A Weekend of Craft Beers and Fun at the Angeles Craft Beer Festival

The first craft beer festival in Central and Northern Luzon, the Angeles City Craft Beer Festival, was held at the Marquee Mall’s Marquee Park over the weekend of December 2 to 4, 2016. It showcased 15 Philippine-based craft beer breweries and over 70 different beers, with a few imported craft beers as well.

Ted Lerner, the organizer of the event, wanted to have an inclusive event. “We marketed this more towards the wider community, not the people who know craft beer,” he shares. “Because here in the province, not many people know about craft beer. It’s very small. Whereas in Manila, there is a sizable market that you can market to, who already know what craft beer is and they will come out to it.”

He is a strong proponent of giving the people a different choice to the typical commercial beer that we’ve grown accustomed to. “Why is it that in the Philippines, I can only have a choice of one company’s offers?” he asks. “It’s ‘cause people are just used to it. It’s just something that’s been the way it’s been. But we want to change that. We’re not going to make a dent in their market. We want to just have some better offerings.”

One thing that gives people pause when it comes to craft beers is the price point. But for the festival, “we have tried to get the brewers to bring the prices down, to make it a little more popular-priced,” says Tom. “Every brewer here at this festival has to offer at least one beer for P100.” There were also booths offering P70 beer from the tap.

The weather gods were smiling upon the festival and bestowed sunny skies and a cool breeze that made the area inviting for passersby. Renowned pianist Chris “Hot Fingers” Marshall entertained guests with rocking sets of Ragtime Saloon music until the sun set and the Jazz Grill All-stars, led by Conrad “Titus” del Rosario III, served up world-class jazz all night to an appreciative crowd.

There were a few activities that guests could participate in during the festival. Giant Jenga challenged kids and grownups alike to test their skills at balancing blocks of wood. They were so engaged in playing that you would see even adults standing on chairs to stack the big bars of wood to such heights that when they would finally fall (to collective gasps from players), it would startle people and cause the ground to vibrate a bit.

There was an area where guests could play darts (one of the sports you can play in bars). The festival gave the opportunity for dart enthusiasts to play with (and get their asses handed to them) by the Philippines’ number 1 dart player, Gilberto “Bhoy” Ulang, who will be heading to London in mid-December to compete in the World Darts Championship.

There were scheduled seminars over the course of the festival. Last December 3, Robert Palad, the owner and Master Brewer of The Laughing Carabao, gave an informative talk on the basics of making craft beer. Twenty-eight-year-old Robert learned the art of brewing from the Hitachino brewery in Japan and infuses his beers with local ingredients like mango, rice, and coconut. He emphasized the importance of craft beers: to endorse local ingredients, to give a choice to consumers, provide a healthy alternative, support the local economy, and make consumers happy. He notes, “The craft beer industry is a niche industry that will only continue to grow.” He ended his talk with two book recommendations: How to Brew by Jack Palmer and The Complete Joy of Homebrewing by Charlie Papazian.

On December 4, Michael Schittek, owner and Master Brewer of Pinatubo Craft Beer, gave an engaging talk about the German Purity Law, by which he brews his beers. Celebrating the 500^th year of the proclamation of this law this year (it was established in 1516), The German Purity Law basically states:

1. Don’t make beer too expensive.
2. Beer can only be made of water, barley, and hops.
3. No mixing of chemicals or toxic ingredients.

Michael conducted his talk by asking the audience periodically to guess some information about this and gave free beer passes to those who got the answer correctly (or close enough). People were enticed to engage with him and in turn, got more interested in the topic. We discovered why wheat was not used as an ingredient in beer (because it was the key ingredient in making bread) and why the law was needed in the first place (at the time, there was no water sanitation and beer was safer to drink because the alcohol killed bacteria so it needed to be regulated).

There were various food vendors offering an array of food that people could munch on while sipping their beers. Shawarma, various grilled meats, sandwiches, and nachos were just some of the snacks available. For those who wanted to abstain or take a break from drinking beer, there were different variations of lemonade and even yogurt parfait for those that wanted some dessert.

Festivals like this offer an alternative to the usual drinking fare we’ve been accustomed to. “We won’t make a dent in the market,” Ted acknowledges. “There’ll be a niche for this. But it’s a niche that’s worth it,” he counters.

One could also see the camaraderie among the brewers themselves. Some of them have been in similar festivals and have become friends. The craft beer industry is a thriving community, providing different, distinct styles of beer to the thirsty public. It was not uncommon to see brewers partaking of beers from other stalls.

We are eagerly looking forward to what next year’s festival will bring. We’d love to see more interactive games for groups and families to enjoy. It would also be great to have a more extensive selection of food, and more alternatives for those who don’t drink but want to be part of the festival.

The cashless system did make payments faster for both guests and vendors, though hopefully next year guests would be able to load specific denominations and get a refund of unused amounts left in the cards. An hourly program with different musical acts or bands that would cater to the taste of the public is something that we would hope to see next year as well. The breweries offered tasting samples of their beers, for guests to be able to make a decision about what to purchase. Maybe next year, vendors can also offer beer flights for guests to be able to suitable sample some or all of their beers in one go. The seminars were a hit, as there is a growing interest and curiosity about craft beers. Hopefully next year, we can have a talk on home brewing basics and tasting classes.

The 1st Annual Angeles City Craft Beer Festival is endorsed by the Philippine Department of Tourism and the Angeles City Tourism Office and is sponsored by CPI Call Shop & Business Café, Meister Solar, DrinkManila.com, Harrier Magazine, Cool Breeze Hotel, Frontera Tex-Mex, Royce Hotel and Casino, Hotel Euro Asia, WheninManila.com, Harry the Horse, Whereinpampanga.com, CLTV-36, Sunstar Pampanga, Systems Plus College Foundation, Whereinangeles.ph and is powered by Pouch Nation. The event will benefit the Tuloy Foundation for street children.

Photos and video by Star Sabroso