Port Angeles, Washington, Sept. 22, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Two annual fall festivals create two great excuses for a fall three-day weekend getaway to the Olympic Peninsula and Olympic National Park, located just a few hours from Seattle.
Annual Arts & Draughts Beer and Wine Festival – September 22-24, 2017
Beer festivals are a common phenomenon within the Pacific Northwest’s beer-rich scene, but this three year-old craft beer, wine, and cider festival is a little different. Downtown Port Angeles’ art scene is the ideal backdrop for a block party in the streets with live music. This year’s festival is featuring progressive live art installations throughout the weekend, including a “Game of Thrones” style throne made from wine and beer bottles throughout the weekend by local artist Tia Stephens. More than 30 artists and crafters will be selling unique handmade items only and original pieces of art, too.
Over 20 regional breweries, wineries and cideries will be serving up special releases and seasonal varieties throughout the weekend. Kids can enjoy Port Angeles brewed Bedford Soda Root Beer at the root beer garden hosted by the Port Angeles Boys and Girls Club. The music-in-the-streets scene starts on Friday at 6 P.M. with Grandpa’s Grandkids followed by Lucky Brown at 8 P.M. The bier cart will be selling a big selection of beers and wines from across Washington state.
“Bringing high-caliber music acts paired with an amazing selection of craft beverages, crafters and artists is unique for a town of our size” says Angela Oppelt, co-owner of the Next Door Gastropub in downtown Port Angeles and one of the brains behind the beer festival. “Arts and Draughts is made possible by a handful of community-loving volunteers working year-round to provide a fun and unique experience for the people of Port Angeles and our visitors who love beer, wine, art and live music.”
This event is a fundraiser for the Port Angeles Downtown Association, which supports their on-going mission to promote a healthy and prosperous downtown. Downtown Port Angeles shops, restaurants and bars will be offering special deals and discounts throughout the weekend and staying open late for after hours events.
Extra tasting tokens, daily and three-day passes are available. Weekend passes are $45 at the festival and includes a commemorative tasting mug, front-row access to the live bands and a five-token tasting package. For more information and the schedule of events, visit www.portangelesbeerfest.com.
The Annual Dungeness Crab and Seafood Festival – October 6-8, 2017
On the banks of the Strait of Juan de Fuca in downtown Port Angeles, thousands of pounds of crab are caught and served up at this annual festival, named one of the most acclaimed seafood festivals in North America. Last year, attendees noshed on over 14,000 pounds of fresh Dungeness crab. You can also fill your plate with a variety of fresh-from-the-sea seafood options ranging from oysters and mussels to clam chowder and even geoduck sashimi, a hard to find delicacy.
“The Port Angeles Dungeness Crab and Seafood Festival is different from other Pacific Northwest crab and seafood festivals. All of the Dungeness crab for our event is caught by local fishermen in traditional fishing grounds on the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Dungeness Bay, and at nearby Discovery Bay, home of the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe” says Scott Nagel, executive director of the Dungeness Crab & Seafood Festival, “The crab is caught and served as fresh as possible.”
In addition to filling your belly with seafood, enjoy a host of events focused around culinary and cuisine and family fun. Celebrity chef Shaun O’Neale, the winner of FOX TV’s MasterChef Season 7 will make an appearance along with several other notable chefs to cook up Olympic Coast Cuisine using fresh, local ingredients: Kate McDermott, James Beard Award finalist and author of the “Art of the Pie” cookbook; Seattle Chef and cookbook author Cynthia Nims; Jonas Stadtlander, executive chef, Sooke Harbour House. The kids will dig the popular grab-a-crab tank derby where they can fish for their own crab – and keep it if they catch a tagged one! Live music, a chowder cook-off, a marine debris art exhibit, rowing demos, and a 5K run along the Port Angeles waterfront round out the long weekend of crab-inspired events.
To beat the crab-hungry crowds, plan on arriving on Thursday evening and dig in on Friday starting at noon. Not only will you have a bit more elbow room, but you will also save a little on hotel room rates and crab dinner tickets. Sunday is also a good day to attend with less people and a full day of culinary experiences from 9 A.M. until 5 P.M. And don’t worry, they never ever run out of crab.
This is a free event. Crab dinners can be purchased at the festival or in advance at the website. Pets are not allowed in the food tents. For more information and the current schedule of events, visit www.crabfestival.org.
About Visit Port Angeles
Visit Port Angeles is the official destination marketing organization (DMO) of Port Angeles, Washington – the largest city on Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula and the primary gateway to the Olympic National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site. We are a non-membership economic development extension of the City of Port Angeles with a mission to promote tourism and create nothing but happy vacation memories. To plan your Olympic National Park vacation or to order the latest Visitor Guide, go to www.VisitPortAngeles.com
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A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/474cfbc0-bbd3-4dab-954b-a01509453db8