Home Vancouver Events Calendar Festivals and Events in Vancouver in 2024 Vancouver Hopscotch Whisky Festival at the PNE Forum

Vancouver Hopscotch Whisky Festival at the PNE Forum

Okanagan Spirits Distillery at Hopscotch Festival

The Hopscotch Festival is a week-long series of events including the Grand Tasting Hall which features whisky, beer, spirits and food sampling in Vancouver.

This event is run by the same people who host the Vancouver Craft Beer Week event in the summer.

The Hopscotch Festival ran from November 20th to the 26th in 2023. Exact dates and details for the event in 2024 are to be confirmed.

To learn about what else is happening this time of year, see our November Calendar of Events. To learn about the Hopscotch Festival, continue reading.

 

Hopscotch Festival of Whisky, Beer & Spirits

The Vancouver Hopscotch Festival is an annual festival that features nearly 24 whisky and other beverage-sampling events at different venues around town. The festival includes the massive Grand Tasting Hall which showcases hundreds of whiskies, beers and spirits from BC and around the world.

 

Grand Tasting Hall

The Grand Tasting Hall is the main event during the Hopscotch Festival. The event happened on the Friday and Saturday of November 24th and 25th last year at the PNE Forum at 2901 East Hastings Street. The sessions ran from 6:00 pm until 10:30 pm on both days.

 


NOTE: The Grand Tasting Hall sells out every year! Book your spot well in advance! Watch for discounted tickets.


 

Hopscotch Festival at the PNE Forum
Grand Tasting Hall at the PNE Forum

 

About the Grand Tasting Hall

At the Hopscotch Festival’s Grand Tasting Hall, the PNE Forum is full of distillery representatives. They offer samples of Scotch, Irish, Canadian, American and other whiskies. There are various types of craft and premium beers, wines and other spirits from around the world. There is also a food exhibition and live music at the event throughout the evening.

The Grand Tasting Hall event has expanded over the past couple of decades. The Hall also experienced an especially large growth spurt since 2016. More than 250 products were expected at the event in 2023.

 

Grand Tasting Hall Cost

Ticket prices for the Grand Tasting Hall range between about $30 and $50 plus taxes and fees for one night, depending on when you purchase them.

At the Grand Tasting Hall event participants buy Hopscotch Tokens in increments of five and 20 at the cost of around $1 plus tax per token. The Hopscotch Tokens are then used to purchase beverage and food samples from the various participating breweries, distilleries and food vendors.

Many of the beverage samples have cost only one or two tokens in the past, which is very reasonable for this kind of event. Most beers and ciders cost about one token, although occasionally more. Wines were typically one or two tokens and spirits ranged from one to around nine tokens for the really fancy stuff. Food menu items range from around two to 10 tokens.

 

Grand Tasting Hall Participating Vendors

Typically the Grand Tasting Hall venue is divided into different sections. Categories from recent years are as follows:

  • BC Craft Pavilion – featuring dozens of local craft beers from a variety of British Columbia breweries. Expect to see Bomber Brewing, Bridge Brewing, Central City Brewers, Foamers’ Folly, Granville Island, Hearthstone, Moody Ales, Parallel 49, Powell Brewery, Spinnakers Brewpub (from Victoria), Stanley Park and Yellow Dog.
  • Beers From Around The World – as the name suggests, this area features premium international beers. Expect to find brands like Pilsner Urquell from the Czech Republic, Warsteiner, Erdinger and Pfungstädter from Germany, O’Hara’s Irish Stout, and a number of other distinguished international brews.
  • Whisky Corner – the main attraction at the event, this zone features over 100 whiskies including Single Malts, Blends, Whiskey (with an “e”), Whisky (without an “e”), Rye, Bourbon and the like from a wide range of countries including Scotland, Ireland, Canada, the US, and Japan. In the Whisky Corner, there’s usually Canada’s Crown Royal, Glendalough Whiskey from Ireland, Glenfarclas Whisky from Scotland and Jack Daniels from Tennessee. Other famous whisky brands like Auchentoshan, Johnny Walker, Jameson, Glenfiddich and Wild Turkey are also featured.
  • The Wine Garden – prefer wine to beer, whisky and other liquors? Then this is where you’ll find an assortment of fine reds, whites and rosés.

 

Okanagan Spirits Tasting at Hopscotch Festival
Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery at the Grand Tasting Hall

 

More Grand Tasting Hall Areas

  • BC Craft Spirits – BC has a thriving craft spirits industry. This section is where you’ll find some of the best including, some years, award-winning Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery (from Vernon and Kelowna), among others. (Note: Okanagan Spirits is one of BC’s best, but the distillery doesn’t always attend this event.)
  • Spirits Of The Globe – includes samples most years of el Jimador (tequila), New Amsterdam Vodka, Cobees (from Korea), Grand Marnier, Nikka Whisky (from Japan) and other liquors from around the world.
  • Restaurant Row – where you’ll find appetizers and other tasty treats by celebrity chefs and top Vancouver restaurants.
  • The Music Lounge – popular local bands play all evening on both nights.

 

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Other Hopscotch Festival Events

In addition to the Grand Tasting Hall event at the PNE Forum, various other smaller events also take place at different venues around Vancouver during the Hopscotch Festival. Most focus on a particular brand or type of whisky.

Examples of some of the Hopscotch Festivals’ various smaller events include the Bunnahabhain Master Class, Boulder Spirits Master Class and the Spey Master Class.

There’s also the Masters of Whisky event, which typically sells out first. During the session, guests get to taste some of the best whisky in the world while also learning about local offerings.

 

Hopscotch Festival Gin and Vodka

 

Tips & Advice

Below are some tips and suggestions to help you make the most of your Hopscotch Festival experience.

TIP #1: A number of events during the Hopscotch Festival sell out in advance, including the Grand Tasting Hall. Buy your tickets well in advance to avoid disappointment!

TIP #2: Go to the Grand Tasting Hall with an appetite as the event features lots of food. Pace yourself, though and don’t drink on an empty stomach!

TIP #3: Get in line for the food vendors early. There are only half a dozen or so to choose from. The most popular vendors usually sell out of menu items before the end of the night.

TIP #4: Don’t forget to plan ahead how to get home.

TIP #5: There are bottles of whisky and other items for sale at the Grand Tasting Hall. If planning to do some Christmas shopping, consider making your purchases just before you leave. This way, you won’t risk putting your packages down somewhere and heading home without them. Conveniently, the event’s liquor store is located near the main exit.

TIP #6: Watch out for discounted tickets. Pretty much right up until the event in 2019 the organizers were offering four packs of tickets for just over $100 (or $120 depending on the date). This was a great deal considering that full price for one full-priced ticket to the Grand Tasting Hall event was between about $42 and $46. That being said, the offer was only available through the festival’s “sponsored” Instagram and Facebook ads and not on any of its regular online channels or website.

 

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Other Information

For further details about the Grand Tasting Hall and other related whisky events in November, see the Hopscotch Festival website.

For a list of other beer, wine and liquor venues and special events, check out the following:

For a list of other festivals and events this time of year, check out the following: