Flour City Brewers Fest returns to showcase best in NYS beer

Beer fest held at the Rochester Public Market on Aug. 19 allows attendees to connect with those who make the beer.

Note: This newsletter is supported by Donnelly’s Public House, a wonderful canal-side establishment in the village of Fairport.

One of Rochester’s best beer events returns to normal next month for the first time in three years. The Flower City Brewers Fest welcomes 70-plus breweries, cideries, wineries, and other beverage producers to the Rochester Public Market on Friday, Aug. 19.

The event, Rochester’s oldest beer festival, returns for its 27th edition. It showcases the best in what makes New York state special. It presents a rare opportunity to interact with the folks behind the beer. Where other festivals might have distributors or volunteers pouring beer, Flour City invites brewers and brewery owners to attend.

(And if you followed my work at the D&C, you probably feel like you’ve read this exact same event preview before. You kinda have, but it is worth repeating every year, this is a special event and you really should attend.)

“Crowds were smaller last year, by intent, but I think we can go up a little bit this year,” said festival founder John Urlaub, also the founder/owner of Rohrbach Brewing. “I am really looking forward to getting back (to where we were). We think it was on a great path. It’s important that we don’t want it to get old hat or routine. We always want to focus on the experience. With Brittany’s leadership, she does a great job with that.”

Brittany Statt is organizing the festival for the fourth year, including the COVID-impacted 2021 event. The people, the event, and the venue all add to make it one of the most memorable festivals in the Rochester region every year. The venue, in particular, adds to the unique feel.

“I think the market is just totally made for this,” said Statt, the former brand manager/graphic designer for Rohrbach who recently ventured out on her own through Brittany Statt Design + Marketing. (Word of advice: Hire Brittany. She does truly incredible work across a wide range of mediums and she really understands this market.) “I know we’ve been at a few other venues in the past, like High Falls and the baseball stadium and stuff like that.

“Logistically, the market is just perfect. The layout is meant for vendors like that. The event follows the same format as the actual public market. That’s a cool experience. It’s a very central location near downtown and accessible to all. It’s a great venue. And the area is only getting better.”

VIP tickets are sold out, but general admission and designated driver tickets are still available here: https://event.attendstar.com/event/show/flour-city-brewers-fest-2022/. As beer nerds increasingly embrace technology, the event launched an Untappd page where attendees can see what’ll be on draft. There is even a map of breweries and vendors available.

Rohrbach opening its Railroad Street location in 2008 provided a spark in the resurgence of the area around the Rochester Public Market. The area now includes a distillery, multiple restaurants, and other small businesses. (It might even feature a second brewery in the near future. Maybe. Stay tuned.)

Advertisement: For exemplary takes on traditional styles and the best pretzel in town, make sure to visit Sager Beer Works in Rochester.

Statt said the event celebrates the community, not just beer.

“We encourage as many local breweries to attend as we can get,” Statt said. “It’s not meant to be exclusive. It’s meant to celebrate the industry and the people in it and lift them up. I would not describe it as a beer festival for a beer snob. It’s really about community and celebrating the brewers. The literal logistic way the festival is set up, being at the market, lends itself to a great experience for the brewers themselves.”

Rohrbach held the first Flower City Brewers Fest in 1994 at Sonnenberg Gardens in Canandaigua. Urlaub is still one of the driving forces behind the event. The festival returned last year on a much smaller scale.

Statt said the festival wanted to do more to highlight non-alcoholic and gluten-free options this year. So they invited Connecticut’s Athletic Brewing, the only brewery from outside the state, to pour its non-alcoholic offerings. And AltBar will be mixing up its non-alcoholic cocktails. There are also more cideries and Katboocha kombucha. An assortment of food trucks will be parked at the market to feed patrons, too.

Here are five breweries I am really excited about:

1. Naples Brewing Co.: Life has been a bit chaotic recently as we try to find a new house in the city and then work to sell our current home. So I’ve been a bit negligent in my brewery visits. Naples has turned into a craft beer destination with the opening of Naples Beer and Engine 14 Brewing. And I haven’t had a chance to visit either spot yet. I’ve heard nothing but positive reports so far. This will be a great opportunity to sample some Naples beer.

2. Prison City Brewing: This is just the perfect chance to try some fresh beer from one of the best breweries in New York state. No matter what the PCB crew pours, you know it’s gonna be good.

3. Strange Design Public House: Beside the fact the brewery is named after a Phish song (I kid, I kid), I’ve heard incredible reports about this new Geneseo brewery in the old Livingston County Poorhouse. I’m overdue for a visit, but I am super excited to try some new beers from the same folks who own the esteemed Amber Lantern Brewing in Warsaw.

4. Okay Beer Co.: I love the vibe of this place and I love the beers Seth Wile is making here. If you haven’t visited this Honeoye Falls newcomer, remedy that. Like the aforementioned breweries above, this is a perfect chance to try some beers from an impressive newcomer. Statt said she was super excited for some Okay beers.

5. Grow Brewing: I highlighted this nomadic startup recently. Currently based in Geneva, this brewery without roots specializes in hazy IPAs and other imaginative concoctions. Give Grow a shot.

Hope to see many of y’all at the Flower City Brewers Fest.

Title sponsor: Donnelly’s Public House

This work is made possible through support from Donnelly’s Public House, 1 Water St. in Fairport. So make sure to get out to Fairport and support one of the best establishments in our area.

I remain open to sponsorships, sponsored content, and advertisements, especially if it’ll keep the newsletter free for readers. And if you have information about upcoming releases, events, or happenings, don’t hesitate to reach out. For more information, feel free to drop me a line at clevelandprost@gmail.com.

And if you enjoyed this edition of the Cleveland Prost, please subscribe and share! See you again soon.