Okay,okay... this topic has led me to register and stop just poking around. I have traveled the US a disgusting amount and have tried most of the beers mentioned, have been to the Abita brewery in Abita springs and have sipped Burning Lakes on the shore of Lake Erie. But, I live in Portland, OR partly because of the beer.
Portland is far and away the craft brewery capital of the US, partly based on a longstanding tradition of brewing which dates back to Henry Weinhard trying to fill the towns fountains with celebratory beer. The idea was scrapped by the fire department who feared their hoses would be ruined by those trying to syphon it off along the way.
Moreso, Portland's great beer has to do with the quality of local ingrediants. Cascade hops are amazing and the access to crisp, clean water also plays a role. Add on to that the fact that Portland is a brewpub city and not a place I'd recommend for dance clubs.
Great breweries in and nearby include the Deschutes breweries in Bend (Black Butte Porter is awesome, and I don't usually like porters), Bridgeport breweries (which single handedly revived the IPA, and still pulls off the best in my opinion), Portland Brewing has great product, and the Widmer breweries are fantastic as well and deserve a tour if visiting Portland (You can find their Hefeweizen quite widespread but is about as close to vagina juice as you can get, try their others). Full Sail out of Hood River is one of the all around best, and they're all employee owned. McMennemins makes some decent beers, but their appeal is serving them in their theater pubs. Rouge breweries from southern Oregon is overrated. Oregon Pinots are also very good.
I would say that Seattle is close second, though their best is still Oregon spill over. The true competition is Northern California, in my mind. Sierra Nevada is a good all around, but I find it sometimes doesn't travel well. It has good distribution all along the west coast, so thankfully one doesn't have to live in or near Chico. As a point of fact it is a Pale Ale (Not an IPA) though I know they do occasional seasonal brews. The only IPA that comes close to Bridgeport is Lagunitas IPA out of Nor Cal's lost coast. Unless we get hyper specific, if we do then the Oregon Coast's Terminal Gravity IPA has no competition and gets to like 8%v alcohol, but is available only on tap to my knowledge.
I need to get back to my beer, but Portland could easily be considered Microbrew capital (and usually is by those who know) because it simply has the most and best, and quantity seems to lead to quality. Perhaps related, we also have the most per capita strip clubs... full bar, full nude.
Too bad northwest law schools blow. I've hooked up with enough L&C girls, and if they're into dudes, so do they.
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