Craft your own Oktoberfest experience this fall! With Eugene's amazing local beers and the valley's farm-to-table abundance, this is a fun, easy thing to do.
First select the perfect German-style experience for your celebration. From leafy beer gardens with heat lamps, to spacious inside beer halls, to food trucks and growlers-to-go, there are lots of Oktoberfest options to choose from. Who needs to travel to Germany? Local brewers are pouring plenty of distinctive wheat beer, Kölsch and German-style pilsners, stouts and ales for a satisfying and local taste tour. Go ahead, enjoy the season!
1. Covered Bridge Brewing Group
Cottage Grove's Covered Bridge Brewing Group has a large patio with plenty of space for live music, food trucks and good times. Their official Oktoberfest celebration is September 24 with live music by the Roseburg German Band, Bavarian food, a yodeling contest and more. All October long enjoy one of their German-style beers.
2. The Bier Stein Pub & Bottleshop
If you have a hankering for a specific German beer, The Bier Stein Bottle Shop and Pub is your best bet for finding it amongst their huge selection of bottled beers. Dip a Bavarian soft pretzel in The Bier Stein's signature cheese soup and two-mustard dipping sauce. Enjoy a German-style, beer braised bratwurst served with sauerkraut and a kosher pickle. The beer hall experience is complete with their OktoBier Fest Celebration September 24 - September 30.
3. PublicHouse in Springfield
A converted Springfield church just off Main Street, serves as a large beer hall with a spacious beer garden. With multiple food vendors and cheerful conviviality, PublicHouse is reminiscent of the friendly, German beer hall experience. It's long tables and soaring ceilings create the perfect vibe. Order a frothy mug of fresh hop brews and join in their Oktoberfest weekend, September 16-18.
4. beergarden.
Gather outside to enjoy live music at Eugene's year-round beergarden.! Select your favorite German beer from their diverse selection of 42 taps and hundreds of bottled beers. A variety of food trucks ring the beer garden, and for Oktoberfest they'll each be offering a thematic selection — Bratwurst, Bavarian pretzels, pork schnitzel, cabbage and apple slaw or German potato soup. Each day from September 17 to October 3, different entertainment will be featured including German music, stein hoisting, screening of the movie "Beerfest", tasting and trivia. Relax in the casual atmosphere and enjoy the hum of fellow beer aficionados sampling their favorite beverages.
5. Ninkasi Better Living Room
You can't have a brewery list without highlighting Ninkasi, Eugene's most well known brewery. On October 1 they will host their Okoberfest in the backyard patio of The Better Living Room. On September 20, last their latest German-style beer — Achtung Lager.
Pretzel Pairings
Stash some of your favorite bottled German-style beers, toss a few local pretzels in the freezer and you can re-create Octoberfest anytime of year. Imagine after a long hike, an exhilarating dune buggy ride or a thrilling river rafting trip, coming home to this delicious comfort! Here are a few more places to pick up really, really, good pretzels.
Creswell Bakery
A road trip must-stop, Creswell Bakery has ham and Oregon Tillamook cheddar-stuffed pretzels. Their provisions also often include meat pies, housemade bratwursts and sauerkraut. Creswell Bakery is a family-owned, farm-to-table bakery just twenty minutes south of Eugene. Fill that freezer!
Reality Kitchen Pick up Window on Fridays
A grassroots effort to help all people on the path to employment, the Reality Kitchen provides jobs and really good pretzels! Order pretzels to-go for a home-centered Octoberfest celebration and feel good about every bite you take. Available Friday between 10:30 a.m. until 3 p.m.
Taj Barnhart Morgan is the Director of Content Strategy for Travel Lane County. A journalism graduate from the University of Oregon, Taj has two decades of special event management and hospitality marketing experience in San Diego, CA and Maui, HI. Passionate about mothering, and back to her Oregon roots, she is discovering the Eugene, Cascades & Coast region all over again through the eyes of her daughter.
