TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2021
BREWING
Continued from Page 1A
He’s been brewing his own
ales for several years.
But the biggest items in this
garage — both literally, in size,
and fi guratively, in signifi -
cance — dominate the center
of the space.
This pair of stainless steel
vats represents Multop’s ambi-
tious plans for his beermaking.
These vessels, each capable
of producing 60 gallons of brew,
or 12 times the capacity of his
current setup, are the key to
Multop’s plan to open North
Seven Brewing Co., Baker
City’s second brewery, late this
spring.
He’s leasing the space in the
Pythian Castle, at the corner
of First Street and Washing-
ton Avenue, the previous site
of Earth & Vine and, more
recently, the Hen House.
Multop, 49, said he hopes to
open by Memorial Day.
His plan is to operate a tap
house where he will serve his
seven ales, along with cider
from Rain Barrel Ciderworks
in Baker City, and a menu of
simple pub-type foods.
Multop said he’s optimistic
that after more than a year
of restrictions related to the
COVID-19 pandemic, people
will be “ready to get out” this
summer and enjoy the activi-
ties they missed in 2020 — in-
cluding sipping a craft-brewed
ale on a summer evening in
downtown Baker City.
“It’s been a long period of
time,” he said.
COMMUNITY
“You keep trying to make
the perfect beer.”
— Kevin Multop, owner,
North Seven Brewing Co.
Multop said North Seven’s
offerings will include a hoppy
India pale ale, however.
What’s in a name?
North Seven Brewing hon-
ors Multop’s favorite stretch
of Oregon highway — High-
way 7, the 50-mile route that
runs between Baker City and
Austin Junction.
When he and his wife drove
from Bend to Baker City, the
left turn off Highway 26 at
Austin Junction marked the
fi nal leg of the journey.
Multop said one particular
sign — bearing the word
“North” above the letter “7” —
excites him every time he rolls
past it.
“When I hit N7, that’s the
home stretch,” he said. “The
most beautiful stretch. It typi-
Jayson Jacoby/Baker City Herald fi es everything that’s great
Kevin Multop checks a fi ve-gallon batch of beer brewing about this area — the ranch-
in his garage. He will be switching to much larger con-
ing, the history, the scenery,
tainers — 60 gallons — when he opens his brewery.
all on that stretch of road. It’s
one of the most beautiful in
the state.”
despite the modest fi nancial
awards at national competi-
Multop believes Baker City
investment, he would not give tions for their beers over the
has the potential to become
up on homebrewing even if
years.
one of Oregon’s most popular
his fi rst batch — brewed in
Two years ago, on what
destinations for beer afi cio-
buckets in his spare bedroom Multop remembers was also
— was undrinkable.
a snowy February day, he met nados.
He points out that besides
It was with considerable
Brown at Barley Brown’s Tap
boasting an “outstanding
trepidation that Multop
House on Main Street.
brewery” in Barley Brown’s,
popped the cap on his fi rst
“He was very gracious
Baker City also has business-
bottle — it was either a brown and inviting,” Multop said of
es that sell two of the primary
ale or an amber ale; after 300 Brown. “He’s been awesome,
ingredients in beer — Tom
batches he doesn’t remember he and his team.”
Origins of a brewery
which.
Multop said he and Jessica Hutchison’s Gold Rush Malt,
The pandemic has already
What he does remember,
decided they would move. He which recently won three
affected Multop’s plans.
vividly, is how surprised he
left his job at Central Oregon awards at an international
But in a positive way,
competition for barley malt-
was as the fi rst sip slid down Community College. Jessica
strangely enough.
sters, and Hop Heaven, which
his throat.
got a job as a special educa-
Multop, who moved to
sells hops, the dried fl owers
“I was surprised at how
tion teacher at South Baker
Baker City in the summer
of which infuse beer with its
good it actually tasted,” Mul-
Intermediate School.
of 2019 with the intention of
top said. “It was better than I
The couple moved to Baker distinctive bitter fl avor.
opening a brewery and tap
Multop said he plans to
expected.”
City during the summer of
house, had a potential location
The ale was a bit fl at —
2019. That fall, Multop bought buy most of his malt from
picked out last winter.
getting the proper level of
the two large fermenters and Hutchison, and hops from
He had friends ready to
Ted Hausotter, who owns
carbonation can be a challenge other professional brewing
invest in the project.
