Blackfly Brewfest is back after three years, and this time with beer, wine and spirits
Courtesy / Blackfly Brewfest via Facebook
Houlton will host the Blackfly Brewfest on Saturday. The beer festival was last held in 2019, and included participation from County Yankee Grocer.
After three cancellations due to the pandemic, the Blackfly Brewfest in Houlton will return on Saturday, with tastings from 14 breweries, two wineries and for the first time, a distillery.
“It means a lot to us, being a small town. The grocery stores get more traffic with people wanting to buy what they tasted and the restaurants are always busy,” said Jane Torres, executive director of the Greater Houlton Chamber of Commerce, which is coordinating the event.
“We’re one of the first brewfests of the year, so we’re hoping people turn out.”
The brewfest initially had 16 breweries signed up to participate but two dropped out due to staffing constraints, Torres said. Breweries that are scheduled to participate include Cushnoc Brewing Co. of Augusta, Waterman’s Beach Brewery of South Thomaston, and Bigelow Brewing of Skowhegan.
Mossy Ledge Spirits of Etna is the distillery and the participating wineries are Hidden Spring Winery of Hodgdon and Winterport Winery of Winterport.
“We don’t have loud music because people want to spend time talking to the brewers about how different beers are made. It’s really about talking and learning and trying new things,” Torres said. “It will be nice to be back. People are ready to have a good time.”
The festival, which was first held in 2016, has attracted about 400 visitors in previous years. It was last held in 2019, but canceled in 2020 and canceled twice, in May and September, in 2021 due to the pandemic.
“We haven’t sold as many advanced tickets as I had hoped. Maybe people are afraid we’re going to cancel again. But we’re not. We’re going ahead,” Torres said.
The brewfest will run from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on May 14 at the John A. Millar Civic Center in Houlton.
Food will be sold and water stations will be available.
Tickets for the Blackfly Brewfest are $35 for general admission and $50 for a VIP pass. A $10 designated driver ticket is also available. Tickets can be purchased online at blackflybrewfest.com/ or by calling the Greater Houlton Chamber of Commerce at 207-532-4216.
Sponsors for the event include Bangor Savings Bank, Buildings Etcetera, County Yankee Grocer, F.A. Peabody Co. and York's of Houlton.
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