There is a new single-fruit varietal highlighting mini-beer festival in Portland, as this Saturday for 4/20, Imperial Bottle Shop & Taproom will host The Pineapple Express Pineapple Beer Fest inspired by New Zealand’s favorite fruit. The lineup includes 10 beers and 1 cider, gathered together for and by local Kiwi and beer aficionado John Lovegrove for his 50th birthday celebration. Check out our 2020 feature on the rise in popularity of tropical fruit in beers, specifically pineapple.

Starting at high noon, expect a tropical paradise of pineapple-infused flavors on tap at Imperial for a non-ticketed event. As part of the festivities, festival-goers will be treated to complimentary Pineapple Donuts courtesy of Mikiko Mochi Donuts, served fresh at noon to kick off the event. And for those craving something savory, Detroit Style Pineapple Pizza from Matt Cortese will be served between 3 and 4 pm, while supplies last.

Throughout the day, attendees can also look forward to special bottle and can openings, adding an extra element of excitement to the festivities.

A wide variety of beer styles is on offer, from lagers and pilsners, to hoppy ales, a stout, and some truly experimental fruited beers. A full list of the beers and cider is listed below:

• Vice Beer has brewed "John's Pineapple Lump" especially for the fest. Pineapple Lumps are a New Zealand candy - chocolate covered pineapple nougat/fondant. John’s Pineapple Lumps is a sweet oatmeal stout with pineapple juice and cocoa nibs. Inspired by the unique treat of New Zealand origin, it carries notes of bitter chocolate and sweet pineapple nougat with a creamy mouthfeel. The actual candy, Pineapple Lumps all the way from New Zealand, will also be available at the fest. 
  

• Living Haus Beer Co presents Aida: Kiwi John edition- Fruited Berliner - 5.5% ABV

  This sour ale is already loaded with passionfruit and pineapple puree, but they’ve added 10 lbs of freshly sliced pineapple to this keg just for John The Kiwi! It doesn't get more tropical than this pals!
  

• Gigantic Brewing Company Poison Waters Beermosa from 

  “Inspired by Poison Waters and her humor, joy and positive light, this Beermosa is loaded with Tangerine and Pineapple Puree, delivering an easy drinking and juicy experience.”

  The beer was created by Weird Portland United, The Unipiper and Ben and Van at Gigantic Brewing.
  

• Breakside Brewery hasn’t brewed a pineapple beer in almost 2 years, and will be brewing a beer called Pineapple Emojis that they have only brewed one other time. That beer was a kettle sour but they shifted this current recipe to just doing a straight up wheat beer base that is not kettle soured. They let the acidity from the pineapple give it a little tartness and paired it with coconut to land it in that pina colada realm. 
  

• Great Notion Brewing Bicycle Day. This beer appears one way, tastes another, and smells even more different from what you might expect. This fruited sour contains Pineapple, Peach, Apricot and orange, and is bright green in color!
  

• Little Beast Brewing Circle Cutter IPA is packed with Pineapple, tangerine, and orange citrus, amplifying the natural fruit characteristics from Trident and El Dorado hops. Tropical, juicy, and delightfully bitter. 
  

• ILK Beer Colors Out Of Space Hazy IPA: Pineapple Jarritos edition. This beer already has the  very pineapply Vic Secret hops, and they have spiked it with some pineapple Jarritos slushy concentrate! Gonna be bomb! 
  

• Steeplejack Beer Jalapeño Pineapple Lager is a 5% fruited lager is bursting with fresh pineapple and delicate but building heat from jalapeño peppers. A return to Pauline's Shebrew beer from 2023, this beer also won at the chilicon fest 2023. A crowd favorite, definitely not too spicy but very mouth watering and thirst quenching
  

• McMenamins Thompson House Brewery Professor Plums Sake beer - Pineapple, plum and ginger fermented with Sake yeast for a dry, fruity and effervescent twist
  

• Old Town Brewing Tropical Breeze Pilsner with pineapple. Pineapple sweetness shines through this 4.9% pils with undertones of huckleberry and fresh flowers.
  

• Swift Cider Pineapple Hop. 6.4% ABV. A hard cider for beer lovers and grand mothers! Northwest-grown hard cider naturally fermented and aged on pineapples and IPA hops. This one is tropical, chewy and super aromatic.

The brainchild of local beer adventurer  John "John The Kiwi" Lovegrove, The Pineapple Express Pineapple Beer Fest is not just a celebration of flavor, but also a milestone birthday celebration for John himself, who turns 50 this week. Inspired by his love for pineapples and passion for craft beer, John dreamed up the idea of a pineapple beer festival to mark the occasion in style. When John mentioned this to Alex at Imperial Bottle Shop and Taproom, they jumped at the chance to host!

Event Details:

What: The Pineapple Express Pineapple Beer Fest

When: Saturday, April 20th, 12:00 PM onwards

Where: Imperial Bottle Shop and Taproom, 3090 SE Division St, Portland, OR

For more information and tickets, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/248407295017365