Fests!
This seems to be the season of beer festivals, probably due in no small part to the grandaddy of them all, Oktoberfest. This year celebrates the 200th anniversary of the original Oktoberfest in Munich—the Big One—and there are always smaller, local Oktoberfest celebrations around the country, as well. Mario wrote about Oktoberfest and the beer this week, but if you’re looking for the local O’Fest events, the RateBeer calendar is the place to start.
Fests! (Tent at the Oregon Brewers Festival)
Then, of course, this is the weekend of the largest American beer festival—the Great American Beer Festival, of course! The GABF started Thursday the 16th and runs through today (the awards ceremony is this afternoon, from 1 to 3:30pm Mountain time) over in Denver, Colorado, and is simply the largest beer fest we have:
The 29th edition of the Great American Beer Festival (GABF). The premier U.S. beer festival is expected to serve more than 2,200 different beers, in 1-ounce tasting portions, from an estimated 462 U.S. breweries to the event’s 49,000-plus attendees.
This is The Show for American brewers: winning a medal at the GABF is like bringing home an Olympic medal and offers incredible bragging rights, particularly for the smaller breweries. I will be anxiously waiting for the results today, particularly for the Oregon brewers (naturally!).
Getting a little more local, Oregon has the start of their Fresh Hop Tastivals next weekend, in the small Central Oregon town of Sisters: four of these in all (one each weekend for four weeks) around the state to highlight the increasingly-popular relatively new “style” of fresh hop beers—that is, beers made with hops picked right off the vine and not dried. This most-seasonal style of seasonal beers is especially prevalent in the Pacific Northwest, where most of the world’s hops are grown, and the majority of Oregon’s breweries are within 150 miles of a hop field.
Following the Sisters Fresh Hop Festival next weekend is the Hood River Hops Fest the weekend after that. Portland and Eugene host the final two of the Tastivals.
Yes indeed, Fall is a great season for beer festivals.
Want to chat up the Fests? List and link to them here!
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