Queen of Craft is taking over most of the 10C Shared Space building on the first day in December for an all-new daytime event called the Holiday Season Beer-zaar.
The event will mix beer-making sessions with a beer-themed holiday market and activities like beer yoga, said Karen Boscariol, events coordinator for Wellington Brewery and the creator and organizer of Queen of Craft.
The holiday market and tasting bar will be set up on 10C’s fourth floor. Sixteen vendors will be selling hand-made goods, artisan food products and unique one-of-a-kind items.
Educational sessions are being scheduled for the second floor library area of 10C. Attendees will learn about the brewing process from Queen of Crafts’ winners and participants over the years.
Queen of Craft sessions are usually held in the spring, but Boscariol said the group wanted to hold an event in its off-season.
“We wanted to keep the momentum going and also create an event that would hype up the March sessions,” she said.
Beer-zaar will also feature the first opportunity to sample this year’s Queen of Craft brew. Boscariol said the name and description of that beer will be announced in the near future.
“That will be the first time people will be able to test the beer they have produced,” she said.
During the event, a third-floor activity room will feature workshops, including a beer yoga session led by Boscariol herself.
“We do an hour of yoga and then after do a sample of three different kinds of beer — we talk about what we smell, what we taste and really get into the tasting component of drinking beer,” said Boscariol.
Other workshops include beer-themed Christmas ornament crafting with Hannah Senitt or making holiday-themed beer cocktails with the women from the Wooly pub.
The event will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Dec. 1. Price of admission is $5 at the door, not including access to the educational sessions and workshops.
Entry to the market is included with educational sessions and workshops, which cost $15 each and must be paid for in advance.
An all-in pass, which includes access to all library sessions and the market, costs $35 in advance.
Proceeds from the event will go to Guelph-Wellington Women In Crisis.
“We have been donating to Women in Crisis for almost six years now. It feels like, with everything going on in the world right now — in the media and politically — it feels especially timely,” said Boscariol.
Queen of Craft is also asking collecting items at the door that will be donated to Women in Crisis. A list of the items needed is on the Eventbrite page for the Beer-zaar. Items requested include bus tickets, gas cards, grocery gift cards and diapers, among others.
Although Queen of Craft is aimed at women, Boscariol notes that everyone age 19 and over is welcome.
“We never try to use the language of it being exclusive to women, because we are definitely open to anyone who wants to come. We do remind any men who sign up for tickets that they are going to be in a room full of women — if that’s good for you, then we’re happy to have you there,” said Boscariol.
