Overall Rating
2.9
By Barry
It was very fun...but
Cross Insurance Arena - Portland
First of all, we had a blast! However, we were hoping for more breweries. We pre-purchased our tickets months in advance thinking there would be far more than the 40ish breweries. The place was packed, obviously there was a lot of excitement from the public. It's a shame the breweries didn't reciprocate.
By DD from OOB
LAST YEAR WAS SO MUCH BETTER
Cross Insurance Arena - Portland
I tried to purchased VIP tickets but only got GA. I am glad because my friends who purchased VIP, SAID LAST YEAR WAS SO MUCH BETTER. There was not enough signage for the products. You had to get in line and then get to the front of the line to find out what your getting. Signage above the backdrop behind the product would SO MUCH BETTER. Having staffing from the makers of the product at EVERY STOP WOULD BE SO MUCH BETTER.
By SarahB
just okay this year
Cross Insurance Arena - Portland
We have been attending Portland on Tap for 5 years now (minus the missing Covid year) and have always been amazed at how many beer vendors there are. This year, there were many empty tables, and the event floor was shortened so there were even less than it first looked. It took us less than 2 hours to go around to all of the vendors we wanted to, and we were left underwhelmed. Ticket prices were also more expensive than ever before. We will definitely rethink attending next year. If asked today I would say no we will not be back. Super disappointed as we look forward to this event every year.
By Mike
It's the Bud Light of beerfests
Cross Insurance Arena - Portland
It's not a great event. We go every year because it's February and there isn't much else to do. They oversell the GA session so it gets so packed that it becomes annoying. If you don't do VIP, you're doing yourself disservice. That one hour at the beginning is the only good part about it. Usually by 1:45 we leave and go somewhere else. It's just way too many people. Other issues- 1) the food is just concession stand food. The City of Portland is a dining hub. Tons of great restaurants. But that is never incorporated into the event. 2) The overall setup sucks. The beer booths are set up in a way the creates a bottle neck, so it's difficult to move around. If they set up the booths around the rim of the floor and moved the more generic ones out into the concourse areas, it would be less cramped and would allow for more of a walkable experience. 3) Many of the booths are run by volunteers. To be fair, there were more brewery reps present this year than in previous years. But it is terribly annoying when you go to a booth and ask questions about the beer and they don't know anything about it. 4) They even wrecked the sample cups this year. The "commemorative sample glass"had a big black and white advertisement sticker slapped over the PoT logo. The stickers wouldn't peel off, so we had to throw them all out. The cup isn't much of a souvenir to begin with, but the sticker wrecked whatever value it had as a reusable item. All for a cheap money grab. This event could be decent if someone who actually likes craft beer and brewfests took the reigns of it. It's shoddy at best, because they know people will come anyway, so they phone it in.
By Beer Mom
So Much Fun!!
Cross Insurance Arena - Portland
This was my first time attending and it will surely not be the last. We are planning to make this a yearly occasion! There were WAY more vendors there than I thought there would be and we ended up getting to taste some new favorites in our rotation. If you haven't been, I highly recommend. I wish we could have purchased growlers or cans directly from the event, but it's now a good excuse for road trips this summer.
By Trillya
Good selection
Cross Insurance Arena - Portland
Good selection of brews. Easy to get to. Would be 5 stars but the booths were placed too close together so felt more overcrowded than it really was.
By B rabbit
Not as good as previous years
Cross Insurance Arena - Portland
Maine has the most breweries per capita and we’ve had less booths 2 years in a row. And less non brewery vendors. And it’s more expensive. It’s making it almost not worth it
By 207delight
Fun event
Cross Insurance Arena - Portland
This was a great event with lots of beer, cider and seltzers to choose from. Fun atmosphere, well attended, fun and friendly people, band was a blast and always felt like I was having a good time. Highly recommend and would attend again.
By Brian Allen
Going down hill
Cross Insurance Arena - Portland
Event was much better in years past. This year had fewest vendors I've seen (beer vendors and other). Music was ok. Hardly any swag and poorly run.
By KBK
Fun event
Cross Insurance Arena - Portland
Crowded, but the crowd was a fun bunch. It wasn't that difficult to get to the tastings, and the band was great. My biggest complaint, truly, was with the website. While pretty, it offered nothing of substance regarding what to expect. Throwing out the "information"that you should "use your pretzel necklace"left my group wondering WTH a pretzel necklace was and if they were provided at the venue (they were not, it is apparently a snack item you make yourself and bring with you). The website was hard to navigate and I never did figure out which breweries and distilleries would be there, nor what would be offered for food options. These are minor issues. The event itself was a blast.