Hop Heaven and is an ac-
— but Multop’s interest was, equipment.
But just before the deal
complished homebrewer and
well, whetted.
Brown said he welcomed
closed, it fell through.
master beer judge.
He started brewing a fi ve-
Multop and offered to help
Multop was disappointed
“In this town there’s all the
gallon batch — 40 pints —
him in any way possible.
then.
right ingredients,” Multop
every other week.
Brown said collaboration,
But not for long.
said.
Then every week.
rather than competition, is
“Literally the next week we
Brown agrees.
Fortunately Multop had a
the “nature of the brewing
started the COVID shut-
He said beer afi cionados
lot of friends who, as he puts
business.”
downs,” he said. “That would
often are interested in “culi-
it, “were willing and brave
“I look forward to having
have been very painful, to
enough to try what I was
Kevin as another alternative nary tourism” — sampling all
launch in the middle of the
manner of locally produced
brewing.”
in town,” Brown said. “It’s
pandemic.”
Over the years Multop, who one more reason for people to food and drinks.
Instead, Multop decided to worked as an administrator at stop in Baker and spend some
Multop said he plans to hire
use the virus-caused delay to Central Oregon Community
part-time employees at his
time.”
fi ne-tune his brewing recipes, College in Bend, honed his
Multop said his selection of tap house. His son, Kilen, 26,
meet more local residents, and technique.
who lives in Nampa, Idaho, is
ales will be somewhat differ-
continue to search for a loca-
also a partner in North Seven
He tried different ingredi-
ent from Brown’s, including
tion for his brewery without
Brewing Co.
ents, recipes and styles.
brown and amber ales that
the pressure of deadlines.
The brewery’s website is
“You keep trying to make
emphasize malt fl avors rather
Waiting another year wasn’t that perfect beer,” he said.
www.north7brewing.com/
than hops.
a terrible burden, given that
The milestone moment
Multop’s interest in starting
The event that Multop de-
a brewery dates back several
scribes as a “watershed” in his
years.
brewing experience happened
It started, as it does for
in 2016.
many craft brewers, with
He entered the third-annual
homebrewing.
Battle of the Brews home-
Although perhaps the
brewing competition spon-
origins go back further.
sored by Silver Moon Brewing
Multop was actually born
in Bend.
in Germany, where beer is a
To Multop’s shock, his
matter of national pride. His
father was stationed at a U.S. brown ale won the contest.
Air Force base at Augsburg, in
That earned him a tour of
Bavaria.
the Silver Moon Brewery and
Multop moved to Bend in
a chance to talk to its head
2003, which was then just
brewer, who asked Multop
becoming one of the centers of if he was planning to make
Oregon’s burgeoning craft-
brewing a profession rather
brewing industry.
than a pastime.
“I love craft beer,” he said.
Multop had not.
“The whole idea and story of
But during that conversa-
craft beer.”
tion, amid the scent of hops
Multop said he toured
and malt in an actual brewery,
several breweries in Central
a “seed was planted,” he said.
Oregon and was fascinated by
“It grew in my mind.”
the brewing process.
Multop began to think
But he was leery of trying to that perhaps he could start a
make his own.
brewery.
“I just never thought that I
He also, and not coinciden-
could do that,” he said.
tally, began to think about
But then he received a fate- Baker City.
Jayson Jacoby/Baker City Herald
ful email.
Multop said he and his
Kevin Multop is brewing beer in his garage as he waits
It was the sort of email that wife, since moving to Bend,
to open his craft brewery, North Seven Brewing Co.
arrives in droves in inboxes,
had traveled extensively in
the sort that almost invariably Oregon. Baker City was their
Jay & Kristin Wilson, Owners
ends up being dragged to the favorite vacation destination.
2036 Main Street, Baker City
541-523-6284 • ccb#219615
garbage can icon.
“We just love everything
But this message caught
Oregon,” he said. “Baker was
Multop’s attention.
just the gem in the whole
It was an offer for a home-
crown for us.”
brewing kit for $100.
Part of the place’s ap-
With one click of his mouse, peal, Multop said, is Barley
Multop, though he didn’t know Brown’s, the local brewery
it then, set himself on a course that opened in 1998. Owner
that continues today.
Tyler Brown and his team of
He said he decided that,
brewers have won dozens of
BAKER CITY HERALD — 3A
COVID-19
over the past fi ve weeks.
