The Year in Pictures

Over the course of a year, we mobile modern humans often range far and wide across this sapphire planet of ours, and our travels offer a tiny window into the currents and trends stippling the beer world.  At least among those of us who direct our gaze toward things beery.  As I ramble about, I take snaps on my wheezing iPhone 4 and post them to Twitter.  Below are a selection of the choicest cuts.  See what trends you can divine.  (Yes, cider looms large.)

My year started in Salem, as I joined EZ Orchard's Kevin Zielinski
as he milled and pressed apples.

 

It was then off to Europe on research for Cider
Made Simple.  First stop--Tom Oliver in Herefordshire.

Hecks in Somerset.

Cyril Zangs' cidery in Normandy.

Isastegi in the Basque Country.  Txotx!

A warm day in April as viewed from Solera Brewery.

Exciting new product! "Beer brewed with spice, blue agave
nectar and caramel color added." (May)

Tepache (fermented pineapples) at Reverend Nat's. (May)

Hop-grower Gayle Goschie speaking at
BridgePort's 30th anniversary. (May)

Cider Summit.  (June)

Reverend Nat displaying the cup in the Portland
International Cider Cup (which Rogue won).

In the Shanghai Tunnels under Old Town Pizza.  (July)

Stan Hieronymus and Niki Ganong at the OBF.

McCall Brewing in McCall, Idaho. (July)

What a bead on that Breakside pils. (August)

One of the new cideries now studding the lush Hood River Valley.
(August)

Lucky Lab hop harvest (September).

At the cooperage of Pilsner Urquell. (Sept)

The town of Zatec (Saaz) during the hop harvest in the
Czech Republic.  (Sept)

Bohuslav Hlavsa, master brewer at Kout na Šumavě in the
Czech Republic.  (Sept)

The temperature gauge for the hop kilns at Sodbuster Farms.
(Sept)

Full Sail co-founder and brewer James Emmerson at the hop
harvest at Sodbuster Farms. (Sept)

Beer in Victoria, BC. (Sept)

A selection of the foraged-ingredient beers made for the
Beers Made by Walking project. (October)

Fat Head's opens in Portland. (October)

The illustrious Ron Pattinson visits Portland in promotion of
his book (and is joined by illustrious local, Bill Schneller,
who made one of the beers in that book).  (November)

 

One of my favorite places on earth--Portsmouth
Brewing in NH. The mussels and helles were
amazing, as expected. (November)

Surprise tasting of a 25-year-old beer. (December)

Another amazing helles at another great coastal brewpub--the
new Astoria brewery Buoy Beer.  (Two days ago)

Coming full circle--a Calvados I bought
back in January.  (Christmas Day)