Podcast Episode 255: John Harris of Ecliptic Has Learned the Hard Way to Make the Beers that People Want to Drink

John Harris has seen it all in his 36-year brewing career—huge process improvements, giant shifts in ingredient quality and range, and a parade of trends that continues today—but the through line in his long career is figuring out how to connect consumers to flavorful beer.

Jamie Bogner Aug 19, 2022 - 5 min read

Podcast Episode 255: John Harris of Ecliptic Has Learned the Hard Way to Make the Beers that People Want to Drink Primary Image

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John Harris has been around. From his start at the McMenamins Hillsdale brewpub in 1986—where they brewed with extract and fermented without temp control in open-top fermentors—through stints launching Deschutes, the Full Sail pub in Portland, Oregon, and now the past nine years at his own brewery, Ecliptic, he’s been eyewitness to a myriad of change in the craft beer world.

In this episode, Harris recounts the early days and the challenges they faced in trying to create what we now know as the craft beer industry. These stories from the early days of craft illustrate just how far the brewing world in the United States has come over the past few decades. Along the way, Harris discusses:

  • brewing commercial batches in the mid-‘80s while scavenging yeast from Sierra Nevada Pale Ale bottle dregs
  • launching the original Deschutes brewpub in Bend with founder Gary Fish
  • heading the Full Sail Portland brewpub for two decades
  • the development of the Pacific Northwest strain of West Coast IPA
  • using color to tell a story in beer
  • working with Strata hops
  • embracing fruit in brewing and making quick-sour fruit beers
  • beers that made sense in his head but never connected with an audience

And more.

This episode is brought to you by:

G&D
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Jamie Bogner is the Cofounder and Editorial Director of Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine®. Email him at [email protected].

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