Calapooia Brewing toasts 5 years

ALBANY — For five years now, it’s occupied the northeastern corner of Hill Street and Water Avenue in a part of downtown that not only defines “off the beaten path,” but may also be the source of the term. The building is practically tucked away, blending into the fading end of a residential district.

Yet for nomads and locals looking to wash down the working day with impeccable spirits in a convivial atmosphere — maybe absorb a live tune or two — there are few spots more inviting than the Calapooia Brewing Company. General manager Paul Huppert puts it this way: “People seek this place out. They don’t stumble upon it. They find their way here.”

That may be in part because the roughly 14,000-square-foot property — which includes the pub, brewery and a warehouse — has beer in its blood. According to Huppert, the warehouse once housed a keg distributor as far back as the 1950s. More recently, of course, the location was home to the Oregon Trader Brewing Company, which was open from 1993 until 2006, when Mark Martin and his wife, Laura Bryngelson, bought it from owner and beermaker Eugene Gregg.

“Ever since I was in college, 20-plus years ago, I wanted to be my own boss,” Martin recalls. “My roommate and I drove around the valley looking for a place to lease and start a pub. It didn’t work out. Then I finished college, started teaching high school and met my wife. She said, ‘Let’s start our own business.’ Through a mutual friend we heard that Oregon Trader’s owner wanted to sell. I came over and talked to him and worked for four months for free, like an internship. He taught me how to brew, and I discovered I had a knack for it.

“I’ve worked for pubs in many capacities: in the kitchen and as a bouncer, bartender and manager. I’ve worked for a beer distributor. I’ve seen every facet of the industry. But Laura is the president of the company. She runs the place behind the scenes. We have a great symbiotic relationship.”

That relationship extends to their home life, as well. Martin and Bryngelson have two children, Sophia, 7, and Jack, 3½. “We’ve been able to raise our kids and run this business at the same time,” he says.

The transition between businesses was so smooth, like a Big Aft Pale, that the doors were shut all of two days as Martin, Bryngelson and a team of volunteers worked to get the new place ready. On Saturday, June 17, 2006, the Calapooia Brewing Company poured its first glass.

Thanksgiving, Christmas And New Year Poems, Toasts and Prayers At ...

Cocolalla, ID (PRWEB) November 5, 2006

As the end-of-year holidays approach, millions of Web searchers are looking for holiday poems for their greeting cards, e-cards and programs, Thanksgiving and Christmas prayers to be said over holiday dinners, and New Year toasts to be used at New Year’s Eve parties. Once they land at http://www.poemsource.com, their search is over.

The Thanksgiving poetry page has Thanksgiving greeting card poems, a “Thank You For Inviting Us” poem, general poems about being thankful, short, silly kid Thanksgiving poems, and Thanksgiving prayers for Thanksgiving grace or the Thanksgiving blessing at the dinner table. Here’s a sample from the Thanksgiving poems page at http://www.poemsource.com/thanksgiving-poems.html

Save Room

As meals go, Thanksgiving dinner

Is always a feast–a five star winner.

Here comes the salad, dressed just right,

The golden brown turkey–a savory delight;

The stuffing now, and then the gravy,

The Jello mold, all wiggly and wavy.

Take some cranberry sauce and candied yams;

Is there room for fresh made rolls and jams?

More dishes tempt me; ah, but I

Must save some room for pumpkin pie!

By Joanna Fuchs

The Christmas poems page has Christmas poetry celebrating the delights of Christmas for greeting cards, e-cards and programs. There is a Christmas poem for a teacher, a Christmas love poem, and even a Christmas poem written especially for people who celebrate Christmas in a warm climate. There’s a funny Christmas poem for a child or kid, called “Toy Escape.” There are also religious Christian Christmas poems and prayers. Here’s a sample Christmas greeting card poem from the Christmas poems page at http://www.poemsource.com/Christmas-poems.

A New Year toast

Toasts, over 1,500 of the best toasts, sentiments, blessings, and graces

New York Magazine

New York Magazine

Curiosities of popular customs and of rites, ceremonies, observances, and miscellaneous antiquities