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jtmartino1

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Starting this up now that they're fully licensed to produce and sell beer.

Anyone try their stuff? Anyone in the club? Some changes with Jordan leaving and the addition of Jake Miller from Prairie, but I'm still excited to check their stuff out.

Paging grrrah and any other Cellar members...


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I'm just really stoked their web store is up so I can buy hats/shirts from a brewery that hasn't released a single beer....
 
I'm just really stoked their web store is up so I can buy hats/shirts from a brewery that hasn't released a single beer....

For the past year they didn't have licensing approval to sell beer. While they were waiting, they decided to get busy with marketing and other aspects of the brewery. I would have done the same, so I wouldn't have to deal with that **** when the approval comes through.

It's a smart business move. The question is whether or not they can brew beer. The talent is/was there, so only time will tell.

Waitasec. Are they open yet? If not, any details on when they'll be open? And the (ex-Jester King) head brewer has already left??

As of early December, taproom beers were still "12 weeks out" at least. And yeah, Jordan Keeper was hired as a consultant for the brewery and has since moved to Europe to brew with Trois Dames (per an email from W&P). They apparently brewed a bunch of batches over the last 12 months and harvested some local yeast, cultivating their house strain. They've also planned some collab brew days with people like Jester King.

It's my understanding that the production beer is in barrels and their stuff can only be tasted at special events right now (mostly Cellar members-only).
 
For the past year they didn't have licensing approval to sell beer. While they were waiting, they decided to get busy with marketing and other aspects of the brewery. I would have done the same, so I wouldn't have to deal with that **** when the approval comes through.

It's a smart business move. The question is whether or not they can brew beer. The talent is/was there, so only time will tell.

It might be a smart business move for them but merch designing, bulk merch orders, setting up an e-commerce site, shipping orders, etc. isn't cheap. If they needed money from you to help them open their brewery then how can they afford all of that? If I had contributed money to them I would prefer that my money go towards opening and brewing beer, not hats and t-shirts.

It's my understanding that the production beer is in barrels and their stuff can only be tasted at special events right now (mostly Cellar members-only).

It's my understanding that they have only poured their beers at an Oregon Truffle Festival dinner event. It was definitely not limited to Cellar members-only. They poured 3 test batches of beers aged on white truffles...
 
It might be a smart business move for them but merch designing, bulk merch orders, setting up an e-commerce site, shipping orders, etc. isn't cheap. If they needed money from you to help them open their brewery then how can they afford all of that? If I had contributed money to them I would prefer that my money go towards opening and brewing beer, not hats and t-shirts.

Good point. Hard to say how much capital Christian had before the crowdfunding effort, and where the money was allocated. As I said, time will tell whether or not it was worth the price of admission. As someone who participates in crowdfunding, you have little control over where the money goes. You cross your fingers and wait - Modern Times was a great example of this, and they were brand-heavy before they produced a bunch of great beer.

This is always a funny topic - many brewers who focus solely on the beer produce a good product but know little when it comes to the business development end of the spectrum. Then you have those who are more about branding and business than actually brewing, and the beer is ****.

Hopefully W&P is more focused on brewing, and the merch effort is just to get the name out there. It's no surprise they created merch, as this was one of the "perks" for the lower levels of crowdfunding. Hats, shirts, etc. It's a good move to get those started, so they can provide those benefits to the people who contributed at those levels.

It's my understanding that they have only poured their beers at an Oregon Truffle Festival dinner event. It was definitely not limited to Cellar members-only. They poured 3 test batches of beers aged on white truffles...

You're right! Did you go and how was the beer?

Looks like there's another opportunity soon scheduled for people to try the beer, and that one definitely is a Cellar-only event (March 12).
 
You're right! Did you go and how was the beer?

I did not go. Truffle beers aren't really my style, plus it's a bit out of the way for me.

Looks like there's another opportunity soon scheduled for people to try the beer, and that one definitely is a Cellar-only event (March 12).

Ya, that's what my friend said. Too bad they aren't allowing any guests...
 
From the last email:

Your Beer is Alive
We're aging your first Society brews—and inviting you for a tour.

Greetings sports fans! Hope this weekend brought you lots of good beer and good cheer. We are thrilled to say we had our first successful beer dinner at a little bar in Dayton, about 15 miles south of Springbrook Farm. Thanks to Society members who made the trip all the way to the country! Now, we know what you're thinking—how on Earth could we have a beer dinner before we have beers for the Cellar Society? As you know, we've been brewing and barrel aging since the brewery was functional and we were legally permitted to do so, with all eyes on those first beers for you, our most valued supporters. As those beers age in oak, with pellicles forming (!), we are brewing blending stock, spring grisettes (for April), and quick-turnaround, non-barrel-aged, draft-only, 1-keg experiments for events like this dinner, to build support for the brewery (and move towards revenues after more than two full years of investing in the buildout). We want you to know that Cellar Society beers, being mostly barrel-aged, are taking a bit longer—of course!

