No longer strictly German, Occidental Brewing looks west for a refresh
In 2014 Occidental Brewing co-founder Ben Engler told the Portland Mercury they would never make an IPA; "We'll never do one. There's no reason why we'd do one and we never will." But that was a decade ago, and before a pandemic and a change in co-ownership set the N. Portland brewery on a new course. The originally strictly German-style brand is entering a new era by embracing their name which refers to the western world with a modern sensibility.
Years before the craft lager craze that has recently swept the Pacific Northwest beer scene came along, a little brewery solely dedicated to brewing traditional German-style beers opened its doors just under the St. Johns bridge and a few steps away from the muddy banks of the Willamette River. A hell of a lot has changed in Portland, the world, and definitely in the craft beer industry since 2011, but 14 years later, Occidental Brewing is working to balance its original mission with a handful of changes aimed at adapting to a new beer landscape.
Like many breweries, Occidental has experienced the same post-pandemic challenges that have rocked the industry. This includes declining draft sales and tap room traffic, a neo-prohibitionist movement that has been successful in re-demonizing alcohol, shifting consumer tastes towards beer alternatives and non-alcoholic options, and inflation driving up the cost of doing business. Some of these things have been building up for years, while others happened over the course of less than two years and threw a complete curveball to many breweries. Ben Engler, who co-founded Occidental with his uncle Dan, is intently focused on weathering these changes and keeping the business as a vital part of the Northwest beer scene.
“Anyone in service industry-related things has had to adjust rapidly. We found that we just can't hold ourselves back by tying ourselves to some perhaps outdated ideal,” says Engler.
Occidental Brewing founders Dan Engler (left) and Ben Engler (right)
Dan Engler left Occidental to go back to school in early 2023 and Ben bought his uncle out along with all of the brewery’s investors. He is quick to point out that there was no bad blood and his uncle was simply ready to move on. Around that same time, he also brought in head brewer Matt Jidas, who joined Occidental a little over four years ago after previously working at Bridgeport among other places, as co-owner.
Recently, Engler and Jidas revamped the taproom with a colorful pacific northwestern mural as well as a piece of art composed of vintage beer cans to make the industrial space a little more cozy and inviting. They host events like weekly trivia in addition to annual events like their popular Oktoberfest celebration, Humbug Lager Fest, and Pig Roast. While these small changes are only visible to taproom visitors, they have also launched their first rebranding ever. The sleek and modern new look will soon be seen on all of Occidental’s cans, which were designed by Kirsten Karkanen, who previously did packaging redesigns for Rogue and Cascade.
“We have never done any sort of brand refresh or anything like that. It's kind of like, okay, how do we remind people we exist?,” says Engler. “The rebrand has been very well received. People really like the new design, so it's wonderful to hear. It's not a drastic departure, it just feels more modern.”
If Engler could only brew Kolsch, he would happily do so. Occidental’s take on the top-fermented beer originating in Cologne is crisp, dry, and supremely crushable. All these years later, the flagship also still makes up the vast majority of their sale, and its timelessness seems to fit nicely into a renewed appreciation for the style and consumer interest in lower alcohol options (it sits at a sessionable 4.5% ABV).
“When we started, we were very focused on German beers. Heater Allen, at the time, was really the only one doing something like that, and they didn't make a Kolsch, so you had Double Mountain making a Kolsch. We thought Altbier was going to be successful because it looked and tasted the most like an IPA. It was one that we put hops in, and it was kind of amber in color,” reflects Engler. “But Kolsch is just a great beer. It's beer-flavored beer, it's very approachable, it goes with everything, and it's great all the time. I love this beer.”
As much as Engler loves his Kolsch, he also knows that it can’t keep Occidental profitable on its own. In 2023, the brewery launched a new brand called Further Beer that was aimed at diversifying its offerings with styles like hazy and West Coast IPAs as well as other ales. “We had obviously resisted this for a long time, though slowly embraced things like our NW Pilsner and a number of other international Lagers like our Cerveza Clara and Japanese-style Dry Lager,” says Engler. Further Beer was presented in cans that had a classic 90’s microbrew look and played to the imagery of the Pacific Northwest.
“Further was an attempt to create new products that we weren't making already and try to gain new customers. All breweries are trying to do this all the time, especially now. Matt and I came up with it and worked with some friends that do design to help get us out there,” says Engler, who also received encouragement from distributors despite the risk and difficulty of launching a new brand. “We were worried about cheapening Occidental because I was very focused on German styles. So that was sort of the impetus for Further. I think if we'd done it five years ago, it would have worked.”
Further didn’t take off and seemed to confuse consumers, eventually fizzling out after a little more than a year. Still, the IPAs Jidas brewed were solid enough to compete in a crowded market loaded with excellent hoppy beer, and Engler saw an opportunity to use the rebrand as a way to introduce a regular Occidental IPA to his lineup. The result, packaged into 12-ounce six-packs, steers closer to a classic Northwest IPA with strong bitterness, a healthy dose of caramel malt, and a touch of dankness and tropical hop flavor. Taproom visitors can also try a couple of draft-only rotating IPAs that experiment with new hop products and riffs on the style. Their year-round offerings of Kolsch, Pilsner, Hefeweizen, Japanese-style Dry Lager, Edel-Hell, IPA, and Lager is now a little more than half German-styles with west coast and international flavor making up a substantial part of the 7 beer lineup.
On the other end of the beer spectrum, Occidental is also following the trend of craft-brewed lagers that imitate classic American lagers of the 70’s. Engler is excited about adding a new beer to their year-round offerings - simply called “Lager” that is a throwback to all-malt lagers like Coors Banquet beer before they were watered down with cheaper adjuncts like corn and rice. The new beer is featured with minimal Occidental branding and instead promoting “Lager” in bold white font on a starkly blue can with spots of red recalling an American flag.
“I’d love to be Portland’s house beer,” he says, hoping that the crisp and light beer with a touch of Comet hops will become the go-to pounder at dive bars well beyond St. Johns while also driving volume in off-premise sales at grocery retailers. “It's all domestic grain, domestic hops. There are no cheap adjuncts or anything in it. We just found a way that we could make it with a small amount of labor.”
Once upon a time in those long ago days before the pandemic disrupted everything, Occidental was mostly committed to brewing only beers inspired by those found within continental Europe. Eventually, they found success going beyond those borders and producing internationally popular styles like Mexican lager and their Japanese dry lager. Both of these are now part of their regular lineup, and Engler hopes that the Lager and IPA will join them. Occidental has always been one of the most underrated breweries in Portland that also hits at a more comfortable price point than many of their peers. Engler sees their latest offerings as a continuation of their modest approach.
In addition to the brand and taproom refresh and the new beers, Occidental is also working to keep their 15-barrel operation filled by doing the kind of contract brewing that has helped brands like Zoiglhaus. To date, they have brewed on occasion for smaller operations such as Creekside Brewing, Oak Union, and Yovu Brewing, and Engle hopes to do more of this going forward.
As Occidental looks towards its 15-year milestone coming in 2026, Engler is cautiously optimistic. The future may be uncertain for many breweries these days, but he is also ready for the next chapter of Occidental.
“In terms of where everything's at now and where it's been, I don't want to be doom and gloom. The industry is tough right now, so I hope people that like Occidental or whatever local business support them, because that's really what it comes down to.”
Occidental Brewing owner Ben Engler
