There’s been almost no fanfare or publicity for this—indeed, even I almost missed it if not for my wife—but Bend Brewing Company is turning 15 today and celebrating in grand style:
Saturday, February 27th marks the fifteenth anniversary of the BBC. The anniversary party will last all day, beginning at 11:30 a.m. with half-priced appetizers and $2.50 pints of beer, both of which will be served until closing time that evening.
From 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., visit the BBC Garage Sale. Miscellaneous merchandise, including shirts, hats, pint glasses and more, will be offered at very good prices. Guests will also have the opportunity to win tons of great raffle prizes from 5 to 10 p.m.
From 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., enjoy live music on the patio from The Buck Rodgers Band, known far and wide for their progressive alt rock with a twist of psycho-billy and infused psychedelic jams. Fire pits will keep revelers warm as they boogie, and a server will be on hand to ensure crowds are adequately fed and watered.
In the 15 years since Bend’s second-ever microbrewery opened, what’s remarkable about it is how little it’s changed: they are still in the same building, with the same overall decor and atmosphere, and (largely) serve up much of the same menu over the years. They exist in a popular niche in Bend and done a great job nurturing that niche.
Even for all that, what’s more remarkable is what has changed: the quality of the beer. When brewmaster Tonya Cornett came aboard in 2002, she helped put BBC on the map, so to speak, from a craft brewing perspective: with Great American Beer Festival and World Beer Cup awards for HopHead Imperial IPA and Outback X, among others, as well as other awards, BBC has become a beer geek’s destination (and has helped cement Bend, Oregon in the “Beer Pantheon” along with Deschutes Brewing and other great brewers in town).
Happy 15th to Bend Brewing! I plan to enjoy come down and enjoy some of the party today.
I suppose you can’t talk “Big Beers” without mentioning (at least in passing!) Belgium. In this case, it’s a Christmas beer: 
Appearance: Nut-brown and cloudy, with a rocky, impressive tan head.
Appearance: Mahogany brown with red highlights when held up to the light. Woody putty head.
Appearance: Pours thick and oily from the can, very little carbonation though a chocolate-brown head builds up a bit after the pour. Dark brown/black and thick.
Interestingly, unlike a lot of big beers coming out these days, this is only available in 12-ounce bottles (rather than the 22-ounce bombers everyone seems to be using). That makes for a nice serving size but the price is steeper than what you might be used to: $8-9 for the 12-ounce. It’s worth it, though.
Appearance: Very dark red-brown; you can just see ruby when held to the light. Finely-bubbled half-finger of tan foam.
Appearance: Hammered copper in color that’s deep red when held to the light. Nice tan head that broke down to lacy rings.
It’s the first Friday of the month again, and that means it’s time for “Beer Blogging Friday”—AKA The Session, the monthly collaboration of beer bloggers across the world to write about a common topic. All the participating blog posts will then be gathered and summarized by the host for the month (who is also the one who got to pick the theme and set any ground rules).