Dave Knows Portland

Archives for August 2011

The Mighty Mites – Session Beer Fest (27-August-2011)

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Mighty MitesThe first Might Mites Session Beer Fest takes place this Saturday, August 27, 2011 at Coalition Brewing (2724 SE Ankeny), from noon until 7pm.

There is a pernicious assumption among beer fans that in order to bristle with flavor, a beer must be strong. The notion has led to rampant escalation in alcohol content—the steroid era of good beers. But it doesn’t have to be so. Throughout history, brewers have regularly packed intense flavors into small beers. To show just how lush and varied a small beer can be, Jeff Alworth of Beervana and Coalition Brewing are hosting the first annual Mighty Mites fest—a celebration of little beers with big flavors. All the beers are below 4.5% ABF, and many are below 4%.

The lineup includes beers from Block 15, Hair of the Dog, Oakshire, Upright, Double Mountain, Coalition, and others. Some of the styles represented are a Berliner weisse, smoked porter, Belgian wit, and a small saison.

Entrance is free, and you can reuse an old festival mug or purchase a new one at the fest. Tastes are $1, full pint is $4. The Mighty Mites fest is part of PDX Beer Week. Visit the Facebook event page for more information.

Kraftskiva Crawfish Party (28-August-2011)

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Kraftskiva Crawfish PartyHouse Spirits Distillery‘s first annual Kraftskiva Crawfish Party takes place this Sunday, August 28 at the distillery (2025 SE 7th).

There is a tradition in Sweden that at the end of Summer, in the month of August, they celebrate by having an enormous crawfish party. This year marks our 1st Summer Party Blowout with respect to this age-old occurrence, featuring food and merriment in the Scandinavian style.

Chop Butchery will be cooking up crawdads, and delicious meats of course. Lefse will be provided by Viking Soul Food, and the Scandinavian Heritage Foundation (the folks who bring us the annual ScanFair) will be raffling off Portland-Scandinavian goodies. House Spirits will be offering complimentary aquavit tastes and cocktails, with some limited Gammal Krogstad (which is sold out) available too!

The fest is free, open to all (wristbands provided to those 21 and over), and runs from 11am to 5pm. Visit HouseSpirits.com or the Facebook event page for more details.

Oregon State Fair 2011

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Oregon State FairThe 2011 Oregon State Fair runs from Friday, August 26 through September 5, at the Oregon State Fairgrounds in Salem. Heather and I had a blast at last year’s fair.

Competitions this year include 4-H of course, along with categories such as fine art, farm and garden, photography, floral, creative living, and grill offs. And of course there will be horse shows, and exhibits of livestock and the best part: small animals.

Entertainment includes Timbersports (which you can preview at the World Forestry Center in Portland on Wednesday, August 24), rides, animal shows, and five stages of music, including Cheap Trick on Saturday!

Food is provided by 75 food booths and stands, with all the traditional fair goodies like curly fries, corn dogs, snow cones, cotton candy, etc. There’s a Roof Top Pub, where if I were attending this year I would spend much of my time, and there’s also an Oregon Wine Cellar Patio.

Admission and hours vary wildly depending on days you attend, number of days you plan to attend, your age, whether you buy tickets in advance or at the gate, so visit the Oregon State Fair website for details (also check out special days and discounts).

Timbersports Demo at the World Forestry Center (24-August-2011)

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STIHL Timbersports SeriesThe perfect opportunity to gear up for the Wednesday night Timbers match takes place in the afternoon at the World Forestry Center: the Stihl Timbersports Demo, from 1-2pm.

Experience a one-time only Oregon State Fair preview of the wood-chopping action of the STIHLTIMBERSPORTS Series . . . Those on-site will have the chance to get up close and personal as local professional lumberjack competitors David Green from Sisters, Ore., David Moses from Snoqualmie, Wash. and Branden Sirguy from Port Angeles, Wash. square off in underhand chop and hot saw showdowns. Attendees will also have the chance to meet and mingle with the athletes at this special preview event presented by the World Forestry Center.

Entrance to the demo is free, and attendees will get discounts to the Oregon State Fair, which runs from August 26 through September 5 at the fair grounds in Salem (which you should also attend – we had a blast last year!).