I get to play tour guide and guest hostess to several dozen out of towners attending a week-long meeting here in PDX. Last year, their meeting overlapped with the Oregon Brewer’s Festival. This year, we’ll miss it by a week – a fact I’m hearing complaints about left and right, let me tell you!

So if I’m putting together a guide of authentic local brewpubs, where do I start? What do I leave off the list? (Rock Bottom seems too corporate-y to me.) Does Bridgeport in NW still warrant a mention, or have they gone too yuppified? Will Laurelwood work for those escaping their own children for a week?

Keep in mind that many of these travelers are from far-flung lands where microbrews are a foreign concept, while others are home-brewing types convinced they’re journeying to the Holy Land.

Bonus points to those mentioning locations close-in to downtown or easily accessible via mass transit – my hostly requirements don’t extend as far as providing transportation and/or a late night taxi/shuttle service. (Besides, I’ve been promised several beverages myself if I come up with the right stuff, so won’t be doing any designated driver-ing.)

Hmmm…maybe I need to put together (or find) a Beer Bus here….