📸: Great Canadian Beer Festival / Facebook

One of the country’s oldest craft beer festivals returns to Royal Athletic Park this weekend in celebration of 29 years of Canadian craft beer.

The Great Canadian Beer Festival, organized by the Victoria Beer Society, will feature close to 100 craft breweries and cideries from across the country.

The two-day event on Friday, Sept. 8, from 4 to 9pm, and Saturday, Sept. 9, from noon to 5pm, typically serves over 250 beers and ciders to patrons each year. Following that, the festival will tour across Interior BC.

As per usual, Victoria will be represented well, with Phillips Brewing, Lighthouse Brewing, and Ile Sauvage Brewing Co—among others—attending. This year the festival is featuring 14 breweries representing Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, and the Maritimes. To round it out, the 44 other craft breweries include the likes of Vancouver’s Parallel 49, and Comox Valley’s Ace Brewing. Honestly, there’s too many to name—so attend!

To help soak up those good times, the festival will also feature a fresh stock of fantastic local food trucks, including Bird & Basket, L'Authentique, Mamma Rosie’s, Scorpion Chef, and Kattia’s Kitchen. There will also be DJs providing the soundtrack for the weekend on the famous Beer Bus.

The Great Canadian Beer Festival is all about making craft beer accessible, and each year it produces a guidebook to all the beers with a map and descriptions of the breweries. (In case you get a tad cross-eyed).

Seeing as it's a beer fest, often you’ll taste limited edition casks too, which are one-of-a-kind beers brewed specifically for the festival. Plus, if you’re super nerdy, you may even get a chance to speak with the owners and brewers who are proud to chat about their breweries.

Great Canadian Beer Festival

When: Friday, Sept. 8, from 4 to 9pm; and Saturday, Sept. 9, from noon to 5pm.

Tickets: $45 for Friday or Saturday, and $80 for the full weekend, which includes entrance to the festival, a tasting cup, and 10 drink tokens. Tickets are $10 off if you’re a Victoria Beer Society member. Single day tickets for entry only are $25.

Tokens: One token per tasting, $2 each. Available for purchase on-site, cash only.