#breweries

#breweries

"Hey, a rainbow!" I, the lone passenger on a Mount Adams Transportation Service (MATS) bus that just crossed the Columbia into Hood River, exclaim. "Oh, yeah, I get to see those all the time," the driver responds. "Last week I saw two double rainbows." My inner 5-year-old is envious. A few hours later I see my second rainbow of the day-it's not a double arch, but the tally is still pretty cool.

In the northern town of Windsor is the most famous: Russian River Brewing. It's been voted one of the top breweries in the country and is best known for its Pliny the Elder. But there's also the Belgian-influenced Cuver Brewing and Barrel Brothers. Santa Rosa, meanwhile, has the most breweries, including Cooperage and its new downtown location, plus Fogbelt, HenHouse, Iron Ox, Moonlight, Old Possum, Russian River's original brewpub and Shady Oak Barrel House.

"We had staff trying to serve tables and almost running over 2-year-olds," he said. "We had kids climbing trees. There were many times I would walk out into the beer garden and see a kid in a tree, and instead of a parent telling them to come down, they're taking a picture. It was extremely dangerous."