Buffalo’s Pour Taproom Eyes Ellicottville Location
Pour Taproom, a self-pour beer, cider and wine bar, has announced plans to expand to Ellicottville. Pour Taproom Ellicottville tentatively plans to open this fall in the former Slopeside Restaurant at the Telemark Hotel. According to co-owner Matt Prime, the new space will feature seating for up to 150, 30 taps offering craft beverages from New York state and beyond and a full menu serving traditional pub fare. While it will be a self-pour and self-service bar, a portion of the bar at Pour Taproom Ellicottville will remain staffed, Prime says. Pour Taproom Buffalo opened in 2021.
Tickets Remain for NYS Craft Brewers Festival Buffalo
A limited amount of tickets still remain for Western New York’s premier summer craft beer festival, New York State Craft Brewers Festival: Buffalo, which returns to Canalside on June 22 (2-6pm). This year will feature craft beer from over 50 breweries from across the state, live music from Mayday, a food truck rodeo, vendors, and live wrestling by Grapple Pro. New this year are GA+ tickets, which include 1-hour early access, souvenir tasting glass, and $5 merch voucher. You can purchase tickets here. You can also purchase hard copy tickets at Resurgence Brewing, Big Ditch, Wayland Brewing, and Britesmith. $1 per ticket benefits P.U.N.T Pediatric Cancer Collaborative.
Where Hops Meet History Beer Dinner at Buffalo Riverworks
Buffalo Riverworks are holding a special beer pairing dinner outside on their waterfront patio on June 26 (6:30pm).Titled “Where Hops Meet History,” the beer dinner will feature a four-course meal paired with four craft beers from RiverWorks Brewing, along with a guided tasting from their staff. The pairing includes Organic Silo Light with beef on weck and pretzel crostini, Flirty Sour paired with fruit salad, Wonder Irish Coffee Stout paired with coffee crusted pan seared strip steak and Double Decker DIPA paired with Mathilde orange liqueur crepe suzette. Tickets are $55 per person (gratuity included) and can be purchased here.
BriarBrothers Brewing Second Anniversary Party
BriarBrothers Brewing are celebrating their cotton, aka their second, anniversary, on June 22 with new beers, live music, exclusive merchandise and more. The Vinyl Cocktails will take to their outdoor silo stage at 5pm, the brewery will debut a number of anniversary beers, including How’s Your Snapper, a 7.5% double dry hopped New England IPA brewed with Citra, Simcoe and El Dorado hops, Bubli: Cotton Candy hard seltzer and Always Next Year, a 13.0% Bourbon Barrel Aged Barleywine aged one year in Black Button bourbon barrels, there will be free cotton candy all day, special edition apparel and glassware and more.
Clarksburg Cider Taps Special Pride Cider for June
In honor of Pride Month, Clarksburg Cider has tapped a special Pride-themed cider. Pride ’24 Hard Cider is a 6% bold cider featuring tart cherry and vibrant pineapple that falls on the drier side of the cider spectrum. “Pride means being able to show the world who you really are. So, we crafted our exclusive Pride Month hard cider to be bold with tart cherry and vibrant pineapple,” Clarksburg said of the new release. You can find Pride ’24 Hard Cider on tap at Clarksburg’s taproom right now. It is also available to go in 32oz. crowlers.
Dunkirk Hotel to Rebrand as Steelbound Hotel and Conference Center
The Clarion Hotel Conference Center in Dunkirk, currently the home of a Steelbound Brewery taproom, has revealed plans to rebrand as the Steelbound Hotel and Conference Center in 2025. Plans call for the renovation of all 120 guest rooms, with additional work in the conference area, dining room and lobby, as well as new pickleball courts and collaboration spaces. The company expects to begin construction in late fall with completion expected in mid to late 2025. The project received $1 million to fund its renovation as part of a $10 million allocation for the city of Dunkirk from the state’s Downtown Revitalization Initiative and NY Forward.
The Lock Tender to Open July 12 in Lockport
The Lock Tender Bottle Shop & Tap Room has announced plans to open in Lockport at 4 Lock St. on July 12. The space will feature indoor seating for around 100 patrons, as well as outdoor space for games and live music. The Lock Tender plans to offer 10 taps of New York state craft beer, wine, cider and mead, both on tap and bottles and cans to go. They will also have a limited food menu featuring local produce and vendors, in partnership with Lockport’s Terroir General Store. The grand opening will feature live music, Save Me A Slice Pizza pop-up and more. For more information, click here.
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 Twitter (@buffbeerleague), Instagram (@buffalobeerleague), and Facebook (@thebuffalobeerleague).