“If she didn’t, having another beer birthday isn’t a bad thing,” he tells me. At this point, I could agree with him but how often should you tell your spouse they are right??!
“No seriously, weren’t we just at McMenamins celebrating Ruby’s 27th birthday?” I ask again.
“No, that was Hammerhead’s birthday,” he finally tells me.
McMenamins Brew Pubs (and beer) was started by a couple of brothers, Mike and Brian (of the same last name.) (Side note, soon another set of Brothers Kurt and Rob Widmer would start their brewery which is now the 9th largest in the US) The McMenamin’s created the first post-prohibition brewpub in Oregon in 1985 as soon as the Oregon Legislature legalized brewpubs. Serious,1985. Keep in mind, prohibition ended in 1933. I suppose that is the first time Oregon was really behind the times. My beer friends are now challenging me on this bit of information knowing that Widmer started brewing in 1984 but they didn’t open a brew pub; not yet anyhow.
That same year (back to 1985) McMenamins became the first brewery in the United States to legally use fruit in the brewing of ales and thus, Ruby Ale was born 27 years ago. Now you know why they celebrate her birthday. Pints were $2.50. Too bad they weren’t giving the stuff away but $2.50 is a fair price for a smooth Raspberry beer.
Now that I’ve muddy the waters with trivia and history of some beer, prohibition and brewpubs, I think having a beer birthday celebration is always in order no matter what. Not that I need (yet another) reason to drink; but to Ruby Ale I say “Prost!”
