AUTHOR BIO: Mei Chen has worked for nearly a dozen start-ups in as many years, taking her to several West Coast cities. While she’s sure her current day job is permanent, she also has her eye on Carmel.
Portland takes beer more seriously than most people take their jobs. I’ve seen couples spend an entire Saturday hopping between breweries the way other cities do brunch spots. It’s a place where a corner taproom might be pouring a barrel-aged sour that took years to perfect, right next to a crisp lager brewed with scientific precision, and somehow both feel perfectly at home.
What’s remarkable is that Portland’s breweries aren’t just chasing trends—they’re creating them. Cold IPAs were practically invented here, sours have cult followings, and even the lager has been reclaimed from its watery mass-market past.
Walk into any of these 12 breweries and you’ll find a crowd that’s equal parts neighborhood locals, visiting beer nerds, and the casually curious who just came in for a pint and walked out with a new obsession.
Baerlic Brewing
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Baerlic nails the neighborhood-brewery vibe—bustling beer halls, families at long tables, and Ranch Pizza sending out square pies next door. Order Dad Beer (a pre-Prohibition lager) or something from the WoodWorker barrel program if you want to see their range. With three Portland taprooms, you’re never far from a fresh pour.
Best for: Hops and lagers without pretense
Breakside Brewery
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Portland’s medal machine is big, buzzy, and—thanks to its 2019 ESOP—employee-owned. Flagship Breakside IPA still sings, but the fun is chasing seasonal IPAs and the award-winning barrel-aged stouts across its many pubs. Their trophy haul continues, including a pile of World Beer Cup medals in 2025.
Best for: Big variety and award-winning IPAs
Fracture Brewing
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A bright, lively Stark Street taproom links up with the Lil’ America pod next door, so it feels like a block party with beer. Fracture pours its own rotating lineup alongside guest taps and cocktails, and runs a downtown bar cart at Midtown Beer Garden. They shuttered their production facility in 2024 and shifted to a leaner, taproom-driven model—plan your visit around the Stark Street spot.
Best for: Easygoing variety downtown
Grand Fir Brewing
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Two floors, warm wood, and a hum of conversation—Grand Fir is the brewpub you wish was on your block. Brewer Whitney Burnside’s lagers and IPAs (Lichen IPA, Honky Tonk Nighthawk) pair with chef Doug Adams’ comfort-food menu, making the place a full evening, not just a pint stop. It’s a newer star that’s already racking up accolades.
Best for: Beer + dinner
Great Notion Brewing
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Casual rooms, cartoon-art cans, and beers that taste like a pastry case—that’s the draw. Chase hazies like Ripe or lean into cult classics like Double Stack, the maple-and-coffee stout that put them on the national map. Multiple taprooms around town make it easy to pop in for a flight.
Best for: Dessert-adjacent sippers
Hopworks Urban Brewery
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The mothership on Powell is family-friendly and bikes-everywhere Portland to its core; the PDX Airport outpost keeps travelers in local beer. Expect organic, sustainability-first brewing and a menu that works for groups. It’s the city’s B-Corp brewpub that walks the talk.
Best for: Pre-flight pints
Little Beast Brewing
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A Craftsman house turned beer garden gives Little Beast a laid-back, leafy vibe that begs for lingering. Mixed-culture saisons and fruited sours are the calling cards, though the lager list keeps things crisp. Prettyboy Pizza in the back means your table smells like fresh pies and Brettanomyces.
Best for: Patio people
Living Häus Beer Co
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Plant-filled, modern, and lager-forward, Living Häus is the brewers’ brewery. Start with Pils Dolores, glide to the piney-bright Harris West Coast IPA, and watch the room fill as the afternoon turns golden. It’s run by Conrad Andrus and Mat Sandoval—ex-Modern Times—who rebuilt the former Belmont Fermentorium into a new Portland staple.
Best for: Fans of lagers
Ruse Brewing
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Warehouse-cool in the Brooklyn neighborhood, Ruse rides the line between pillowy hazys and snappy West Coasts (Mirror Maker is the bullseye). The brand has grown into multiple locations while keeping the taplists tight and thoughtful. Hit the Waterfront and Slabtown locations for an extra bonus: some of the best grandma-style pizzas in the city.
Best for: Modern IPAs
Upright Brewing
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Tucked in the basement of the Leftbank building, Upright still feels like a secret shared at a friend’s practice space. The brewery built its name on farmhouse ales and now weaves in lagers, IPAs, and barrels without losing that funky heartbeat. Their Beer Station on NE Prescott adds a sunny taproom with a food-cart pod.
Best for: Saison seekers
Von Ebert Brewing
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Von Ebert turned the former Ecliptic site on N Cook Street into a shiny new production brewery and taproom in 2025, while keeping the Glendoveer outpost rolling. Order Volatile Substance, the Northwest IPA that’s pulled national medals and big press, then branch into lagers or mixed-culture projects. Note: the Pearl District brewpub closed in 2024.
Best for: Flagship IPA fans
Wayfinder Beer
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All steel, brick, and patio glow, Wayfinder is lager-centric but never boring. This is the home base of “Cold IPA,” the crisper, drier IPA approach that brewmaster Kevin Davey helped define—and it drinks beautifully with their smoke-kissed pub fare. Order a Festbier or Hell and add a Cold IPA for science.
Best for: Lager lovers and Cold IPA
