Quaffing for a cause

One of the area’s oldest beer tasting events returns for another round on Saturday, bigger than before.

OctoBrewFest , a fundraiser for the Greater Northwest Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, starts at 5:30 p.m. at the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center .

Records aren’t clear about exactly how long the event has been going on, said Kate Scotece, the local chapter’s development director. “Officially, we’re saying it’s the 19th year, but we actually think the true number is around 25,” she said.

One thing is clear: The beer lineup is the largest ever, with 34 participating breweries, including:

Local: Big Barn, Budge Brothers, English Setter, Iron Goat, Kootenai River, Mad Bomber, Orlison, No-Li, Perry Street, Ramblin’ Road, River City, Waddell’s.

Northwest: Big Sky, Bitter Root, Georgetown, Elysian, Heathen, Hopworks, Ice Harbor, Icicle, Pyramid, Seven Brides, Snoqualmie, Sockeye, Two Beers, Widmer.

Other: Alaskan, New Belgium, Left Coast, Lost Coast, Lucky Buddha, Mad River, Sam Adams, Stone.

As always, along with the beers, there will be a silent auction featuring some 300 items ranging from wine tasting parties to plays and performances to golf packages, and a live auction including 20 big-ticket attractions such as Spokane Chiefs hockey and Gonzaga University basketball tickets, and trips to Seattle.

Wine, cider and specialty sodas also will be available, as well as food from David’s Pizza and Azar’s.

Tickets are $15 in advance, through the MS society (509-742-5173), Yoke’s Fresh Markets and TicketsWest outlets, or $20 at the door. That includes four sample tokens and a commemorative mug (additional tokens are $1 each). All attendees must be 21 or older.