Publisher’s Letter
This month we take a closer look at our friends and neighbors who are working hard to make Central Oregon a better place to live. They are everyday people doing extraordinary things and performing not-so-random acts of kindness. Inside, you’ll find stories about farmers and ranchers getting back to their roots while pioneering nontraditional crops—grapes and hops. In Local’s Choice,…
The 2016 Polar Plunge
Held at Riverbend Park in Bend, the 2016 Polar Plunge saw hundreds of brave participants jump into the chilly Deschutes River to support Special Olympics Oregon and Oregon Law Enforcement. Special Olympics Oregon provides year-round athletic training and competition in Olympic-type sports for people with intellectual disabilities.
Around Town
Va Piano Vineyards, a premier winery located in Walla Walla, Washington, announced they are opening a tasting room in Bend’s Old Mill District. The tasting room, an extension of their Washington-based winery, will open April 22. Va Piano focuses on small lot Cabernet Sauvignons and Syrahs from Washington State growers, including their own Walla Walla Valley Estate Vineyards. The weekend…
With a Little Help from My Lady Friends
The female hop plant creates the coneflower responsible for the mighty India Pale Ale, the summery Hefeweizen, and the dark Stout. Next time you’re enjoying a pint, remember you owe that tasty treat to the female plant; a lady hop, so to speak. This fact is not lost on Melissa (Mel) Parker. As the owner of Ladyhops, Parker—with the help…
Grapes on the Vine in Central Oregon
While Central Oregon may be known for craft beer and a stunning Cascade Mountain Range backdrop, its burgeoning wine scene is beginning to get noticed. Area wine producers and wine-oriented tasting locales, each delivering delightfully diverse selections of the viniferous kind, continue to rack up awards and grow in number in our picturesque backyard.
Letting the Sun In / Keeping the Sun Out
Central Oregon’s sun can be both a blessing and a curse. Our yearly 300 days of sunshine bring warmth to a winter’s day, but in summer can render areas of your home—both inside and outside—useless. In an effort to combat unwanted heat and glare from the sun, the right home shading product allows homeowners to recapture their favorite south-facing room…
Tin Pan Theater
The true art of cinema forces us to cultivate opinions, expand our minds and form real emotions towards the characters. While it’s worth a trip across town—even the state—to support such films, Bend is lucky enough to have one of the Northwest’s best kept secrets in the Tin Pan Theater. Tucked part way down Tin Pan Alley and nestled between…
SPEAK UP, Save a Child
It is unimaginable to consider that anyone would intentionally harm a child. And yet people do harm children. It happens right here in our town, and in 90% of the local reports it is someone that the child knew, likely someone that other adults in their lives seem to trust. The victim must feel so confused. To whom should they…
LOCAL CRAFT BEER
Twenty-two breweries in Bend—and 29 in Central Oregon—proves our High Desert oasis truly is Beertown USA. To sift though the hundreds of local craft beers, we asked a local expert which ones are not to be missed. Jon Abernathy recently published Bend Beer: A History of Brewing in Central Oregon and has been blogging for more than a decade about…
A Pinch of This, a Splash of That
Two tablespoons of this potent wine reduction can be substituted in a recipe, such as a pan sauce, tomato sauce, or roast beef jus, that calls for one-half to three-quarters cup of wine. Add this reduction near the end of the cooking time—the way you might finish a sauce by swirling in some butter. The reduction can be kept for…