars, and future publicans a place to talk shop and bond over a few pints.
Younger’s legacy is inseparable from the story of Oregon beer. He is remembered as one of the great American publicans and a vital early supporter of the region’s emerging microbrewery scene. Horse Brass is widely credited as a place where Oregon brewers found an audience, and where the industry-changing 1985 Oregon Brewpub Bill was discussed among key industry figures.
For five decades, the pub has remained a destination and one of the city’s greatest equalizing rooms, with old-timers seated next to newcomers, brewers next to bartenders, and industry legends next to someone walking in for their first proper pint. The dark wood, darts, fish and chips, cask ale, and history displayed on every wall evoke a singular blend of old Portland and old England.
Horse Brass’ current owner/Steward Jerry Fechter was inducted info the Oregon Beer Awards Hall of Fame in earlier this year in 2026, and is proud to carry on the legacy of the late-great-legend Don Younger.
“When most people think of Horse Brass, they think of the beer first. But for me, it’s the people,” said Horse Brass co-owner Jerry Fechter. “The brewers, our staff, our regulars, the musicians, the spirit of Don, and everyone who has stepped through our doors. For fifty years we’ve been transporting people to an English pub in the heart of Portland, and this celebration is for every one of them.”
The Pony Room
4534 SE Belmont St
More than a year in the making, Horse Brass’ The Pony Room has opened across the public breezeway hall that runs through the historic brick building they call home. The Pony Room may be familiar to veteran beer enthusiasts as the original location of Belmont Station, answering the question to why the current location of the bottle shop and beer bar is on Stark Street and not on Belmont. Since 2007 when Belmont Station vacated their original location at 4534 SE Belmont St the space has been the home for Horse Brass’ office, storage, and walk-in keg cooler which are still separated in the back. Through doorways along Belmont the Pony Club occupies what was the Belmont Station public retail area for browsing the bottle selection, now it serves as a private event and spillover space open during Horse Brass Anniversary celebrations.
The Pony Room, much like the Horse Brass, is filled with vintage memorabilia from breweries past and present, old photos, art, heirlooms, and rare items that commemorate the legacy of Oregon craft beer and Don Younger. It’s also equipped with it’s own intimate bar with a handful of dedicated taps and spirits, and a brand newly completed stained glass window handmade by living legend Alan Sprints, founder of Hair of the Dog Brewing.
Horse Brass Pub 50th Anniversary Beers:
Russian River Brewing : Don the Younger
Double Mountain + Solera Brewing + Everybody's Brewing : "It's About the Beer"* West Coast IPA
Ninkasi Brewing + Ecliptic Brewing : Younger Special IPA (West Coast IPA)
Gigantic Brewing + Fort George + Lompoc : Thrupple IPA 2005 (West Coast IPA)
Breakside Brewing + Sunriver Brewing : MadHatter IPA** (West Coast IPA)
Bauman's Cider : Special Dry Blend (Cider)
McMenamins Breweries : Sunflower IPA
Widmer Bros. Brewing : Wheat from Beyond (Dunkel Alt)
Migration Brewing + Puff Coffee : Clem's Coffee Cream Ale
Georgetown Brewing : The Bitter Horseman (ESB)
* Don Younger was known for his quote, “It’s not about the beer. It’s about the beer.”
** Named after one of Don Younger’s earlier bars
Horse Brass Pub 50th Anniversary Events Schedule:
Friday, July 10
Collaboration Release Day featuring anniversary beers and cider brewed or blended with friends of Horse Brass. Pony Room open.
Saturday, July 11
Horse Brass will will honor what would have been Don Younger’s 86th birthday with cake and a special toast at 5 p.m. Younger’s presence lives on in the pub’s character, beer list, and sense of humor.
Sunday, July 12
Tom May & Friends at 2 p.m. May, now 78, has been performing his folk music at Horse Brass since its first year.
Monday, July 13
Celebrate the birth of punk rock, also 50 years ago! The Punk Rock Review begins at 8 p.m., featuring Renegade Leathers, Velvet Merkin, and Stumblebum.
Tuesday, July 14
The Buds of May Revival band featuring legendary Portland brewery John Harris from 8 to 10 p.m., bringing bluegrass and psychedelic jam rock to the anniversary week.
Wednesday, July 15
Wednesday, July 15 is Craft Industry Night, with Ben Love of Gigantic Brewing spinning the sounds of ‘76 from 8 p.m. to midnight. Brewers, cidermakers, and industry friends from across the Pacific Northwest will gather for a night honoring the pub’s deep ties to the regional beer community. A group photo is planned for 9 p.m., and the Pony Room will be open with historic photos laid out for guests to help identify the people, moments, and memories captured over the years.
Thursday, July 16
Last call for the first 50 will be Thursday, July 16 with The Rolling Tones, a Rolling Stones tribute band, playing from 8 to 11 p.m.
Horse Brass Pub (4534 SE Belmont St)
Founded in 1976, Horse Brass Pub helped introduce Portland drinkers to the depth, range, and community spirit that would come to define Oregon craft beer. For 50 years Horse Brass has served as a gathering place for brewers, beer lovers, musicians, regulars, and visitors from around the world.
With its classic English pub atmosphere, deep tap list, and long-standing connection to the region’s brewing industry, Horse Brass became a place where beer history was made one pint, one conversation, and one song at a time.