What's Up: Ballpark Brewfest, Timber Timbre tribute, Ai-Kon, Salsa Sundays, Neepawa ArtFest

Ballpark BrewfestBlue Cross Park, 1 Portage Ave. E.Saturday, 2-5 p.m.Tickets $70-$90The Winnipeg Goldeyes are loading up the bases this weekend as the bulk of Manitoba’s craft breweries descend upon Blue Cross Park as part of the third Ballpark Brewfest.

The Goldeyes organization has long been friends of local brewers — in 2022 the club introduced the Craft Beer Corner with a rotating selection of local beers on tap for thirsty baseball fans. Later that year, Goldeyes general manager Andrew Collier pitched the idea of a craft beer festival at the ballpark to brewers and was met with widespread enthusiasm — and Ballpark Brewfest was born.

The inaugural Ballpark Brewfest in 2022 featured around 18 craft brewers taking part; the following year two dozen brewers were pouring lagers, ales, sours and all manner ofIPAs.

Saturday’s Ballpark Brewfest marks its return after a two-year absence, and will see over 20 breweries taking part in the afternoon tasting (which takes place rain or shine — breweries are set up under the roof of the concourse). Participating breweries include Barn Hammer, Dastardly Villain, Trans Canada, Devil May Care and Good Neighbour — in addition to core pours, many breweries will be bringing small-batch/exclusive brews.

How many mosquitos are buzzing around Winnipeg? Check our interactive map.

Heading outdoors? Need repellent? Find out with our interactive map showing the number mosquitoes caught in traps around the city.

Manitoba documentary focuses lens on environmental defenders, beauty of prairies

Everything We Need Is Here is the latest sumptuously shot Manitoba film rooted in the Prairie landscape.

Though totally unrelated in subject matter, the documentary recalls the 2024 Daughters of the Sun with its saturated and slow-mo sweeps across boreal forests and limestone tinted lakes.

But while Daughters has much murmured narration and arthouse flair, Everything is a plucky film, a can-do sort of doc about the land and its grassroots defenders.

Their voices resonate strong and clear across storylines that weave together the joys of foraging and local environmental protests.

Eagles galore at St. Boniface as Neill takes first men’s amateur title

Rory Neill wasn’t actually operating on auto pilot, even if it often appeared to be the case.

Over the course of 54 holes at St. Boniface Golf Club, Neill was able to execute his game plan to near perfection and his remarkable consistency allowed him to earn a two-stroke victory at the Golf Manitoba men’s amateur championship on Wednesday afternoon.

Neill, who plays out of Glendale, held the lead after 18 and 36 holes and he rarely wavered, shooting a three-under 69 during his final round to finish at five-under 211, holding off Drew Jones of Shilo (who had the low round of the day at 67) to secure his third consecutive runner-up finish.

“I was definitely nervous to start the day, but I tried really hard to detach from the scoreboard and just play another round of golf, like I had the first two days,” said Neill, whose lone bogey of the round came on the 18th hole. “It’s cool (to go wire-to-wire). It’s definitely not what I would have expected. I talked to some guys earlier in the week and we all agreed that it was definitely going to be a bunched-up leaderboard here. I knew that coming into (the final round) that there were probably 20 guys that could win

Fringe news and reviews

Jets mailbag: Breaking down the club’s off-season moves

One player seemingly can’t wait to get here. The other is looking for an exit route. Not surprisingly, these two Winnipeg Jets were featured prominently this month in our Free Press mailbag.

U of M students add malt barley roots to chocolate for nutritious treat

The brewing industry isn’t known for being health conscious but, for a team of University of Manitoba students, it was the key to creating a chocolate bar that combines nutrition and indulgence.

Winnipeg’s first pro women’s team will be in the Northern Super League

Desiree Scott made a name for herself on the pitch as The Destroyer. Now, she’s continuing her legacy as a builder.

On Tuesday, the Olympic gold medalist helped announce the Northern Super League’s expansion to Winnipeg, the seventh franchise in Canada’s rapidly growing professional women’s soccer league.

It’s also the first pro women’s sports team in the city.

Scott, a Winnipeg native, had been vocal about her desire for a pro women’s team in her hometown during her playing days, and has spearheaded the movement for it to come to fruition in the last year.

Artist Bistyek enjoys the freedom of living a creative life in full colour

In pants nearly as wide at the ankle as a downtown sidewalk, Bistyek cuts a striking silhouette on his daily marches through the Exchange District, an area the painter has made his muse since arriving in Winnipeg nine years ago.

He likes it here, loves it even, but as he’s established himself as one of the city’s most vibrant visual artists — with a street-honed style that pays homage to both Japanese anime series Dragon Ball Z and graffiti-inspired American painter Jean-Michel Basquiat — Bistyek won’t forget where he came from: he can’t.

Though the 30-year-old has built an enviable life here, he’s eminently aware that his circumstances are defined as much by sheer luck as they are by determination or talent. When he was growing up in Afrin, a village in Syria, his family was torn apart by civil war and discrimination against the Kurdish minority under the rule of dictator Bashar al Assad.

