Sabres Puck Drop Party at Southern Tier Buffalo
As the Buffalo Sabres kick off their 2023-24 campaign on home ice on Thursday, October 12 against the New York Rangers, Southern Tier Buffalo is celebrating with a Puck Drop Party, which will serve as the debut of their new Top Shelf Corn Lager, brewed with New York ingredients and named in honor of late Sabres announcer Rick “RJ” Jeanneret. All Buffalo Brew’d beers will be $5 throughout the day and the party continues postgame with mini sticks games, a DJ set, and more.
Celebrate Oktoberfest This Weekend at a Local Brewery
Don’t put your lederhosen away just yet as Oktoberfest celebrations continue at breweries around Western New York this weekend. On October 14, Belt Line Brewery will be offering German foods and beers at their Oktoberfest, New York Beer Project’s Oktoberfest (Oct. 15) features German beer and food, a Stein Hoisting competition, German costume contest, Weiner Toss, authentic German music and more, Hofbrauhaus will host the U.S. Steinholding Association New York State Championship on Oct. 14, and Steel Leaf Brewing will release their Festbier and Oktoberfestbier at their Oktoberfest Celebration on Oct. 14. Prost!
Thin Man Brewery Minkey Day 2023 at Cole’s
For this year’s Minkey Day, October 14 at Cole’s, Thin Man teamed up with Atrium (Boodle Boy – 7% Parfait-inspired sour w/raspberry, lemon, granola, and yogurt powder), Grimm (Super Boodle – 5% Citra dry hopped Gose w/raspberry, passion fruit, and orange zest), RAR (Minkey’s Out of Order – 7% Blue Raspberry Sour), and Tripping Animals (Minkey Limonada – 7% Raspberry/Pink Lemonade Sour) to develop some brand new Minkey Boodle variants. This year, Thin Man has partnered with Real Men Wear Pink to raise money for the American Cancer Society. Tickets are $45 ($5 will go to the American Cancer Society) and include exclusive access to Cole’s back patio, 1x7oz. pour of each variant, Thin Man glass, free Minkey Boodle Mimosa Bar and live music from Olmsted Dub System. Purchase tickets here.
Big Ditch Teams With YMCA Buffalo Niagara on Turkey Trotter Beer
Big Ditch Brewing has once again partnered with the YMCA on Turkey Trotter, brewed to celebrate the annual Buffalo Turkey Trot race. Turkey Trotter is a blonde ale that features crackery malt and light, hoppy fruit notes. The beer is available right now on draft or to-go in 6-packs 12oz. cans at Big Ditch’s taproom and wherever great craft beer is sold. Turkey Trotter beer cans will also contain a QR code which can be scanned to register for the race. Registration for the YMCA Buffalo Turkey Trot is open and available at www.ymcaturkeytrot.org.
Ellicottville Brewing x Platters Chocolate Affagato Tasting Party
On October 18 (6pm), Ellicottville Brewing and Platters Chocolate Factory are celebrating the release of their latest collaboration, Affogato Dessert Ale, at Fattey Beer in North Tonawanda. Affogato is brewed with Platter’s espresso coffee beans, vanilla, caramel, lactose, and Belgium malt to resemble Platter’s Chocolate Factory’s Affagoto – a scoop of vanilla ice cream “drowned” in a shot of hot espresso. They will be sampling the new brew and giving away swag like koozies, keychains, and stickers. This is a free to attend event.
Raise Money, Awareness for Cerebral Palsy at Resurgence Brewing
On October 20, Resurgence is teaming up with Make Lemon Aide for Cerebral Palsy on Sips for CP, an event to raise awareness and funds for individuals living with Cerebral Palsy. The event will feature a specially brewed beer, Smiles for CP Pilsner, with $2 from each pint sold going to benefit Make Lemon Aide for Cerebral Palsy, who raise awareness for CP, foster inclusion and create a supportive community. The event will feature a 26 Shirts pop up, food from Meet & Eat Charcuterie and Imperial Pizza, desserts, basket raffles, bottle toss, and more. Tickets are $35 and can be purchased here.
2024 Trail Pass from WNY Beer Trail Is Now Available
The new WNY Beer Trail Pass for 2024 has launched and this year it features 70 Western New York locations, including 24 new spots – new breweries like Johnson’s Landing, Gowanda Brewing, Mystic Hills Brewing, Wayland Brewing, Buffalo Olde Brewery, Shalooby Loofer and The Ridge West Seneca, beer bars such as RationAles, The Beer Keep and Hamburg Taproom, as well as meaderies like Bee Spit Meadery. New this year is a change to the Buy One, Get One wording, 12 locations with multiple offers and six more discount offers. A digital version of the Trail Pass is coming soon. You can order yours online here. For a limited time and while supplies last, you can get up to 2 free 2023 passes with a purchase of an equal number of 2024 passes.
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).
