Happy Friday! It’s a fresh hop kind of weekend and there’s plenty of stuff going on even with the GABF in full swing! Here’s the news for the weekend of the 25th; as usual, I’ll be periodically updating this post throughout the day with the latest news, so check back often. If you have news to share, please contact me and I can get that posted as well.

Astoria’s 14th annual Pacific Northwest Brew Cup kicks off today, running through the weekend, bringing a great Oktoberfest-vibe-y festival featuring over 40 breweries to the Astoria waterfront—the place to be if you’re on the coast this weekend! Free admission, $9 souvenir mug and $1 per tasting token to drink, it’s family friendly with food (of course), live music (naturally), and even growler fills. If you’re not drinking fresh hop beers somewhere, you should be here!

And Saturday sees two of the popular fresh hop festivals the predominate the season: the Hood River Hops Fest and the Sisters Fresh Hops Festival. The Hood River Fest is the biggest of the two (of them all, I believe), with at least 41 breweries pouring many fresh hop beers, but the Sisters fest is no slouch either, with 22 breweries representing. Both festivals run from noon to 8pm; check each site for respective details on cost and such. Fresh hops—the best time of the year! (Or at least one of the best times!)

Culmination Brewing (Portland) has a tapping party tonight from 6 to 10pm for their new Gose: “Passion Gose Way is our newest beer and we will be tapping it Friday September 25th from 6 PM – 10 PM. Passion Gose Way is a rose covered mildly tart Gose with flavors of hibiscus, coriander, and sea salt.”

Deschutes Brewery (Portland): Today (Friday) they are releasing the two newest beers in their Pub Reserve Series (only available in 22-ounce bottles at the Pubs and the brewery tasting room), Black Butte³ and Sour Quad: “Brewed by our dedicated brewers in Portland and Bend, these 22oz Reserves are limited and only available in our pubs and tasting rooms. Stop by this Friday, explore the unique and dynamic flavors of both these barrel aged reserves. We will be serving paired culinary specials, prepared by our favorite Chef, Brian Kerr.”