Wild Brew is one of my favorite fundraising events benefitting the George Miksch Sutton Avian Research Center, a nonprofit in Bartlesville focused bird conservation. I had no idea this organization existed until I attended Wild Brew. My husband loves beer so the first time we attended it was solely to enjoy the food and drink. We had no idea how educational it would be.
The Sutton Center is best known for its work restoring bald eagles. They use to be on the endangered list but conservation efforts led to their population recovery and they were removed from it. Following the success with eagles, they are now working to save the Attwater's prairie-chicken and the masked bobwhite quail, two of North America's most endangered birds.
The event has been held for 27 years and they improve every single year. It's usually at the Convention Center downtown. This year it was on a Saturday in August. They had craft beer from more than 40 breweries, delicious bites from Tulsa restaurants, live music, local art, and even bird encounters. VIP ticket holders get to arrive an hour early, a tasting glass, and access to a lounge area. Four hours for an event sounds like a long time, but you really have to pace yourself in order to try as many brews and bites as possible in an enjoyable manner. Time really does fly by!
Each attendee gets tickets to vote for their favorite drinks and bites. My husband loves discovering new beers and I love tagging along for the good food. Among our favorite bites this year were Sisserou's jerk chicken and Waldo's chicken bites and cheddar biscuit (I was surprised by this too!). We really enjoyed beers from Anthem Brewing, Alva Beer Co., and Skydance. My favorite discovery was kombucha from Firefly Brew. read more