More than the Falls: Niagara Falls beer fest to showcase western New York

First Tap and Craft Festival bringing together some of New York's best beverage producers to show off Niagara Falls

Note: This is a sponsored partnership between the Niagara Hiking Company and the Cleveland Prost.

Niagara Falls is a special place. And the Niagara Hiking Co. team wants to do everything in its power to showcase that.

The recently launched Niagara Hiking Co. hopes to bring the community closer through craft beer. It wants to show everyone that Niagara Falls is more than just the iconic natural wonder that attracts people from around the world.

Niagara Hiking Co. seeks to help more people appreciate the wonder and beauty of the Niagara Gorge through guided hikes and tours. “The gorge is so special,” said Hiking Co. co-founder Seth Piccirillo. And now through camaraderie fostered by the craft beer community, Niagara Hiking Co. hopes to present the area in a different light and also provide a window into the entertainment offerings there.

The first annual Tap and Craft Festival runs Saturday, Oct. 29 from 4 to 9 p.m. at the Niagara Falls Convention Center, 101 Old Falls St. It’ll feature more than 30 craft breweries, cideries, and wineries from the western New York and Finger Lakes regions. Plus, there will be a commemorative tasting glass, local vendors, live music, backyard games, and unlimited craft beverage samples.

“I’ve always had a strong connection to community here in western New York,” Piccirillo said. “I see all of that in the regional craft brewing community. That led us to doing this event. It’s a celebration of where you’re from, doing something different, and doing something special.”

And festival organizers are encouraging folks to make a weekend out of it by staying at a neighboring hotel, one is even offering discounts, and exploring some of the other local businesses in the area. Early-bird tickets cost $30, while those purchased the day of the festival will cost $40. Designated driver passes are available for $10. Online ordering is available via Eventbrite. (And if you enter the promo code “PROST” at checkout, the first few folks will get 20 percent off their orders.)

“We want to feature the best of western New York,” Piccirillo said. “The beer industry has been the greatest example of people in the upstate community creating a new path. Taking something like brewing which for years has been very standard and putting their own spin on it, making their own beers, creating their own can art, it makes going out for a beer a special experience. What we love about bringing all these people together, because they’re all so collaborative, is that it’s fun.”

The list of vendors is certainly impressive and really does show the depth and quality of the regional beer scene. The list includes Brickyard. Brewing and Woodcock Brothers Brewing, both from Niagara County, and Lewiston-based Brewed and Bottle, one of the region’s best specialty craft beer stores. From Erie County, there are quality producers like Belt Line Brewery, 42 North Brewing, Big Ditch Brewing, Pressure Drop Brewing, Community Beer Works, Flying Bison Brewing, and the recently opened BriarBrothers Brewing.

The cidery list is equally exciting and features the likes of BlackBird Cider Works, Blue Barn Cidery, and OSB Ciderworks. And from the Rochester and Finger Lakes region, you have quality places like K2 Brothers Brewing and Young Lion Brewing. And more beverage producers are being added daily.

Organizers hope to make the event an annual off-season showcase of western New York.

“There are not many, if any, craft festivals in Niagara County,” Piccirillo noted. “We want to change that. We want to make this an opportunity for people to enjoy the festival and also check out the Falls, check out the fall season in our community, and make a day, make a weekend out of it.”

Noting that the city of Niagara Falls still doesn’t have a brewery and Niagara County itself could easily support more breweries, organizers anticipate the festival will show breweries just how much the area loves its craft beer. Multiple developers have spaces available in Niagara Falls that would be perfect for potential breweries.

“We want to highlight Niagara Falls as a destination for the next western New York brewery,” Piccirillo said. “We think the community would welcome it and we’re hoping placemaking like this will help. It shows brewers there is a market here and people that would embrace them.”

This is more than just another beer festival.

“It’s a special and misunderstood place,” Piccirillo said. The natural beauty is awe-inspiring. The community itself has had a difficult 60 years. But there still is so much opportunity here. We’ve seen craft breweries change neighborhoods.”

Beyond Niagara Hiking Co., the event is presented by a number of local sponsors: Uber, Savarino Companies, Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino, Niagara Falls National Heritage Area, TM Montante Development, LiveNF and Timothy J. Hennessy, PLLC.

The event is also supported by the Niagara Falls Convention Center, Niagara Falls State Park, Mercantile, LLC and Angelo Morinello.

Note: This event preview is a paid sponsorship between the Niagara Hiking Company and the Cleveland Prost.