Oregon Brewers Guild Launches Quarterly Collaboration Series with State of Excitement No. 2

Twenty-seven breweries collaborated on a hazy IPA, which was brewed at

Portland’s Baerlic Beer Co.

How do you collaborate on a beer during a global pandemic?
Very carefully.

Twenty-seven Oregon’s breweries recently united to brew a statewide collab, State of Excitement No. 2, a hazy IPA brewed at Portland’s Baerlic Beer Co. The beer release marks the launch of the Guild’s quarterly collaboration series, which builds on the fun everyone had cranking out the Zwickelmania beer the past two Februaries.
“Collaborations are a little different right now, but I suppose just about everything is,” said Baerlic Beer Co. Brewer Stephen Helwig, who led the charge on brewday. “Fortunately, the modern miracle of the internet helped us to communicate, stay organized, and craft a damn delicious beer that shows off the best ingredients Oregon has to offer.”
The 6.5 percent hazy IPA includes Crystal, Cascade, Amarillo, Idaho 7 and Triumph hops donated by Crosby Hop Farm, Goschie Farms and Yakima Chief Hops; malts donated by Mecca Grade Estate Malt and Skagit Valley Malting; the Barbarian/Juice yeast strain combo, pitched in by Imperial Yeast; and printing, cans and packaging donated by Rose City Label, Craft Canning and WCP Solutions. State of Excitement No. 2 will be available for purchase at each of the particiatping breweries and all of the proceeds benefit the Oregon Brewers Guild, and its efforts to protect and promote the state’s craft beer industry. Like many organizations, the Guild has experienced financial turmoil as all of its annual events have been canceled due to COVID-19.
“We’re honored to have the opportunity to support the Oregon Brewers Guild during this challenging time,” says Crosby Hop Farm CEO Blake Crosby. “OBG is a leader in driving education, guidance, and connection for the Oregon brewing industry and its stakeholders. We expect this project to resonate with craft beer drinkers across the state and contribute to the continued excellence that OBG represents nationally.”
Brewers communicated via email and met via Zoom meetings to determine the style of beer and formulate the recipe. Participating breweries include: Allegory Brewing, Baerlic Beer Co, Barsideous Brewing, Bend Brewing Co, Bevel Brewing, Breakside Brewery, Brewery 26, Buoy Beer Co, Deschutes Brewery, Gateway Brewing, Gigantic Brewing, Heater Allen Beer, Hopworks Urban Brewery, Laurelwood Brewing, Leikam Brewing, McMenamins, Ninkasi Brewing, Sasquatch Brewing, Stickmen Brewing, Three Mugs Brewing, Threshold Brewing & Blending, Unicorn Brewing, Von Ebert Brewing, Weekend Beer Co, Wild Ride Brewing, Wolf Tree Brewing, and Yachats Brewing.
“The Oregon beer industry has been built on community coming together for the love of craft beer,” says Christina LaRue, Executive Director of the Oregon Brewers Guild. “This project is an exciting way to bring our brewers and industry partners together, even if only virtually for now, to celebrate that community through the art of collaboration. Stay tuned for two additional beers this year.”
The State of Excitement collabs, launched in February for Zwickelmania, will now be released four times a year, and sold at participating breweries. State of Excitement No, 3 will be a fresh hop beer released in the fall.
About the Oregon Brewers Guild

The Oregon Brewers Guild is a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote and protect the state’s craft brewing industry and the common interests of its members. Founded in 1992, the Oregon Brewers Guild is one of the nation’s oldest craft brewers associations.
Website: OregonCraftBeer.org
Instagram/Facebook/Twitter: @OregonCraftBeer

This 23 Oct 2020 updated from the OBG:

Oregon Brewers Guild Releases State of Excitement No. 3

Twenty-six collaborated on a Harvest IPA, brewed in Redmond at Wild Ride Brewing

For its third iteration, the Oregon Brewers Guild brought together twenty-six of Oregon’s breweries to collaborate on State of Excitement No. 3, a Harvest IPA brewed at Redmond’s Wild Ride Brewing.
“Our original vision for this beer was a Fresh Hop Pale Ale to be brewed with fresh Crystal and El Dorado hops. Unfortunately, we had to pivot due to the effect the wildfires had on the harvest schedule, but that’s 2020 for you,” says Christina LaRue, Executive Director of the Oregon Brewers Guild. “We were able to access freshly kilned 2020 Centennial hops, which led us to the idea of creating a Harvest IPA – it may not be a fresh hop beer, but it’s darn close!”
The 6.5 percent Harvest IPA is brewed from freshly kilned Centennial hops donated by Crosby Hops, Pekko hops donated by Goschie Farms, and Amarillo donated by PDX U-Brew/Unicorn Brewing; malts donated by Country Malt Group, including Pure Oregon two-row crafted from 100% Oregon grown barley; pitched with Flagship yeast donated by Imperial Yeast; printing, cans and packaging donated by Rose City Label, Craft Canning and WCP Solutions. Label design work was donated by Baerlic Beer Co. All of the proceeds from State of Excitement No. 3 benefit the Oregon Brewers Guild, and its efforts to protect and promote the state’s craft beer industry.
“It was a pleasure and honor to be the host brewery for the State of Excitement Collaboration this Fall.  The Harvest IPA that was created was definitely a deeply discussed and collaborated beer.  The overall impression of the result is that of a classic IPA with Centennial and Amarillo dominating the hop characteristics,” says Michael “Curly” White, Head Brewer at Wild Ride Brewing. “The way the brewing community came together to help out in all facets of the design, brew and packaging reminded me of the actual community that Oregon brewers maintain.”
“With this iteration of the State of Excitement series, Craft Canning felt especially proud to support the Oregon Brewers Guild with our services,” says Ryan McFarland of Craft Canning. “The fires and smoke affected many breweries in Oregon, hindering their patio sales due to closure for a handful of days. The State of Excitement series is a wonderful way for Oregonians to show their continued support for our industry by visiting and picking up this beer at their favorite breweries.  The OBG is a great partner to Craft and we look forward to seeing the Harvest IPA being enjoyed by many. Cheers!"
Cans will be available at participating breweries, which include: Baerlic Beer Co, Barsideous Brewing, Bend Brewing Co, Bevel Brewing, Breakside Brewery, Brewery 26, Buoy Beer Co, Deschutes Brewery, Gateway Brewing, Gigantic Brewing, Laurelwood Brewing, Leikam Brewing, McMenamins, Modern Times PDX, Ninkasi Brewing, Ratchet Brewery, Sasquatch Brewing, Stickmen Brewing, Three Mugs Brewing, Threshold Brewing & Blending, Unicorn Brewing, Von Ebert Brewing, Weekend Beer Co, Wild Ride Brewing, Wolf Tree Brewing, and Yachats Brewing. Please contact them directly for availability. You can also find it available at local bottle shops which include: Broken Top Bottle Shop and Newport Market in Bend, OR, as well as Ben’s Bottle Shop, FunctionPDX, and Imperial Bottle Shop in Portland, OR. Please contact them directly for availability. 
The State of Excitement collaboration project, launched in February this year for Zwickelmania, will now be released four times a year, and sold at participating breweries and bottle shops. State of Excitement No. 4 will be a holiday-centric beer released in December.
About the Oregon Brewers Guild

The Oregon Brewers Guild is a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote and protect the state’s craft brewing industry and the common interests of its members. Founded in 1992, the Oregon Brewers Guild is one of the nation’s oldest craft brewers associations.