Happy Friday! It’s a busy weekend with Star Wars Day (May the Fourth) on Saturday, Cinco de Mayo on Sunday, and a number of anniversaries to keep you occupied. Here’s the rundown of the news and events for this first weekend of May, which I’ll be updating throughout the day on Friday—so check back in from time to time to keep on top of things.

Friday, May 3

De Garde Brewing (Tillamook) is celebrating its 6th anniversary this weekend, with a ticketed event taking place at its Tasting Room Saturday and Sunday. (The Tasting Room will be closed to the public.) Special glassware, new bottles, a special anniversary blend, and more will be waiting for you if you have tickets to the party. The event will run from 1 to 6pm each day and should be a great party. Congrats to De Garde on six years of entirely spontaneous brewing!

Salem hosts the 8th annual Cinco de Micro Brewfest beginning on Friday and running through Saturday: “This fun, casual atmosphere boasts over 100 beers and ciders on tap, ensuring there is something for everyone. Most breweries spotlight one of their new spring seasonal releases, so you’re sure to find many new options to try! The entrance fee into the event buys guests a souvenir mug and their first four beer tastes. Additional tastes are $1 per pour or $5 for a full mug. Alongside the breweries, guests will find an assortment of distilleries, restaurants and entertainment that ensure there’s something enjoyable for everyone!” Tickets are available online, and cost $20 for one day ($25 at the door) and $35 for both days ($40 at the door).

McMenamins 23rd Avenue Bottle Shop (Portland) is hosting the can release of Alienator IPA all day on Friday: “We’re celebrating the 20th annual UFO Fest by bringing Alienator IPA to you in cans! This beer is sure to make a believer out of any skeptic! Orbiting above the Alienator IPA are tropical, fruity aromas provided by a thorough dry-hopping using Mosaic and Citra Hops. This tasty recipe yielded a fascinating orange hue complete with luminous hop flavor. Alienator’s lush aroma and distinct hop character is perfect for those who prefer their ales strong, hoppy and a little out-of-this-world.”

Worthy Brewing (Bend) is hosting Plough to Pint, a beer dinner in conjunction with Mecca Grade Estate Malt, a five course meal beginning at 6:30pm. “Join us for a collaboration Farm to Table Craft Dinner benefiting the Coalition for the Deschutes. This five-course meal will feature pairings with Worthy craft beers, each hand-selected by Head Brewer Zach Brenneman. The evening will begin at 6:30pm with cocktail hour & mingling. During this time Mecca will be available for guests to taste Mecca’s products, alongside appetizers. Following cocktails, dinner will be served from 7-9PM. This dinner benefits the Coalition for the Deschutes, a non-profit dedicated to restoring the Deschutes River so that fish, farms, and families can all thrive. Dinner Gift: all guests take home a 6-pack of Worthy craft beers.” Tickets are $75 per person and can be purchased online here.

Don’t forget, Bend’s Broken Top Bottle Shop has its April Showers Bring May Sours event running through Sunday. With six sour beers on tap it’s going to be your go-to place in Bend for sour beers this weekend.

Loyal Legion (Portland) is getting a jump on Star Wars Day with Sunriver Brewing by kicking off a weekend-long May the Fourth Be With You event on Friday: “The intergalactic team up you’ve been waiting for: Sunriver Brewing and Loyal Legion, with all of the Sunriver beers in the universe, including our collaboration: The Kessel Run IPA, with Falconer’s Flight and Galaxy hops, to just name a couple. Street party on May the fourth, with games and giveaways, meet the brewery and more. Pre-party on Friday, End credits on Sunday. These are the hops you’ve been looking for…”

Saturday, May 4 – Star Wars Day

Bend’s Boneyard Beer celebrates its 9th anniversary on Saturday! Día de los Boneyard takes place all day long at the Boneyard Pub and it’s going to be a party: “Boneyard Beer is turning NUEVE! Join us at the Pub Saturday, 5/4, as we celebrate Día de los Boneyard (Day of the Boneyard).
Anniversary Beer Release – Speedy Goseales Salted Lime Gose, Mr. Centaur Quad IPA & Oude Perzik Pesche
Insane Specialty Beer Taplist
Food Specials
Limited Edition Día de los Boneyard Swag
Live Painting by Artist Anna Duvall from 4-6PM
Live music by Leftslide from 6-8PM”

