Tickets on Sale for Third Annual Tap & Craft Festival

The third annual Tap & Craft Festival, coming to the Niagara Falls Convention Center on Oct. 5, will feature craft brews from more than 40 craft breweries, wineries and cideries from Upstate New York, live music from The Far Trio, artisan market, food and more. Tickets are $35 and include admission, commemorative tasting glass and unlimited samples. Designated Driver tickets are $10. VIP tickets include a special release from Mortalis Brewing, exclusive beverage selections curated by Brewed & Bottled, Magic Bear Beer Cellar, The Lock Tender, One Stop Brew Shop and Alchemy Wine & Beer and more. Purchase tickets at www.tapandcraft.com.

Pressure Drop Brewing to Close Elmwood Avenue Taproom

Pressure Drop has announced that their taproom located at 1672 Elmwood Avenue will close at the end of the month. Their last day open will be Sunday, Sept. 29. The announcement was made on their social media channels. While no further details were announced, the brewery said that their beer will still be available at select retailers, beer stores, bottle shops, bars and restaurants around Western New York. Their beer also sees distribution in Rochester, Syracuse and Eastern Pennsylvania. Pressure Drop opened the location in March of 2022. The brewery announced in July of 2023 that they were for sale.

WNY Beer Week Returns Sept. 19-28

The 2024 Western New York Beer Week, presented by the WNY Brewers Guild, will take place Sept. 19-28. Things will get underway on Sept. 19 with an Opening Reception at Resurgence Brewing, then from there, featured events include Buffalo Beer Goddesses 12th Anniversary Party at Mr. Goodbar (Sept. 19), Brewer’s Cornhole Tournament at The Ridge West Seneca (Sept. 22), Nickel City BrewZ Cornhole Tournament hosted by Buffalo Beer Geeks (Sept. 24), WNY Real Beer Expo at Flying Bison (Sept. 27), Brewer’s Bottle Share at Magic Bear Beer Cellar (Sept. 27) and WNY Wet Hop Festival at Rusty Nickel (Sept. 28). Find more at wnybeerweek.com.

Lockport Brewpub Shuffle Becomes Twisted Locks Brewing

Lockport Brewpub Shuffle, a project at 13 W. Main St. in Lockport first proposed in 2021, will now continue under the name Twisted Locks Brewing. The proposed project from brothers CJ and Matt Martin will see the 22,490-square-foot former Kendzie’s Lanes building converted into a ground floor entertainment space, which will feature four regulation-size shuffleboards, bocce courts and cornhole boards, a microbrewery featuring a seven-barrel craft brewing system expected to be installed by November and restaurant, along with four apartments on the upper floors. The Martins bought the building in 2022.

Oktoberfest Celebrations in Full Swing This Weekend

It’s Oktoberfest season and there are plenty of venues celebrating the season, which traditionally runs Sept. 17 through Oct. 3. Wayland Brewing’s second annual Oktoberfest (Sept. 20-22) will feature stein specials, live music from Invisible Touch, German food, ax throwing and more, Rationales will host DEADtoberfest with WNY Dead (Sept. 21), Mystic Hills Brewing will host Oktoberfest (Sept. 21) featuring spent grain pretzels, stein holding competition and German beer flight specials, Pumkingfest at Southern Tier Brewing Buffalo (Sept. 21) will features live music from Interstate Daydream and Tiny Music, exclusive merch and a Pumkingfest Taste Off with Chai Pumking, Maple Pumking and Pecan Pumking (vote for your favorite) and live music (1pm, 5:30pm, 9pm) and a special beer tapping (6pm) at Hofbrauhaus Buffalo. Resurgence’s Oktoberfest (Sept. 21) will feature live music from the Polka Boys Band, stein hoisting & pretzel eating contests, beer samplings, German food and beer specials, and more.

Brickyard Brewing to Release Pair of New Lagers

On Sept. 20, Brickyard Brewing will release a pair of new lagers, Dusk Amber Lager and Dawn Pale Lager. Dawn is an unfiltered Czech Pale Lager brewed with SAAZ Shine hops for notes of citrus and lightly toasted malt and Dusk is a Czech Amber Lager, which features a soft mouthfeel, light roast, toasted nuts and dark fruits. Both beers are available on draft and in 4-pack cans to go. Both cans feature special, limited edition mirrored labels.

Seneca Brewtopia Beer Festival at Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino

The first ever Seneca Brewtopia Beer Festival at Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino will take place on Nov. 23. Breweries scheduled to attend include Resurgence Brewing, BlackBird Cider Works, Founders Brewing, Great Lakes Brewing, 42 North Brewing, Labatt, Wicked Weed and Kona Brewing with more to be announced. Tickets are $40 (if purchased before Oct. 1) and $55 (if purchased Oct. 2 or after) and include commemorative sampling glass, $15 ticket exchange voucher and a soft pretzel. Tickets for the event can be purchased 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).