Tony and Teri Giangreco learned at their first brewfest the benefits of wearing a pretzel necklace.
“It’s nice in between (tastings) you have a bite of something,” Teri Giangreco said.
“Plus, it’s a conversation starter,” Tony added. Earlier in the day, a woman had approached Tony and asked if she could have a pretzel. “I said, ‘You’ve got to bite it off first.’ ”
Though they described themselves as normally being “wine-os,” the Mount Vista couple ventured away from the vineyards and went to Esther Short Park Saturday for the Vancouver Brewfest.
If You Go• What: Vancouver Brewfest.
• When: 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Sunday.
• Where: Esther Short Park, Columbia and West 8th Streets, Vancouver.
• Cost: $30 day pass, includes 10 drink tokens and 4-ounce tasting glass. Additional tokens $1.50 each.
• Web: VancouverBrewfest.com and PourofDiscovery.com
“We just always wanted to come, and so we’re here,” said Teri Giangreco. The couple found themselves drawn to the fruity and sometimes odder-sounding beers. “You need to try things. If not, it’s like going out to Thai food and ordering a hamburger,” she said.
The event, in its fifth year, specializes in beers made in Southwest Washington — giving breweries north of the Columbia River first dibs on tap space.
Organizer Cody Gray said that this year’s festival brought a beer from nearly every single brewery from White Salmon to Long Beach.
One beer that brewfest attendees likely discovered was from nano-brewery Brother Ass Brewing, a three-barrel shop run by Wally Wakeman out of his Vancouver house.
The name, Wakeman said, is what he’s asked about the most.
St. Francis of Assisi called his own body “brother ass,” Wakeman said, referring to the saint’s own stubborn nature.
Wakeman said he had worked in the insurance industry for 32 years when his employer asked that he move to Sacramento. He declined to stay in Vancouver and retired early, which sparked an idea he’d had for years: to start his own nano-brewery. Wakeman had been making home brew for years and after dragging his feet, he finally decided to make a go it and brew beer for others to enjoy.
And he said he’s so happy he did.
“It’s fun coming up with recipes,” he said. “It’s truly crafting.”
Wakeman said he’s built good relationships with other brewers in the area and said that the event allows Clark County beer makers to find untapped markets.
Beer connoisseurs travel near and far to attend the event to get a taste of what the region had to offer.
Matt Herbold, 43, didn’t travel far, but that’s why he likes it. He walked to the park Saturday from his house to enjoy beer in the beautiful weather.
Herbold said he supports Vancouver breweries — he contributed to Trap Door Brewing when it was just a Kickstarter campaign — and said he buys a pint of local beer multiple times a week. The event, he said, is a source of Vancouver pride.
“It’s nice having something you don’t have to go into Portland for,” he said. “It’s not super crowded, it’s very relaxed — it’s our local event.”
