How to relish Portland's blackberry season

The fragrance of sun-warmed blackberries is wafting through Portland, as it does in August. We're catching whiffs along bike paths and by waterways — all those wild edges where the thorny species thrives.

There are two types, broadly speaking: the hardy and invasive Himalayan and the more delicate, native northwestern variety.

• Both, we have to acknowledge, make berries that taste fabulous.

But the season moves fast. Here are four ways to wallow in Oregon's blackberry wealth right now.

🥟 Nibble a blackberry hand pie at Baker & Spice in Hillsdale, or take a blackberry lime pie from their freezer home with you.

• Berries come from West Union Gardens, one of the many local spots with U-pick blackberries, and also go in the "buttery, dense" tea cakes at the bakery, manager Kat Lindsley says.

🍨 Check out this weekend's ice cream pop-up at the Steven Smith Tea shop on NW 23rd, where Nico's is offering blackberry jasmine ice cream made from Smith's popular iced tea blend.

🥃 Head to any McMenamins, including their bottle shop on NW 23rd, to sip their seasonal blackberry cider.

🔥 Glaze your BBQ with blackberry barbecue sauce, recipe courtesy of the Oregon Raspberry and Blackberry Commission.

And remember to inhale that wonderful summer smell of wild Portland.