Today is the first day of the first-ever Central Oregon Beer Week! All this week I’ll be posting daily about the events for the day, starting with today’s:

Specials

• Bend Ale Trail special all week long
  Anyone who completes the Bend Ale Trail during the Week will get a special, limited edition Bend Ale Trail koozie!
• Specials at Cascade West
  Cascade West will have 12 of their 32 tap handles dedicated to the local breweries and sell drafts for $3.00 all week open to close (11am to midnight).
• Beer Cocktails & Small Plate Menu at 10 Below
  10 Below Restaurant in the Oxford Hotel boasts 6 taps, always stocked with Central Oregon’s finest brews. They will be serving Beer Cocktails and will also have a Small Plate menu, paired with local beer. The menu and beer cocktails will be available May 21- May 26 after 4 pm, in the lounge in the bottom floor of the Oxford Hotel in downtown Bend.

Events

• GoodLife tasting at Whole Foods
  Join Whole Foods for a tasting of GoodLife Brewing’s beers from 3 to 5pm.
• Meet the Brewer and Tour Bend Brewing
  Join Bend Brewing Company from 4 to 6pm for an open-house to meet Brewer, Ian Larkin. They will offer ½-priced appetizers during this time and live music from Mark Ransom from 6:30 to 8:30pm.
• BREWS & BANDS at Broken Top Bottle Shop featuring Below Grade Brewing
  From 5 to 7pm, come meet Dean Wise, Head Brewer and Managing Member at the new Below Grade Brewing! Chat with him, and taste some of his amazing beers while enjoying live music by Brad Jones (aka Keez), who you probably know as keyboardist for local jam band The Mostest, and as a solo artist, who the Source Weekly says, “could play a rave, your birthday party or with Justin Timberlake.”
• Scholarship BrewFest & Basket Raffle
  Come to Common Table from 6 to 8pm to help kick off Central Oregon Beer Week with a sampling of local brews while supporting the Bend Youth Collective’s 2012 Urban Immersion Trip to Washington, D.C. Admission is $15 and includes food and 2 drink tickets. Premium Raffle Baskets will be available from the likes of Atelier 6000, Altrec, and others. Raffle tickets are $5 each or 5 for $20.

And of course if you want to participate (even if it’s a tasting, beer specials, or something else you might otherwise think is minor), feel free to submit an event anytime!