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Don
Remembered
In Memoriam : 1941–2011
Remembrance by Tom Dalldorf | Photos:
CBN Archives | Video: Tom Dalldorf & Lisa
Morrison |
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| View
our "30 Years Younger : An Interview with Don
Younger" video featuring Don Younger and his
Horse Brass Pub in Portland, Oregon. |
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| CLICK
HERE to view our photos taken at Don's memorial
service held on February 13, 2011 at the Horse Brass
Pub in Portland, Oregon. |
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Don Younger, famed publican extraordinaire and legendary beer
evangelist, died early Monday morning, January 31, 2011 of complications
from a fall a few days earlier. He was 69 years old.
Don was a “larger than life” character with an enormous
passion for beer, brewing and beer culture. He loved meeting
new people and spreading the word of good beer but eschewed
“phonies” and poseurs. He also eschewed people who
would say “eschewed.” He was not a model for the
healthy lifestyle preferring beer, whisky (make it MCCALLAN
12 please, 18 if ya got it) and cigarettes (Sprits will do)
to more conventional comestibles. It is suggested that both
he and Patsy from the BBC's Absolutely Fabulous had
not had solid food since 1977. That is not true, of course,
but close.
A pub crawl with Don involved a ride in his beloved 1973 Thunderbird
with a hood as long as an Arena-size football field. But parking
never seemed a problem. He knew all the great places and seemed
to know just when to get there. The truly worthy might be treated
to a crawl of the great beer places of Portland (in chronological
order) beginning of course with Produce Row. Great moments of
beer education not soon forgotten.
I first met Don at the Rogue Ales Brewery in Newport, Oregon,
before they moved across the bay into the vast former boat storage
facility. Owner Jack Joyce told me I really needed to meet this
guy who owned a cool pub in Portland. Don looked to be a cross
between a thoroughly aged hippy and Gabby Hayes with puffy lips
smacking at the possibility of another great beer and slightly
bulging eyes that seemed to take in everything. His smile and
gracious welcoming demeanor were legend. He truly wanted to
listen to you but get him started and tales of pubs past and
beer’s future spewed forth like first runnings.
I learned that a visit to Portland without a visit to the Horse
Brass on Belmont was as vacuous as a light lager. But Don was
not a beer snob. He began as a light lager drinker (there was
precious else to drink in the '70s) and was indeed known as
Captain Blitz. Don famously won his pub in a drunken card game
awaking with two headaches — his own and his new ownership
of a pub. Ouch. He maintains he had no idea what he was doing
and his early success was due (he said) to blind dumb luck with
an interest in good beer.
| “It’s not about the beer — it’s
about the beer!” |
As the Horse Brass Pub prospered with adoring fans both local
and from distant lands (a sister pub in England is in mourning),
Don spread his wings and started other pubs to spread the culture
of good beer. Some worked and some faltered. He learned, he
moved on. His legacy is manifest in his surviving pubs and retail
outlets. But Don’s lifestyle proved to be a challenge.
Oregon’s chief beer scribe John Foyston reported: “Living
as he wanted included being a famously avid cigarette smoker
and a man who loved a pint or three with friends, and those
habits finally caught up with him, despite his legendary Keith
Richards-like constitution.” If only he could play guitar.
Don was a product of the '50s and loved the music of the era.
He and his buddies would drive to hilltops to pick up broadcasts
of Wolfman Jack at night from a 150,000-watt station across
the border in Mexico to hear the latest rock ‘n roll or
doo-wop. He carried that outlaw spirit with him into the 21st
century.
His best-remembered aphorism (maybe because he kept repeating
it) sums up the Don: “It’s not about the beer —
it’s about the beer!” Well said, sir. I
think. And ultimately, it’s not about Don — it’s
about Don. Your next visit to the Horse Brass should
begin with a pint of Younger’s Special Bitter on hand
pump and remember: It’s named for his brother Bill, not
for Don. But we know better, don’t we? |
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Don Younger at his world famous Horse Brass Pub on the
advent of his 30th anniversary. This picture made the
cover of Celebrator Beer News for the December
2006/January 2007 issue. |
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Don Younger, the “Dean of American Beer Drinkers,”
with Fred Eckhardt (left) the “Dean of American
Beer Writers,” at the legendary Horse Brass Pub
in Portland. |
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Don Younger (from left clockwise) with Chris Black, Falling
Rock Ale House; Natalie and Vinnnie Cilurzo, Russian River
Brewery and Tom Dalldorf, Celebrator Beer News,
at the Falling Rock in Denver. |
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Don loved to meet new people — not only to talk
about the beer he loved so much but to hear their stories
and beer likes and dislikes. |
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Jay Brooks, Brookston Beer Bulletin, and Don enjoy a moment
outside the Rogue Ales Public House in San Francisco. |
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Don Younger with longtime friend and business partner
Joy Campbell, former manager of Belmont Station in Portland. |
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Celebrator publisher Tom Dalldorf with
Horse Brass owner Don Younger at the legendary Horse Brass
Pub shortly after Don’s birthday a few years ago. |
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Don Younger and Celebrator publisher Tom Dalldorf
(left) at a bar (what else) at Denver International Airport
getting ready for the return home after GABF week. |
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Your publisher and Don Younger share beers and giggles
on board a massive cruise ship for the Celebrator
Brews Cruise in 2008. |
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We weren’t sure if Don would make it out on the
deck for life jacket drill (no smoking and all that) but
he surprised us all with his thumbs up for safety. |
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Don toasting his image painted by Portland artist/writer
John Foyston. |
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