B is for bookstores and breweries (Portlandia from A to Z)

Bookstores and breweries go together, especially because Portland has more independent bookstores AND breweries per capita than any other city in the country. In fact, wouldn't that make a wonderful new venue--a brewery-bookstore? I'll get right on that... :) 

Bookstores

As my blog followers know, I'm a confirmed reading addict and have a separate blog just for my book reviews. And I love bookstores.

Portland's number of bookstores helps us get on multiple top 10 lists such as Top 10 Best Cities for Nerds, and #1 for book lovers. Of our 139 independent bookstores, I have two personal favorites:

Powell's City of Books

The great and mighty Powell's Bookstore, which claims to be the largest independent new and used bookstore in the world. In addition to its online store, Powell's has several brick-and-mortar bookstores:

1. Powell's City of Books, which houses over 1 million books and occupies a full city block
2. Cedar Hills Crossing (in the burbs)
3. Hawthorne (in one of the hipster neighborhoods)
4. Portland International Airport 
5. Technical Books
6. Books for Home and Garden

Powell's buys 4,000 used books each day and its total inventory numbers over 1 million new, used, rare, and out-of-print books. I used to go to Powell's every summer before going back to college to stock up on my English books. It is a rare gem...and this story is a wonderful example of its quirky ability to connect people.

The Hobbit and Gandalf
 (two of my boys at a Hobbit
 celebration at Annie Bloom's)

I'm also supremely lucky to have a marvelous neighborhood bookstore just 1/2 mile away from my 

house, Annie Bloom's, which truly feels like my family's home away from home! We've celebrated Harry Potter there, as well as the Hobbit and the opening of World Book Night, and we love to hear our favorite writers speak as well as simply browse and buy! And to top it off, they do free gift wrapping!

Breweries

You don't have to go far in Portland to get your hands on a craft microbrew. We have more breweries (52) than any other city in the world. CNN named Portland #1 on its 8 Best Beer Cities in America; Travel & Leisure named it #1 as "America's Best Beer Cities" and Esquire named it one of its Best Beer Cities.

In addition to breweries, Portland celebrates its beer with multiple Oktoberfests, the Oregon Brewer's Festival, Portland International Beer Festival, Portland Beer Week, and Biketobeerfest. It's all about quality over quantity, though, and no self-respecting hipster would find herself dead drinking Budweiser or Coors! 

Beer tasting at the Full Sail Brewing Company last year

Where else but Portland would two brothers found a microbrewery-entertainment conglomerate? (More about the McMenamin brothers in an upcoming post.)

Here are a few of my favorite places to drink microbrewed beer:

Deschutes Brewery

Raleigh Hills Pub

• Deschutes Brewery in the Pearl District (favored by my husband for their gluten-free menu!)
  
• Old standby: the Raleigh Hills Pub (we used to walk there when we were first married), Edgefield, Hillsdale, or ANY McMenamin's pub (my drink of choice is the "Rubinator," an off-the-menu combination of dark Terminator beer and raspberry-flavored Ruby ale)
  
• Lucky Labrador Pub (also within walking distance from my house): I usually order pear cider, but they have good beer too
  
• Portland Brewing Company Taproom in an industrial area of NW Portland
  
• Bridgeport Brew Pub (we attended a great wedding there, when they sang "Going to the brew pub and we're going to get married!")
  
• Raccoon Lodge and the Old Market Pub (also not too far from us)
  



Lucky Lab in my hood

• New favorite since I toured the brewery last year: Full Sail Brewing Company (this is actually in Hood River, but within driving distance of Portland)

These have all been around awhile--I haven't had a chance to visit the newer brew pubs. Looks like I have to branch out a little!

Best of all, I have a few friends who brew beer on their own. Homebrewed beer right is the absolute best and freshest!

Read my other A to Z posts here, and stay tuned for tomorrow: coffee and cupcakes!