Hops are being harvested, fresh hop beers are pouring, and festival and awards season is here!
Breweries around the province don’t slow down this time of year. They speed up! In the next two months alone, there’s a brewery crawl, a street festival, a beachfront festival, a series of Oktoberfests under a handful of different names (Frogtoberfest, Dagtoberfest, and yes, Dogtoberfest), cask nights, anniversary parties, jam nights, BC Beer Con, the BC Beer Awards, and a full Craft Beer Week. All of it packed into two months!
It’s worth building a weekend around at least one of these events. Festivals like these bring a region’s breweries, cideries, and food vendors together for the afternoon. Support the small towns and neighbourhoods hosting them, and you’ll walk away with a better sense of what their beer scene is all about.
Here’s what’s on, where, and what to expect at each one.
Penticton Beer Week: Weird Beer Brewery Crawl • Penticton
September 18-27
Penticton’s beer week is now in its eighth year, and this edition centres on seven breweries across the city: Cannery Brewing, Abandoned Rail Brewing Co., Yellow Dog Brewing, Neighbourhood Brewing, Highway 97 Brewing, Tin Whistle Brewing, and Barley Mill Brew Pub. Each is pouring the weirdest thing they’ve got on tap for the occasion. Pick up a Penticton Beer Blocks passport, get it stamped at all seven stops, and you’ll walk away with a limited-edition hat once passports run out. Penticton has picked up a “Canada’s Craft Beer Capital” nod from Lonely Planet, and a week built around trying the odd, experimental batches breweries don’t usually put front and centre is a pretty good reason to give it a try.
White Rock Craft Beer Festival • White Rock
September 26
Now in its sixth year, this one’s a straightforward good time by the water: a dozen-plus breweries, cideries, meaderies, and wineries pouring at Memorial Park, live music through the afternoon, and a Bánh Mi Très Bon food stand for anyone who needs something between samples. Every ticket includes a full tasting flight and a commemorative glass to take home. Early bird tickets run $50, regular $55, and the park sits 50 km south of Vancouver with free street parking nearby, so it’s an easy add-on if you’re already down that way.
Oktoberfest • Across BC
September and October
Harvest Haus at the PNE Forum (October 2–3) is the big festivity this year, in its 10th year, visitors can expect Tanzfläche dance floors, oompah bands, and more than 25 European and BC craft beers under one roof, plus a souvenir stein to take home. But, Harvest Haus is far from the only Oktoberfest on the calendar this fall. Between late September and mid-October, breweries all over the province are running their own versions: Dageraad Brewing‘s three-day Dagtoberfest in Langley, Lakesider Brewing Co.‘s sixth annual celebration in West Kelowna, and one-day parties at Field House Brewing Co., Dead Frog Brewery, Mariner Brewing, Kelowna Beer Institute, Red Collar Brewing, Sidekick Brewing, and Abandoned Rail Brewing Co., among others. Most of them are free to get into. New ones tend to get added as the season goes on, so bcaletrail.ca/events is worth a bookmark if you want the full list.
SkyWalk Brewfest • Malahat
October 2-3
Up on the Malahat Skywalk, ten Vancouver Island breweries and cideries, including Vancouver Island Brewing, Hoyne Brewing, Driftwood Brewery, Merridale Cidery and Distillery, and Sea Cider Farm and Ciderhouse, will set up for an afternoon with a view most beer festivals can’t compete with. DJ Island Rob will be spinning music, there’s trivia and lawn games throughout the event, and a beer label design station for anyone who wants to try their hand at the art side of the industry. Wristbands are $20 at the gate and include four tasting tokens, on top of regular SkyWalk admission. There’s also a shuttle package running from Victoria and the Cowichan Valley for anyone who’d rather not drive up the hill.
Downpour Craft Beer Festival • Prince Rupert
October 2–3
Up on the North Coast, Prince Rupert runs its own two-day celebration at the Highliner Hotel. Tastings open the evening of October 2nd, then run across two sessions on the 3rd, wrapping up with a live music performance from Triple Bypass. The lineup pulls from breweries across the northern half of the province: Wheelhouse Brewing Company, Barkerville Brewing, Trench Brewing & Distilling, Smithers Brewing Company, Sherwood Mountain Brewhouse, Two Peaks Brewing, Mighty Peace Brewing, among others, alongside local food vendors and a rotating selection of wine and cocktails. Tickets run through Eventbrite, and two-day passes bought in blocks of ten come with a 20% discount. So, it’s worth coordinating if you’re heading up as a group.
BC Craft Brewers Conference & BC Beer Awards • New Westminster
October 15-16
This is the industry’s own get-together with two days of seminars on brewing, business, and taproom operations, plus a tradeshow with more than 70 suppliers. But the public is more than welcome to join the festivities at the BC Beer Awards on the evening of the 16th, where the province’s brewers and cider makers get recognized for the year’s best releases. If you’ve ever wondered who actually decides what the best beer in BC is, this is the room where it happens. Tickets for the awards night are available now.
A Reel Street Fest • Kelowna
October 17
This is Rustic Reel Brewing Co‘s third annual street fest where visitors will see them take over the parking lot behind the brewery for an afternoon that celebrates beer, cider, wine, spirits, sodas, and coffee. Visitors will also be able to enjoy an artisan market, firepits, lounge areas, and carnival games. Tickets include a festival cup and four drink tokens, with early bird pricing at $35 through September 30 before it moves to $39. Dogs are welcome, it runs rain or shine, and capacity is limited, so this is one to book ahead of time, rather than show up and hope.
Brewphoria • Kelowna
October 24
Now in its 11th year, Brewphoria brings together 13 Okanagan breweries including Giant’s Head Brewing, BNA Brewing Co., Buffalo Rouge Brewing, Cannery Brewing, Copper Brewing Co., and Freddy’s Brewpub, each pouring a one-of-a-kind beer made just for the event. Tickets include all 13 samples plus a full 20-ounce pour of your favourite, with $5 pints and 15% off food for the rest of the night. Casks get tapped at 3 pm sharp, and once a keg’s dry, that beer’s gone for good. So, this is one where showing up early actually matters.
Vancouver’s North Shore Craft Beer Festival • North Vancouver
October 30-November 12
This event is a unique one and unfolds over two weeks, with a different North Shore brewery hosting each day. It kicks off with a Halloween launch party at The Pipe Shop on October 30 (costumes encouraged, proceeds going to North Shore Neighbourhood House), then moves through the neighbourhood: Bridge Brewing Company, North Point Brewing, Black Kettle Brewing, Wildeye Brewing, Shaketown Brewing, Beere Brewing Company, and Strathcona North each take a turn, among others, right through to November 12. It’s a good one that will keep you coming back for more. A Sip and Stay package is available for people planning to stick around the area for more than one stop.
Every Pint Tells a Story
