THURSDAY, MARCH 7, 2019 // 7
IN
COLD
SUDS
Pouring at the Coast takes over
St. Patrick’s Day weekend
By KATHERINE LACAZE
FOR COAST WEEKEND
I
n its 10th year, the annual Pouring at
the Coast Brewer’s Festival is taking
over an entire weekend, including St.
Patrick’s Day, from Friday through Sun-
day, March 15 to 17.
The centerpiece of the event, presented
by the Seaside Chamber of Commerce and
Seaside Brewing Co., remains the Craft
Brewfest and People’s Choice awards from
noon to 6 p.m. Saturday at the Seaside
Civic & Convention Center.
This year, however, organizers
have added a few other activities tar-
geted toward the several dozen brew-
ers and other employees representing the
breweries.
Josh Allison, co-owner and brewer
at Reach Break Brewing in Astoria,
described that as one of the
appealing qualities of Pour-
ing at the Coast: It doesn’t
stagnate.
“Some events, it seems
like, year after year, they stay
the same,” he said. “Pour-
ing at the Coast always
seems to be trying to one-up
themselves.”
This year, the festival’s
lineup of events includes a
Brewers B-Ball tournament, from 7:30
to 9:30 p.m. Friday, at Clatsop Commu-
nity College’s Patriot Hall. According
to Brandy Stewart, the chamber’s mem-
bership and events coordinator, the tour-
nament will pit teams from the differ-
ent breweries against one another, and the
public is welcome to spectate. There also
will be a Brewers Brunch held Sunday
morning at Seaside Brewery.
A couple of years ago, the organizers
Damian Mulinix
Logan Marks of Stickmen Brewing chats with patrons at Pouring at the Coast in the Seaside Civic & Convention Center.
discontinued the Oregon Coast Brewer’s
Dinner, which generally kicked off the fes-
tival Friday night and included participa-
tion from Seaside High School’s culinary
arts program. To compen-
sate for that loss and continue
enhancing the festival week-
end with extra offerings, the
organizers are experiment-
ing with these new activi-
ties, Stewart said. The goal
is to encourage the vendors
and public to stay at the beach
longer, thanks to a fuller
menu of options.
“People enjoyed the fes-
tival when it was a little bit longer dura-
tion,” Stewart said.
The whole package
Pouring at the Coast features a wide
selection of beers — and some ciders —
created by more than 30 independent craft
breweries from across the Pacific North-
west. In the past, about 1,200 people have
filtered through the Craft Brewfest, sam-
pling beers, talking with brewers, eating
IF YOU GO
10th Annual Pouring at the Coast
Brewfest
When: Friday through Sunday, March 15-17
Where: Seaside Civic & Convention
Center, 415 First Ave., Seaside
Details: Tickets can be purchased in
advance or at the door. For more infor-
mation, call 503-738-6391 or visit www.
pouringatthecoast.com
food, playing board games and socializing.
The $20 admission fee purchases each
participant a tasting glass and five tasting
tickets. Additional tasting tickets are avail-
able for $1 a piece.
The breweries themselves benefit by
participating in Pouring at the Coast,
which is an “awesome festival to work,”
Allison said. Not only do they receive
direct feedback on their beverages, but
they also get to enjoy camaraderie with
other brewers, compete with their best
products and receive valuable exposure —
all within an idyllic coastal setting.
“There is so much you get from an
event like this,” Allison said. “The whole
package is just a really fun time.”
Historically, beer has been a center of
social life within communities, with pub-
lic houses being “the place everyone could
get together and enjoy themselves,” he
said. Pouring at the Coast demonstrates
craft beer’s power to bring people together
in a way that remains engrained in them
culturally.
“Everybody that is there as an attendee
is always having a great time,” Allison
said.
Another addition to this year’s Pouring
at the Coast is a beer garden and live music
from 8 to 10 p.m. Saturday at the Conven-
tion Center. Though many of the breweries
will leave at the end of the Craft Brewfest,
there will be a couple left behind to have
beer available for the concert, Stewart said.
For those who enjoy craft beer — from
connoisseurs to casual drinkers — Pouring
at the Coast is “something you don’t want
to miss,” she said. CW