The event takes place Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. at the John Millar Civic Center in Community Park. VIP tickets, which include an event T-shirt, provide access to the festival starting at noon and includes several special craft brews and hors d’oeuvres. General admission begins at 1:30 p.m.
VIP tickets cost $55, while general admission is $35. As of Friday, a little over 200 tickets have been pre-sold. The event is capped at a maximum of 1,500 tickets.
The idea for Houlton to host an event of this nature arose from local businessman Kent Good and Houlton town councilor John White when the two attended a similar event in Mars Hill last October.
“I spoke with Kent at that event and said ‘Why don’t we do one of these in Houlton?’” White said.
“We had been thinking about doing something like this for a long time,” said Jane Torres, executive director of the Greater Houlton Chamber of Commerce. “Everything we do is usually family-oriented, and we really wanted to have an adults-only type event.”
Patrons must be 21 years of age or older to attend and will receive an event tasting glass that can be taken from vendor-to-vendor to get a 3-ounce sample of their brews. There is no limit on how many samples a person may have. Water and soda will also be provided.
Four food vendors — Blazin’ Nation Food Wagon of Bangor, Joyce Transue of Courtyard Cafe in Houlton, Steve Pangburn of Caribou and The Bus of Houlton — and will also be on-site selling items.
The Houlton Police Department will have two officers on site to ensure nobody gets behind a wheel that should not be driving. Shiretown Taxi is also providing free rides for individuals.
Craft beer breweries in the state have exploded, Torres said. “There are now more than 71 and new ones opening almost every day,” she said.
Torres said she understands the event is not for everyone and respects the opinions of those who do not condone drinking alcohol. For that reason, Torres said, organizers decided the event should be held indoors.
“Plus, what a great use this is for the Civic Center,” she said. “We really need to find more things to do with that building.”
White said he spoke with several brewers in the Portland area and was pleasantly surprised to learn that the majority of them were interested in coming to The County.
“Most of them have never been to Aroostook County and they are viewing this as an untapped market for craft beer,” White said. “Some of them are making a whole week of it. I think this will be a great community event because we are drawing so many people from all over the region to Houlton.”
Torres said a side benefit of bringing all these vendors to the area is that local farmers could get more information about growing hops for breweries.
“It’s a chance to open a dialogue on growing something new, which is always a good thing,” she said.
For more information, visit www.blackflybrewfest.com or call the chamber at 532-4216.
