Microbrew Festivals

One of the best ways to experience Pacific Northwest brewing culture is to attend a microbrew festival. For the ultimate experience, head to Portland's Waterfront Park in July for the biggest of them all:  the Oregon Brewers Festival. Attendance for this three day event is usually about 80,000 and brewers come from all around the United States and beyond to participate.

In Washington, the most pleasant festival to attend is at the Herb Farm in Falls City on Father's Day Weekend. With 100+ brewery booths set out among meadows, gardens and woodland, live music and good food, this has the makings for a great weekend.  Come for both days and camp on the nearby Snoqualmie River.

In British Columbia, plan to attend the Great Canadian Beer Festival, hosted each year on the first weekend in November by the Victoria chapter of CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ales. Nearly a hundred breweries from the U.S. and Canada participate in this top notch festival held in Victoria's convention center. The high quality food prepared by a team of chefs fits this carpet-and-chandelier venue.

Festivals come and go, but the following ones have each been around for a few years and will probably continue. For more information on these and other festivals, check out the Real Beer Page's event calendar at www.realbeer.com, one of the best sources for beer and brewing information on the Internet. For up-to-date information about Washington brew happenings, check out www.microbrew-nw.com.

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