OCEAN CITY –The effort to turn Ocean City into a craft beer destination to rival Bend, Ore. and Asheville, N.C. starts on Monday, Nov. 10, 4:30 p.m.-6 p.m. with the first Beer Talk & Tasting event at Burley Oak Brewery in Berlin.
This event will focus on “The State of Craft Beer on the Shore.” Tom Knorr from Evolution Brewery and Bryan Brushmiller from Burley Oak will join seven other local brewers to kick off a mission of education. They will be on hand along with hoteliers, restauranteurs and even shuttle services to start putting packages together.
Beer tastings from multiple breweries will be featured. Attendees can buy five tasting tickets for $5 at the door and more tickets will be available throughout the evening at $1/ticket. Baked Dessert Café of Berlin will provide snacks during the event. RSVPs to the event may be submitted on organizers’ new website, ShoreCraftBeer.com.
ShoreCraftBeer.com is also live and will ensure Ocean City’s rise to dominance as a craft beer destination, according to campaign representatives. The site will map the 19-plus breweries on the shore, present hotel packages that feature craft beer, highlight bars and restaurants that serve locally brewed craft beers, pull together all the social media discussions from the breweries in one place for the first time, host quarterly Beer Talk & Tasting educational events as well as other networking events to encourage collaboration and present unparalleled information on craft brewing and access to this niche in the Ocean City area.
“This idea started when a brewer told me that his own restaurant didn’t believe in craft beer. I also heard people say that craft beer was a fad and women didn’t like craft beer,” said Ann McGinnis Hillyer of OceanCity.com. “My editor and I just looked at each other and knew we were about to embark on a mission to make Ocean City, Md. a craft beer destination through collaboration, education, branding and events for the public and the trade.
Anthony Towey, editor at OceanCity.com added, “We love craft beer and are lucky to have 19 breweries on the shore. This effort is a natural extension of what we do to promote craft beer on OceanCity.com already.”
Ocean City Hotel-Motel-Restaurant Association Susan Jones added, “Attractive shoulder and off-season hotel rates, a geographically rich and beautiful resort area, and lots of locally produced, award-winning beer all within a short drive from major metropolitan areas where craft beer is already valued makes Ocean City the perfect East Coast Craft Beer destination.”
OceanCity.com and the OCHMRA are presenting sponsors in this effort and are joined by Worcester County Tourism, Southern Delaware Tourism and Ocean 98 Irie Radio.