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You can always tell when it’s time for the Brewer’s Festival around Portland when people start sending you texts, e-mails, carrier pigeons, and even owls swoop in with messages from around the valley… which day are you going? There is no better place to be this week. The now 27-year-old craft beer festival has undergone some big changes in recent years, but they’ve all been for the better. And what’s new this year? An emphasis on unique summer brews, more pre-fest brunching on Wednesday, and the return of the high-octane tent. While it’s sad Oregon Craft Beer Month is almost at an end, we’re planning to close it out in style.
The Nuts and Bolts
The Oregon Brewer’s Festival always takes place the last full weekend of July (23rd-27th) on the Willamette shoreline of Tom McCall Park in downtown Portland. Entry is free, a tasting glass (no longer plastic) costs $7, and beer tokens are a dollar each – 1 token per taste, 4 for a full pour. Only cash is accepted and yes, you get to keep the souvenir glass – just don’t drop it on your foot.
The gates to Hoppiness open at noon and close at 9 p.m. each day, except Sunday when they close at 7 p.m. There will be 6 food vendors on hand to help you keep your shit together while you bake in the sun and lose track of how many beers reside in your belly. For your entertainment, there will be 4 bands playing each day. The Transcendental Brass Band will also be cruising the grounds, keeping spirits high.
The Beers
There will be 85 brewers spewing 88 beers from 10 trailers along the riverfront, including a return visit from Florida’s Cigar City Brewing. The Specialty tent, formerly the Buzz Tent, will feature 100+ beers over the course of the weekend, with new brain-splitting brews each day. The tent will also house 11 Dutch brewers and 1 German brewer featuring their yeasty delights. Good thing it’s near the first aid tent. There are two large tents that cover most of the revelers to protect us from what is always a scorching bit of hot weather, perfect for rubbing elbows with a bunch of sweaty beer guzzlers.
What really sets this year’s event apart from years past is the large number of fruit-infused beers available. I counted nearly 30 beers on the list featuring fruit names or styles, including Berliner Weisse, cider fusions, a braggot, various berries, plums, and plenty of citrus. While there are a few porters, a CDA (session with citrus), and 2 gluten-free offerings, most of the beers are lagers, IPAs, and summery Belgian styles. Don’t worry – there will be plenty of flavors on hand, possibly even more than last year. View the tap list here.
Bonus Stuff
Every year before the event starts there’s a brunch on Wednesday, and this year it’s at Lucky Labrador Brewing on SE Hawthorne. Unfortunately, as usual, it sells out fast, but this year there’s an overflow brunch happening at Rogue’s Green Dragon Bistro and Brew Pub. It starts at 9:15 a.m. and runs till 11:15 a.m. and $15 buys you brunch and a drink ticket (which you can purchase here). The Oregon Brewers Parade from brunch to the drinking grounds starts at 11:30 and will be filled with more than 600 revelers, many dressed as monks, plus the Transcendental Brass Band.
Lastly, we all know how tough it can be to keep track of what suds hit your lips over the course of 5 days in the sun, so it’s great to know that you can log all your info on www.coaster.me, which also features a map and a guide for what beers are in which trailers. Good to know someone’s thinking ahead for the rest of us. Make sure to slap on some sunblock, don a silly festive hat, and strap on your drinking suspenders: this could get silly.
