Bend Oregon Brewpubs, Microbreweries and Brewery Tours

Bend is almost as popular for our beer as we are for our scenery and recreation activities. A cold beer after a long day of riding, hiking, rafting, or biking is a great way to end a day of adventure.

Bend is a "Beervana", with one brewery for every 9,111 people beating out our nearby neighboring city of Portland, Oregon. Bend celebrates this achievement with what we call the Bend Ale Trail. New breweries are popping up around Bend frequently. GoodLife Brewing Co. and Brew Werks Brewing are the latest breweries to the Bend beer scene and will be added to the official trail in summer of 2012. Check out the Bend Ale Trail page for more information on guided beer tours, the free Bend Ale Trail app and more.

While the highlight of the Deschutes Brewery tour is the free pint of beer you are welcomed to sample before setting out into a maze of stainless steel cauldrons and Lavern & Shirley-esque bottling lines, most visitors walk away from this tour with a whole new love of craft beer. Learn how the world’s best beer is brewed while experiencing the smell and touch of fresh hop flowers and the nutty crunch of roasted barley gains, which give Deschutes beers their caramel and chocolate accents.

Deschutes Brewery also carries a blazing torch for sustainability in Bend. The spent grain used in the brewing process is turned into the pizzas and pretzels which are served at the downtown pub. The rest is shipped off to feed cows at a local cattle ranch that, in turn, provides the meat for the pub’s hamburgers. Try the Green Lakes Organic before you leave. This crisp ale is named for one of the most beautiful hiking trails in Bend and is certified organic by Oregon Tilth.

Tyler at Silver Moon Brewery leads 10 person tours by appointment demonstrating the magic of brewing on a smaller scale in his facility on Greenwood Ave. Visitors end the tour with a ½ hour tasting of a seven-beer flight. Cascade Lakes Brewery, Bend Brewing Company and McMenamins Old St. Francis School also offer tours by appointment.

Don't forget to schedule your vacation in Oregon around one of Bend's many annual beer celebrations like the Little Woody Barrel-Aged Brew & Whiskey Festival, Bend BrewFest, The Fermentation Celebration, Oregon Beer Month, Zwickelmania, and Bend Oktoberfest.