Just Here For The Beer

According to the weather this past weekend, patio season is offically on! (lots of pasty skin in need of a little colour, yikes!) It's also time for Vancouver's Craft Beer Week from May 6 - May 14 (FYI - When you're celebrating beer a week lasts 9 days).

The festival features over 55 great breweries at over 70 venues. Sample the finest offerings from local favourites (R&B and Storm Brewing), BC brewmasters (Crannog - try their amazing 'Back Hand of God' Stout) and beyond (Brooklyn, Sierra Nevada). Check out all the participants HERE.

The opening night extravaganza (Friday) at Granville Island Brewery is already sold out, but there are still tickets available for the festival's curtain call, The Brewery Creek Beer Festival and 2nd annual BC Beer awards. That event takes place on Saturday, May 14 at the Beatty St. Drill Hall. Tickets are 30 bucks and include 3 tasting tokens and glass (additional tokens $1.50)

The 'Dead Famous' pub crawl will wobble from downtown to False Creek starting at noon on Saturday, May 7th. It's sure to be one of the festival's most popular events with crawlers encouraged to dress up as famous dead people. The $80 ticket includes 5 beers, appetizers, bbq, and a private aqua bus ride from Yaletown to False Creek.

There are also various brewer's dinners, beer related educational sessions, and parties. All the events are listed HERE.

28 of the participating breweries have collaborated to create the festival's official brew, a Cascadian Dark Ale. The festival organizers are quick to point out that this beer style orginated in our fair corner of the continent, the Pacific Northwest. All proceeds from the collaboration will be donated to the Red Cross Tsunami Relief Fund. So buy the next round, it's for a good cause.