Happy Twenty-First Birthday!

July 18, 2008

Talk about a total kegger! Next weekend a minimum of 1,100 beer barrels will be tapped to celebrate the 21st Annual Oregon Brewers Festival at Tom McCall Waterfront Park in Portland. Much has changed for the craft beer movement since the inauguration of this West Coast beer extravaganza. Back then, a mere 124 craft breweries operated in the U.S., only 13 of which came to that first festival; today our country boasts over 1,400 such breweries, and 73 of them will be pouring amber, porter and pale ale samples next weekend in the City of Roses. This year’s participants run the gamut in style and flavor, but all share a dedication to quality: One third of them hold medals from the 2007 Great American Beer Festival. You’ll also have the chance to try out some never-before-exhibited brews from 10 brand-new breweries. This years festival promises a bit of everything, from West Coast favorites like Green Flash and Great Divide to the lesser-known Electric Brewing out of Bisbee, Ariz. and Four + Brewing from Salt Lake City. There’s even a root beer garden! Taste craft brewing at its best while getting a peek at home-brewing demonstrations and mingling with the 60,000-plus beer aficionados expected to attend.

Details
Oregon Brewers Festival
Where: Tom McCall Waterfront Park, Portland, Ore.
When: July 24-27

Other brew fests happening this month:
Michigan Summer Beer Festival
Where: Riverside Park Depot Town, Ypsilanti
When: July 25-26

Vermont Brewers Festival
Where: Waterfront Park, Burlington
When: July 18-19