About us
Rhode Island fermentation enthusiasts unite! RIFT is a monthly gathering of people who love making beer, mead, cider, and other fermented beverages. All ages (over 21!) and experience levels are welcome. We meet in a different location every third Thursday of the month, and occasionally have special events for brewery tours, big brews, grain buys, and cider pressings.
Upcoming events
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Mash Madness 2026
55 Gondola Ave, Jamestown, RI, USMash Madness is back, baby!
It's time again for RIFT's bienniel beer tournament. We put Rhode Island beers in a head-to-head tasting to see which one will emerge as the winner.
This event works best when we have lots of participation. We need people to come and taste beer, and we also need people to gather beers from breweries across the state. So, whether you want to come and sample beers, or if you want to bring the samples, all are welcome!
This event requires planning and organization. We have very smart people who created sign-up and tracking forms on Google Docs. The main form (linked here) has all the details. Also, below is a summary to give you a sense of how the event works.
Overview:
The overall goal is to bring one beer from each of 32 Rhode Island breweries. This will fill out the bracket. There are four categories: Light Ale, Dark Ale, Lager, and Speciality Beers (sours, fruit beers, smoked beers, etc.). We don't want to have just a whole bunch of IPAs, which is why we track the beer submissions.The steps below are for people who up would like to bring beer samples. This information (and more) is also found on the main form. Also, you can bring samples from more than one brewery. Just be sure to track each sample separately.
Steps:
1. Reserve a Brewery: Pick a brewery from the pulldown list. If you don't see a brewery there, it means it's already been claimed. So, claim your brewery fast!2. Plan: Before you head to the brewery, check the style count to which styles have already been logged. This will give you a sense of what to sample at the brewery. Remember, we don't want 32 IPAs!
3. Visit your brewery: Relax and sample some beers.
4. Purchase: Buy 48-68 ounces of one beer (cans, bottles, or growlers).
5. Log Your Beers: Let RIFT know which beer you bought via the tracking form. This will help other people know which style to consider when they visit other breweries.
6. Celebrate: Bring your beer to the meeting and have a great time!
Remember, all of this information is on the main form:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeJE56s2aJzraT67eL3l4A3vp3x6Jx4jQezl7Vi1DRjslUeBw/viewform4 attendees
Past events
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