A fall weekend in Portland is never a bad idea. There are the cozy restaurants with their mushroomy fall menus, the crisp leaves on the city sidewalks, the woozy-making, hella-potent cocktails at Teardrop Lounge, the tax-free Christmas shopping on Nob Hill, the meatball sliders at the Bluehour happy hour.

Last year, the Great American Distillers Festival was held on a fine fall weekend at the Wonder Ballroom, the venue equivalent of a frayed pair of well-loved jeans—a little stained, a little tattered. A lot awesome.

But this year, the festival is at the considerably fancier Tiffany Center downtown, on October 23 and 24. Tickets cost $10 for a one-day pass, $16 for a two-day pass. So…not exactly breaking the bank here, folks. In addition to the opportunity to sample all sorts of regional spirits (we should start seeing a lot more reps from Washington in the next few years), there are seminars and tours of Portland’s Distillery Row.

And there is also the Cocktail Invitational, in which 24 bartenders make drinks from the spirits at the festival. The finalists in this competition go on to a second round. Here, they must craft a drink using an ingredient that is revealed to them on the spot. Exciting! I was a judge in the first round last year and I’d say it was probably the most fun cocktail competition in which I’ve ever participated. Last year, Portland ’tender Evan Zimmerman (Laurelhurst Market) won out against some fierce Seattle competition.

We’ll see what happens this time around. For now, here’s Portland’s Evan Zimmerman doing what he did to win the Cocktail Invitational last year.