This Is What Rosh Hashanah Beer Tastes Like

As Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, approaches, the husband-and-wife team behind Portland brewery Leikam Brewing has an unusual question on their minds — what would Rosh Hashanah beer taste like? Every year, the kosher brewery interprets the Jewish new year into a limited-edition beer that reflects the flavors and traditions of the high holidays.

In 2023, Leikam brewed a pomegranate blonde ale in collaboration with Seattle-based Muriel’s All Day Eats. The beer was inspired by owner Sonia Marie’s tradition of making fesenjan, a Persian pomegranate chicken stew, for Rosh Hashanah. For 2024, Leikam is brewing Party Like It’s 5785, a stout with dates, honey, and cinnamon, named after the upcoming year in the Jewish calendar. For Marie, the flavor is all about “bringing forth the sweetness of the new year with the dates and the honey and the spices of the season.”

In developing the yearly flavors, Marie and her husband, Theo Leikam, try to be expansive in thinking about Jewish traditions. “For us, it’s about, how do we communicate through the food, the feeling of tradition, which is a little bit hard because everyone’s got different traditions,” Marie says. While dishes like brisket and prune-studded tzimmes are often closely associated with the high holidays, they mainly represent Ashkenazi traditions. Persian Jews may prepare khoresh sib, a stewed meat dish, while Sephardic Jews tend to include sweet, sticky dates in the Rosh Hashanah meal. Marie hopes the brewery can offer flavors that feel familiar to anyone, no matter their upbringing. “I think one of the things we hope is that people find a little bit of their tradition when they’re drinking the beer,” she says.

Baked by Sara

In addition to the beer, which will be available exclusively on tap starting October 2, Leikam will also offer challah from local baker, Baked by Sara. Both a vegan and an egg challah will be available for pre-order, plus a limited amount will be available on-site for purchase.

Leikam Brewing’s Rosh Hashanah beer offers connection for Portland’s Jewish diasporic community at a time when many of the city’s other Jewish culinary hubs have shuttered. Both Kornblatt’s and Kenny & Zuke’s closed permanently in 2023, followed by Sweet Lorraine’s in 2024. Looking forward to the rest of the year, Leikam already has plans to invite the community back in for Sukkot and Hanukkah celebrations.

This year, Rosh Hashanah will be celebrated from the evening of October 2 through the evening of October 4.