North American Organic Brewers Festival Announces Dates for 2015

The 11th annual festival held in Portland, Oregon showcases over 50 beers and ciders in an attempt to highlight brewing as a sustainable practice. The drinks on tap are made from all-organic ingredients, with some breweries exclusively organic and the rest brewing a one-off all-organic brew specifically for the festival. The festival will be held from Thursday, August 13, to Sunday, August 16.

Here is the release from the festival:

PORTLAND, ORE – With a motto to “Drink Organic, Save the Planet, One
Beer at a Time,” the North American Organic Brewers Festival [1] –
the world’s only organic brewers festival – will celebrate its 11th
year this August 13 through 16 at Overlook Park in Portland, Ore. Event
hours are Noon to 9pm Thursday through Saturday and Noon to 5pm Sunday.

Designed to raise awareness about organic beer and sustainable living,
the festival serves up 50 organic beers and ciders from three dozen
breweries. Some of the breweries are certified organic, but most brew a
one-off organic batch just for the event. Styles run the gamut from
Ambers to Belgians to Wild Ales, with a bit of everything in-between. (A
complete list of participating breweries is available at www.naobf.org
[1].) The event also offers live local music, organic food and
sustainability-oriented vendors and non-profits in a beautiful park
setting.

This year’s event will also feature an exceedingly rare opportunity to
sample draft beer from Pinkus, the world’s first certified organic
brewery. Along with Pinkus Ur-Pils and Münster Alt on draft, the
festival is introducing the Merchant du Vin Organic Bottle Garden,
featuring 11 bottled beers and cider from Pinkus in Germany and Samuel
Smith’s from Yorkshire, England.

“When Samuel Smith’s opened in 1758 and Pinkus in 1816, chemical
fertilizers and pesticides didn’t exist – all beer was organic,”
stated Tom Bowers, district manager at Merchant du Vin. “Viewing the
beer world from this historic perspective, these brewers chose to become
the trailblazers of organic brewing for the modern era. By including
Samuel Smith’s and Pinkus in this year’s festival, NAOBF has
expanded the opportunity for festival goers to not only experience
amazing beers from the world’s original organic brewers, but to taste
history.”

Admission into the NAOBF is free. The purchase of a $7 reusable,
compostable cornstarch cup is required for tasting beer, as are tokens,
which sell for $1 apiece. A full cup of beer costs four tokens and a
taste costs one token; select beers and ciders may cost double tokens.
Patrons receive an extra token with a validated Tri-Met ticket or a
ticket from the Hopworks Bike Corral (one discount per person).

The NAOBF is a family friendly event, and minors are welcome with
parents. A kids area offers art activities, face painting and a root
beer garden with complimentary Crater Lake Root Beer for minors (and
designated drivers).

The NAOBF is known as the most earth-friendly beer festival on the
planet. Festival attendees sample beer from reusable and compostable
cornstarch cups made from domestically grown corn by a zero-waste,
solar-powered company; volunteers receive organic cotton t-shirts ; food
vendors are required to employ sustainable practices; and onsite
recycling stations are provided for festival waste.

The NAOBF encourages responsible drinking and urges patrons to take
advantage of the MAX Light Rail; the Yellow Line Overlook Park Station
is adjacent to the festival. Attendees can also take advantage of the
Hopworks Bike Corral, where volunteers watch over bikes for free
(donations are appreciated and support the BC to Baja Bicycle Odyssey).