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What beer page would
be complete without some mention of the booming microbrew
trade within the state of Oregon. While most of our
50 states can claim a diverse collection of microbrews,
many, if not most, produce products that can be deemed
at best, average. Not to say that the state of Oregon
doesn't have a few average brews. They do. However Oregon
also has a number of outstanding brews that are worthy
of note.
One of those breweries
of particular acclaim and notoriety is the Oregon Brewing
Company, better known as The Rogue Brewing Company.
If you had heard three
former shoe execs responsible for creating the marketing
machine known as Nike, had put aside their corporate
ways and along with several friends started a campy,
down to earth Brewery in Ashland, Oregon, you might
be a bit suspicious. Maybe the out of the way location,
the funky silk-screened 650 ml bottles and the rest
were all part of a poorly shrouded marketing gimmick.
Actually before Nike
became the swoosh clad monolith, maverick rogues like
Jack Joyce, Rob Strasser and Bob Woodell helped make
the little known company a success, by following their
instincts and ignoring the MBA's.
Following a stint at
Adidas America, the three brought their skills and business
knowledge to the brewing industry with the creation
of The Rogue Brewing Company. Jack Joyce took on the
primary responsibility of running the business while
his friends from Nike watched from the sidelines. Brewer
Greg Kebkey and Manager Steve Brewster rounded out Rogue's
team.
After some early growing
pains and miscues, including a flooded brewery, Jack
Joyce was convinced by famed Oregonian Mo Niemi to relocate
the brewery to Newport, Oregon and open a Brew Pub.
As further proof of
Rogues motivations, John Maier was hired on as a brewer
in 1989. John had been an award winning home brewer
and had graduated from The Siebel Institute for Brewing
Technology before spending several years with the Alaskan
Brewery in Juneau.
It wasn't long before
vacationers visiting the Rogue Brew pub were asking
about obtaining Rogue's tasty wares back home. Fueled
by a growing list of brewing awards and praise from
beer critics, Rogue Ale's were soon being bottled and
shipped around the world.
One benefit of using
silk-screened bottles at Rogue, is that it is cost effective
to produce wide number of products including specialty
beers created for various organizations and groups.
Several of these specialty brews have proven so popular
they are now part of Rogues main product line.
Andy's endeavors to
keep a good selection of Rogue products in stock. Stop
in and see what we have today.
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