Columbia Sportswear teams up with Breakside Brewery for a bear-inspired beer

In a move that's equal parts genius marketing and pure Portland weirdness, Breakside Brewery has partnered with Columbia Sportswear on "Nature Calls," a light lager literally brewed with water infused with black bear scat from Montana trails.

At its core, Nature Calls is a straightforward 4% ABV lager: crisp, clean, easy-drinking. What sets it apart is the water, sourced from Portland's Bull Run River, then treated after being infused with sterilized American black bear feces gathered in the wild. The brewers layered in Pacific Northwest malted grains, a touch of honey and huckleberry to nod toward what bears actually eat, giving it subtle fruity notes that somehow make the whole concept less insane.

Columbia insists the final product is 100% safe. The scat gets processed to kill off any bacteria or risks. It's all part of their "Engineered for Whatever" campaign, which loves leaning into the outdoorsy absurd to grab attention. This one certainly delivered: national headlines, from Forbes to OPB, calling it everything from "the sh*ttiest beer ever" to a bold celebration of nature.

Breakside brewmaster Ben Edmunds kept it real when he talked to Forbes: "I asked if they wanted it to taste like bear poop or taste good. They said they wanted it to taste good." So he dialed in the honey and huckleberry for balance, turning a gross-out gimmick into something actually drinkable. Founder Scott Lawrence called it one of the brewery's most on-the-nose tributes to the wild: "We've brewed a lot of beers, but never one that celebrates nature this literally."

Tasters on Untappd, a beer community app, are giving it solid marks, around 3.8 out of 5. With notes on the refreshing finish, faint berry sweetness and clean lager body. The backstory doesn't seem to scare people off. If anything, it draws them in.

For Columbia, it's their first big Super Bowl play, using the beer to bridge indoor sports fans with the "taste of the outdoors." Breakside, always game for creative collabs, delivered on the humor while keeping the quality high.

This is a one-off brew. No endless batches planned. Grab a six-pack or pint while you can at Breakside spots. It's marketed with that classic tongue-in-cheek vibe as the ultimate trail-inspired pour.

In a city that already loves pushing boundaries in craft beer, Nature Calls stands out as one of the boldest, funniest stunts yet. Proof that sometimes the wildest ideas come from taking "getting back to nature" a little too literally.

Setting and Place

I usually open the Oregon City elevator early in the morning. It’s still dark out and windy. You hear the wind before anything else. A few people come through, mostly regulars. Same faces most days. They’re going to work or walking. Someone will say good morning, but not much else. Everyone is kind of half awake. The elevator is just part of their day, nothing special.

Later on, it changes. More people show up, and they’re not locals. Tourists come in and stop instead of walking straight through. They look around, take pictures, and read the signs. Some ask questions about how old the elevator is. By then, it doesn’t feel routine anymore. It feels like a place people came to see, not just use.