Okanagan Spirits Distillery at Hopscotch Festival

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

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

The last Hopscotch Festival ran from November 18th to the 24th in 2024. It’s unlikely the festival returns in 2025 or in the foreseeable future.

Other events you might also be interested in include the Vancouver’s North Shore Craft Beer Week and Vancouver Christmas Market. See our November Calendar of Events to learn about what else is happening this time of year. Continue reading to learn about the Hopscotch Festival.

This article includes the following information about the Hopscotch Festival:

Grand Tasting Hall | Other Festival Events | Tips & Advice | Other Information

Hopscotch Festival of Whisky, Beer and Spirits

The Vancouver Hopscotch Festival was an annual festival that featured around 20 whisky and other beverage-sampling events at different venues around town. The festival included the massive Grand Tasting Hall which showcased hundreds of whiskies, beers and spirits from BC and around the world.

Grand Tasting Hall

The Grand Tasting Hall was the main event during the Hopscotch Festival. The event happened from 6:00 pm to 10:30 pm, usually on the second last day of the festival. It took place at the PNE Forum at 2901 East Hastings Street.

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

About the Grand Tasting Hall

The PNE Forum used to be full of distillery representatives at the Hopscotch Festival’s Grand Tasting Hall. You could sample Scotch, Irish, Canadian, American and other whiskies. There were various types of craft and premium beers, wines and other spirits from around the world. There was also a food exhibition and live music at the event throughout the evening.

The Grand Tasting Hall event had expanded over the past couple of decades. More than 250 products were expected at the event’s last run in 2024.

Grand Tasting Hall Cost

Ticket prices for the Grand Tasting Hall ranged from about $30 to $55 plus taxes and online fees. The earlier you bought your tickets, the more you could save.

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

Many of the beverage samples cost only one or two tokens, which was 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 a couple to around nine tokens for the really fancy stuff. Food menu items ranged from around two to 10 tokens, or at least that was the case in previous years.

Grand Tasting Hall Participating Vendors

Typically the Grand Tasting Hall venue was divided into different sections. Categories that appeared regularly at the event were as follows:

BC Craft Pavilion – featuring dozens of local craft beers from a variety of British Columbia breweries. You could expect to see Bomber Brewing, Bridge Brewing, Central City Brewers, Foamers’ Folly, Granville Island Brewing, Hearthstone, Moody Ales, Parallel 49, Powell Brewery, Spinnakers Brewpub (from Victoria), Stanley Park and Yellow Dog.
Beers From Around The World – as the name suggested, this area featured premium international beers. You could expect to find brands like Pilsner Urquell from the Czech Republic, Warsteiner, Erdinger and PfungstÃ¤dter 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 featured 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 were 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 were also featured.
The Wine Garden – preferred wine to beer, whisky and other liquors? Then this was where you would find an assortment of fine reds, whites and rosÃ©s.

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 was where you could 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 didn’t always attend this event.)
Spirits Of The Globe – included 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 could find appetizers and other tasty treats by celebrity chefs and top Vancouver restaurants.
The Music Lounge – there was live music on both nights of the event. Mark Woodyard was the headline performer in 2024.

Other Hopscotch Festival Events

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

Examples of some of the Hopscotch Festivals’ various smaller events last year included the Nikka Master Class (Japanese whisky), the Tomintoul Master Class (Scottish whisky) and the Don Julio Master Class (Don Julio Tequila). All the master classes usually took place at The Refinery, located at 1115 Granville Street.

There was also the Masters of Whisky event, which typically sold out first. During this session, guests got to taste some of the best whisky in the world while also learning about local offerings.

Tips & Advice

Below were some tips and suggestions to make your Hopscotch Festival experience more enjoyable.

TIP #1: A number of events during the Hopscotch Festival sold out in advance, including the Grand Tasting Hall. Buying your tickets well in advance was encouraged to avoid disappointment.

TIP #2: It was best to go to the Grand Tasting Hall with an appetite as the event featured lots of food.

TIP #3: Attendeeds were encouraged to get in line for the food vendors early. There were usuallyu only around six of them to choose from. The most popular vendors usually sold out of menu items before the end of the night.

TIP #4: Planning ahead how to get home was advisable.

TIP #5: There were bottles of whisky and other items for sale at the Grand Tasting Hall. These were perfect gifts for the upcoming Christmas holidays. Conveniently, the event’s liquor store was located near the main exit.