By Adam Donnelly

Brew Loops set to take over Kamloops this weekend

Sep 27, 2017 | 4:49 PM

KAMLOOPS — Like Boogie the Bridge in April, there’s a signature September event here in the city of Kamloops, and it’s right around the corner. Brew Loops Beer Festival kicks off tonight with a mini-Block Party before the Kamloops Storm home game. This year should be the biggest, and best edition of the sudsy celebration Kamloops has seen.

“Our brewhouse holds 1,500 litres, the triple fermenter holds 4,500,” Richard Phillips, one of the owners of Kamloops’ newest craft beer maker, Iron Road Brewing explained.

That’s a lot of beer. While this particular batch won’t be ready for the weekend, there should be more than enough to go around, as the third annual Brew Loops Festival will take over the city.

“I think it’s up to 14 or 15 events across five days this year,” Mitchell Forgie, Brew Loops Director said. “It keeps getting bigger and bigger, and we keep selling out sooner, and sooner.”

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By “sold out”, Forgie’s referring to the annual Block Party, which will take over Yew Street in front of the Red Beard on Friday night. That’s an event the folks at Iron Road are looking forward to.

“I’m most looking forward to Block Party. That’s going to be a lot of fun,” Phillips said. “They’ve got all the breweries there, so we’ll be catching up with old friends in the community, as well as all the live music and food trucks that are going to be there. They’ve got the bumper cars, which is going to be fun.”

This will be Iron Road Brewing’s first go-round at Brew Loops. They’re welcoming a special film festival into their brewery on Saturday night.

“At the same time the cask event is going on, we’ll be holding a mountain bike film festival, that we’re super excited for,” Phillips said.

While there are many different craft beer events throughout BC, Brew Loops sets itself apart through the sheer variety of activities included in the festival.

“It’s become a go-to beer festival destination,” Phillips said.

”You’re engaging with more people than the typical craft beer nerd,” Forgie explained. “Kamloops itself… [is] way more casual, and Brew Loops is a lot more fun.”

So if you didn’t get a ticket to the Block Party on Friday night, don’t fret; there will plenty to do at Brew Loops this weekend, and plenty of beer to drink.