USA, OR: Grains of Wrath Brewing closing their Portland brewery and taproom
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Grains of Wrath Brewing is closing their Portland brewery and taproom on July 9th, 2023. But it’s less about retraction and more about expansion as the Camas, Washington based brewery is refocusing their efforts on wholesale distribution. The news about GOW PDX’s closure follows a recent report on the brewery’s upcoming production facility and tasting room slated to open later this year in Washougal, Washington, the New School Beer reported on June 30.
Grains of Wrath opened in downtown Camas in 2018 and quickly became one of the hottest breweries of SW Washington and the Portland area. In October 2020 GOW moved into the former Lompoc Brewing Sidebar space in Portland, and refreshed the old Lompoc brewhouse installing a brand new 15bbl brewhouse from Portland Kettle Works with four 30bbl tanks. The Portland brewery has arguably become GOW’s most acclaimed, putting out so many award-winning beers from Oregon alone that they were named Medium Size Brewery of the Year at the 2023 Oregon Beer Awards.
“It has been a whirlwind 3 years. From signing a lease mere weeks prior to COVID shutdowns and trying to build out and open the taproom during that time,” says Grains of Wrath co-owner and operating manager Brendan Greenen. Three years is a short stint for a brewpub, let alone one as award-winning and essential to being able to claim residency status as an Oregon brewery as well as a Washingtonian.
“While we will miss the ability to enter OBA with not having an Oregon location our ultimate goal is operational efficiency and stable growth. We will have more functionality on our Washougal system than was capable on the PDX system so not only will you still see those beers but you will see a lot more,” adds Greenen.
Brewmaster/co-owner Mike Hunsaker says the decision to close the Portland GOW is a painful one, that is all about logistics. “The problem with Portland is there is no room for growth. That spot has been killin it but there is just no place to put more tanks. Oregon wants a lot more beer, Seattle is beginning to take off. We have been getting calls from Denver, and San Francisco...that would want more drops. It’s all about managing people.”
Over the last several months Grains of Wrath has been gearing up for their Washougal production facility, and evaluating their options in Portland. Ultimately concluding that their limited brewing staff and the back-and-forth between spending time in breweries across state lines is not productive. As they begin to make the transition into Washougal, the Portland brewhouse will remain active through the end of August to fill the gap.
In the final analysis Greenen says the transition will be a net positive for new and old fans of their beer. “Production will increase and our Oregon presence will be stronger than ever. A large part of our move towards production space in Washougal is due to the demand in OR via Day One Distribution. As always, we will maintain a heavy presence in PDX via events, distribution and just plain visiting the spots we love!”
Grains of Wrath’s Portland Taproom final day will be Sunday July 9th, 2023.
