Need a reminder of why Seattle is a great place to connect with intriguing bright-green thinkers, creatives, entrepreneurs and grassroots activists?

Seattle Greendrinks celebrated its 5th birthday last night with a truly impressive party. The celebration occupied nearly an entire block of buildings in SoDo, and rumor has it that a total of 1,200 people raised a (reusable) glass to honor Seattle's premier green social and professional network.

Seattle Greendrinks, the local chapter of an international movement, is an informal community networking resource. The Seattle organization offers a website, newsletter, lunch meetup opportunities and more in addition to its famous free-booze networking soirees, which take place the second Tuesday of every month at diverse locations around Seattle.

The anniversary party took place against a gorgeous backdrop of historic industrial loft spaces, which included Herban Feast's newly debuted venue, as well as the workspaces and showrooms of Alchemy Goods, Marenakos Rock Center and Patronus Design. Celebrants mingled both indoors and out, enjoying endless pours of beer from sponsor Sierra Nevada, a variety of locally produced organic wines, artisan teas and a delicious spread of hors deouvres and desserts that showcased the products of local farms and bakeries. Locally based conference-networking software lab Pathable helped attendees turn online connections into in-person introductions with innovative name badges that assigned each person a list of their compatible and "opposite" matches.

Organizers encouraged participants to take public transportation to SoDo, and provided free biodiesel-powered rides back into downtown with support from Evergreen Escapes and Propel Biodiesel.

As Greendrinks Seattle Founder and Executive Director Gabriel Scheer noted, the party was the largest Greendrinks event in the U.S. to date. "I was amazed by the vitality of the community, demonstrated not only through the attendance, but also through the over 30 organizations that came together to make it happen."

Find a full list of the event's sponsors here. See photos of attendees' "1 Thing" green pledges on Flickr.