Welcome to another installment of the Oregon Brewery Running Series Podcast; Inspiring Oregonians to Get Active, Have Fun, and Give Back. We host family-friendly, 5K fun runs that start and end at some of Oregon’s best breweries.
Today on the podcast, we’re talking all about Laurelwood Brewing. We’ll be running there on August 11, 2018, for the third year in a row, and hope you’ll join us! Laurelwood caters to families, and as you’ll hear from co-founder and co-owner Mike Dekalb, that was 100% intentional, and part of the driving motivation to open the brewpub in the first place. But Laurelwood isn’t only about dinosaurs, Little Tikes play kitchens, and being cool about continually cleaning up ketchup explosions. They also serve delicious food and award-winning beers. We’ll dive into some of that, and talk about the new beer they have on tap, with their brand new brewmaster, Eric Ebel. While Eric is new to this position, he’s been at Laurelwood for four years and was eager to talk about what they’re brewing.
So enjoy today’s episode about the past, present, and future of Laurelwood Brewing!
Left: Eric and Nathan in the brewhouse. Right: The Freeburg family in a rare still moment at Laurelwood!
Resources Mentioned
- Christian Ettinger Interview
- Ben from Happy Mountain Interview
- Laurelwood Brewing Home Page
- Laurelwood Run Registration Page
- New School Beer Blog about Don Younger
A Brief History of Laurelwood Brewing
Mike De Kalb and his wife Cathy have a long history of working in the restaurant business. Cathy’s family owned a restaurant when she was growing up, and Mike has been working in the industry in one form or another since he was in high school. When they got the location for their first place, they discovered it had a brewery in it. Mike called Mike Widmer (who he knew from his days running food service at the airport), who introduced him to Christian Ettinger (now the founder/owner of Hopworks).
At the time they were creating Laurelwood, Mike and Cathy had two kids, an eleven-year-old and a four-year-old, with a third on the way. Mike says the whole family focused brewery theme came from, sort of just their own need. According to their website;
The two opened the establishment hoping to create an environment that made you feel like you were at a party at their house. The brewery and public house quickly became a family friendly neighborhood spot for great food and even better beer. To put it simply, it became and continues to be “A Place Where Friends and Families Meet.”
As of 2018, Laurelwood now has pub locations at 51st and NE Sandy NE and SE Milwaukie Blvd and a location at the Portland International Airport. The NE Sandy location is home to a 15 barrel brewing system where brewmaster Eric Ebel and crew and brewing up some tasty beers for you!
Laurelwood beer can be found on draft and in 12oz canned packages around Oregon and Washington.
About Us
The Oregon Brewery Running Series is about inspiring Oregonians to Get Active, Have Fun, and Give Back. We host family-friendly, 5K fun runs that start and end at some of Oregon’s best breweries. Register for our next run here! Use promo code ‘Laurelwood5,’ and you’ll save $5 off your entry. Our theme music, the Oregon Song, is written and performed by James Hoffman.
