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OktoberForest: Taste Virginia

A collage of illustrations highlighting ingredients from Virginia's four priority landscapes of the Allegheny Highlands, VVCR Barrier Islands, Clinch Valley and Southern Pinelands.
OktoberForest Fest Celebrating the lands and waters on which all life—and beer—depends.
Event Overview

Get ready for a tasty trip across Virginia—one sip at a time. This year’s OktoberForest Fest brings together six wild, one‑of‑a‑kind brews crafted with ingredients harvested from The Nature Conservancy’s preserves and brewed by some of Virginia’s most creative local partners.

Each beer tells the story of a different Virginia landscape. Come meet them:

🍺 Allegheny Highlands Farmhouse Ale—brewed with sassafras leaves by Fine Creek Brewing

🍺 Piney Grove IPA—longleaf pine needles meet hops at Up Weller Co.

🍺 Barrier Islands Gose—a bright, coastal gose brewed with eelgrass by Väsen Brewing

🍺 Clinch Valley Amber Lager—red spruce tips bring the mountains to your glass

New this year

🍺 Chesapeake Bay Lager—infused with saltmarsh mallow from Virginia’s coastal wilderness, brewed by Big Ugly Brewing

🍺 Stream & Wetland Restoration Lager—bayberry + spicebush harvested from restored wetlands, brewed by Sojourn Fermentory

What to Expect

🎶 Live music

🦪 Fresh oysters

🍻 Guest breweries

🌿 Lots of conservation fun, stories and hands‑on learning

Come celebrate the lands and waters that make great beer possible.

From the Land to Your Glass

These six unique brews couldn't be possible without the conservation of the lands and waters that make Virginia beautiful and tasty.

Pink flower called saltmarsh mallow.
A man holds open a large brown sack. A second man places a long pine branch into the bag. The second man's face is obscured by the branch's long pine needles.
Aerial drone view of a large forested mountain ridge. A utility terrain vehicle drives along a curving, unpaved mountain track heading toward the summit.
A wide sandy beach extends into the calm water of a shallow coastal bay.
A man stands on the deck of a small boat holding a large clump of eelgrass.
Two men sit on the stern of a small Carolina skiff pulled up on a beach. One seated man clinks cans in a cheers with a man standing on the beach.
View from the interior of a small utility terrain vehicle of the driver behind the wheel wearing a protective helmet.
A woman holds an orange chanterelle mushroom to her nose, inhaling its fruity aroma.
Aerial drone view looking down on a small boat navigating through the main branch of a coastal channel. Smaller channels bend and curve through the wetlands.
Two people stand next to a large open tank, adding green leaves to the tank from a large white bucket.
Pink flower called saltmarsh mallow.

Saltmarsh Mallow: TNC VA is using saltmarsh mallow to brew a unique Chesapeake Bay lager for OktoberForest. © Jody Shugart

A man holds open a large brown sack. A second man places a long pine branch into the bag. The second man's face is obscured by the branch's long pine needles.

Harvesting Ingredients: “I was blown away by the passion of the team behind the longleaf restoration. I immediately felt a camaraderie." Josh Chapman with Piney Grove Preserve Manager Bobby Clontz. © Kyle LaFerriere Photography

Aerial drone view of a large forested mountain ridge. A utility terrain vehicle drives along a curving, unpaved mountain track heading toward the summit.

Beartown Mountain: Beartown, one of the peaks that make up the long ridgeline of Clinch Mountain, a dominant landscape feature in far-southwest Virginia. © Kyle LaFerriere Photography

A wide sandy beach extends into the calm water of a shallow coastal bay.

A Coastal Wilderness: VVCR's 14 undeveloped barrier islands provide critical wildlife habitat and help to protect Eastern Shore communities from storm surges and sea level rise. © Kyle LaFerriere Photography

A man stands on the deck of a small boat holding a large clump of eelgrass.

Gathering Ingredients: “We'll wait until we're done boiling and the wort starts cooling down, then we'll add the eelgrass and let it steep.” © Kyle LaFerriere Photography

Two men sit on the stern of a small Carolina skiff pulled up on a beach. One seated man clinks cans in a cheers with a man standing on the beach.

Successful Collection: Taking a pause to celebrate a successful day of eelgrass collection. © Kyle LaFerriere Photography

View from the interior of a small utility terrain vehicle of the driver behind the wheel wearing a protective helmet.

A Day at the Office: Clinch Valley Program Community Outreach Manager Nick Proctor takes the wheel of a UTV to begin the climb to the peak of Beartown Mountain. © Kyle LaFerriere Photography

A woman holds an orange chanterelle mushroom to her nose, inhaling its fruity aroma.

A Distinctive Aroma: TNC's Laurel Schablein savors the aroma of a freshly cut chanterelle mushroom, robust and earthy with a subtle fruit character. © Kyle LaFerriere Photography

Aerial drone view looking down on a small boat navigating through the main branch of a coastal channel. Smaller channels bend and curve through the wetlands.

Virginia Coast Reserve: Healthy natural communities can make a difference in places like VA's Eastern Shore, vulnerable to rising seas and more frequent and intense storms due to climate change. © Kyle LaFerriere Photography

Two people stand next to a large open tank, adding green leaves to the tank from a large white bucket.

Adding the Leaves: TNC's Zoe McGee and Head Brewer Brian Mandeville empty a bucket of defrosted sassafras leaves into the steeping tank at Fine Creek Brewing. © Daniel White / TNC