Can you believe it’s already February? 2026 is off to a wild start; we wish we could slow down, or reverse, time given what’s unfolding in front of us daily. Nevertheless, we press on, ever hopeful that tomorrow brings the future we are working towards.

As Mike Stein recently said at our live show at Bluejacket, it’s a good thing that we, DC, had zero brewery closures in 2025. This good news comes at a much needed time when nationally it was the second year in a row of more brewery closures than openings. Maryland has already lost Idiom (open for 2 more weeks) and The Brewer’s Art in 2026. It’s rough out there. With that in mind, our most recent collaboration beer, Common People, is on draft and available in cans to go at Bluejacket. It’s the first beer to feature Brandy’s wonderful photography skills on the can. So get to Bluejacket and grab a four pack (or a case!) and support your local small business that feature local art on their label. Leave the AI behind and choose a beer with a real photo taken by a real human, please.

February is also Black History Month. We recently saw Jasmine and Andrew Dill of Liquid Intrusion at our live podcast and Common People beer release party at Bluejacket. Jasmine is recovering well, but the duo continues to deal with hospital bills. The Genetically Unapologetic Shirt Fundraiser for Jasmine is still going, so grab a shirt and support! Come see Jasmine and Drew yourself at metrobar for the 5th Annual Black Brewers Event on February 22nd, and support Black-owned breweries all month, and all year, long.

What beer news have you heard? Check out some of our upcoming events and some other noteworthy brew events this month. 👇

 DC Beer Events Spotlight

Wednesday, Feb 11th. 6:30-9pm - Capital Trivia x DC Beer @ Other Half Brewing, Ivy City - Come party with Jordan, listen to good music, enjoy some hazies, and play trivia. It’s seriously fun, but not too serious.

Friday, February 20th, 6-9pm - Our February beer share is open to the public! Come on down to Right Proper Brookland on Friday, Feb. 20th. We will be celebrating the Brookland brewery, which turned 10 in November. The share runs 6-9pm and per Right Proper, “This location doesn’t have a kitchen as we do in Shaw. We often have snacks available and partner with food trucks on the weekends. You are also welcome to bring your own food.” Please RSVP.

Sunday, February 22th, starting at 3pm - Celebrate Black History Month at our 5th annual tasting featuring Black brewers from the DMV!
Join metrobar and the teams at Black Brew Movement and DC Beer for our 5th annual celebration of beers from Black brewers of the DMV! Your tickets gets you access to the afternoon tasting, a commemorative Black Brew Movement tasting glass, pours of each of the dozen beers, and discussion with the brewers, Black Brew Movement, and DC Beer teams. The event features two available time slots (3pm and 4:30pm), and will take place at metrobar inside their 125-seat heated railcar bar & lounge.

The tasting includes golden ales, saisons, IPAs, lagers, a white stout (!) and more, with a beer for everyone's taste! Each ticket comes with a commemorative Black Brew Movement tasting glass (5oz), with those proceeds and a percentage of event sales going to support Black Brew Movement and DC Beer.

Because it is going to be a busy month, we have no WBCC event for February, though, we would love to see you at the metrobar event to show support for Jasmine and the rest of the WBCC women who will be there (more below).

Side note: Congrats to our WBCC Baltimore Branch Lead Amber on her February nuptials. Since all of the WBCC leads will be gone seemingly most of February, we have decided to skip our Feb outing. Our first month of not having a gathering ;(. But with as awesome and close as many of us have become, please feel free to get together at a brewery while we’re away. We’ll be back in action for March, so get ready for some womxn’s panels and some women’s month shenanigans!  If you would like to join the DC Beer crew and members for our February beer share at Right Proper and/or our annual Black Brewer’s Event with metrobar (a) you’re always welcome to join our beer shares and (b) come on thru!

BEER OF THE MONTH: Ocelot Polvo Pils

Articles:

What are we reading? Mike and Jake have some Virginia brew news, including a February brewery opening in Herndon. Read on!

Speaking of Right Proper, they’ve repackaged Senate pale lager for Union Market’s delicious newcomer, Chai Pani. Jake has the details and a few suggested pairings.

Bonus: Stein wrote up Common People Kentucky Common for Beer & Brewing Magazine! If you’re a subscriber to B&B, you get the recipe as well.

Also, we’re still digesting Phil Runco’s highly anticipated, yearly Beer in Review, 2025 edition!

Staff Picks: Local Events & Beer Spotlight

Thursday, February 5th: Join Mallard for a special 4-course tasting menu curated by Chef Johnson paired with rare beers from the ChurchKey & Mallard collection. This intimate event will feature five rare beer selections, with commentary and insight provided by Greg Engert, NRG Beverage Director. Greg will guide guests through each pour, sharing tasting notes, history, and stories from the breweries. Tickets are $150 per guest, which includes gratuity. Seating is limited and will be arranged at 1 communal table in the Mallard private dining room. Neighborhood Restaurant Group has more goodies planned, including lambics at The Sovereign for Valentine’s Day.

Saturday, February 7th: Port City in celebrating 15 incredible years of “Beer Grown Here”, and you’re invited to the party! An all-day anniversary bash packed with live music, exclusive beer releases, food specials, a photo booth, and unbeatable vibes. —brand-new beers, the triumphant return of our very first recipe, Essential Pale Ale, and maybe even a surprise or two that our brewers have been working on. Whether you’re a longtime fan or visiting for the first time, there’s something special waiting for you at the bar.

Feburary 12-16 : Max’s Taphouse Belgian Beer Fest - The biggest Belgian beer festival in the United States – and the largest selection outside of Belgium itself – is coming back. Now it’s up to 4 days, with a special Maryland-themed night on Thursday the 12th, celebrating Belgian-style beers from the Free State. 100+ Belgian beers on draft all weekend long. Zero regrets. (Ok, maybe a few, but that’s up to you.)

Saturday February 21, 12pm: Starkbierzeit - Join Silver Branch as they celebrate Starkbierzeit, a traditional Bavarian strong beer season dedicated to bold, high-ABV beers, hearty food, and good company.

Saturday, February 28th: Denizens’ Winter Cask Classic - The 10 Year Anniversary of the Winter Cask Classic, from 1-5 pm at Denizens Brewing Co.! Enjoy delicious cask beer from some of your favorite local MD, DC, and VA breweries (and meet and greet with tons of local brewers). $40 gets you in the door, plus a souvenir glass, and unlimited cask beer. We recommend buying tickets in advance. Food and other drinks will be available for purchase.

Save the Date: Tuesday, March 21st: Third Hill’s Third Annual HomeBrew Competition. All submissions due by close of business, Mar. 7, 2026. Want more details? Jordan wrote an article on the 2025 winner!

Podcasts: 

Tune in to the The DC Beer Show for our latest episodes with Matt Furda of Mayan Monkey, and Jessica Sidman of Washingtonian Magazine. Stay tuned for upcoming guests, including Allagash’s Rob Tod, and more. Thank you to all who trekked through the icy sheets and mountains of snow for our live show! We had a great time and we couldn’t have done it without you. Grab cans of our Common People Kentucky Common style collaboration beer with Bluejacket (the labels were delayed because of the terrible winter storm, so the cans weren’t available that night.

THANK YOU TO OUR AMAZING DC BEER MEMBERS!

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Cheers, The DC Beer Team