Barrel & Flow Fest, the nation’s first “Black beer festival,” was started last year by podcasters Day Bracey and Ed Bailey of the Drinking Partners Podcast.
Sponsored by Tavour, this second edition of the beer festival will take place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from Sept. 10 through 12 at SouthSide Works, showcasing 16 different collaboration beers. The event will also invite non-attendees to try all of its beers through the Tavour app as well.
Bracey is hoping that the festival will “empower the Black community through the beer industry” and create more opportunities for inclusion, since data from the Brewers Association shows that Black employees make up just over four percent of brewery employees in the U.S., and Black brewery owners make up only one percent. Bracey and Bailey also formerly launched Fresh Fest, the country’s first festival focused on Black-owned and operated breweries.
“We live in America, so there isn’t really an industry that isn’t affected by lack of representation of women and minorities,” Bracey said in a statement. “Craft beer isn’t really in the Black community. A lot of us grew up in areas where [craft beer] isn’t even a thought.”
“We’re thrilled to support Barrel & Flow Fest and promote diversity within the craft beer community,” says Meghan Packard, vice president of Tavour, in a statement. “This is an amazing and rare opportunity to showcase some truly spectacular black-owned breweries and celebrate all the different people working in brewing today. We hope that by helping Barrel & Flow Fest reach craft fans in more states, we can help the industry become more inclusive.”
Breweries like Black Horizon Brewing, Skeleton Key Brewery and Englewood Brewing are all part of the festival. The three breweries crafted a special Belgian Abbey-style ale with notes of caramel and baking spice for the event,.
Other breweries featured during the festival include Burgh’ers Brewing and Crafted Culture Brewing, Islla St Brewing and Urban Jungle, Montclair Brewery and Mac Brewing, Brooklyn Brewery and Cajun Fire Brewing, J. Wakefield Brewing and Warcloud Brewing, 2nd Shift Brewing and Alematic Artisan Ales, Revolution Brewing and 18th Street Brewing, Allagash Brewing and Sankofa Beer Co., Trillium Brewing and Brockton Beer Co., Other Half Brewing and Four City Brewing, East End Brewing and Black Frog Brewery, Trace Brewing and Two Locals Brewing, Brew Gentlemen and Run the Jewels, Crowns and Hops and Black Calder Brewing, Troegs Independent Brewing, Harris Family Brewery, and Mac Brewing.
This article was originally published on Travel And Leisure.