How does this sound: Sun setting over a beautiful harbour; rowers practicing while sailboats tack across the bay. You’re standing on a lawn that gently slopes towards the water, holding a grilled cheese sandwich and a glass of beer. You’re with a few hundred other people, enjoying the tastes and sounds of a beer festival. This can’t be Ontario, right? Even the best festivals end up feeling very separate and “contained”. But not so here.
Cheers to a heck of a nice festival.
Because Beer, at Pier 4 Park in Hamilton is in it’s first year, but they are doing things right. The fenced in space is wide, and indeed, one side is enclosed by Hamilton Harbour. But it’s the inland part of the bay, with nary a Skyway or Steel Mill in site. The nearly 30 breweries/cideries mostly have brought both standard “entry-level” brews, as well as more interesting/complex stuff. Food trucks supply a good range of munchies ranging from little bits to keep you drinking, to full on meals. There’s live music on a stage close enough that you can turn your head and listen, but not so loud that you can’t wander down to the water to devour your grilled cheese with a friend in relative quite. There’s also beer education, a home-brew contest, and beer. I know I mentioned that last part already, but it’s pretty important.
Last night was the first night of the event, and clearly I had a ball. I had so much fun I’m going back again today! And here’s the good news: You can come too! Tickets are $25 and get you in, with your sample mug and 4 tokens to get you started. More tokens are $1 each; 1 token is a half glass, 2 is a full one. And the tokens are also used for food, etc. There are ABMs on-site but bringing cash isn’t a bad idea. You can buy your ticket at the gate, but the smarty-pants among us will buy theirs online, and skip that line-up. There’s a lot more info about what you can bring, etc, on their website; go check it out! And I’ll see you there later today!
