In 1984, BridgePort Brewing (called initially Columbia River Brewery) opened in an old rope factory in what is now the Pearl district of Portland, Oregon. Back then, they produced a whopping 600 barrels (these day’s they have a capacity around 100,000). This was shortly before the law changed allowing brewpubs to sell alcohol in the same place it was made.
Dick and Nancy Ponzi, BridgePort’s founders (who you may recognize more for their vineyard), teamed up with a few other local brewing legends to get the law changed. Names you may recognize like Kurt and Rob Widmer, Mike and Brian McMenamin as well as and Art Larrance, Fred Bowman, and Jim Goodwin, of Portland Brewing. Their goal was to legalize the brewpub, a place where breweries could make and sell their beer, something not happening at the time in the United States.
Well, good news, it passed! The rest is history of course and the craft beer revolution had begun, with BridgePort sitting at the center of it.
BridgePort has gone through a lot of changes over the years. In 1995, it was acquired by a Texas-based company called the Gambriunus Company, who expanded its capacity and distribution capabilities. Some credit BridgePort with popularizing the IPA, a style that is synonymous with beer in Oregon. Many people take visiting friends and relatives to the iconic BridgePort brewpub when visiting the city, to see where it all started.
No matter what you think about BridgePort today, the significance of their role in helping to establish Oregon as a beer mecca, is undeniable.
BridgePort Brewing Podcast
On this episode of the Oregon Brewery Running Series Podcast, I’m talking with Jeff Edgerton, Brewmaster at BridgePort Brewing. If this is your first time hearing about what we do, we host 5K fun runs that start and end at Oregon’s best breweries. Register here and join us for our next run!
Back in February of 2017, we hosted a 5K fun run with BridgePort as part of our winter series. At that time, I had the opportunity to sit down with Jeff and pick his brain about all things BridgePort beer. He’s been there since 1998 and has been in the beer business longer than that, so there was a lot of wisdom to absorb.
Jeff and I talked about a bunch of topics related to BridgePort, as well as what’s changed over the years in the craft beer scene here in Oregon.
He also shared some beer tips with me, like why you shouldn’t drink it too cold, the reasons they choose specific ingredients for their recipes and some of the science behind it (Jeff’s background is in biology). Jeff also describes, in detail, the stories behind the three beers we shared together. In addition to being a, “hop forward” brewery, he says they’re all about
“taking pride in what [they] do and trying to make a really, really good product.”
Enjoy my conversation with Jeff Edgerton, Brewmaster at BridgePort Brewing.
A huge thank you to Jeff Edgerton for taking the time to talk. This was one of the first interviews I did, and I was a little nervous. He was so laid back and friendly; it only took a minute to feel comfortable. Also, thanks for the free beer.
