R.I. Brewers Guild sells out first beer festival

THE RHODE Island Brewers Guild has sold out its Ocean State Beer Festival, scheduled for Sept. 20, and is actively marketing its locally produced beer.
THE RHODE Island Brewers Guild has sold out its Ocean State Beer Festival, scheduled for Sept. 20, and is actively marketing its locally produced beer.

WESTERLY – The Rhode Island Brewers Guild has sold out its Ocean State Beer Festival, scheduled for Sept. 20, and is actively marketing its locally produced beer.
Brent Ryan, founder and president of the guild, which was established in 2012, says the Sept. 20 festival – its first ever – has attracted mostly Rhode Island beer enthusiasts already familiar with the products of the guild’s 13 Rhode Island-based member breweries. Ryan also is founder and president of the brewery, Newport Storm of Newport.
At $35 each, patrons will sample 2-ounce brews from the member breweries at Grey Sail Brewing in Westerly.
The guild, an all-volunteer network with no physical location, purposely started small, Ryan said, to keep things manageable, but hopes to expand the festival in future years as it continues to promote the Rhode Island brewery industry, which he says has grown rapidly over the past three years.
“We’re promoting Rhode Island beer,” said Ryan. “That’s the mission of the Brewers Guild: to get Rhode Islanders specifically to recognize the great beers being made in Rhode Island and get them to realize [they] could drink exclusively Rhode Island beer and have dozens of choices.”
The guild also launched 30-second television advertising spots on the Cox network today, Ryan said, and is participating in the Great International Beer Festival scheduled to come to the R.I. Convention Center in Providence on Oct. 24.
“We want to get all the Rhode Island brewers together to highlight Rhode Island as this brewing mecca amongst all the other brands that will be at the event,” Ryan said.

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