Barrel & Flow Fest 2022 is a weeklong celebration of Black arts on tap!
Calling all beer fest fans, foodies, and art lovers – Barrel & Flow Fest is back!
Since 2018, Barrel & Flow Fest founder Day Bracey and his team have hosted the nation’s first Black arts and crafts beer festival here in the ‘Burgh. Voted the second-best beer festival in the entire country by USA Today readers, Barrel & Flow Fest is a celebration of two of Pittsburgh’s fastest-growing, most-loved groups: local brewers and Black artists.
In 2022, Barrel & Flow Fest will include “over 30 Black-owned breweries, 55 unique collaboration brews made exclusively for the festival, 150 food, arts, crafts, and brew vendors, 7 bands, 5 deejays, and 2 live art stages curated by Boom Concepts.” It’s certainly one of the biggest signature events in the city, and proudly one of the most welcoming events in the country!
This year, Barrel & Flow Fest includes a week-long schedule of fun events all across the city that culminate in the signature festival in its new location at The Stacks at 3 Crossings in the Strip District on August 13.
To kick off the week, local brewery Brew Gentleman will host the festival kickoff at its new downtown beer garden, Steel Garden, from 5-8PM on Tuesday, August 9. Other breweries hosting official festival events include Dancing Gnome in Sharpsburg on August 10 and Trace Brewing in Bloomfield on August 11.
Cinderlands Warehouse in the Strip District will host an event for brewers and festival VIPs on August 10 from 7-10PM, and on Friday, August 12, Barrel & Flow Fest’s conference and networking event and bottle share will take place at the Greentree DoubleTree before leading to a comedy show at the Arcade Theater downtown at 9:30PM.
Black artists, brewers, and makers of all kinds will be at Barrel & Flow Fest to showcase their handmade art, craft brews, and delicious food.
Saturday, August 13 is the festival day! VIPs can enjoy an afternoon of tastings and art appreciation starting at 12PM, with the first three hours dedicated just to them. Early access ticket holders can enter at 3PM and regular admission at 5PM, and all are welcome to stay until 9PM. (Art Enthusiast tickets are also available from 3-9PM and do not include a taster glass.) For full information on tickets, visit the Barrel & Flow Fest website.
Best of all, on Sunday from 10AM-2PM, you can join Barrel & Flow Fest VIPs at the Brewers Brunch at the Greentree DoubleTree to recover from all your samples the day before!
Speaking of VIPs, Barrel & Flow Fest’s arts outreach program art + biz is offering an exclusive VIP ticket package that functions as sponsorship for Black artists, entrepreneurs, and nonprofits that want to explore opportunities in the craft brew industry. This four-day pass gives you access to the festival’s signature events such as panel discussions, networking, tastings, and education. To learn more and apply, visit www.barrelandflow.com/give.
Another new addition to the festival this year is its partnership with the Crackem app. Crackem helps you “save money and earn rewards while supporting local breweries and craft beer venues,” and you can download the app to learn more about Barrel & Flow Fest collaborations and earn points for your brewery visits.
Get ready to vibe and imbibe at one of Pittsburgh’s most exemplary events, and join Yinzers from all walks of life in celebrating our city’s Black artists, brewers, and makers!
Trace Brewing, one of last year’s participating breweries seen above, will return in 2022 and host a night of beer and good vibes in their Bloomfield space on August 11.
This content was provided by a local, independent contributor to Made in PGH, a lifestyle blog.