Portland’s Holiday Ale Fest

If you have ever been to Portland, you know that we Portlanders take our beer very seriously. Not only does Portland have the most breweries in a single city anywhere in the world, but we also have some of the best, and all throughout the year, there are events highlighting Portland’s love of all things hoppy and alcoholic. The Oregon Brewers’ Festival (aka BrewFest) may be the most famous, but to a lot of Portlanders, there is one event that is the clear flagship of the Portland beer events calendar, and that is the Holiday Ale Fest.

Holiday Ale Fest

Dates: Wednesday, November 30 – Sunday, December 4, 2011
Time: 11am to 10pm on Thursday – Saturday, 11am to 5pm on Sunday
Location: Pioneer Courthouse Square, 701 SW Sixth Ave, Downtown Portland
Cost: $25 for mug & 8 beer tickets, at the door
More information

The 2011 edition of the Holiday Ale Fest features over 50 winter ales, many of which aren’t available anywhere else – they are created specially for this season and this event. And that’s what really sets the Ale Fest apart from other beer events. Brewers work for month concocting their winter brews for the Ale Fest, and there are all styles represented, from deep dark porters to lighter Belgian ales.

The event runs for five days, ending on December 4th with the 8th annual Sunday Beer Brunch. This year, there will be a European-style brunch including tasty bits like mini pain au chocolate, croissants with Havarti cheese, and a fresh fruit platter. The brunch will also feature a selection of Belgian ales not available to the rest of the Ale Fest attendees.

The weather can be a bit nasty in Portland in December, but there’s no way to warm up and dry off quite like a pint of completely unique, utterly delicious winter ale.