Happy Groundhog Day! Here’s the news in Oregon beer for this Friday, February 2 and the weekend. As usual, I’ll be periodically updating this post throughout the day with the latest news, so check back often. And if you have news to share, please let me know and I can get that updated too.

Worthy Brewing (Bend) is celebrating its 5th anniversary all this weekend long: “To celebrate our 5th anniversary we will have three new beers available at the pub starting February 2nd at 4pm.
– The official pub launch of Litigator IIPA, our newest limited released beer being added to the 22oz bottle family.
– A special anniversary brew
– A barrel aged coffee version of our Lights Out Stout
Stop by and help us celebrate! Also to show our love and thanks for all your support these past five years, guests will receive a free commemorative pint glass* with purchase of one of the special release brews!” And on Sunday there will be an anniversary dock sale offering $15 cases of Strata IPA, Worthy IPA, Powder Keg, and Prefunk Pale Ale.

The Salem Winter Brewfest continues this weekend, Friday and Saturday, with hours of 4 to 11pm on Friday and 11 to 11 on Saturday. The entry fees for these two days are $20 at the door ($15 in advance), or $30 for the weekend pass, and you get the commemorative glass and 4 tasting tickets. Take a look at the beer list and plan accordingly.

Friday, 2/2

Silver Moon Brewing will be at The Growler Guys East Bend location for a beer tasting from 4 to 6pm: “Fun fun fun! We’re going to have some incredible Silver Moon craft beer on tap. We will have a raffle going for a grand prize gift basket. Come on in to celebrate Groundhog Day with us!”

McMenamins 23rd Avenue Bottle Shop (Portland) is sampling through Lindemans and Samuel Smith’s beers Friday evening from 5 to 7pm: “Looking for the perfect beverage for Valentine’s Day? Merchant du Vin will be in the house pouring samples of the Lindemans Framboise, Lindemans Strawberry, and Samuel Smith’s Brewery Chocolate Stout. Cheers!”

pFriem Family Brewers (Hood River) is hosting a meet the brewer event from 4 to 6pm: “Friends, our brewers want to meet you! We’re hosting several “Meet the Brewer” events this year in our Bear’s Den here in Hood River. This free event is a great way to stop in and sample a few of our offerings while learning about the beer, the process, and the brewers behind the beer. Our first one kicks off Friday, February 2nd starting at 4pm. Join our Head Brewer, Gavin Lord, to learn more about our Hoppy Belgian, pFriem + Upright Collaboration, Pastry Stout (Tasting Room exclusive), and lastly our long awaited/limited Triple IPA! Seriously, you don’t want to miss out.”

Saturday, 2/3

Portland’s StormBreaker Brewing is celebrating their 4th anniversary on Saturday! “Has it been 4 years already? Yes it has! Come celebrate with us with beer specials, raffles, and special surprises! We’ll also have Portland Axe Throwing around 2-4p for your axe throwing pleasure!” Congrats on 4 years!

McMenamins 23rd Avenue Bottle Shop is hosting Gigantic Brewing for a beer tasting on Saturday from 2 to 4pm: “Gigantic Brewing will be here to pour some of the newest beers in their ever-changing lineup. So come sample something delicious.”

The Deschutes Brewery Portland Pub will be holding their Saturday Sampling from noon to 4pm, wherein you get to sample experimental recipes to help select upcoming beers. “Our second Saturday Sampling of 2018 is scheduled for 2/3 from noon till 4p. Be a part of our R&D team for the day! Join us in our lobby to try out some new brews, let us know what you think, and see if it makes it onto our tap list!”

Sunday, 2/4

It’s the “Big Game” day! So you know many places will be pregaming and showing the game (possibly with beer and food specials), and the West Bend Growler Guys is helping kick things off with RiverBend Brewing at noon with a selection of RiverBend brews: “We’re going to have multiple Riverbend Brewing brews on tap and plenty of smiles and good cheer to go around to Kick off The Big Game! We are going to have their new Dream Team Hazy Pale Ale, Mango Milkshake IPA, Boxcar Rapids Red, and Oregon-ized Love on tap.”

Here are some other breweries holding “Big Game” events:

• Opposition Brewing in Medford has a party from 3 to 7pm.
• Three Mugs Brewing in Hillsboro will have the game on the big screen.
• Ecliptic Brewing has a pregame growler fill promo from 11 to 3:30.