Last October, Brooklyn Brewery took over Boston for a week as part of the Mash Tour. It was a week long gathering that was part of the second annual, 12-city traveling event that focused on local food, film, comedy, music, books and, of course, beer.
In an interview last year, Brooklyn Brewery Marketing Director Ben Hudson called Boston a “thinking man’s drinking town.”
“Maybe it has something to do with all the schools in and around Boston but one gets the sense that Boston not only drinks good beer but thinks about it a lot as well,” Hudson said. “There are dozens of well-stocked beer bars that are conducive to drinking as well as elevated discussions about beer. “
That help explains why Boston will take part in the third annual Brooklyn Brewery Mash Tour, which is currently underway. Only eight cities are taking part in the Mash events this year, with Boston falling in the middle. New Orleans, London and Stockholm, Sweden have already hosted with Chicago, Washington D.C., Philadelphia and Austin still to come. The Boston event takes place from June 15 through June 21 at several bars and facilities across the city and its suburbs.
Beer Events
One of the feature events is the State of Craft Beer discussion. Held at Hurricane O’Reilly’s on June 18 at 6 P.M., the panel includes Brooklyn Brewery co-founder Steve Hindy, Jim Koch, founder of Boston Beer Company and Samuel Adams; Dan Kenary, CEO of Harpoon Brewery; Rob Martin, president of Ipswich Ale Brewery and president of the Massachusetts Craft Brewers Guild; John Holl, editor of All About Beer; and Beer Scribe’s Andy Crouch.
There are also a number of tap takeovers and beer tastings that have and have not been announced.
Food Events
Brooklyn Brewery Chef Andrew Gerson is hosting two events. The first is “Eat, Drink & Learn” where chef Gerson dispenses samples of food, beer and information at Whole Foods Ink Block. The second is Mash Edu, where patrons are involved in a DIY dinner party hosting a party from scratch at KITCHENiNG.
There are other unique events, including the Secret Supper with Dinner Lab, which is a unique pop-up dinner featuring local chefs and artists at a location that has yet to be announced. There is also The Beefsteak, which is a “revival of the carnivorous feats of days gone by.”
Entertainment Events
There are two featured film festivals during the Mash. The first is the Found Footage Festival, which includes a number of “odd, rare and utterly strange” videos from all over the country. The other is the Animation Block Party, which is a 12-year old renowned festival.
Social Media
As with year’s past, the hashtag #bostonmash will be all over social media as event organizers promote upcoming events and attendees share their thoughts and pictures of the gathers they are attending.
Click here for a full rundown of events, locations and times and be sure to check back to see a recap of the Boston Mash.