ISU Bengal

Issue date: 2/2/05 Section: Life

In 1937, it was The East Idaho Brewing Company, residing in Pocatellos Historic Warehouse District that filled local tavern kegs and mugs with that sweet nectar called beer. Today the tradition lives on thanks to Portneuf Valley Brewing. Occupying a space originally intended to produce beer, it was only natural for Penny Pink and her family to feel at home in their new 1st street warehouse.

In 1996, Penny Pink started Portneuf Valley Brewing in the Historic Federal Building known to locals as "Dudleys." Locals enjoying the brews, and the business' need for a bigger space is what lead to the purchase of the bottling plant in March of 1998. Since then, it has been what Penny Pink describes on her web site as an  "epic journey of restoration" in the old bottling plant.  Renovations to the new "old" building have been chronicled through the business web site and shed light on some of the more interesting artifacts that have been found. So far Portneuf Valley Brewing has found old bottle caps and labels representing some thirty different brands of soda and beer, and even initials carved into an old toilet paper dispenser dating from the 1940's.

The fully functioning brew house is the centerpiece of the brewery and George Asboe, Portneuf Valley Brewing's head brew master explained how to make a 64 gallon batch of beer. Using malts and hot water they soak the malts for about an hour and then steep it so that it has a see-through quality. After a half an hour they sparge the malt, by pouring water, over the malt,then boil it and add hops. They then pump it to a different kettle and add the yeast culture, and then when the mixture is done, they store it for two weeks as to age it and there you go, a nice frosty beer. 

The Portneuf Valley Brewing Warehouse is a three story building with a lot of promise and possibility already blooming. The addition of a new yeast lab, tasting room and restaurant are in the works, and Portneuf Valley Brewing is estimating to have the tasting room completed by the end of the summer. The restaurant is set to finish next year and is going to have a 60 plus seating capacity. Asboe says that along with the great food will be local entertainment in the way of "hippie kids and hippie college kids playing in duets and trios," Asboe says. Asboe a local musician himself says that he might even get in the mix.

Relaxing and dining outside is an option now too, due to the hard work that Jeremias Pink put into building a deck off the back of the building.  With handicap access, a view of the train yard and city, it's a great addition to the building and captures so much of what is Pocatello. Jeremias Pink is also the graphic artist for Portneuf Valley Brewing and credited with creating the twelve plus labels for the company. Along with the labels, Pink's artwork is found on Portneuf Valley Brewing posters, t-shirts , hats and glasses.  The art work that Pink displays adds to the overall Bohemian feel. With three floors at their disposal, Portneuf Valley Brewing and staff are really brewing more than just beer in the warehouse district of Pocatello. This summer they plan to run a concert series with regional bands playing the third Saturday of each month, providing an always welcome distraction for locals to get together and enjoy themselves.

The Pink family and their staff feel very excited about their progress thus far, Jeremias Pink said, "I can't be anything but optimistic", Asboe added to that by saying "We've set a lot of aggressive goals for this year, we've proved to ourselves we can achieve just a about anything that we put our minds to and we're all enjoying it." Preserving the past by creating something new, Portneuf Valley Brewing has found a place here in the valley and something we can all be proud of.

Stop by and pick up your keg or growler from 4 to 7 pm, Monday thru Saturday at 615 South 1st Ave in Pocatello. or growler from 4 to 7 pm Monday thru Saturday.

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