It's that time of year again that all the city's beer aficionados have been waiting for. Shanghai Beer Week is hitting town for the second year and, according to organizer Michael Jordan, this time around it's going to be even bigger and better.

"In recent years beer festivals have started to become popular around the world, especially in the US," said Jordan, who is the "brewmaster" at the city's Boxing Cat Brewery. "And there was nothing like this in Shanghai before, so I thought it would be a good idea to organize an event for all the beer lovers in Shanghai. Our event is the first 'beer week' of its kind in China, and might even be the first one in Asia."

Pint of Porky's

This year the event will run from May 17 to 26 and will kick off with a Brew Cruise along the Huangpu River with free flow of nine craft beers provided by three Shanghai breweries: The Brew, Dr. Beer and Boxing Cat Brewery. The food will be provided by Boxing Cat Brewery.

"A collaborative brew between the three breweries called Porky's Revenge Imperial Pilsner - named after the recent flood of pigs in the Huangpu River - will be officially released and available for free-flow pour. It's an 8.5 percent ale with light pineapple, citrus and pine notes," said Jordan.

During the cruise on the night of May 17, organizers will be "auctioning off" brewmaster Michael Jordan for charity. The highest bidder will win a Brew Day where they will join Jordan and create their own personalized beer. All proceeds from the auction and the profits from the Brew Cruise ticket sales will go to Bean Shanghai to build a new library for migrant children.

Setting sail

Loading time starts at 6:30 pm at Shiliupu Wharf, 171 Zhongshan Road South (中山南路171号十六铺码头). The boat will depart at 7:45 pm sharp and will arrive back to the dock at 10:15 pm.

Pre-sale tickets are available for 250 yuan ($40.75) at all the Boxing Cat Brewery's locations around the city (Sinan location: 519-521 Fuxing Road Middle 复兴中路 519-521号, Yongfu location: 82 Fuxing Road West 复兴西路82号), Dr Beer (83 Fumin Road 富民路83号), The Brew (1/F, 1388 Huamu Road 花木路1388号) and from Cheers In at their Yongkang Road (No.25) and Daxue Road (No.129) locations. Alternatively you can e-mail liz@shanghaibeerweek.com. If not sold out, tickets will still be available after May 14 and on the door for 325 yuan.

Each day of Shanghai Beer Week will see participating venues hosting a variety of events. "One definitely worth checking out this year will be the Factory Five Beer Week Bash," said Jordan. This bike crawl, organized by one of Shanghai's cycling shops, will take place on May 18. It will start at 2 pm at Factory Five (1/F, Bldg 2, 876 Jiangsu Road 江苏路876号2栋1楼) and then visit a couple of Shanghai Beer Week locations before finishing up at Boxing Cat Brewery's Yongfu Road location, where the party will continue. Bring your own bike and helmet.

Another event Jordan recommends is the Beer, Blades and Needles party at Shanghai Tattoo (4/F, 1 Maoming Road South 茂名南路1号4楼, 136-1181-4666) on May 19. There will be music, beer from De Refter, and a chance to get a tattoo for brave partygoers. The party starts at 2 pm and will go on until 8 pm. "The owner of Shanghai Tattoo loves beer so he wanted to participate this year. This will be something different and unique for this year's event," Jordan told the Global Times.

On May 18 and 19, Le Ble d'Or in Suzhou (4/F, 35 Shishan Road, 苏州市狮山路35号4楼) is organizing a special event that will include a brewery tour, a Le Ble d'Or beer tasting, and a banquet. The tickets cost 390 yuan per person including a free shuttle bus from Shanghai main bus station (1666 Zhongxing Road 中兴路1666号) to the restaurant. The bus will leave at 1:30 pm from Shanghai and will return from Suzhou at 9 pm. For more information on the event and tickets call 0512-6665-5909.

Brewing history

The Shanghai Brewery Tour will take place on May 19 from 2:30 pm to 6:30 pm. "This will be a chance for everyone to visit breweries, and to learn about the history and brewing processes of Shanghai's two micro-breweries," said Jordan.

Tickets are 400 yuan per person and the tour includes beer tastings of 15 craft beers, a pub fare dinner, and transport to and from each venue. For tickets and more information contact ike@brewerytourshanghai.com or info@brewerytourshanghai.com. The tour will start at Dean's Bottle Shop (37 Shaoxing Road 绍兴路37号, 151-2119-2707).

On May 23 and 24, Pub Crawl Shanghai will hold a crawl around participating craft beer venues with special offers on drinks, and free party shots. The fun will start at 9:30 pm at the Camel (1 Yueyang Road 岳阳路1号, 6437-9446) with an hour of an open bar and snacks during registration. Registration costs 150 yuan.

The closing parties will be the Sinan Mansions Beer Festival hosted by Boxing Cat Brewery at the Sinan Mansions courtyard on May 25 and 26 between midday and 10 pm. "This is a celebration of the best craft beer that China has to offer," said Jordan. The closing parties will feature more than 25 craft beers, as well as food options, two music stages, games and lucky draws.