Expanding in multiple areas, pFriem Family Brewers provides an exciting outlook in 2020
image of co-owners (from left-to-right) Josh Pfriem, Ken Whiteman, and Rudy Kellner
With nearly 8,000 craft breweries in the United States, it's never been a better time to enjoy a beer. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for those seeking to start their first or next brewery in the United States. With a strong demand for local or regional beers, coupled with an almost rabid-like competition, it’s important to distinguish yourself not only by name or quantity of options but also by showing a near-technical exhibition of brewing. As one area quickly expanding brands, pFriem Family Brewers enters 2020 with a focus on innovation, expansion, and looking inward towards their loyal customer-base.
Cascade Locks
Starting last year, pFriem Family Brewers, in cooperation with the Port of Cascade Locks, selected and agreed-upon a site for their soon to be opened dry-storage and barrel-aging warehouse. Through their relationship with the Cascade Locks, pFriem latest expansion showcases their dedication towards producing a greater volume of thought-provoking, barrel-aged beers which use mixed-fermentation and spontaneous yeast strains. As part of an invitation-only event, the brewers, ownership, and staff updated us on beers made at the Cascade Locks, their recent brewery purchase, and a thank you to their loyal fans and customers.
During a seasonable February mid-afternoon, the brewers and ownership of pFriem Family Brewers provided us an opportunity to visit and walk throughout their upcoming barrel warehouse and distribution center.
Not taken on the actual day of our tour. image sourced from pFriem Family Brewers’ Instagram account.
Broken into multiple sections, the warehouse contains a cold-room for barrel-aging in previous-use barrels (including bourbon, rum, tequila, whiskey, and whisky), a hot-room used to age (spontaneous or mixed-culture) beers, and a voluminous racking area which houses barrels. Finally, the warehouse has a large refrigerated room for storage of bottles, kegs, ready for distribution to and from their main brewery or for distribution through a network of wholesalers.
The warehouse isn’t without thoughts of guests, which is why the brewery has dedicated a space within the racking area to host gatherings. For pFriem’s head brewer, the lack of accommodation by many breweries (with barrel-aging programs) inspired Gavin Lord to provide a welcoming space where guests are greeted by a large table complimented by two large windows, facing the Columbia River.
With construction completed soon, look for more pFriem barrel-aged releases later in the year.
Innovation in brewing
image of head brewer (left) next to their Coolship (2018), sourced from pFriem Family Brewers
Recently, pFriem took ownership of a state-of-the-art brewery from Germany’s GEA. With this acquisition, the brewery will have an improved, automated system that will allow the brewery to not only brew consistent beers but also produce greater volumes of beers like their Pilsner and IPA. This also allows the brewery to use their 15-barrel brewery as a sort-of pilot brewery for producing experimental and speciality beers. However, head brewer is quick to remind people that having an innovative brewery doesn’t mean less work. To put that into terms of volume, the brewery produced some 28,000 barrels on their 15-barrel brewery in 2019. With this acquisition, the brewery plans to produce around 34 or 35,000 barrels by the end of 2020.
To prepare for this new brewery, the brewers and ownership is working with the Port of Hood River to update the brewery’s electrical wiring and plumbing, with the brewery’s expected installation at the end of April. With these infrastructure improvements, the brewery will increase its output (towards a goal of 80 - 100,000 barrels in the future) while reducing the amount of waste it exports to Hood River’s water treatment facility.
Innovation in cooking
image of Executive Chef Justin Condon, sourced from pFriem Family Brewers
In their ongoing commitment towards reducing their footprint while maintaining their status as a local business, Executive Chef Justin Condon expands on the brewery’s investment in nearby and seasonal ingredients. As a destination brewery, both for residents and travelers from outside of the area, the kitchen is dedicated towards providing thought-provoking cuisine that compliments whatever pFriem beer is in your glass. This starts by sitting down with the kitchen staff and brewers, followed by reaching out to purveyors like Olympia Provisions and Cascade Creamery. Examples of this include the kitchen’s charcuterie and cheese plates, house bratwurst, pimento burger, and their seasonal options (like their current beer blanc-roasted served with crispy golden potatoes, fresh chard with lemon, cauliflower puree, lambic-butter sauce).
Dedication to locally sourced or seasonal ingredients requires not only discipline but also staff and storage. Which is why the kitchen, as a happy side-effect of the barrel-program moving, will expand to accommodate more food prep and cooking.
Innovation through hops
image sourced from pFriem Family Brewers’ Instagram
With a little help from YCH (Yakima Chief - Hop Union), the brewery is collaborating to provide feedback on innovative and experimental hops that inspire pFriem brewer to produce unique applications to traditional styles like IPA, Pilsner, or even Stouts. With names like El Dorado and Cashmere, the brewery looks forward towards these establish hop varietals but also hard-to-get hops from the Southern Hemisphere in countries like New Zealand and Australia. Look for new and interesting releases at the taproom and who knows, a bar near you.
The pFriemsters Union Local 541
Launched in late 2019, pFriem Family Brewers invited regulars and a few loyal customers to join the Founding Members of pFriemsters Union Local 541.
With a focus on cultivating a welcoming, inclusive, engaging, and educational experience; the Union Local 541 is an opportunity for Hood River locals and fans of the brand, to learn more about the brewery, brewery techniques, and even the menu items featured in Chef Justin’s kitchen. With the first 250 members registered as part of the Founding Members, the brewery has recently elected to open registration to additional members.
image sourced from pFriem Family Brewers
Should you register and tender your membership, your annual dues (paid in four transactions throughout the year) of between $115 and $130 include:
Four quarterly shipments of six unique pairs of rare pFriem beer for a total of 48 bottles per year. You will receive a combination of verticals, new releases, and styles brewed with our Union Members in mind. Shipments will vary in style based on season and our brewers’ creativity.
10% off all future in-house and online bottle purchases. To receive your discount for online bottle purchases email us at union@pfriembeer.com or give us a call at (541) 414-6666.
Discounts at the Best Western Plus Hood River Inn. We invite you to stay in town when you attend our events. Make it a weekend.
First access to beer education events, beer dinners, meet-the-brewer opportunities, quarterly tours, unique beers, specialty merchandise and more.
Enjoy early notice and priority access to pFriem events. You will also have entry to exclusive events hosted specifically for our Union members.
Quarterly membership allocations occur in Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter
Access to a private Facebook page where we will communicate upcoming events and invite fellow Union members to get to know each other.
An example of the perks was the recent Timberline Lodge dinner with Mt. Hood Brewing and pFriem, where members of the Local 541 were notified in advance before tickets went on sale. While another is the opportunity to learn more about lambic and blending through classes with brewers like pFriem Head Brewer Gavin Lord.
With a central goal of becoming more engaging, while rewarding those who support the brand through membership, the pFriemsters Union Local 541 allows people to become advocates for independent beer.
For more information about pFriem Family Brewers, their kitchen and beer menu, or general information such as hours visit https://www.pfriembeer.com/.
