A hillside of shiny obsidian born of liquid rock and thrown by Mother Nature herself atop a fiery geologic potter’s wheel rises from the Newberry Volcano just south of Bend, Oregon. It’s so cool they named a beer after it!
Category: Oregon
Public Fountain Bubbles Up Foul-Tasting Mineral Brew; Go ahead, Have a Sip
It smells bad. It tastes bad. A sign cautions moderation. Yet the lithia mineral water streaming from eight cheery bubblers in the town square of Ashland, Oregon, has attracted health naïfs and the merely curious for more than 100 years.
Who knew? Continue reading “Public Fountain Bubbles Up Foul-Tasting Mineral Brew; Go ahead, Have a Sip”
Shadow Slacking in Oregon’s Totality Zone; We Wish Grumpa Were Here
Grumpa would have had a big time today. He and Mom-Lady could not have planned our Eclipse Day any better when they purchased a hillside home among Douglas firs in Oregon’s totality zone back in 2001. We’re certain they had Aug. 21, 2017 in mind. Continue reading “Shadow Slacking in Oregon’s Totality Zone; We Wish Grumpa Were Here”
Wait, There’s More to the Willamette Valley Than Wine? Say Cheese!
With 500+ wineries in Willamette Valley, Oregon always feels like home to me. It has been the actual home to the ‘rents for the last 20 years, so I call it my second home. It is much more slacker friendly than the limo clogged drunk-fest that is Napa. Not that there’s anything wrong with that — been there quite a few half-remembered times.
The more wine the better, really, but this post isn’t about wine. ‘Cause sometimes you just need a little something to soak up all that Pinot Noir. Continue reading “Wait, There’s More to the Willamette Valley Than Wine? Say Cheese!”
Seven Miles of Weeping Bluffs, Moss-Shrouded Woods, Roaring Waterfalls … and One too Many Staircases
The Peabody Award-winning TV series Portlandia taught us that the Dream of the ‘90s is alive in Portland. And for nearly two decades during visits to Dawn’s folks at their hillside Silverton, OR, home we have coveted the fantasy of retiring young and weird.
Perhaps our favorite activity in Oregon is sitting on the ‘rents expansive deck overlooking pine covered hillsides and the Silver Creek Reservoir, sipping wine while watching the bats emerge from beneath the shingles of the house at dusk
A close second, however, is Silver Falls State Park. Continue reading “Seven Miles of Weeping Bluffs, Moss-Shrouded Woods, Roaring Waterfalls … and One too Many Staircases”
Zwickelmania 2017 – Try Funky Sours or a Hint of Axe Handle in Your Brew; Oregon Craft Beer Fest Continues Feb 25
We drove way up the coast last week to the land of hipster-slackers, IPAs and knit caps just in time to enjoy a taste of Zwickelmania 2017, the Oregon Craft Beer association’s annual celebration of home brews gone commercial. Day 1 on Feb. 18 featured Portland metro breweries, and the party continues with Day 2 on Feb. 25 at regional breweries throughout the state. Continue reading “Zwickelmania 2017 – Try Funky Sours or a Hint of Axe Handle in Your Brew; Oregon Craft Beer Fest Continues Feb 25”