Oregon town seeks first microbrewery
SALEM, Ore. — An Oregon town near one of America’s microbrew meccas is thirsting for a piece of the action and offering incentives for the first brewery to establish itself in the community.
In an internet presentation aimed at luring craft brewers, Madras — which sits between irrigated farmland and high desert within sight of the snowcapped Cascade Range — says it will assist in site selection and costs of architecture, engineering, permits and building renovation. It also offers expedited permitting, technical assistance and an opportunity for a startup loan.
Consumption of craft beer in the U.S. keeps reaching new heights. Sales rose 6.2 percent by volume in 2016, to 24 million barrels, the Brewers Association said. Vermont has the most craft breweries per capita, with 10.8 per 100,000 adults. Oregon is fourth in the nation, with 8.1 per 100,000.
Madras has missed out so far in the craft beer craze. Some 40 miles to the south is Bend, which has at least 22 breweries for 91,000 residents (and many more hop-happy tourists) — among the highest number of microbreweries per capita in the United States.
Beer aficionados travel to Bend just to visit its brewpubs. Bend’s establishments include Deschutes Brewery, which opened in 1988 and pioneered central Oregon’s brewing revolution. But Deschutes has long outgrown its microbrewery status. Its beers are available in 28 states and Canada, and it plans to open a brewery in Roanoke, Va., in 2019. Another producer, 10 Barrel Brewing, was bought in 2014 by the world’s largest brewer, Anheuser-Busch InBev.
Madras’ 6,300 residents have been watching all this activity with a touch of jealousy as traffic along U.S. Route 97, which slices down central Oregon from Washington state to California, zips past the Black Bear Diner and other establishments, headed for points north or south.
“We want be able to stop this traffic going to Bend and say, ‘Come to Madras and check ours out first,’ ” Joe Krenowicz, executive director of the local chamber of commerce, said in a telephone interview.