Side A Brewing (La Grande) is celebrating its 2nd anniversary on Saturday: “Come join us for an awesome day of celebration! We love being apart of this community and seeing everyone who helps support us. We’re looking forward to celebrating and raising a glass with you all for another year in the books! Tickets are on sale now at the brewery or with Eventbrite. $25/pre-sale and $30/day of. And don’t forget with your originals membership you get ½ off ticket prices!”

McMenamins Crystal Ballroom (Portland) is hosting “When Beers and Bands Collide” a Sabertooth Collaboration Beer Tasting starting at 3pm: “We were inspired by the way brewing often intersects with music, and the way that music often intersects with beer! Embracing this collaborative spirit, we’ve paired McMenamins brewers with musicians playing the Annual Sabertooth Micro Fest to brew a beer and utilize the perfect occasion and optimal venue to showcase their specialties. Some musicians have requested a particular beer style, or relied on the brewer to listen to the band’s music and see what inspiration strikes. A few of the bands will even be present for the brew, adding a certain quintessence that only this kind of partnership can generate. From Session Ale to Stout, each of these beers will offer insight into the varying psyches of the creators, and they’re available for one night only!” There are several packages and a number of collaboration beers to check out.

And over at McMenamins 23rd Avenue Bottle Shop, a Gigantic Brewing beer tasting will be taking place from 2 to 4pm.

Imperial Bottle Shop (Portland) is celebrating Star Wars Day with its annual Star Wars Beer Fest taking place all day: “We’ll be showing a great lineup of Star Wars films, starting at 12:30 with Rogue One, and then playing consecutively through A New Hops, Empire Strikes Back, Return of Jedi, and finishing up with The Force Awakens. So basically all the movies you actually want to watch. We’ll be pouring a great lineup of Star Wars themed beers. And don’t forget the best costume and best T-shirt contests, so throw on your best Star Wars threads before you head are way. May sure you check in with the bartenders if you’d like to enter either contest, as each winner will get a $50 gift card good for draft beer at either of our locations!”

Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider (Portland) is celebrating Night of 1000 Tepaches Saturday starting at 3pm: “JOIN ME ON MAY 4 2019 FROM 3 UNTIL 11 PM FOR MY FIFTH ANNUAL NIGHT OF 1000 TEPACHES! (What is tepache? Read below.) I’ve partnered with 19 craft producers throughout Oregon and Washington to collaborate on Tepache blends to create an incredibly diverse set of flavors. Expect Belgian sours blended with Tepache, crisp pilsners blended with Tepache and dark stouts blended with Tepache. I could not be more excited about another party to celebrate Tepache, the Mexican wild-fermented pineapple drink that I first made in 2014. In the intervening five years, the rest of the world hasn’t quite caught on as much as they should, considering the deliciousness and versatility of this unusual beverage. Please join me!” $25 gets you in the door and it sounds like a great night.

Stammtisch bar in Portland is celebrating its 5th anniversary with Maifest and a dinner, spanning both Saturday and Sunday: “It’s an event so huge, we are celebrating twice! Come join us for our 5 Year Anniversary on Saturday May 4th. We will be celebrating with Maifest traditions including Maibocks, Maiwhein, and Flammkuchen. If you are a Stammtisch Stein Club Member, wear your gear for special discounts. On Sunday May 5th we will have an Anniversary Bier Dinner!
Chef Graham Chaney will be preparing 5 special bier-paired courses, one for every year we have been open for $85. Tickets are available now and must be pre purchased.”