Since recording 55 new
Continued from Page 1A
cases for the seven-day
Risk levels for each of
period ending Jan. 15, the
Oregon’s 36 counties for
county has had weekly
the next two-week period totals of 14, seven, 13,
— Feb. 26 through March nine and 18.
11 — will be based on
The daily average for
their COVID-19 statistics the past month has been
for the two-week period
the lowest in the county
Feb. 7-20.
since October.
In Baker County,
The daily average for
which the state deems
previous months:
medium-population, two
• November — 4.7/day
fi gures are counted — the
• December — 6.2/ day
number of new cases, and
• January — 3.4/day
the percentage of positive
• Feb. 1-21 — 2.2/day
tests.
To qualify for the
Vaccine clinic planned
lower-risk category, the
Friday, Feb. 26
county must meet two
The county received
thresholds — fewer than 600 doses of the Moderna
30 new cases during the
vaccine on Monday, Feb.
measurement period, and 22 — 400 for fi rst doses,
a positivity rate below 5%. and 200 for second doses.
Bennett said on Sat-
With those doses,
urday that the county’s
the county will have its
positivity rate was about second large vaccination
3.9%.
clinic Friday, Feb. 26, at
But the number of new
Baker High School, said
cases was close to the
Holly Kerns, a public
limit of 29. The four new
information offi cer for the
cases reported on Friday,
county.
Feb. 19, pushed the total
Health Department
to 27 cases for the two-
employees
are calling
week period.
people
75
and
older to
It all came down, then,
schedule
appointments
to Saturday.
If the county had zero, both for Friday’s clinic and
one or two new cases that for people who are ready
day, it remained below the to receive their second
and fi nal dose.
limit.
The Health Depart-
The Saturday tally,
ment
administered 315
Bennett said, was zero.
doses
during a clinic on
The very next day —
Feb.
12.
the fi rst day of the new
As of Monday, a total
two-week measurement
of
672 Baker County
period — Baker County
residents
were fully
had fi ve new cases.
vaccinated
— 4% of the
Gov. Kate Brown
county’s population of
typically announces any
16,800 — and 1,376
changes to county risk
people had received their
levels on the Tuesday of
the week that the changes fi rst dose — 8.2%.
If the county can ad-
take effect. Any changes
are effective on Friday of minister all 600 doses this
week, by Friday about
that week — Feb. 26 in
5.2% of residents will
the current case.
be fully vaccinated, and
Baker County’s rate
about 10.6% will have had
of new infections has
their fi rst dose.
dropped substantially
L OCAL B RIEFING
Local students named to honor roll at
Blue Mountain Community College
PENDLETON — Baker County students earned
honor roll recognition for the fall 2020 and summer
2020 terms at Blue Mountain Community College.
Fall term
• President’s list (3.75 to 4.0 GPA) — Lily Bingham,
O’Keeya Brown, Jesse Christensen, Addie Flana-
gan, Lexie Flanagan, Serenity Foersterling, Emelie
Ingraham, Emma Lowe, William Mercado, Elisabeth
Munsell, Cherie Peterson, Naomi Potter, Savannah
Potter, Jayme Ramos, Maya Smith, Raynaldo Villar-
real, Tiana Williams
• Vice President’s list (3.5 to 3.74 GPA) — Andrew
Ferns, Pedro Heredia, Taylor Price, Kelly Shank, Shay-
lee Villastrigo, Chey Watkins, Kiashandra Zimmerman
Summer term
• President’s list (3.75 to 4.0 GPA) — Pedro Heredia,
Aries Hood, Cherie Peterson, Savannah Potter
• Vice President’s list (3.5 to 3.74 GPA) — Ian How-
arth, Christopher Kyriss, Loren Simon
Baker City, North Powder students
named to EOU dean’s list
LA GRANDE — Multiple Baker City students and
one from North Powder were named to the dean’s list
for the fall 2020 term at Eastern Oregon University. To
qualify, students must maintain a GPA of at least 3.5
while completing at least 12 hours of graded course-
work.
Baker City students on the dean’s list are Rochelle
Adams, Kayley AhHee, Bryan Ames, Alayne Bennett,
Ashley Dyke, Isabella Evans, Joanie Sells and Jose-
phine Stearns.
Daniela Balderas Villagrana of North Powder also
was named to the dean’s list.
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