The Bend Beer Scene, Part 3
I hope everyone had a fantastic and beery Christmas! Today we’re continuing our coverage of Bend’s beer scene with two of Bend’s more recent breweries: five-year-old McMenamins Old St. Francis School, and three-year-old 10 Barrel Brewing.
McMenamins Old St. Francis School
By now everyone in the Pacific Northwest knows the McMenamins story, but for those of you elsewhere, here’s a quick recap: in 1983 Brian and Mike McMenamin opened the Barley Mill Pub in Southeast Portland, the first of many in what would become a brewing empire. Taking old properties—in some cases, properties that weren’t associated with beer in the first place—and renovating them into funky, warm, comfortable brewpubs (and hotels, and restaurants, and more), the McMenamins brothers have expanded into dozens of locations across Oregon and Washington, and have played a significant role in the craft brewing movement here in Oregon.
Bend finally received its first McMenamins in 2004 (after a long wait): the Old St. Francis School. They took the, er, old St. Francis Catholic school property and turned it into one of their signature locales: a brewpub and restaurant, of course, but also a hotel (rooms are renovated former school classrooms), a theater pub (second-run movies with beer and food available), cottages (for large parties looking to rent out something larger than a hotel room), and even a Turkish bath.
The Old St. Francis School is as much a destination as it is a brewpub, but that works to your advantage: whether you’re looking for a meal, a place to stay for the night, a movie, or just a beer, you can’t go wrong here. In addition to the regular line-up of McMenamins ales (Hammerhead Ale, Ruby, Terminator Stout, Sunflower IPA), the Old St. Francis School also brews several in-house specialties and seasonals (Fireside Red is one).
There’s a lot to do a the Old St. Francis School, but my top two recommendations are stopping in for a meal and some beer(s) at the restaurant, and seeing a movie. The restaurant is Northwest pub fare, hearty and filling without being flash. The theater is comfortably furnished with a mix of chairs and loveseats, and you can buy your drinks and order food at a dedicated bar in the back (servers will bring it out to you while the movie is playing). Movies are $3 and when paired with a beer and a plate of tater tots, makes for one of the most affordable entertainment deals around.
I mentioned the tots? They’re a staple of the appetizer/side/comfort food variety, and McMenamins is one of the few places you can get them. Don’t miss your chance for tots and a beer.
McMenamins Old St. Francis School
700 NW Bond Street
Bend, OR 97701
(541) 382-5174
Hours: Sun-Thur 7am-11pm, Fri-Sat 7am-1am
10 Barrel Brewing
10 Barrel is one of Bend’s newest brewery operations. Originally named Wildfire Brewing, they began brewing and selling beer in 2007 (though they were founded the year before), with a primary focus on distribution: their production brewery is located in an industrial area in Northeast Bend, and they distribute their beer to various accounts in Bend and Portland.
The brewery was founded by the owners of a local restaurant in downtown Bend, Chris and Jeremy Cox of JC’s Bar and Grill, and currently the restaurant is one place where you can find all of their line-up on tap. Good news, however: 10 Barrel is currently in the process of renovating a building into their new brewpub on Bend’s west side that was slated to open in late December. (Unfortunately, late December is here and I don’t have any further news about that yet.)
This new brewpub will also house a “barrel aging room” where they will be setting aside beer to experiment with and to age.
10 Barrel’s current lineup of beers include their flagship Code 24 Pale Ale, Apocalypse IPA, and a beer that has garnered some attention lately: S1NIST0R Black Ale, a smooth-drinking Schwarzbier than won a Bronze medal at the Great American Beer Festival this year. The key to this beer is a “special German dehusked black malt that is free of astringency” that gives it a smooth and chocolatey presence that goes down all too easily. They’ve recently bottled S1NIST0R in 22-ounce bombers and the beer looks like it could well be on its way to becoming their signature beer.
As you can find 10 Barrel’s beer around town in a number of places, there’s not much for me to point to until the new brewpub is opened. Right now, you’re best bet is to check out JC’s Bar and Grill, where you can find their beers on tap along with a full array of pub food and a local sport bar atmosphere: TVs on the walls and even a shuffleboard table. I’ve always had good service and tasty food the few times I’ve been there, and with their own fresh craft beer on tap, it’s a step up from your typical neighborhood pub.
10 Barrel Brewing (production brewery)
20750 High Desert Lane, #107
Bend, OR 97701
(541) 585-1007
JC’s Bar and Grill
642 NW Franklin
Bend, OR 97701
(541) 383-3000
10 Barrel Pub (pending)
1135 NW Galveston Ave.
Bend, OR 97701
(541) 585-1007
2 Comments to “The Bend Beer Scene, Part 3”
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Of of my favorite things at McMenamins are the tots – yum!