In my family, Sassy’s Bar isn’t just a Portland institution; it’s where my wife and I found ourselves, along with another couple in the beer industry, a week before our son was born. I’m not sure which would be more shocking to some folks that we went together or that my wife was 10-months pregnant. But
Admittedly, it’s a funny thing about winter beers. There’s a reason beer sells like mad all summer long; it makes for ideal cold refreshment when the mercury’s high. But when temps dip, brewers bust out “winter warmers,” or beers that are typically brewed to higher gravities, meaning punchier in the alcohol by volume (ABV) department so as to fight off Jack Frost. The biggest bummer is that we don’t get to enjoy them en masse.