#brew outside

[theplaceswebrew]

Summer of 2013?? Megan and I hiked somewhere with our friend Jason. Hamilton mountain, I think?

These pics have been sitting on my hard drive for ages.

I am so excited to see all of you at SCAA 2015 next week!

[bethany-said]

Brewing an aeropress by a mountain lake

[theplaceswebrew]

My favorite thing about brewing outside is that I'm always reminded to let go of the things I can no longer control.

Halfway down the steep grade to get to this trail, my dad stopped and asked me if I remembered to bring a cup to brew coffee into.

I didn't, but we were on a limited time frame. I took stock of what we had and decided the wide-mouthed stainless steel water bottle would work just fine.

It did.

We summited the shadowy peak in that last photo, and brewed Roseline's Ethiopia Aramo (one of the best Yirgacheffes I've had this season.)

Because I'm working on being okay with imperfection, I didn't use a scale for the coffee or the water. It wouldn't have won any prizes, but at the end of a fairly rigorous hike, with the view of all of Central Oregon and the butte we had just conquered, that was a perfect cup of coffee.

[theplaceswebrew]

Last time I was in Central Oregon, I tried to brew in the desert on a butte. It was too windy— my kettle got knocked off my stove twice, so I aborted the brew. I ran out of water and I was worried that the stove could be a fire hazard. (Safety first!)

But it was a nice walk with my dog and the views were beautiful.

[theplaceswebrew]

On a drive back to Portland from Central Oregon, I stopped at the PS Ogden viewpoint to brew coffee on the retired highway over the Crooked River. I used to come out to the bridge with my friends on summer nights to stargaze.

This was the first brew where I've gotten rained on. I did what I could to keep the rain out of the coffee (put a dry filter over the top of the bloom/slurry when I wasn't pouring) but if the rain that did get in affected the flavor, I didn't notice. The view was too good.

I brewed Slate's Ethiopia Sidamo. 

Love,

- Bethany

[theplaceswebrew]

Last July I made iced coffee in the Washougal River.

[theplaceswebrew]

In August my sister and I backpacked up the east coast of New Zealand. Our favorite stop was Kaikoura, where we brewed coffee before getting back on a bus.