What is the difference between a Pub, Brewery, Microbrewery, and a Brewpub?

Let's take a look at the difference between each one, as they are sometimes confusing to keep track of and can be mistakenly interchanged. The main idea is that each have to do with beer in some way.

What is a Brewery?

A brewery is a business entity established to make and sell beer, according to barcritic.com. Breweries are those places you see with all the fancy metal tanks and equipment inside, where they mix and ferment hops and other ingredients to make and sell beer.

What is a Microbrewery?

A microbrewery, also commonly referred to as a Craft Brewery, is any brewery that produces small amounts of beer, and is often independently owned. Craft breweries are generally thought of and marketed as emphasizing a culture of enthusiasm, with new and unique flavors, and a use a variety of brewing techniques to achieve their craft. Craft beers tend to have a shorter shelf life due to the increased hop content, so typically craft breweries only distribute beer locally.

Some examples include Rogue Ales and Hopworks Urban Brewery in Portland Oregon. Rogue and Hopworks are popular craft breweries and specialize in making delicious, hoppy beers.

What is a Pub?

A pub is also a licensed establishment similar to a brewery, but they focus on the sale of alcoholic drinks rather than the production of such drinks. A pub is short for Public House. Pubs are generally very welcoming to families and even dogs, for those that have outside patios, because they sometimes sell food in addition to alcohol. You can sit down at a pub and grab a drink and eat food. Pubs that don't serve their own food will allow you to bring in your own. If you were looking for a pub pass, you’d be interested in something that takes you to local pubs and gets you discounts at each pub. Dogs and pubs go hand in hand!

What is a brewpub?

A brewpub is a hybrid between a brewery and a restaurant. Brewery plus pub equals brewpub! Yeah I hate math too but I don’t mind in this case. To recap, a brewery brews the beer, a pub is a place you drink beer (and eat food), and a pub is called a brewpub it they brew beer on site. Cool!

What is a pub pass used for?

Ok, so what is a pub passport, or pub pass for short? The idea of a pub passport isn’t necessarily new. I think you understand the pub part now, so let’s get the passport part. Without relating to alcohol, when someone talks about a passport, they’re probably talking about a legal document that a person would carry with them to an airport, typically used when visiting other countries, as a form of personal documentation. Back in the day, you would actually get your passport stamped when you visit a new country.  Now days it's all digital, so no more stamps.

So really, a pub passport is like a regular passport, except you’re visiting pubs, brewpubs, and breweries instead of the airport! If a passport takes you to new countries, a pub passport takes you to new pubs. It's a pass to pubs!

What is a Beer Passport?

A beer passport is another name for a pub pass. A beer passport takes you to local breweries, craft breweries, pubs, and brewpubs - or simply put, a beer passport takes you to places that make and serve beer just like a pub passport. Call it whatever you want, just get out there and drink beer at your favorite pub!

Why use a pub pass?

A pub passport is a fun way to explore new pubs and breweries. This is typically something you’d get if you travel and want to find quality stops, or if you want to get our and do something fun. The other reason to use a pub pass is to get discounts at local pubs and breweries. Not all passports offer a discount program, however. Pup Passport is an example of a passport program that gets you discounts at each pub and brewery you visit, currently based in Portland Oregon. We just so happen to feature breweries and brewpubs that allow dogs at their outdoor patios!

Where can I get a pub pass?

Pup Passport is an example of a pub passport for dog lovers. It gives you all the discounts you could ask for, and is great for all people, not just dog lovers. It takes you to breweries that allow dogs on their outdoor patios. This is especially useful for dog owners in the PNW and around PDX who travel, hike, and camp with their dogs. It is also a great gift idea and makes a great date night. Portlanders can grab a drink with their pups at over 35 participating locations from Cannon beach to Portland and more.

What is a pub pass?

A pub pass is another name for a brewery passport, but with a focus on any pubs whether or not they craft their own beer. Pub pass is short for pub passport, and a pub pass can take you to pubs, brewpubs, breweries, etc, depending on whoever organizes the pass. A pass, or passport, is a great way to visit new places and grab a drink. Some pub passes have discounts at each destination while others do not. Some also offer prizes for completing the passport.

What is an Ale Trail?

An ale trail is another kind of pub-crawling scheme, or in other words, an ale trail is an organized list of pubs, sometimes bars, breweries, etc, but they usually tell you an order to go in. The idea is to go to all of them in one trip and make a day of it, sort of like bar crawling. Speaking of which, pub crawl is another name for ale trail. An Ale trail is a curated list of places that you can go to drink beer. An Ale trail may or may not offer prizes for completion, and may or may not offer discounts at each location on the list.

There are many names for the same thing:

Brewery Passport, Beer Pass, Beer Passport, Ale Trail, Pub Pass, Pint Pass, Hop Passport, Beer Odyssey, Pub Crawl, beer adventure book, etc -- they are all different names to give color and culture to a list of places that you can go to drink beer. Beer! Of course, a pint is what you drink beer out of, and hops are commonly used in craft beer, so it makes sense that craft beer culture has lead us to some creative names when it comes to creating and using passport of places that will serve you beer.

Where can I get a pub pass for myself?

There are many different pub passes for many different regions which means you can pick the one that suits you best, and choose a pub pass for the region where you live or want to visit. A pub pass is a great idea for date nights, for traveling, and for meeting new people with a common interest since there are many themed passes. Pup Passport is an example of a regional Brewery Passport that is located in Portland, Oregon, and ha a "dog friendly" theme, meaning that every brewery on the list allows you to bring your furry friend with you!

Oregon Craft Beer and Breweries