Being who I am and doing what I do for a living, I taste a lot of different beers over the course of a year. Multiply that by the number of years I’ve been doing what I do, and it is safe to say I have officially tasted at least one metric fuckton of beer in my life. Only a handful of all those beers have literally made the hair on my arms stand up. One of those beers was a stout from Fort George Brewing. It was several years ago, and the beer was one of that year’s Matryoshka variants.
Fort George Brewery is known for many things, and many folks recognize it for its Vortex IPA and its annual 3-Way IPA series of collaboration beers, but it’s not just about IPA. Few breweries are as fiercely devoted to stout. The brewery dedicates the entire month of February to stouts. The Festival of the Dark Arts is legendary. This year, Fort George Brewery celebrates its 17th Stout Month with events at and around the brewery in Astoria, OR. The brewery also takes the show on the road, bringing Stout Month to locations across the Northwest (see the list below or check out the website).
Below, I share the announcement that includes the complete list of what is planned.
Fort George Celebrates 17 Years of Stout Month
On February 1st, Fort George will ring in their 17th Stout Month. Every year, as February winds its cold, wet tendrils around the North Coast of Oregon, bringing with it the usual overcast skies and habits of hibernation among its residents, Fort George fights back with as many different Stouts as they can brew. 28 straight days of Stout Beer will hit the Fort George Pub beginning on February 1st – Stouts of every shape, size, flavor, and ABV.
For months, the brewers at the Fort have been hard at work dreaming, designing, brewing and packaging stout after stout and they are ready at last to meet nature’s darkness with the darkness of Stout. The Stouts are as diverse as they are plentiful, from old favorites like 1,000 Years of Silence, a spiced Mexican chocolate Stout with Guajillo, Puya, Ancho and Arbol Chilis to brand new, small-batch experiments like Black Lake, a Salted Licorice Chocolate Stout, from a Nutty Buddy Wafer Stout to a clean and simple English-style Stout, from a Nitro Underberg Stout to Tropical Tomb, a barrel aged Imperial Stout collaboration with Ruse Brewing conditioned on freeze dried pineapple and toasted coconut – there’s a stout for every palate.
Stout Month festivities culminate on Saturday, February 14th, at the Festival of Dark Arts with more than 90 unique Stouts on tap, over two dozen live music acts on 3 stages across the festival grounds led by The Sword, Steel Beans, Built to Spill, Blitzen Trapper, and Damien Jurado. Festival attendees will sip and savor multitudinous stouts alongside ice sculpting, tarot readings, live tattooing, taxidermy, magic, art and fire dancing. On the day of the festival, the entire Fort George block is closed to the public. This year’s festival is sold out. You can subscribe to Greetings from Astoria (Fort George’s Newsletter) and be the first to know about future events and festivals here (LINK) or on Substack here (LINK).
At the Aftermath on Sunday, 2/15 the Fort George opens back up for regular service at 11am and the release of 2026’s Matryoshka Variants, as well as the release of special barrel aged stout collaborations with Ruse Brewing and Holy Mountain.
Stout will continue to flow from the taps at the Fort through the end of Stout Month. 2026 Stout Month Art by the legendary Skinner.
The Lovell Arcade returns to Fort George:
From January 30th through March 3rd the Lovell Arcade is open during Taproom Hours. Food specials, drink specials, popcorn and endless stouts will be available through the Showroom Window. Free play classic arcade games and pinball machines to your heart’s delight.
Also in February at Fort George:
Free Community Talks in the Showroom every Thursday Night at 7PM. Live Music Every Sunday Night in the Lovell Taproom from 6-8PM. More information on bands and presenters is available at FortGeorgeBrewery.com/events.
