Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Beervana's Organic Revolution


One of the reasons I switched to writing from advertising was the opportunity to address issues I feel passionate about. My Market Watch column in the Oregonian's FoodDay section is all about the conversation that happens at your local farmers' market when you ask about the garlic or the lettuce or whatever it is they're selling. It's a fundamentally different transaction than shopping at the supermarket and I happen to believe it changes our lives for the better on many different levels.

Today's article on the cover of FoodDay, titled "Beervana's Organic Revolution," is about two guys who brew beer, Craig Nicholls of Roots Organic Brewing and Christian Ettinger of Hopworks Urban Brewery (HUB). Not terribly unusual in the Northwest, to be sure, but the fact that every beer they brew is made with organic ingredients is extremely unique. Sure, they want to make the best beer they can, but their real agenda is to change the way things are done, from our system of agriculture to the assumptions underlying the way we live our lives. I think it's worth a read. Maybe over a beer.

Photo of organic barley from Peak Organic Brewing Company.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Enjoyed the article with my lunch. Had a good time pretending I was enjoying an organic brew.

Kathleen Bauer said...

Glad you liked it...it was great fun to do, though both interviews were in the morning so it was a bit early to partake of some brews. Though, as Christian said, "It's always noon somewhere!"

Anonymous said...

I think I lost the long comment I'd typed. Short version: great article. Hope to see you at the festival.

Kathleen Bauer said...

Thanks, Alan. And I hope to be there, too...with or without the blogger hat on!