About Us + Our Story
Hammer & Stitch was founded by 2 brothers and a brewmaster. We aim to craft amazing, easy-drinking, approachable beers that are simple to understand and incredibly tasty. “Keep it simple,” was an echo to our youth. KISS (not the band, the expression) - keep it simple “silly” was something we heard all the time.
Things really started on a hot June afternoon in SE Portland when the brewmaster and brothers met for the first time. The brewmaster said to one of the brothers, “I want to make easy-drinking lagers and ales,” and we knew it was a match. It was love at first sight. In a world of making things more complex and intricate, the brewmaster wanted to craft simple, authentic and insanely high quality beers - so that’s exactly what we did.
THE BEER
Our STANDARDS are available all-day, everyday. They all have names you know (and can pronounce), and they are exactly what they are called (KISS, remember?). These beers are bold, flavorful and most important - approachable. Everyone will love you if you bring them one of THE STANDARDS. Our STANDARDS include THE LAGER, THE IPA, THE WEIZEN, THE PALE, THE PORTER and THE AMBER.
All work and no play makes a brewmaster dull, right? That’s where the CREATIONS come in. Our CREATIONS are sometimes seasonal, sometimes fancy, sometimes wild, but are all-the-time AMAZING. These crafty brews are not always available, and sometimes viciously limited - so get ‘em while you can. Makers need a place to play, to make and experiment with new things, so CREATIONS are that place. These beers are impeccable and most important - they are made for fun!
THE MAKERS
We love beer - it’s simple, but we REALLY love our makers. We believe that every day is the day to celebrate the maker, and their craft. It’s no mistake our beers are incredible, taste amazing and are always consistent. Our brewmaster and head brewer have honed their skills, craft and palate over decades working in the Portland beer industry.
LOVE ALL STYLES
In beer, there are roughly 100 styles of beer, from Lager to Gose, and we love all of ‘em. Every beer is different, in flavor profile, history, ingredients, brewing method, and color. When asked what his favorite beer or beer style is, Ben usually responds with, “The one that is in my hand!” This isn’t an abdication to the question but is the values of Hammer & Stitch Brewing Co. We truly love all styles.
This love extends beyond beer. Much like how the many styles of beer complement and support each other, diversity in thought and experience and lifestyle makes us all stronger than we would be individually. While we understand there are an infinite number of “styles of people,” each with their own unique combination of traits, we carry the same sentiment. Love All Styles is part of our core values as a company and members of the community.
We aim everyday to cultivate a strong community that actively celebrates and uplifts every style of person. Now more than ever, we want to be leaders of change. Beer has always been a good way for people to talk and listen. Thru beer, Hammer & Stitch crafts an environment where all styles are actively loved and welcome.
THE ENVIRONMENT
We have worked insanely hard to create an on-site experience that is actively inclusive, diverse, fun and inviting. We love all styles of beer, friends and adventure so much that we had a neon sign made that says ‘LOVE ALL STYLES’ at the center of our Slabtown Taproom. We deliberately use our modern Taproom space to celebrate and uplift local Makers, and you'll find their works of art all over our gallery walls. Have a beer, take it all in, and get lost in conversation with friends.
We aimed to put the craft of beer directly in your line of sight; you’ll notice that you can see the brewhouse from just about everywhere inside and out of the Slabtown Taproom. This isn’t just about tanks either - 7 days a week you’ll see our makers making beer, right there on the brew deck in front of you.
THE STORY
We grew up with parents that were makers, they made everything. Our father built the houses we lived in (and many others); he was an engineer and basically a renaissance man. He raced cars, sailed boats, flew planes and could build damn near anything. Our mother made our clothes, quilts and most of our sister’s leotards for gymnastics. She was brilliant, passionate and driven beyond the sewing machine as a teacher and a badass mom. We were taught that we could do anything and that everything was possible.
We lost our father in 1989 and our mother in 2017. After an incredible celebration of their lives we decided, over beers and tears, that we would build something new, build something together, something that would be a testament to their hard work and something that would survive us all.
The Hammer is for our father, and the Stitch is for our mother.
Hammer & Stitch opened in September of 2020 in the re-thriving industrial part of Portland, Oregon called Slabtown. Slabtown’s history is chock full of hard work, good times and a whole lotta dirt under nails - a perfect spot to build our brewery from the ground up.
THE PARTNERS + THE TEAM
It takes a village and that’s what we needed. We knew we wanted Hammer & Stitch to be a team of experts, with diverse experience and history, so we built our team from the ground up with that in mind. Our team includes partners with a broad array of experience from the beer industry and beyond, as well as our kickass team who connect with our consumers every single day. We are a powerful, passionate team of experts excited to do beer a little differently.