Next week we welcome Team Jester King here for a collab brew day (yahoo!) then trek to The Commons for another collab Friday (yahoo!). In between, we're scaling up a field beer we piloted for the Oregon Truffle Fest dinner, La Truffe, using whole, perfectly ripe Oregon white truffles and farm hazelnuts. Without a doubt it's one of the most unusual, delicious beer we've ever brewed, smelled, or tasted!

To see how it's all going, we'd like to invite you for a private, Cellar Society only tour & tasting at Wolves & People on Saturday March 12th from 3-5PM. You'll be able to pick up membership materials, taste several test batches in progress, tour the farm & brewery, and generally kick it. The brewery is 21 miles from Portland, so we'd encourage you to make a day of it and plan to stay for dinner in the area. We love Ruddick/Wood in Newberg (gastropub) and The Bitter Monk in McMinnville (beer bar). For all members, The Bitter Monk is offering Happy Hour prices all night after our gathering. We'd love the opportunity. Please, bring a designated driver. There is heavy police patrol on 99W, esp. on Saturdays, and it is our highest priority that you get home safe and sound after your visit.

Also very important: this is not a public event. We can only invite Cellar Society members (and DD).


The email also had this pic:

aXtNpvr.jpg




Estate plums?

thumbs_up_waynes_world.gif

 
I'm stoked for this and have been since joining the club in Fall 2014 lol. My wife and I will be headed down for the Cellar Society event. Who else is making it down? I honestly think they'll produce some killer beers. Looking forward to finally trying some :)
 
Anyone making it to W&P tomorrow? I'll be there with wife in tow. Looking forward to tasting some beers and seeing the place. Just curious if I'll be meeting any TB'ers or not.
 
Anyone making it to W&P tomorrow? I'll be there with wife in tow. Looking forward to tasting some beers and seeing the place. Just curious if I'll be meeting any TB'ers or not.
I would have, but they had to do it the same day as Hellshire Day so unfortunately I'll be skipping it. Hoping for a legit release event soon.
 
Anyone making it to W&P tomorrow? I'll be there with wife in tow. Looking forward to tasting some beers and seeing the place. Just curious if I'll be meeting any TB'ers or not.
I'll be there though I'm not a very prolific TB'er. I do have a +1 since my guest couldn't make though it if anyone wants to tag along.
 
Anyone making it to W&P tomorrow? I'll be there with wife in tow. Looking forward to tasting some beers and seeing the place. Just curious if I'll be meeting any TB'ers or not.

Is there something going on tomorrow? Did they email us? Somehow their communication has been arguably worse than even J. Wakefield.
 
Yeah, they sent an email on 1/25 with the subject "progress on first beers" with details
 
From the last email:

Your Beer is Alive
We're aging your first Society brews—and inviting you for a tour.

Greetings sports fans! Hope this weekend brought you lots of good beer and good cheer. We are thrilled to say we had our first successful beer dinner at a little bar in Dayton, about 15 miles south of Springbrook Farm. Thanks to Society members who made the trip all the way to the country! Now, we know what you're thinking—how on Earth could we have a beer dinner before we have beers for the Cellar Society? As you know, we've been brewing and barrel aging since the brewery was functional and we were legally permitted to do so, with all eyes on those first beers for you, our most valued supporters. As those beers age in oak, with pellicles forming (!), we are brewing blending stock, spring grisettes (for April), and quick-turnaround, non-barrel-aged, draft-only, 1-keg experiments for events like this dinner, to build support for the brewery (and move towards revenues after more than two full years of investing in the buildout). We want you to know that Cellar Society beers, being mostly barrel-aged, are taking a bit longer—of course!

Next week we welcome Team Jester King here for a collab brew day (yahoo!) then trek to The Commons for another collab Friday (yahoo!). In between, we're scaling up a field beer we piloted for the Oregon Truffle Fest dinner, La Truffe, using whole, perfectly ripe Oregon white truffles and farm hazelnuts. Without a doubt it's one of the most unusual, delicious beer we've ever brewed, smelled, or tasted!

To see how it's all going, we'd like to invite you for a private, Cellar Society only tour & tasting at Wolves & People on Saturday March 12th from 3-5PM. You'll be able to pick up membership materials, taste several test batches in progress, tour the farm & brewery, and generally kick it. The brewery is 21 miles from Portland, so we'd encourage you to make a day of it and plan to stay for dinner in the area. We love Ruddick/Wood in Newberg (gastropub) and The Bitter Monk in McMinnville (beer bar). For all members, The Bitter Monk is offering Happy Hour prices all night after our gathering. We'd love the opportunity. Please, bring a designated driver. There is heavy police patrol on 99W, esp. on Saturdays, and it is our highest priority that you get home safe and sound after your visit.

