It is with a tinge of sadness that I have to report that Beer and Blog Portland—arguably one of the key gatherings that codified our burgeoning startup community—has decided to call it quits.
Beer and Blog Portland is no more.
Beer and Blog founder Justin Kistner offered the following:
One thing I learned early on was that I was never really in control of the group anyway. Rather a meager steward of something larger, which was the desire for the Portland tech scene to meet up for happy hour on Friday. As I would cancel events, Blog and Beer emerged and decided to meet up anyway! While I will not be able to continue in official organizing capacities, don’t let that stop all of you from continuing to meet up on Fridays from 4-6 pm
Thank you to everyone who has attended Beer and Blog and made it the special time that it was. It will always be a fond memory for me and I know I take many lifetime friendships on with me. Cheers!
All good things must come to an end. And to be honest, Beer and Blog had admittedly run its course.
Once a gathering that attracted hundreds of people on sunny summer days, the numbers had begun to dwindle as of late. With a group of stalwart attendees continuing to keep it alive and breathing.
And the people who made that happen over the years—from organizers to attendees—should be congratulated for their incredible contribution to our community.
In many ways, we’re exactly where we were a few years back when Beer and Blog started. With similar conditions that motivated Kistner to start the gathering. When it was just a small group of a few of us who got together for a beer while we worked on our blogs. That handful of people soon grew to be the must-attend gathering, every week. And it became clear that Beer and Blog could be—and would become—a place to get to know other people in the Portland startup scene.
I know I had the pleasure of meeting a ton of you there.
Beer and Blog was the foothold. The icebreaker. The way to engage with Portland startups. It was the anchor you used to make sure that out-of-towners and visiting tech types got a feel for the Portland community. And when anyone asked how to get more engaged with the community? The response was always “What are you doing, Friday?”
So Beer and Blog is over. But we could really use a little of that magic, again. For a whole new generation of startups—and all of the awesome new people who are interested in our startup scene.
So on one hand, I’m sad to see it go. On the other hand? I’m excited to see what takes its place.
So here’s to Beer and Blog Portland. Thank you for everything.
(Hat tip @jkuramot)