Fresh Fest and Fresh Fest Digi Fest are making moves in 2021.
The nation’s first Black brew fest, hosted by Day Bracey and Ed Bailey, has announced plans to expand in Pittsburgh’s South Side neighborhood next year.
Since its launch in 2018, Fresh Fest has focused its annual festival on local and national Black brewers, collaborations between local brewers and Black artists and musicians, bottle exchanges, live music, and brewers’ panels. Originally held at Nova Place in Pittsburgh’s Northside, the festival was set to be held in Allentown this year, before switching to a digital platform (Digi Fest) that featured product pairings throughout the city, streaming panels, and interactive virtual components.
Next year’s #ReFresh2021 Fresh Fest festival, which is slated to start on August 14, 2021, will move to SouthSide Works.
SomeraRoad, the new owners of SouthSide Works, have unveiled plans to add more greenspace and outdoor amenities, including a new permanent stage planned for Town Center.
“SouthSide Works is really rolling out the red carpet for Fresh Fest and there’s a ton of opportunity to expand on what we are doing,” says organizer Day Bracey in a release. “It’s giving us the opportunity to get more creative, innovative, and inclusive with our programming.”
Organizers say that the four-day festival welcomes 5,000 attendees, including about 2,000 out-of-town guests.
“It’s a way to showcase the city to prospective Black investors, so we like to move around and highlight different spots in town,” says Bracey.
Because of the success of Digi Fest, organizers say that they’ll be incorporating new virtual components from Digi Fest into all Fresh Fest events in the future.
Tickets will be on sale in early 2021, and updates will be made on Fresh Fest’s social media. And, if you’d like to check out 2020’s Fresh Fest Digi Fest, head to their website and enter coupon code: STAYDISTANT to enjoy 50+ hours of beer education, music and art for free.
Leave a Reply