“I don’t understand people who say they don’t like beer. It’s
like saying they don’t like food,” says Abram Goldman-Armstrong,
shaking his head slightly. “There are so many different kinds of
beer.”
Along with Craig Nicholls of Roots Organic Brewing,
Goldman-Armstrong, a heavily sideburned 30-year-old beer writer, is
co-founder of the North American Organic Brewers Festival (NAOBF). He
knows of what he speaks: The festival, which runs this weekend in North
Portland’s Overlook Park, features 75 different brewskis from all over
the world. They range from effervescent pilsners to domineering stouts
and even a rowdy malt liquor, but they have one thing in common:
They’re all organic.
Let’s clear up one misconception about organic beer right up front.
Just because it’s organic, doesn’t mean it tastes better.
“If you put two beers in front of me, one organic and one not,”
Goldman-Armstrong tells me, “I probably couldn’t tell the
difference.”
In fact, taste is not necessarily the point of brewing organically.
It’s more about being environmentally conscious. (Okay, it’s also about
getting high on tasty fermentations—but doing it with a smaller
carbon footprint.)
Along with the rise in craft brewing, there has been a steady
increase in organic beer production in the United States. 30,500
barrels (that’s 945,500 gallons) of organic beer were produced in
2007/2008—a 5,500 barrel increase from the previous year’s
output.
According to Goldman-Armstrong, this output is the result of people
thinking more about the energy and chemicals required to grow the huge
crops of corn that are a major ingredient in most corporate beer.
“Just because huge factory farms are effective doesn’t mean that the
farming practices are better,” he explains. “Organics are better for
farms, the workers, and the environment.”
Goldman-Armstrong notes these factory farms are relatively new to
beer anyway. He points out that most beer was organic until after WWII,
when a surplus of chemical weapons was directed toward farmland as
fertilizer and pesticides. When you think about how those chemicals
have affected the health of the environment and farm workers, corporate
brew begins to look a lot less refreshing.
The organic craft brewers featured at the NAOBF take the sustainable
approach to yeasty intoxicants. One participating brewery,
Crannóg Ales, aims for zero waste on its small farm in British
Columbia. Spent grain from the brewing process is fed to hogs, whose
manure fertilizes the organic hops. Chickens roam hop rows to keep
pests at bay and water is recycled or used for crops and animals. It’s
an elegant, environmentally sound, closed-loop system that produces
beer like the Back Hand of God stout.
In the five years the festival has been showcasing breweries like
Crannóg, it’s grown from 20 to 40 participating breweries. This
has made it the largest organic brewing festival in the world.
Local favorite Hopworks Urban Brewing will tap their mellow IPA and
deeply flavorful Survival Stout for the festival. The demand for
Hopworks selections at last year’s festival meant that their kegs were
the first to run dry.
Hopworks master brewer Christian Ettinger considers organic brewing
the obvious choice and a great way to start talking about the
environment. “Agriculturally we are in dire straights in the amount of
petro-chemicals on the land,” he says. “So we need to grow demand for
sustainability.”
He believes places like his SE Powell brewpub and the NAOBF offer
social environments to help demand grow. Because when people start
talking to each other about their concerns over a couple of pints, one
concern is likely to be what they’re putting in their bodies.
But there’s more than just promoting organic brewers—the
festival itself is environmentally sound. It’s powered by a biodesiel
generator, the tasting cups and cutlery are biodegradable, and there
are discounts for attendees who take public transportation to Overlook
Park. Also, some proceeds from the festival go to charities like the
Oregon Food Bank and Oregon Tilth, which helps certify and promote
organic farmers.
Still, Goldman-Armstrong claims it’s mostly about the brew, or as he
puts it, “great beer that just happens to be organic.” He’s also
certain there is a beer out there for everyone. If you pace yourself,
eat something, and drink plenty of water, it can probably be found at
the NAOBF. Or you can just go to get drunk. Either way, in Mother
Nature’s eyes, you’re off the hook for a few beer-soaked hours.