Happy National Margarita Day! I don’t have any margarita or tequila news for this Monday, February 22—only Oregon beer news. As usual, I’ll be periodically updating this post throughout the day with the latest news as I find it, so check back often. And if you have news to share, please contact me and I can get that posted as well.

The Willamette Week’s Oregon Beer Awards is taking place tomorrow, Tuesday the 23rd, at the Revolution Hall in Portland. The evening promises to be “Emmys-style.” It looks like there are still tickets available, for $15 each, which will get you in to the event where there will be best beers awarded in 14 different categories, as well as other awards for things like “Best Brewpub Experience” and “Brewery of the Year.” It’s an interesting concept, examining and rewarding only Oregon beer and breweries, with a logical category structure; and (disclosure) I served on the (online) Voting Academy for the non-beer-judging nominations and voting, so we’ll see how it all turns out.

Crux Fermentation Project (Bend): Tonight they have two events taking place, first up: their weekly Monday BEER’ducation Series pairing two beers against each other to compare and contrast, with Off Leash Session IPA vs. Crux Pale facing off from 4 to 7pm. Then also, they have a Beer Seminar taking place starting at 6pm, featuring a history of the development of Pale Ale: “A walk through the evolution of pale ales. The devolopment of the IPA and the the way pale ales have changed and grown in the US—especially in the northwest.” It’s free, but limited to 35 guests.

Belmont Station (Portland) has Michigan’s Bell’s Brewery in the house all day long today: “Yes, it’s true! Kalamazoo’s famous Bell’s Brewing has sent another rare and wonderful shipment of bottles, cans and kegs to Portland, and we are celebrating this lucky development in a really big way. We will have a wide array of bottles, including tons of Two Hearted Ale and Expedition Stout amongst others, for sale in the bottle shop starting at 10 a.m. We will be pouring Two Hearted and a very limited amount of Hopslam in the taproom starting at noon! Keep an eye on this space and follow us on Twitter for updates. #BellsAtBelmont. It’s going to be a blast!”

The Bier Stein (Eugene): Their annual Starkbierzeit Festival of Strong Beer takes place this week, starting Thursday the 25th and running through Saturday the 27th. “With some beer, age and beauty go hand-in-hand. Add strength to that list and you’ve got what this year’s Starkbierzeit is all about. The Bier Stein’s first big draught fest of 2016 brings some real tasty skeletons out of the closet… er, cellar. The three-day event will trot out some of the best big beers Eugene’s most prolific beer bar has to offer.” This is definitely one you won’t want to miss!

Cascade Brewing (Portland): This week they have their own fest kicking off, their Sour Fruit Fest taking place from Wednesday the 24th through Sunday the 28th—another great event that any sour beer lovers should not miss. “Join us for our annual Sour Fruit Fest on February 24 through February 28 (Noon to close daily) where we’ll be pouring more than 50 of our own Sour Fruit Beers. There will be four guaranteed beers per day, and another four being shuffled. We’ll have a Savory/Sweet pairing menu available, as well as vintage bottles for sale.” The beer list on the event page is impressive, and still being finalized, so keep up to date so you know what will be pouring each day.

Fort George Brewery (Astoria): Their Stout Month Monday releases continue today, with three new stouts to enjoy: North VIII – 1yr Aged Russian Imperial Stout; Down & Dirty – Chai and Espresso Stout; and Simian Stout – Banana, Chocolate, and Hazelnut Belgian Stout. (“Simian” referring to “monkey” of course—that’s the one that intrigues me the most!)

Vertigo Brewing (Hillsboro) is releasing their popular Tropical Heatwave today from 4 to 9pm: “Our habanero infused version of the Tropical Blonde makes her first appearance of 2016. One keg only. This won’t last long.” Only one keg! If chili-spiced hot beers are your thing, don’t wait.