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Larry Sidor Oral History Interview, November 6, 2015 Title “From Olympia to Deschutes to Crux: A Brewer's Life” Date November 6, 2015 Location Valley Library, Oregon State University. Summary In the interview, Sidor discusses his family background and rural upbringing in La Grande, Oregon, commenting on his father's activities as an OSU Extension Agent, his own boyhood interests in mechanical work, and the life histories of his mother and his siblings. From there, Sidor recounts his undergraduate years at Oregon State University, noting his switch in majors from Mechanical Engineering to Food Science, and commenting on the curriculum then available to undergraduates in the Food Science department. Sidor likewise reflects on the research that he conducted while a student and, in particular, his interest in winemaking during that time. From there, Sidor details the circumstances by which he declined a handful of job opportunities in the wine industry, opted instead to travel for a year in Europe, and began considering a career in brewing as a result of his experiences in Germany. He then traces his first connection with the Olympia Brewing Company; outlines his advancement within the company from packing quality control technician, to assistant brewmaster, to operations manager; shares his perspective on the brewing culture then prevalent at Olympia; and speaks of the connections that he made with hop growers in Washington and Oregon. Sidor next provides an overview of his years working at the S.S. Steiner company, shares his memories of the rise of microbreweries in the 1980s and 1990s, and reflects on the relationships that Steiner maintained with agricultural scientists at OSU.
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