Culmination’s Unorthodox Brews Are Some of the Best in the State

2117 NE Oregon St., 971-254-9114, culminationbrewing.com. Noon-9 pm Sunday-Thursday, noon-10 pm Friday-Saturday.

Two years ago, Culmination started as fast, furious and eclectic as any brewery in Portland—with one of the city's best IPAs in Phaedrus, a Burton ale called Trumpet Major that was one of our favorite 10 beers of 2017, and a wild range of sours, browns and farmhouses. And even as Tomas Sluiter leaves to start an adjunct Culmination enterprise in Montana, and two other brewers depart to open Ruse Brewing, the Kerns brewery hasn't slowed. Under brewmaster Conrad Andrus, the Mythology and Noir krieks Culmination brewed this year were not only the best cherry beers the brewery's produced, they were two of the best in the state. The same holds for this year's installment of their foeder-aged Food for Thought farmhouse and Obscured by Clouds hazy IPA, recently out in cans. And alongside an unorthodox brewery menu including tikka masala and cheesy tacos frescos, the bare-bones, converted-warehouse taproom also hosts vegan Sundays and a Monday-night Indian food pop-up from Kashmir-born chef Deepak Kaul. You don't always know what you're going to find on the menu at Culmination. But you're pretty much guaranteed it's going to be good.

Nearby: Culmination is two blocks north of one of the best food complexes in Portland. Get the city's best oyster selection at Flying Fish inside Providore Fine Foods (2340 NE Sandy Blvd., flyingfishfoodcompany.com), cocktails and the city's best Korean dumplings at justly hyped Han Oak (511 NE 24th Ave, 971-255-0032, hanoak.com), or some of the city's best, biggest and wildest burgers at Stoopid Burger (2329 NE Glisan St., 503-477-5779, facebook.com/stoopidburger.com).