Oktoberfest @Widmer

It's September and in Portland that means the beginning of grey skies, chilly nights and...Oktoberfest celebrations! Last year I had the opportunity to go to Mt. Angel for their Oktoberfest (which had a mighty fine pretzel if I do say so myself) and this year my friends and I decided to hit up Widmer's Oktoberfest. This is Widmer's 8th year since they restarted the event. Why did they cancel it for a brief period? Because it rained every year...so Portland. 

This year they hosted it at the beginning of September and the weather was perfect and naturally the beer and pretzels were flowin'.

This is the second time I have had Widmer's pretzels and they rock. For this event they were offering their perfectly soft (and simply salted) pretzels with or without their Swiss cheese and Drop Top Amber Ale fondue sauce. Do you even have to guess which option I chose? This marks the second time I have eaten their house pretzel with fondue sauce and it is unbelievable. Their Gasthaus Pub on Russell Street has the option to choose between a House pretzel with mustard or their house pretzel with the cheese fondue sauce. Normally priced at $4, and $5, respectively from 2:00 P.M - 5 P.M Monday - Friday you can get it for $3 during their Happy Hour.

Fun fact, home brewing was legalized in Oregon in 1979, and Kurt and Rob Widmer opened up the brewpub in 1984. This history is actually pretty fascinating, so if you're not already an expert on the Widmer brother's story, I recommend reading it for yourselves here.

 While this event was a blast I can't help but think that the real Oktoberfest is way better. Fortunately I will get the chance to compare the two in about 2 days! Tomorrow I head for Munich and when I land on Sunday my sister and I will begin our Germany adventure beginning with THE Oktoberfest.

Stay tuned...

4 twists! Swiss Cheese and Drop Top Amber Ale sauce is delectable.