Also very important: this is not a public event. We can only invite Cellar Society members (and DD).


The email also had this pic:

aXtNpvr.jpg




Estate plums?

thumbs_up_waynes_world.gif
Is there something going on tomorrow? Did they email us? Somehow their communication has been arguably worse than even J. Wakefield.
 
Is there something going on tomorrow? Did they email us? Somehow their communication has been arguably worse than even J. Wakefield.
They've actually had really good communication and if you email Christian he gets back to you within the day generally.
 
They've actually had really good communication and if you email Christian he gets back to you within the day generally.

"Really good" is a stretch. Especially compared to The Bruery, Modern Times or Casey.
 
Yesterday was really phenomenal. They served three beers; a killer mosaic Brett saison that was so juicy, a 100% wild with pica and azzaca hops, and a hazelnut cacao nun stout. All were really good but the saison was amazing. Thanks to Christian and his wife, as well as the head Brewer Jake for a great time and good conversations. I'm excited to see what they produce.

The barn is also really cool and there is a massive Viking ship suspended in the attic. It was donated by an artist friend who didn't know what to do with it after it sat in the Smithsonian for years.
 
Yesterday was really phenomenal. They served three beers; a killer mosaic Brett saison that was so juicy, a 100% wild with pica and azzaca hops, and a hazelnut cacao nun stout. All were really good but the saison was amazing. Thanks to Christian and his wife, as well as the head Brewer Jake for a great time and good conversations. I'm excited to see what they produce.

The barn is also really cool and there is a massive Viking ship suspended in the attic. It was donated by an artist friend who didn't know what to do with it after it sat in the Smithsonian for years.

So these beers were fully finished? The verbiage in the email was more along the lines of partially finished. I couldn't go to this event since I'm traveling today and the email didn't really sound like the beers were ready.
 
The beers were definitely finished and tasty. I don't know how anyone could have not enjoyed the mosaic Brett saison. So juicy.
 
So these beers were fully finished? The verbiage in the email was more along the lines of partially finished. I couldn't go to this event since I'm traveling today and the email didn't really sound like the beers were ready.
The beers are test batches.
 
The beers were definitely finished and tasty. I don't know how anyone could have not enjoyed the mosaic Brett saison. So juicy.
People have different tastes, obviously. The saison was my least favorite of the three. It was too sweet for my liking, and I question whether it had fermented out fully. The aroma was great, with a ton of juicy hops. I'll give you that.

The stout was a complete surprise. If they can scale that up and keep the quality, they'll do well with it. Same with the wild ale. I would like to see that in a white wine barrel after 9-12 months. That would make a nice membership release (hint hint).

I posted some pictures and more of my thoughts on the Saturday event at TheTipsyCow.
 
Great article oregonskibum but I'll correct you on two things:
1. There are one way kegs stacked up inside what will eventually be the tasting room. Christian said they are some sort of recyclable keg system that is already sterile and ready to fill and go one way. Once empty, you recycle them.
2. They're packaging their first cellar beers next week for bottle conditioning. I believe it is the Sebastian with Plums.

Cheers!
 
Great article oregonskibum but I'll correct you on two things:
1. There are one way kegs stacked up inside what will eventually be the tasting room. Christian said they are some sort of recyclable keg system that is already sterile and ready to fill and go one way. Once empty, you recycle them.
2. They're packaging their first cellar beers next week for bottle conditioning. I believe it is the Sebastian with Plums.

Cheers!
I totally missed the kegs. That must have been what was wrapped in white plastic on pallets in the middle of the room? I intended to go back and check that room out more carefully and forgot. I'll update the post. Thanks!
 
I totally missed the kegs. That must have been what was wrapped in white plastic on pallets in the middle of the room? I intended to go back and check that room out more carefully and forgot. I'll update the post. Thanks!
No problem! Yeah that was the wrapped stacks. Never heard of kegs like that but sounds cool I think.
 
No problem! Yeah that was the wrapped stacks. Never heard of kegs like that but sounds cool I think.
I remember delivering kegs like this from Belgium. I would imagine to save on the shipping. I bet it is less expensive to get that instead of returning the regular stainless keg over seas or selling it used.
 
I remember delivering kegs like this from Belgium. I would imagine to save on the shipping. I bet it is less expensive to get that instead of returning the regular stainless keg over seas or selling it used.
I saw kegs like that in Brussels. I was told that in addition to the shipping/environmental benefits, the gas is pumped outside the bag to push the beer out and it's not coming into contact with the beer itself.
 
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