LISBON, Maine — One of Maine’s quirkiest and most beloved summer traditions returns this weekend as the annual Moxie Festival brings three days of parades, contests, live music and family-friendly events to Lisbon.
Held each year on the second weekend in July, the festival celebrates Moxie, the distinctively flavored soda that has become a point of pride for generations of Mainers. Centered around Lisbon High School and Lisbon Falls, the event draws locals, longtime fans and curious visitors eager to experience one of the state’s most unusual celebrations.
But Moxie is more than a soda. In Maine, it is a cultural marker, a test of taste, and, for many, a reminder of a time when advertising was bold, remedies were bottled and a drink could become part of a state’s identity.
Moxie was created in the late 19th century by Dr. Augustin Thompson, a Maine native from Union. Originally marketed as “Moxie Nerve Food,” the drink was first sold not simply as a refreshment, but as a patent medicine that claimed to offer health benefits at a time when tonics and cure-alls were common across the country. The Maine Secretary of State’s Office says Moxie was created in 1884 and was originally promoted as a medicinal beverage made with gentian root extract, which gives the soda its famously bitter edge.
That bitterness became part of the legend.
Unlike sweeter sodas that quickly win over a crowd, Moxie has always had a reputation as an acquired taste. Its flavor is often described as bold, sharp, sweet, bitter and medicinal all at once. For fans, that is the point. To drink Moxie is not merely to drink soda. It is to take part in a New England ritual that separates the casually curious from the truly committed.
The drink’s unusual flavor helped make it famous, but its advertising helped make it iconic. By the 1940s, Moxie was known for memorable promotions, giveaways, signs, memorabilia and the familiar “Moxie Boy” image that became closely associated with the brand. The word “moxie” itself entered the American vocabulary as a term meaning pep, courage, energy and determination.
Maine made that connection official in 2005, when Moxie was designated the state’s official soft drink under legislation signed by Gov. John Baldacci.
Lisbon’s connection to Moxie grew into a full community celebration more than four decades ago. According to the Moxie Festival, the event has been held in Lisbon on the second weekend in July since 1982 and now draws Moxie lovers from Maine, across the United States and beyond. The 2026 festival marks its 42nd year.
The roots of the festival are tied closely to Lisbon Falls and the Anicetti family, whose Kennebec Fruit Company became known for its Moxie memorabilia and helped anchor the drink’s local following. Over time, that local enthusiasm grew into a full festival celebrating not only the soda, but the kind of offbeat Maine pride that keeps people coming back year after year.
The highlight of the weekend is Maine’s longest parade, which steps off at 10 a.m. Saturday. The parade is expected to feature dozens of floats, marching bands and local entries, with participants embracing the festival’s annual theme and the community spirit that has long defined the event.
For many festivalgoers, the Moxie Chugging Contest remains one of the weekend’s signature attractions. The competition challenges participants to drink the famously bittersweet soda as quickly as possible, drawing both returning champions and first-time contestants hoping to earn bragging rights.
The festival also includes a Whoopie Pie Eating Contest, a 5K race, a cornhole tournament, food trucks, live entertainment and a variety of community activities throughout the weekend.
Attendees and longtime visitors have described the event as a uniquely Maine tradition, with one Yelp reviewer noting, “There is lots is moxie memorabilia as well as gifts for purchase. This is a unique roadside detour as well. This festival is held the second weekend in July every year.”
The parade has grown into one of the festival’s largest draws. According to Metivier, last year’s parade was the biggest ever, with thousands of people lining the route, and this year’s event is expected to be similarly large, with 70 parade entries.
For Lisbon, the Moxie Festival is more than a celebration of a soda. It is a showcase of local pride, Maine humor, stubborn tradition and the enduring appeal of something that never tried to taste like everything else.
Moxie has survived because it is different. That may be why Maine claimed it as its own.
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