Oregon Brewsheds

• Bear Creek/Nicolai-Wickiup Watershed

  Located in Astoria at the mouth of the Columbia River, Fort George Brewery draws its water from Bear Creek inside the greater Nicolai-Wickiup watershed. The City of Astoria recently decided to cut back on timber harvests surrounding Bear Creek, not just for clean water, but to offset carbon emissions. Smart move! Letting trees grow older, and cutting fewer of them down, are part of how forests can be a great natural climate solution.

  Around Astoria, most forests are privately owned, or managed by the State or local governments. They are subject to the Oregon Forest Practices Act, which allows clearcut logging and other damaging practices that can harm watersheds. New rules that Oregon Wild worked hard to enact will better protect streams and steep slopes from logging, so that we have better water quality and habitat for fish. That’s a huge benefit for water and beer-drinkers alike in the northern Oregon Coast Range!

  Brewshed® Partners:

  • Fort George Brewing

• Bull Run/Little Sandy Watershed

  Portland has bragging rights to some of the best drinking water in the country thanks to the Bull Run/Little Sandy watershed, but that delicious H2O and the plethora of Portland breweries that rely on it wouldn’t be if not for the decades of work to keep the watershed pristine.

  Closed to most human entry since 1895, the Bull Run Reserve collects its water from rain, fog drip, and snowfall in the forested wildlands west of Mount Hood. In the 1990s, when storm runoff and erosion from reckless logging projects on federal land threatened to foul Bull Run’s water, Oregon Wild pushed the city of Portland to take a stand and help Oregon Wild in stopping these destructive projects, eventually protecting the 95,000 acres of forestland surrounding the Bull Run/Little Sandy watersheds.

  But it didn’t end there – in 2009 when the clean, natural waters were at risk of chemical treatment, Widmer Brothers and Oregon Wild teamed up to safeguard Portland’s water supply. This was how the Oregon Brewshed® Alliance concept was born! So as you sip that refreshing Breakside IPA in the summer heat, or drink a Hopworks Abominable Winter Ale on the slopes of Mount Hood, remember the wild protected in every pint!

  Brewshed® Partners:

  • Breakside Brewing
  • Ecliptic Brewing
  • Grand Fir Brewing
  • Hopworks Brewing
  • Leikam Brewing
  • Oak Union Brewing
  • Portland Cider
  • Widmer Brothers Brewing
• McKenzie River Watershed

  The McKenzie River Watershed is the source of drinking water for nearly 200,000 people in the Eugene metropolitan area, and a key part of the recipe in the craft brews of Eugene-area brewshed partners.

  Long recognized for its high quality, the waters of the McKenzie originate in the Cascade Mountains near Clear Lake. The main stem is about 90 miles long, and some sections of the river are designated with federal “Wild and Scenic” and “Oregon Scenic Waterway” protections that ensure it runs wild and free and home to threatened salmon populations.

  But integral to the McKenzie watershed’s drinking water purity is our protected public lands. Ground waters that accumulate in the McKenzie River originate in tributaries in the Willamette National Forest, including the protected Mount Washington Wilderness and Three Sisters Wilderness areas. Thousands of acres of mature and old-growth forests still capture, cool, and filter these waters, including along many miles of streams proposed for Wild & Scenic River protections in the River Democracy Act.

  However, without more protections, these forests and some of the McKenzie’s tributaries are still at risk from proposed logging operations. Anyone who enjoys a refreshing pint of Eugene-made beer should raise a glass and toast to Wilderness, and raise their voice to protect more Wild & Scenic Rivers and old forests!

