The first annual St. Paul Fresh Hop Festival, held on October 12, 2013, was well worth checking out.
A lot of Oregon brew festivals can be quite expensive. The St. Paul fest was reasonably priced with an impressive selection of fresh hop beers from 18 local brewers. Admission was $10, which included a plastic mug and 5 tickets. Additional tickets were $1, and this would refill the mug 1/4 (four tickets for a full mug). The number of choices was impressive and included:
- Gilgamesh Brewing - Fresh Prince of Ales (Triple Hopped IPA, 8.2% ABV, 75+ IBUs)
- Lucky Labrador Brewing Company - King Tett (American Style Lager, 4.5% ABV, 15-50 IBUs)
- Long Brewing - Fresh Hop 6
- Old Town Brewing Company - Freshtoberbrau (Märzen, 5.8% ABV)
- Old Market Pub & Brewery - Fresh Hop Oktoberfest (Märzen, 4.5% ABV)
- Migration Brewing Company - Wild Style Fresh Hop (Belgian Farmhouse Ale, 5.8% ABV, 38 IBUs)
- Pints Brewing Company - Oktoberfresh (Märzen, 5.7% ABV, 17 IBUs)
- Pints Brewing Company - Crystal Lite Lager (Lager, 4.1% ABV, 10 IBUs)
- Sasquatch Brewing Company - Celilo Cascadian Dark Ale (Black IPA, 8.1% ABV, 82 IBUs)
- St. Paul Home Brewing Company - Off the Vine ESB (English Style ESB, 7.1% ABV, 55 IBUs)
- Widmer Brothers Brewing - Bring the Broom IPL (India Pale Lager, 6.2% ABV)
- Full Sail Brewing Company - Fresh Hop Pilsner (Pilsner, 6.0% ABV, 60 IBUs)
- Fire on the Mountain - Red Hornet Fresh Hop IRA (India Red Ale, 6.7% ABV)
- Feckin Irish Brewing Company - Feckin Freshy (4.5% ABV)
- Coalition Brewing Company - Green Pig (Fresh Hop Pale Ale, 5.0% ABV, 50 IBUs)
- Burnside Brewing Company - Fresh Hop Oatmeal Pale (Pale Ale, 5.5% ABV)
- Base Camp Brewing Company - Hopularity Contest (Oatmeal Pale Ale, 5.3% ABV, 54 IBUs)
- Base Camp Brewing Company - In-2-Tents (Double Wet Hop Imperial IPL, 7.7% ABV, 75 IBUs)
- Alameda Brewing Company - Fresh Cent'd (Pale Ale, 4.8% ABV, 35 IBUs)
- Alameda Brewing Company - Cascadia Fresh Hop Ale (Pale Ale, 5.0% ABV, 40 IBUs)
- 13 Virtues Brewing Company - V13 Fresh Hop Ale (Pale Ale, 6.9% ABV, 40 IBUs)
Even though brew fests are all about the beer, food is important too. The selection could have been a bit more robust here. However, the single food cart present (Burning Boar Barbecue) had some tasty options - veggie nachos available upon request.
Overall, I give the First Annual Fresh Hop Festival in St. Paul and enthusiastic thumbs up. I really enjoyed the small town atmosphere, and low key venue. There was no waiting in line for a taste, and who can't love fresh hops? You can't beat spending a fall afternoon sampling some outstanding brews in the heart of our nation's premier hop growing region. Oregon is pretty cool that way.
Location: Jaycee Bullpen inside the St. Paul Rodeo Fairgrounds
Admission: $10 (includes plastic mug and 5 tickets)
Extra Tickets: $1
