On Saturday, Feb. 28, the fifth annual City of Trees Parade will shimmy, shake and samba its way down the Capitol Mall. The event is a celebration of all the joy and wonder that make Sacramento great. It’s California’s largest Mardi Gras celebration — even if it’s not on Mardi Gras.
Community is at the heart of the event. One way this is exemplified is by the event’s collaboration with Oak Park Brewing Company on a City of Trees Parade beer.
Event organizer Wes Samms has been working on the brew with Oak Park Brewing co-owners Rodg Little and Geoff Scott since 2023. Each year it’s slightly different, but the goal is always to make an easy-drinking quaff that’s made for the laissez-faire vibes of the day.
“It’s a 5% ABV beer, which makes it a perfect Mardi Gras beer, because it’s got to be one that you can drink a few of and still be OK,” said event organizer Wes Samms. He picked Oak Park Brewing for multiple reasons.
“Specifically, they make delicious beer. They’re an awesome community partner. Even though our parade happens downtown, we’re trying to pull in all the other neighborhoods too,” he said.
Wes Samms, lead organizer of the City of Trees Parade, left, poses for a portrait with Geoff Scott and Rodg Little, co-owners and brewers at Oak Park Brewing, at the brewery in Sacramento on Feb. 19. The brewery and parade organizers collaborated to create a special beer for the parade. HANNAH RUHOFF hruhoff@sacbee.com
So why the choice to brew a golden ale?
“Because Wes made us,” Scott said, jokingly, following up that gold is one of the colors of Mardi Gras, alongside purple and green. “We thought gold would be a good color to rock for it.”
“So it was a collective effort. We were like, What do you want? And we came together and made it happen,” Little said.
As with all Oak Park Brewing cans, the City of Trees Parade ones are covered in a visually stunning label, designed by local artist Brooke Brazil. The collaborators commission a different artist every year.
The City of Trees Parade beer, a collaboration between the parade’s organizers and Oak Park Brewing in Sacramento, is displayed on Feb. 19. HANNAH RUHOFF hruhoff@sacbee.com
The parade and festival is a massive, volunteer-led effort. Come this weekend, it’s all hands on deck.
“We have 100 volunteers that help us on the day of the event. We also have 61 different performance groups that are going to bring 1,300 performers to our parade,” Simms said. “They’re preparing costumes. They’re preparing dance routines. They’re preparing music and practicing getting ready to come out. They have art vehicles that are ornately decorated and orchestrated and there is a lot of organizing and work that goes into it.”
The parade is free to watch, but there are tiered tickets for various amounts of interaction. All proceeds go into the costs of the event.
The City of Trees Parade beer, a collaboration between the parade’s organizers and Oak Park Brewing in Sacramento, and merchandise for the parade is displayed on Feb. 19. HANNAH RUHOFF hruhoff@sacbee.com
“If you buy a ticket to our festival, it supports us paying our performers. It supports us paying our artists who design all of our materials every year — no AI. And it supports all of our permits and logistical costs that we have to pay to make this large scale event happen too,” Simms said.
For as little as $16.20, you can enter the festival area and enjoy the dance party. For $104.01, revelers can ride in a float and throw beads to the public.
Beads are not the only things being thrown. Simms has had 100 special “rare bears” handmade by local artists using upcycled materials. The cloth bears are festively decorated.
“Some of them are a little spicy, and so we mark those bags with an 18 plus sticker,” Simms said.
Wes Samms, lead organizer of the City of Trees Parade, poses for a portrait with Rodg Little, co-owner and brewer at Oak Park Brewing, at the brewery in Sacramento on Feb. 19. HANNAH RUHOFF hruhoff@sacbee.com
This story was originally published February 26, 2026 at 5:00 AM.
Related Stories from Sacramento Bee
The Sacramento Bee
Sean Timberlake is the food and dining reporter for The Sacramento Bee. He has been writing professionally for nearly 30 years, and about food for 20. A variety of well-known outlets have published his work, including Food Network, Cooking Channel, CNN, Sunset Magazine and SF Weekly.