Among the purposes of the Beer-O-Vision blog is to bring you news of upcoming events- and as you might expect, the summer is jam packed with ‘em. In relative chronological order, this summer’s beery/brewy offerings are…

06/21 | 8:00 p.m. | Tasting at Alternative Brews | 3488 Sheridan Dr. |
Beer-O-Vision will be on-the-scene; beers include Homegrown Hemp Ale from the C’est What? Brewpub in Toronto, Golden Fleece Maibock from Erie Brewing Company, and (read it again, it’s ok) Miller Chill… what, are you going to condemn it before you actually try it?

06/23 | 2:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. | Buffalo Brew Tour | $50.00 | reservations via 716-512-8410, or steve@buffalobrewtour.com
This tour will hit some of Buffalo’s beery landmarks, including the Flying Bison Brewery, The Pearl Street Grill & Brewery (try “The Village Idiot” India brown ale), the Buffalo Brew Pub, and Ulrich’s Tavern. In addition, you’ll be able to get some Custom Brewcrafters (From RaCha) at Gabriel’s Gate.

06/23 | 1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. | New York Wine & Cidre Festival | $20, pre-sale; $25 at door | Tix here or at participating restaurants, below

Come taste what local NY wineries have to offer at this wine tasting and farmers market. Farmers Markets and Restaurants will open at 1:00-6:00 tasting will be from 2:00-6:00. We have over 25 New York wineries/cideries with over 100 opportunities to sample. Enjoy the entertainment, New York state produce from our farmers market and the following great restaurants, Ulrich’s, Steel Drum, Bistro Europa and Sample. Tickets are $20 pre-sale, $25 at the door and includes a souvenir wine glass. Tickets are limited so buy your tickets early.

Now, normally, I wouldn’t give much any press to a wine event, but the cider aspect got me hooked- even though I assume there’ll be commercial ciders to try, many homebrewers (of beer) eventually tackle cider and mead, so… potentially Niagara Traditions will be there doing a demo- you’ll have to go to know!

07/11 | 7:30 p.m. | Mr. Goodbar Goodbeer Club | $20.00; $15.00 pre-pay | check website or call Bobby @ 430-1169
Another edition of the Goodbeer club, though this far ahead, we don’t know what the lineup looks like yet. We do know, however, that as usual 1) it’ll be good, and contain anywhere from 8-12 beers; 2) the accompanying food will be excellent; 3) there will be massive givaways at the end of the night and 4) the Beer-O-Vision crew will be on hand, taping for Episode 4. Come one, come all!

07/15 | 3:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. | Cole’s IPA Fest | $20.00 | check website or call 836-1499
If I have it right, this is the second annual IPA fest that Mike and Co. have put on… I didn’t make it last year, but the Beer-O-Vision cameras will be on hand this year as the hoppy showdown goes down. Don’t miss it!

07/20 | 5:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. | Empire State Brewing & Music Festival | Clinton Sq, Syracuse NY | $32.40 ($35.00 at gate if available) | more info at website
It’s about a 2.5h trip east to Syracuse, NY for this festival, but holy crap, batman: This is one big o’l festival! Plenty of music and loads of food (including Dinosaur BBQ- yeah!) not to mention an impressive list of breweries. Some I’m looking forward to are: Captain Lawrence, Sackets Harbor (both NYS), and from further afield, I love Bear Republic (Hop Rod Rye beat most breweries to the now-trendy adjunct, I think) and Smuttynose. Be the ultimate NYS Summer Beer Fest Freak and drive east & south the next day for…

07/21 | 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m. | Belgium Comes To Cooperstown | SOLD OUT, SLOWPOKE!!! BETTER CHECK EBAY!!!
This year, the folks at Ommegang made a decision to limit the number of available tickets and to nix day-of sales, in an effort to keep the renown festival as good as possible. So, if you missed the boat this year (I did- they sold out on June 5th, actually), consider planning ahead for next year. Pop open a L’Achouffe (or perhaps a Three Philosophers or a Duval) wherever you happen to be on the 21st, and maybe I’ll talk to some of the lucky attendees at…

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