Hawthorne Street Fair & Mighty Mites Session Beer Fest

The annual Hawthorne Street Fair Returns on August 16 from 11:00am to 7:00pm and will feature the return of The Mighty Mites Session Beer Fest to Bazi Bierbrasserie for its third consecutive year.

This is an excellent day to come visit Portland’s original “shop local” district to explore over a hundred businesses dedicated to community involvement, making the area a desirable place to live, work, and shop.

Some of the Hawthorne Street Fair highlights include:

• Main Music Stage at 34th Avenue
• Kids Activities at Kids At Heart (35th Ave)
• Muse Art Activities
• Beer gardens at Bazi Bierbrasserie (32nd Ave) and Hawthorne Hophouse (41st and Hawthorne)
• Vendors along the street between 31st and 38th Avenues

Hawthorne Boulevard will once again be closed to traffic from Cesar Chavez to SE 30th Avenue. It is encouraged to take TriMet or bicycle to the street fair. There will be bicycle parking is at each end and at several bike corrals in the area.

An outstanding line up of food and product vendors, community service providers and many of the businesses with storefronts on Hawthorne will be out on the Boulevard, too! We really enjoy slowing things down so our neighbors and friends can check out new brick and mortar businesses as well as food carts, visiting vendors and street event food items!

For fans of McMenamins, its Bagdad Theater will host a History presentation revived for the Street Fair from 11:00am to 1:00pm.

Also taking place during the Hawthorne Street Fair is the Grand Opening of the new neighborhood, backyard production brewery of Leikam Brewing. Earlier this year a new brewery founded by Theo and Sonia Marie Leikam opened its doors in Southeast Portland. Leikam Brewing is unique as a certified kosher, community-supported nanobrewery. Now with the 5-barrel brewery in full production, Leikam Brewing is set to host its official Grand Opening Celebration during the Hawthorne Street Fair. The celebration will be on Sunday, August 16 from 11 AM – 7 PM at Growlers Hawthorne on 34th and Hawthorne.

The opening will feature 4 of the couple’s beers including 2 of its flagships, the Shoreline Pale and the Janis Hoplin IPA. The other beers featured will include the Funky Town Apricot Ale and a limited edition double IPA. There will also be live music, giveaways and lots of fun for all.

For the third year in a row The Mighty Mites Beer Fest returns as part of the Hawthorne Street Fair festivities outside Bazi Bierbrasserie (1522 SE 32nd Ave) on Sunday, August 16 11:00am to 7:00pm.

The Mighty Mites Beer Fest features an array of beers and ciders all considered to be lighter, sessionable beers that fall under the “Session” style category as defined by being 5% ABV or below. The Mighty Mites presents a selection as varied as they are flavorful from session IPAs to tart refreshing Berliner-Weisse, Ciders, and even a couple straight from the can.

The tap and can list includes a variety of beers and ciders, all 5% ABV or under.

• 2 Towns: OutCider – Like the rugged outdoors of the Northwest, the OutCider is raw and unfiltered. 5% ABV
• Reverend Nats/EZ Orchards: EZ-Kin – consists of exclusively French bittersweet and bittersharp varieties. The re-wetted pomace begins a wild fermentation for 48 hours before being pressed. The resulting juice is low in fermentable sugars but extremely high in flavor due to the extended contact time on the skins and meat of the apples. The final product is full of wild lacto flavors, high in tannins and incredibly complex. 4% ABV.
• Oakshire: Sun Made Cucumber Berliner-Weisse – Sun Made is a hazy golden ale with a bready aroma blended with a cool refreshing whiff of cucumber water. It begins with a mild zip of acidity that is refreshing and light. It is light bodied and low in alcohol making for a very refreshing and quaffable beer. It ends clean and refreshing with a lingering melon freshness. We owe it all to the sun, so kick back after a long day in the garden with a tall glass of Sun Made Cucumber Berliner Weisse. 4% ABV
• Breakside: Birra Minestra – experimental blonde ale brewed with fresh Oregon basil, Creative Growers Sungold tomatoes, and tart pluots. Inspired by a dessert from legendary Portland farm-to-table restaurant Park Kitchen. 5% ABV
• Gigantic: Tiny Empire ISA – 4.7% ABV
• Upright: Lite – is made annually in the style of a classic American lager using corn, rice, and an authentic yeast strain. Think cheap beer, but fresh and crafty! 4.1%
• Lompoc: Cherry Bomb Smoked Red – A collaboration for International Women’s Collaboration Brew Day with Burnside Brewing, 10 Barrel and Heater Allen, this red ale is crimson in color with a strong smoked flavor and aroma. Cherry smoked malt was used in the mash and in-house smoked dried cherries were added to the bright tank. There is a mild hop profile. 3.7% ABV
• The Commons: Petit Classique – table saison with pink peppercorns
• Widmer Hefe Shandy -Bright, refreshing and sessionable, Hefe Shandy is made for summer. The Original American Hefeweizen gets a bold, new citrusy aroma and flavor and lemon drop hops and natural lemonade flavor. Soak up the summer with Hefe Shandy. 4.2% ABV
• pFriem Session IPA – Filled with aromas of fresh strawberries and citrus, this brew has hops that fill the mouth with lemon, pine and a hint of kiwi. This IPA is begging to be enjoyed on our outdoor patio! 4.5%, 25 IBUs
• Firestone Walker: Easy Jack (12oz Can)  – Brewmaster Matt Brynildson went to the mountain and returned with a vision for a different kind of Session IPA, one that would be brewed and dry hopped with a globetrotting selection of new hop varieties from Europe, New Zealand and North America. He foresaw a beer that would deliver massive hop aromas, a signature malt balance and an empty glass before you knew what hit you. And so the newest member of our Jack IPA family was born. 4.5% ABV
• Breakside Kolsch (16oz Can) – We’ve crafted an easy-drinking golden ale with a kiss of hop flavor and a touch of malt-driven sweetness. We’ve stuck close to German tradition in making this beer while also injecting it with our own Oregon twist, combining imported German malts with Willamette Valley-grown hops. 5%ABV

Beer and cider tasting is $10 for a cup and four tickets each good for a large 7 oz beer or cider tasters and two tickets for a full cup. Additional tickets are $2 each. Individual cans of Firestone Walker Easy Jack and Breakside Post Time Kolsch are only $4 each!

Outside in the beer garden, this family friendly event features Scoop Ice Cream and food from the Taco Pedaler. To keep the party going DJ Phil will be spinning World Music. There will also be outdoor games like Cornhole and a kiddie soaking pool to dip your toes into!

At the bar, Bazi has created a special (non-sessionable) beer cocktail for the occasion dubbed the Shandy Mighty for $5, it contains gin, honey, coriander syrup, egg white, and Hefe Shandy served on the rocks. There will also be a full menu available inside Bazi with Happy Hour specials on food and drinks all day!