Buffalo Craft Invades Rochester’s Flour City Brewers Fest
A number of Buffalo-area breweries and cideries are set to invade the Flour City Brewers Fest in Rochester, including 42 North, Big Ditch, Ellicottville Brewing, Brazen Brewing, Eli Fish, Lilly Belle Meads, Hamburg Brewing, Rusty Nickel, Johnson’s Landing, Resurgence, Spotted Octopus, Southern Tier and Thin Man. The event, hosted by Rohrbach Brewing Company, takes place Friday, August 22 at the Rochester Public Market. There will also be food, craft vendors and more. A limited amount of general admission ($55) tickets are still available, which include samplings, tasting glassware and $5 food voucher. For more information, visit https://www.flourcitybrewersfest.com.
Pumking Family Reunion at Southern Tier Brewing
The Empty Pint at Southern Tier Brewing in Lakewood will host the Pumking Family Reunion on Aug. 23, featuring live music from Sandra & Alex (11 am), Tim Bartlet Experience (3 pm) and Queen City (7 pm), along with the annual release of the full Pumking family of beers, including Pumking, Warlock, Maple Warlock, Caramel Pumking and more. There will also be food, including black bean burgers, burgers, hot dogs, sausage sandwiches and more. The event is free and open to the public.
Local Brewery Lineup for Borderland Music & Arts Festival
The Borderland Music & Arts Festival has announced that local beermakers 42 North, Ellicottville Brewing, Community Beer Works and Southern Tier Brewing will serve as the official breweries this year. A full beer list will be made available soon. Borderland Festival takes place Sept. 12-14 at Knox Farm State Park in East Aurora with performances from Vampire Weekend, Mt. Joy, Khrungbin, Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats, Khruangbin, Robert Randolph, Band of Horses and more. You can purchase tickets and find more information here.
WNY Brewers Guild Annual Charity Golf Tournament
The WNY Brewers Guild Charity Golf Tournament returns Aug. 25 at Chestnut Hill Country Club, an annual event that offers golfers and craft beer enthusiasts an opportunity to play a round of golf, in addition to enjoying food, local beer, hole challenges, raffles and more. You’ll get a chance to meet and play with brewers and raise money for local charities. The cost to participate is $150 per person ($525 per foursome) and includes golf, breakfast, lunch, steak dinner and food and drinks on the course. The 4-person scramble tournament will start at 10 am with a light breakfast and registration at 9 am. Register at www.WNYBrewersGuild.com.
Drink Pink For a Cause at Resurgence Brewing
On Sunday, August 24 (1-4 pm), you can drink all things pink and help give back to a worthy cause at Resurgence Brewing. There will be pink beer, pink cider, pink cocktails and pink mocktails with partial proceeds from the event going to benefit Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, which provides a supportive community for breast cancer survivors and metastatic breast cancer thrivers, caregivers, and families alike.
Buffalo Maritime Center, Big Ditch Announce New Beer
The Buffalo Maritime Center and Big Ditch Brewing have teamed up on Long Haul, the official beer of the 2025 Bicentennial Voyage of the Erie Canal Boat Seneca Chief. Long Haul, inspired by the epic “long hauls” of 19th-century Erie Canal travel, is a honey lager brewed with 6-row barley, New York State hops, clover honey and spruce tips, ingredients historically used in 1800s brewing. In September, the Seneca Chief will set out on a 33-day, 500-mile journey from Buffalo to New York City and Long Haul will travel with the boat and be available at select stops along the route. Long Haul will be available soon.
New York Beer Project World Beer Awards Wins, New West Coast IPA
New York Beer Project took home four medals recently at the World Beer Awards, one of the World Drinks Awards’ biggest competitions, that took place at The Great Hospital, a historic event space in Norwich UK. NYBP’s Hazy Crush won gold in the Specialty IPA category, Baby Crush won gold in Session IPA, Lakehouse Pils won silver in Classic Pilsener and Goddess Kolsch won bronze in Kolsch.
NYBP has also released Déjà Vu West Coast IPA, an homage to old-school West Coast IPAs with a modern tropical twist. This IPA features bright citrus, peach, pineapple, dank cannabis, strawberry, and passionfruit. Déjà Vu is brewed with hand selected US Pacific Northwest hops. Déjà Vu is available in cans at all New York Beer Project locations in New York.
Wayland Brewing Introduces NA Hoppy Seltzer
Wayland Brewing has introduced a new Hoppy Seltzer, which features no alcohol, no carbs, and no gluten. The seltzer is brewed with Strata and a hint of pineapple. Hoppy Seltzer is lightly and pleasantly flavored. Hoppy Seltzer is available on draft only and served over ice for $4. The brewery might can the seltzer in the future. “We particularly love this 0.0% option to wrap up your Wayland visit when you prefer something other than beer,” Wayland says. “We’re thrilled about this new addition.”
Brian Campbell is co-founder and Brand Manager of the Buffalo Beer League, and writes the weekly Buffalo Beer Buzz column. If you have beer news that should be included in the Beer Buzz, Brian can be reached at brian@buffalobeerleague.com, on X (@buffbeerleague), Instagram, Threads and Untappd (@buffalobeerleague), and Facebook (@thebuffalobeerleague).
