Cheers to the weekend with these craft beer-y events

By Will McGough
Special to Frolic Hawaii
This weekend presents us with another great lineup of craft beer-centered events, including a huge anniversary party for one of Oahu’s long-running beer pubs, a pub crawl around Kakaako and a sunset dinner on the North Shore.
REAL a gastropub 5th Year Anniversary Back Alley Paina
When: Saturday, May 20, 4 p.m. – 10 p.m.
Cost: Free
Where: REAL a gastropub, Ward Village
REAL a gastropub’s 5th anniversary is Tuesday, May 23rd, but they’ll get the most out of the celebration with a week-long list of events, starting May 20 with a Back Alley Paina featuring grilled BBQ plates with Portuguese sausage, beef brisket, and smoked pork shoulder in addition to a fresh oyster bar and a raffle to win two neighbor island tickets on Island Air. REAL says it will have a “rare, hard-to-come-by” list of draught beers in honor of the anniversary.
You can also enter to win a $100 gift card throughout the anniversary week (May 20-27), and the winner will be announced on Monday, May 29. On May 23, the actual anniversary, there will be specialty beers and food specials, but you don’t want to miss this weekend’s back alley party.
SALT Bar Crawl: North vs. South
When: Saturday, May 20, 5 p.m. – close
Cost: Free
Where: Village Bottle Shop and Tasting Room, Bevy, and Moku Kitchen, SALT at Our Kakaako
When REAL’s party shuts down at 10 p.m., head over to Salt’s monthly bar crawl for a nightcap. This month’s theme will playfully position two iconic California breweries against each other as Sierra Nevada (Chico, Northern California) and Ballast Point (San Diego, Southern California) take over taps at Village Bottle Shop and Tasting Room, Moku Kitchen, and Bevy Bar. Six beers were brought in solely for this event, including the Hoptimum Triple IPA and Madeira Barrel Aged Belgian Quad from Sierra Nevada and the Bourbon Barrel Aged Sea Monster Imperial Stout and Tart Peach Kolsch from Ballast Point. At the end of the night, a friendly vote will be taken to see which brewery is best received.
Two Farmtables + a Microphone
When: May 21, 5:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Cost: $115.00 for five-course dinner and five drink tickets exchangeable for five 5oz craft beers
Where: Kolea Farm, 59-075 Pupukea Road, Haleiwa. Note: Address is not on Google Maps. Go up Pupukea Road behind Foodland and it’s the first gate on the right after Alapio Road.
The night kicks off with a farm tour and ocean-view sunset on Kolea Farm, followed by a five-course dinner by Lan Thai and local beer pairing with brews from Lanikai Brewing, Maui Brewing, Stewbum & Stonewall, and Waikiki Brewing. Guest speaker and permaculture expert Michael Kramer (Managing Partner of Natural Investments) will discuss how close-to-home investments can help us prepare for the future. Drinking local beer is a great start.