“I was living in Lebanon as a refugee for seven years, with a big group of friends, but day after day they started to cross the sea from Turkey or Greece. Some of them made it, some of them did not,” says the artist born Ormeya Zagros. “I turned to Mom and said, ‘I want to go across the sea. I cannot stay here. I don’t see a future here. I don’t see opportunities. There is so much discrimination and racism. I cannot build a life.’”

Winnipeg Folk Festival attendees brave scorching temps at Birds Hill

“I’m sorry for subjecting you to my British knees,” U.K. singer-songwriter Billy Bragg said at his Sunday workshop at the 51st Winnipeg Folk Festival. “Sometimes you have to make a choice between being cool and looking cool.”

He wasn’t alone in choosing the former; the fest at Birds Hill Pro-vincial Park, which sold out in advance, featured no shortage of creative heat-beating apparel.

First-aid volunteers wandered through the crowd misting overheat-ed fans with water and crowds largely stuck to treed areas.

Some ticket holders certainly stayed home on Sunday, when the humidex reached 47 C and shade was a hot commodity but many stuck it out to see acts from Sweden, Liberia, Lithuania, Wales, Benin and our own backyard heat up a multitude of stages over the course of the four-day event.

Marla Somersall devoted her life to people in need

Whether it was helping women build businesses in rural Tunisia, leading homeless and addiction support organizations or delivering meals to vulnerable Manitobans, Marla Somersall spent her life dedicated to lessening other people’s suffering.

Over a career that took her from North Africa to Prince Edward Island and back to Manitoba, Somersall held leadership roles in a range of social service and non-profit organizations, always drawn to work that centred on supporting people in need.

Most recently, she served as executive director of Meals on Wheels Winnipeg — a non-profit organization that provides meals to people who are unable to prepare them for themselves.

Kelly Scrivener, client co-ordinator with Meals on Wheels, said Somersall was a very calm and respectful person who led with gentle direction and fostered a collaborative workplace.

Ready-to-go drinks fit for a scorching summer

It’s mid-July, I’m just back from a little holiday and if I’m being totally honest, am suffering from a touch of post-vacay brain fog. It’s supposed to be scorching hot for the next few days. The Free Press arts and life crew is mainly tied up with attending and covering the Winnipeg Folk Festival, and prepping for Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival coverage as well.

In other words, rather than some educational deep dive into a grape variety or wine region for this week’s Uncorked, we’re keeping it simple. To that end, this week I tasted six drinks that fall into the ready-to-drink (RTD) category — think hard seltzers, coolers, pre-mixed cocktails and the like — selected mostly at random (although I made sure not to duplicate any particular flavour).

For the most part, the wildly popular RTD category offers boozy drinks that don’t taste like alcohol, often offering nostalgic flavours for drinkers of my particular vintage. It’s one of the only categories of alcohol that’s actually seeing a growth in sales.

Now, are these companies trying to appeal to us more seasoned imbibers looking for a taste of nostalgia, or are these flavoured RTD beverages meant to appeal to younger (and potentially underage) drinkers? That’s a debate/discussion for another time.

Burger-slinger brings Minnedosa its own version of a sloppy classic

MINNEDOSA — It could have been his chili-smothered secret.

One of the first things Zac Easton did four years ago after he and his wife Cass became the latest set of owners of the Dari Isle Drive-In, a seasonal, 70-seat restaurant that has operated in Minnedosa since 1965, was introduce a fatboy hamburger to the menu.

The 31-year-old grew up in Westwood. As an homage to the burger haunts of his youth — iconic spots such as the Burger Place, Nick’s Inn and the Dairi-Wip Drive-in — he was excited to show off his version of the Greek-style favourite at their new premises.

The interesting thing was, many of the people from the southwestern Manitoba town didn’t have a clue what a fatboy was, and those who ordered it that first summer assumed it was the Eastons’ own creation.

What's up: Beers & Braids, Heated Rivalry, weekend street party, rooftop concert

Beers & BraidsSookrams Brewing Co., 479-B Warsaw Ave.Book now for July 27, 7 p.m.Tickets $41.85 from beersandbraids.caTickets to this thrice-monthly event sell out quickly, so best get in there now if you’re a dad interested in learning how to plait a braid, twist and secure a ballet bun or create perfectly smooth and swinging high ponytails for your child.

Local makeup artist Ren Cherlet launched the classes early this spring after noticing single fathers in her circle were finding it difficult to do their daughters’ hair for extra-curricular activities.

For two hours, dads and/or father figures wield brushes alongside their brews as they tackle various hairstyles on mannequins. Each class at the brewery is capped at 20 people to ensure everyone gets enough time to learn and practise their newfound skills as Cherlet and her assistant walk around helping those who are struggling to master a specific style.

The sessions are so popular that next week’s class is sold out and there is currently a waitlist for the July 22 event. The ticket price includes one beverage. There are currently classes scheduled until November this year. Check the website for more information and event details.