Oregon Brewers Festival

One of the nation's longest-running and best-loved craft beer festivals, the Oregon Brewers Festival is considered a destination, and 80,000 craft beer lovers annually make the pilgrimage to Beervana to drink up what the festival has to offer. The 29th event will take place July 27 through July 31 at Tom McCall Waterfront Park in downtown Portland. Event hours are Noon to 9pm Wednesday through Saturday, and Noon to 7pm Sunday.Situated on the west bank of the Willamette River, with towering Mt. Hood as a backdrop, the OBF is the ideal place to spend a sunny summer afternoon sipping craft beers with friends. With its laid-back attitude and scores of independently brewed craft beers, the festival reflects the essence of the city of Portland.The festival kicks off its opening day with a parade of hundreds of beer lovers winding through the streets of Portland to the festival site at Waterfront Park. Following opening ceremonies and the official tapping of the inaugural keg, the taps open for the thirsty masses. The main festival serves up more than 80 different beers from independent craft breweries from around North America – the beers are usually products not commonly found in the area. From Belgians to braggots, pales to Pilsners, radlers to reds, and saisons to stouts, there’s a beer to please nearly every palate.This year, another dozen or so brewers from Japan and The Netherlands will serve their products in the International Beer Garden as part of a cultural exchange of ideas, knowledge and – of course – great craft beer! The festival also features live music, beer-related vendors, homebrewing demonstrations, an assortment of food, and handcrafted sodas (free for minors and designated drivers).Did we mention it’s free? The Oregon Brewers Festival is not a ticketed event and you don’t have to pay a dime to enter the festival grounds. However, if you want to drink, a one-time purchase of a 2016 souvenir mug is required and costs $7. Beer is purchased with wooden tokens, which cost $1 apiece. Patrons pay four tokens for a full beer, or one token for a taste. The purchase of cups and tokens is made on-site.Join thousands of beer fans and book a trip to Portland this year for the 29th annual Oregon Brewers Festival. Enjoy the fest, then take advantage of the more than 65 breweries in the city, brew ’n’ view movie theaters, beer tours via bus/bike/feet, beer pairings at fine restaurants, bottle shops and tap lists galore. Discover why we’re called Beervana!