The Brown Own (Bend) is hosting its Cinco de Corvallis party Saturday starting at 6pm: “Our 3rd annual Cinco de Corvallis is back! For those of you who don’t know, Corvallis, OR has quite the thriving brewery scene and we invite them all over to the high desert to share their offerings each and every Cinco de Mayo weekend. Participating breweries this year include: Block 15, Flat Tail, 2 Towns, Nectar Creek, and Dirt Road. In addition, we will have live music by the wonderful Jess Ryan! Cheers”

Reach Break Brewing (Astoria) is hosting a release event for Fallen Brother IPA in conjunction with Astoria Professional Firefighters Local 696: “Astoria Firefighters teamed up with Reach Break Brewing to help brew this year’s batch of Fallen Brother IPA! We will be releasing the beer on Saturday, May 4th! As always, a portion of each pint sold will be donated to the Randy Carpenter Memorial Foundation.” All day Saturday starting at noon.

Xicha Brewing (Salem) has a bottle release on Saturday to check out: “Our second bottle release for [Saturday], La Cobriza [lah][koh-bree-sah]. A traditionally brewed Maibock, La Crobriza is a spring seasonal release in celebration of the return of warmer spring days. La cobriza pours a bright copper/ruby color and has an equivalent richness on the palate. Notes of toast w/ strawberry jam, fresh baked biscuits, and a crisp lager finish make this beer certain to please. ABV: 6.5%; IBU 25”

And Xicha and Portland’s Civic Taproom are teaming up on Saturday for the Fiesta de Star Wars: “This year we are doing a mash up and Xicha Brewing is bringing the beer! Come down for day filled with Star Wars movies on the TV, raffle for a chance to swing at Star Wars Pinatas filled with fun prizes, and some great beer from Xicha Brewing.”

The Ale Apothecary (Bend) is celebrating the tasting room’s 2nd anniversary with the special release of some braggots. (Bet you didn’t see that coming.) “BRAGGOT. [Saturday], to celebrate our tasting rooms’ 2nd anniversary, we are releasing our first in a series of braggot beers (1/2 malt, 1/2 honey). This initial offering is phenomenal, if I do say so. 9.14% ABV, clear as crystal & champange-like natural carbonation. So proud of @concurrie1 and his vision on this new direction for us. Come down & experience this stuff from 2-7 [Saturday], we’ll pour draft for onsite consumption and you can take bottles to go, complete with adorable sharpie marks.”

Sunday, May 5

Happy Cinco de Mayo! You’ll find drink specials everywhere, but if you’re looking for appropriately-themed beers to drink, seek out Vienna lagers, Mexican lagers, chili beers, pilsners—or whatever else you’d like to drink. Cheers!

General News

Kobold Brewing (Redmond) announced today that it will be new contract brewer for the Bend Tranquilo Cerveceria beer brand: “Kobold has had the great fortune of getting involved with the crew of Tranquilo. We are now the official brewers of Tranquilo and this is the test batch of Especial. Enjoy a locally brewed awesome Mexican beer this Cinco de Mayo at The Vault Taphouse, Hola, Whitewater Taphouse and throughout Oregon.”

Fort George Brewery (Astoria) has tickets on sale now to its Lupulin Ecstasy event taking place in a few weeks. “This festival of maximum friendship features lupulin delights from every 3-Way IPA collaborator throughout the years, live music, Street Tacos & Bayou Food, and the release of 3-Way IPA (2019) with Ruse Brewing & Cloudburst Brewing. Saturday, May 25th from noon to 6pm. Capt. George Flavel Mansion & Grounds, Downtown Astoria.” Tickets are $39 and are available online here.

Beachcrest Brewing (Gleneden Beach) has its Mayan Mole Stout back on tap in time for Cinco de Mayo. “Beer lovers rejoice the Mayan Mole Stout has returned! Spiced with a blend of 3 chili peppers, cocoa nibs and cinnamon sticks the fan favorite Mayan Mole Stout is back on tap. The velvety flavors of chocolate, warmth of cinnamon and kick of chili pepper 🌶 are balanced perfectly in this robust beer that has an ABV of 8.4%.”