  Brewshed® Partners:

  • Claim 52 Brewing
  • Coldfire Brewing
  • Falling Sky Brewing
  • Hop Valley Brewing
  • Ninkasi Brewing
  • Oakshire Brewing
• Upper Deschutes Watershed

  If you’ve ever visited the area, you know Central Oregon residents are fortunate to have great scenery, clean water, and high-quality beer (there’s even a Bend Ale Trail!), so it’s no surprise that Bend-area breweries work to combine those elements into their beer. Bend breweries draw their water from the Tumalo Creek watershed, of which a vast majority lies within the public lands of the Deschutes National Forest. This water originates in the cool, clear springs in the Happy Valley area and snow melt from iconic Broken Top Mountain in the Three Sisters Wilderness, and travels through some of the most celebrated outdoor recreation areas in the state. Tumalo Creek is proposed for protections under the Wild & Scenic Rivers Act – a well-deserved addition to other protected rivers like the headwaters of Wychus Creek and the upper Deschutes. Preserving these wildlands and rivers is not only important for local brews, but it’s key to Central Oregon’s economy as a mecca for outdoor enthusiasts.

  Whether you’re cracking open a can of a Brewshed partner brew after a day of hiking, fishing, or mountain biking through Central Oregon, you’re basically enjoying our public lands twice: a day out on the trail and wildlands-filtered beer!

  Brewshed® Partners:

  • Avid Cider
  • Cascade Lakes Brewing
  • Deschutes Brewing
  • Sunriver Brewing
  • Worthy Brewing
• Hood River Watershed

  While the town of Hood River sits along the banks of the mighty Columbia river, the source of its drinking (and brewing) water are springs between two branches of the town’s namesake Hood River – miles to the southwest. The spring’s water bubbles up from the protected wildlands on the slopes of Mount Hood, and the pristine waters of the Hood River branches are proposed for protection under the Wild & Scenic Rivers Act. Breweries in Hood River thrive in part because of this great water, but also because of the protected public lands that draw people from all over to hike in ancient forests, enjoy wild glacier-fed streams, and take in the views of Oregon’s highest peak.

  Brewshed® Partners:

  • pFreim Family Brewers

• Mid-Willamette River Watershed

  The streams that flow east out of the Coast Range foothills and west from the Cascades meander through rural communities and farmland of the Willamette Valley on their way to feed the Willamette River. From Corvallis to the Newberg area, headwater streams feed bigger ones like the Marys, Luckiamute, and Yamhill Rivers, while Silver Creek arises within the Silver Falls State Park to join the Pudding River. Hop-growing brewshed partners in the Willamette Valley rely on groundwater, so they work to use water sustainably as it runs towards the Willamette River and north. Hop-farming practices that reduce water use and chemical inputs benefit the downstream part of this major watershed. 

  In Corvallis, Rock Creek flows from the forested slopes of Marys Peak into the Marys River and provides water for the city and its breweries. The forest of the municipal watershed is managed by the city to provide timber and protect water quality, and up slope on the peak, the US Forest Service protects and restores ancient forests and meadows.

  Brewshed® Partners:

  • Block 15 Brewing
  • Coleman Agriculture 
  • Crosby Hops 
  • Old Standby Brewing
  • Parallel 45 Brewing
  • Silver Falls Brewing
  • Xicha Brewing
• Applegate & Ashland Creek Watershed

  Breweries and cider makers in the southwest Oregon communities of Grants Pass, Medford, and Ashland depend on the Applegate River and Ashland Creek watersheds for the water they need to brew and to grow fruit. The Applegate River and its tributaries flow north off of the Siskiyou Crest – the divide between Oregon and California, to the Rogue River. In addition to the pear and other fruit trees cider-makers grow with water from the Applegate, native salmon and steelhead runs depend on the many upstream tributaries such as the Little Applegate, Star Gulch, Mule Creek, and Palmer Creek – many proposed as Wild & Scenic Rivers under the River Democracy Act.

  In Ashland, the municipal watershed that provides high quality water from the forested slopes of Mount Ashland in the Siskiyou National Forest also offers recreation in all seasons.

  The area draws tourists to experience the stellar local agricultural and brewed products, while surrounding forest lands offer a scenic backdrop. As important as the public lands here are for providing clean, cool water, protected forests and streams are not the rule. Lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management are mixed with the farms and vineyards and water sources of the region, but protections for wild streams, ancient forests, and large undeveloped wild  areas where so many streams originate are weaker than they should be.

  Brewshed® Partners:

  • Blossom Barn Cidery