The Brewbies Festival Shows Love to ... Well, Boobies

Hakuna Ma TaTas, Pretty in Pink, and Off With Her ‘Ed are only a few of the many different types of beer served at the second annual Brewbies event on Saturday.

Each February, Carlsbad’s Pizza Port teams up with the to put on a fundraiser to raise money for Keep a Breast’s programs, breast cancer awareness and research. The $25 online/$30 at-the-door cover gets you an , souvenir glass, raffle ticket and four six-ounce tastes of beer. All proceeds go to Keep a Breast.

Saturday’s daytime event was, like last year, a piping success. Around 700 people packed the bottle shop area of the popular pizza joint. The benefit attracted a wide variety of locals. From skateboarders to girls covered in tattoos to the older couple in the corner quietly sipping their micro brew while watching the madness ensue, made more complete by the occasional “boobie” flasher.

The community really comes together to help the event happen. Area businesses such as Black Box, Loser Machine and Señor Grubby’s donated merchandise to the silent auction and raffle. There were gift certificates, a bike, snowboard, artwork, a Coach purse and, of course, beautifully painted .

Local women Sheri Arnold and Ginger Barron made 637 “brewcake” cupcakes, iced them to look like breasts and sold them for $4 each. They made close to $1,000 and donated it all to the foundation.

Jill and Shelby of Carlsbad placed—and won—a silent bid for a skateboard for their dog.

“He’s afraid of skateboarding so we bid $100 so he can overcome his fear,” they laughed.

They’ve never had a use for a skateboard before, but it’s for a good cause, so why not! The couple tried to come last year but didn’t get tickets before it sold out, so they made sure to buy their tickets ahead of time this year because as they say, “We love boobies!”

Ben and Barb of Dallas are avid beer connoisseurs and travel the nation attending beer festivals—sometimes up to three a day. They attended Brewbies last year, and made sure their travels took them back to San Diego for this year’s party.

Coordinator Melanie Pierce, complete with pink streaks in her blonde hair, has spent the last year organizing the event. She has been a bartender at Pizza Port for seven years, and got the idea in 2008 while attending the Great American Beer Festival in Denver. She wanted to use her knowledge and contacts in a positive way, and came up with the Brewbies idea.

She, along with the Keep a Breast ladies, even played a part in crafting, and naming, this year’s pink house beer, Hakuna Ma TaTas.

“We read through hundreds of name suggestions, and as soon as we saw that one, we just thought it was hilarious. We picked the top five names and had people vote on them on Facebook,” she explained.

The event has been a lot of hard work for Pierce but also very rewarding to know she has contributed so much to such a good cause. Last year, Brewbies raised more than $14,000. The numbers for this year aren’t in yet as of press time, but Pierce believes they probably surpassed that number with the positive turnout.

“We had more beer and more sponsors this time around. Companies were contacting me this year because they wanted to be part of it,” she said.

Gina Marsaglia, owner of Pizza Port, told Pierce that after last year's event she wrote one of the most rewarding checks she’s ever written, to the Keep a Breast Foundation.

With 36 local beers on the menu, from  Coronado Brewing Company to Stone, patrons did not go thirsty. The alcohol content ranged from a low 4.0 percent German-style cherry gose called Tiny Bubbles by the Hollister Brewing Company, to a very popular, hot pink, 11 percent Belgian-style strong called Motorboat from the San Clemente Pizza Port.

Brewbies is getting bigger and better each year, with thanks to the hard-working Pierce, whom the day after took a break from beer, sipping a Bloody Mary at the Grand Avenue Bar & Grill, relaxing, until tomorrow, when she’ll start planning again for next year.