The entire state of Oregon is famous for its craft
beer. The Willamette Valley is often
visited for its world-class Pinots and other wines. But what about spirits? Oregon’s most recent foray into handcrafted
alcohols can be witnessed and tasted along Portland’s Distillery Row, located in an industrial
neighborhood of small warehouses in southeast Portland. Portland’s
Distillery Row consists of six distilleries: Eastside Distilling, House
Spirits, New Deal Distillery, Rolling River Spirits, Stone Barn Brandyworks, and
Vinn Distillery. During our time in
Portland we got the chance to visit a couple of Portland’s distilleries and
taste the movement.
House Spirits Distillery
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| House Spirits Distillery's apothecary library. |
House Spirits Distillery was founded in 2004 and is located
in Portland’s Distillery Row. House
Spirits’ lineup includes Aviation American Gin, Krogstad Festlig Aquavit, Krogstad Gamle Aquavit, Volstead Vodka, Westward Oregon Straight Malt Whiskey,
House Spirits Series Coffee Liqueur, and House Spirits Series White Dog
Whiskey. All are batch-distilled and
made with ethically sourced ingredients.
We tasted the gin, vodka, whiskey, and coffee liqueur. Rome is a whiskey guy and loved House Spirits’
whiskey. We both really enjoyed the
vodka, which is filtered through coconut shells. The Volstead Vodka is cheekily named after
the father of prohibition Andrew Volstead.
The coffee liqueur is made with molasses distilled into rum and then
blended with locally roasted coffee. The
liqueur is perfectly flavored and not too sweet or syrupy.
Clear Creek Distillery
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| Clear Creek Distillery brandies. |
Clear Creek Distillery is not part of Portland’s Distillery
Row, as it is located across the river.
Clear Creek Distillery was founded in 1985 by Steve McCarthy and is
actually a forerunner of Portland’s Distillery Row. McCarthy started the distillery because he
wanted to find a use for the fruit from the family orchard. The name comes from the creek that runs
through McCarthy’s family orchard. McCarthy
discovered traditional European spirits during his travels and knew that the
fruit grown in the Pacific Northwest would make exceptional fruit
brandies. Clear Creek Distillery uses
traditional techniques and local fruit.
No colors or flavors are added.
Our favorite offerings from Clear Creek Distillery were the
Williams Pear Brandy and the Loganberry Liquor.
The Williams Pear Brandy uses Bartlett pears grown in the Hood River
Valley. The pears are crushed, fermented
and then distilled. It takes 30 pounds
of pears to make one bottle of Williams Pear Brandy. The liqueurs are thicker and sweeter than the
brandies, perfect for sipping chilled or pouring over ice cream. Clear Creek Distillery even produces
Apple-in-the-Bottle Eau de Vie de Pomme, with apples grown directly inside the
bottles.
Oregon is doing great things with alcohol, but it can be
hard to experience all the beer, wine, and spirits and still stay sober for
enjoying the non-alcohol attractions of the state. But do try to visit at least one or two of
the distilleries of Portland’s Distillery Row. Luckily, since Oregon is so proud and supportive of its crafts, it is also easy to try Portland’s
spirits when eating out at restaurants, so order a cocktail made with locally
distilled craft spirits and be part of the Portland spirit movement.