If you’re interested in banishing the gloominess of February and reading more about the history of Stout Month and Festival of Dark Arts, there’s more information here (LINK). You’ll find more information about past events on their blog. (2025, 2023, 2020)
STOUT RELEASES
- Big Debbie – Imperial Nutty Buddy Wafer Stout – 9.9%. DRAFT ONLY
- Horchata This Way – Stout with Cinnamon & Vanilla – 8%. DRAFT ONLY
- Black Lake – Salted Licorice & Chocolate Stout – 9.9%. DRAFT ONLY
- Chocolate Cottage – Stout – 5.2%. DRAFT ONLY
- Pudding Caravan – Dirt Cake Stout – 9.5%. DRAFT ONLY
- Sisterhood of the Traveling Stouts – Barrel-aged Imperial Stout inspired by the Pirouette cookie – 14.3%. DRAFT ONLY
- Sparkwood & 21 – Stout with Coffee & Cherries – 7.5%. DRAFT ONLY
- Over/Underberg – Nitro Stout with Underberg-inspired Botanicals – 6%. DRAFT ONLY
- Salted Caramel Cavatica – collaboration with Jacobsen Salt Co – 8.8%. 16oz Can & Draft
- 1,000 Years of Silence – Mexican Chocolate Stout – 10%. 16oz Can & Draft
- Tropical Tomb – Barrel-aged Imperial Stout collab w/ Ruse Brewing. Coconut, Pineapple, Lime Leaf & Thai Chili – 14.7%. 12oz Can & Draft
- Save My Soul – Barrel-aged Imperial Stout collab w/Holy Mountain Brewing – 14.4%. 12oz Can & Draft
- Bananaza – Barrel-aged Imperial Stout with Thai banana, Cacao & Coconut – 13.6%. 500ML Bottle & Draft
- Matryoshka Premium 2026 – Barrel-aged Imperial Stout – 13.7%. 500ML Bottle & Draft
- Matryoshka Barrel Select 2026 – Barrel-aged Imperial Stout – 15.1%. 500ML Bottle & Draft
- Matryoshka Vanilla – Barrel-aged Imperial Stout – 13.6%. 500ML Bottle & Draft
- Matryoshka Cookies & Cream – Barrel aged Imperial Stout – 13.6%. 500ML Bottle & Draft
- Matryoshka Peanut Butter Cup – Barrel-aged Imperial Stout – 13.6%. 500ML Bottle & Draft
- Matryoshka Cookies & Cream x Peanut Butter Cup – Barrel-aged Imperial Stout – 13.6%. 500ML Bottle & Draft
Important Dates
Throughout the month. Look for additional cellared Stout Month favorites on draft from past years throughout the month
1/30 through 3/1 – The Lovell Arcade. Free Play Classic Arcade Games and Pinball Machines all month long during Taproom Hours. Food and drink specials, popcorn and stouts available on tap through the Showroom window
2/1 – Stout Month Begins
- Salted Caramel Cavatica in 16oz cans & on draft
- Bananaza in 500ML bottles & on draft
- 7 All New Small Batch Stouts on draft only
2/7 – 1000 Years of Silence in 16oz cans & on draft
- Pudding Caravan Dirt Cake Stout on draft only
2/14 – Festival of Dark Arts. Darkness descends on Fort George for the world’s best and biggest Stout Festival. All areas of the Fort are closed to the Public. The Festival is SOLD OUT
2/15 – The Aftermath. Matryoshka bottle release, Stout Month can and bottle collaborations with Ruse Brewing and Holy Mountain release. Open to the Public.
- Matryoshka Variants in 500ML bottles & on draft
- Save My Soul in 12oz cans & on draft
- Tropical Tomb in 12oz cans & on draft
2/28 – The Last Day of Stout Month
OFFSITE STOUT MONTH EVENTS
- 2/4 – Stout Month Bingo at ON TAP, Bend, OR
- 2/4 – Stout Month Launchin’ Lunch at LOYAL LEGION, Portland,OR
- 2/5 – Stout Month Kick-Off at BEER STEIN, Eugene, OR
- 2/5 – Stout Month Vancouver at FINAL DRAFT, Vancouver, WA
- 2/7 – Dark Satellite at RAVENNA BREWING, Seattle, WA
- 2/11 – Stout Month at ROSCOE’S, Portland, OR
- 2/19 – Stout Month at IMBIBE, Maple Valley, WA
- 2/20 – Stout Month Smash at A BEER CLUB, Eugene, OR
- 2/21 – Sabbath, Stouts & Slayer at ARCH BRIDGE TAPHOUSE, Oregon City, OR*More events to come. Check in here (LINK) or check social media for details.
Visit our events page and calendar to learn about all sorts of other upcoming beer events. To submit an event for inclusion on our events calendar, use our event submission form. Got more details to share, reach out to us.
