One of Oregon's best and largest beer festivals, the Bend Brewfest is upping its game for 2019 with more exclusive beers to the event than ever before. The three-day festival is held August 15-17 at the height of summer in the beautiful Les Schwab Amphitheater in Bend Oregon. In total, more than 200 beers, ciders, hard seltzers and wines will be pouring at the 2019 Bend Brewfest.

A few of the Bend Brewfest beers to look forward to include beers made exclusively for the festival:

• Block 15 Brewing’s “The DAB Lab, High Desert,” the latest beer in its experimental DAB Lab series, made with a dizzying blend of hop varieties and a Central Oregon grown malt
• Worthy Brewing’s “Experimental Hop Session IPA,” which was brewed in honor of the festival using an experimental hop (x-374) grown at Oregon State University
• Walking Man Brewing’s “BEND the Knee Pale Ale,” a hazy pale ale that was brewed to be a refreshing citrus bomb for the High Desert sun.

Hard-to-find beers:

• pFriem Family Brewers' North German Pilsner, which was brewed for a German competition in collaboration with Germany’s Bitburger Brewery, will only be found at the Bend Brewfest and Portland’s Pilsner Fest
• Barbarian Brewing’s sour beer lineup, including two different extremely limited experimental barrel-aged and sour beers that aren’t distributed in Oregon (and are even wildly difficult to find in its home state of Idaho)

Collaborations:

• Double Mountain Brewery and Barley Brown’s Collab IPA, a West Coast IPA by two legendary Oregon breweries
• Fort George Brewery, Ruse Brewing and Cloudburst Brewing’s 3-Way IPA, a beer for which Fort George issues new invitations each year to two other collaborators (with this lineup the 2019 result is sure to be amazing)
• Sierra Nevada and Bitburger Brewery’s Oktoberfest, drawing on Bitburger’s 200 years of family brewing knowledge in German, this beer uses an exclusive mix of hops that has never before been shared outside the brewery’s Deutsch walls.

Other festival highlights include beers ranging from Imperial and bourbon barrel-aged stouts, all the way to highly drinkable lower alcohol IPAs coming out of all sizes of regional breweries. The hard seltzer craze has not skipped the Bend Brewfest, with Eel River Brewing bringing its Craft Clarity Meyer Lemon seltzer and AVID Cider presenting its light and flavorful Tropical Smash.

The Bend Brewfest will be held Thursday, August 15, from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. and Friday and Saturday, August 16 and 17, from 12 noon to 11 p.m. at the Les Schwab Amphitheater. Admission is free. For beer tasting, patrons can purchase a 2019 Brewfest tasting mug for $20, which includes five tasting tokens. Limited edition Deluxe mugs are available for $30 and include 10 tokens. Additional tokens are $5 each sold in packs of five. www.bendbrewfest.com

About the Les Schwab Amphitheater
The Les Schwab Amphitheater is Central Oregon premier music venue, providing a beautiful outdoor riverfront space for concerts, festivals, sporting events and more. Opened in the historic Old Mill District in 2002, the Amphitheater was named in honor of a remarkable Central Oregonian, Leslie Schwab. The venue accommodates approximately 8,000 patrons for some of the biggest names in entertainment, and the Bend Brewfest in August. www.bendconcerts.com

About the Old Mill District
One of the Pacific Northwest’s most distinctive and dynamic mixed-use developments, the Old Mill District is located on 270 acres that formerly housed one of the largest sawmill operations in the world. The rich history of the land is coupled with spectacular mountain views, scenic river vistas and an extensive trail system to enjoy the outdoors.  More than 55 local, regional and national retailers and businesses call the Old Mill District home. The Old Mill District – Bend’s most unique shopping, dining, living, and entertainment experience.  www.theoldmill.com