PORTLAND, Ore. – It’s the most wonderful time of the year for winter beer lovers: the 22nd annual Holiday Ale Festival will take place Nov. 29 through Dec. 3 at Pioneer Courthouse Square, 701 SW Sixth Ave., in Portland. The Northwest’s only outdoor winter beer festival – which is tented and heated – will feature 55 craft beers, ciders and meads in the main lineup, all of which are made or blended specifically for the event. Event hours are 11am to 9:30pm Wednesday through Saturday, and 11am to 5pm Sunday.
In addition, the festival will also feature a number of Meet the Brewer events, dozens of specialty and rare beer tappings, cheese and beer pairings, and food vendors. The Holiday Ale Festival is regarded as presenting one of best lineups of winter beers and ciders anywhere in the nation. The event is for ages 21 and over.
What makes this festival standout from other similar events is the selection: the festival works with every brewery involved to make sure they send a product that has either been made or blended specifically for the event, or is a rare or vintage beer or cider that isn’t commonly tapped in the state. View the 2017 participant and product list at HolidayAle.com, and download a detailed spreadsheet on Google Drive.
Despite being held outdoors during one of the coldest months of the year, more than 14,000 festival attendees stay dry throughout the five-day festival under clear-topped tents warmed by gas heaters. An elaborate scaffolding design creates a second level for the venue, dubbed the Sky Bar, which serves additional taps and provides ample elbow room for attendees to relax, spread out and even peek at the revelers below.
To enter and consume beer, the purchase of an entry package is required. Advance general admission costs $35 and includes the 2017 tasting glass – a flexible BPA & BPS-free polymer “glass” – and 14 taster tickets, plus expedited entry all five days with the print at home ticket. General admission at the door is the same price, but includes only 12 tickets and no expedited entry. Advance VIP packages cost $100 and include the tasting glass, 30 taster tickets, special VIP beer lines with little to no waiting, exclusive VIP only vintage beers, bottled water, and express entry all five days. VIP tickets are limited to 250 and are not available at the door. Advance tickets are available at www.holidayale.com.
Once inside the festival, most full pours costs four tickets, and a taster costs one ticket. Certain limited release and special tappings may not be available in full pours, or may cost extra tickets. Additional taster tickets can be purchased for $1 apiece. Previous years’ mugs or glasses will not be filled. Express re-entry requires a wristband and the 2017 tasting glass, and is subject to the festival’s capacity.
Designated drivers in a party of two or more may purchase a designated driver wristband for $10, which includes Crater Lake Soda or bottled water for the duration of the stay. Lyft is also offering new users a discount off three rides via the code HOLIDAYALE17. The Oregon Lottery will be onsite with its popular holiday photo booth.
One hundred percent of the money raised by the DD program, as well as from the onsite coat and bag check and the Crater Lake Soda Garden, is donated to the Children’s Cancer Association MyMusicRx Program, which delivers the healing power of music to the bedsides of children and teens facing cancer and other serious illnesses.
For more information, visit HolidayAle.com and follow the event @HolidayAleFest on social media, hashtag #HolidayAle. High resolution photos available by request.