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Beer festival

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A Beer Festival is an organised event during which a variety of beers (and often other alcoholic drinks) are available for tasting and purchase. Beer festivals are held in a number of countries. A Beer Exhibition is usually synonymous with a Beer Festival but, whilst a beer festival may involve a limited range of beer styles or manufacturers, with an emphasis on entertainment, use of the term "beer exhibition" places emphasis on sampling or tasting a wide range of beers, usually craft-brewed in a variety of different styles by various brewers. There may be a theme; for instance beers from a particular area, or a particular brewing style such as winter ales. Beerex is a commonly used portmanteau word coined in 1977[1] as an abbreviated form of Beer Exhibition.

German Beer festivals

Inside a tent at Munich's Oktoberfest - the world's largest beer festival

The largest beer festival in the world is Oktoberfest in Germany. Several other smaller beer festivals are held all over Germany all over the year. The 2nd largest beer festival in Germany and probably in Europe, is the Cannstatter Volksfest in Stuttgart. Its popularity increases and more and more people come from around the world to visit the festival every year. Many other places have beer festivals styled as "Oktoberfests", but taken on its own the name is generally taken to mean for the Munich event.

The second largest genuine Bavarian festival is the Gäubodenvolksfest in Straubing. The festival is similar like Oktoberfest but it has an own history and it is not a copy of the Oktoberfest.

Not called "Oktoberfest", but very similar in character, is the Cannstatter Wasen in Stuttgart which starts one week later and is the second largest fair in the world. Smaller beer festivals similar to the Oktoberfest are common in Germany and take place throughout the year in most bigger German cities. Some of them go on later into the night than the Oktoberfest.

Other major German cities that host large beer festivals include Hannover and Bremen's, where the traditional beer festival is known as Freimarkt. Like the Oktoberfest and the Cannstatter Wasen, most German beer festivals are also funfairs. They are called "Volksfest" (festival for the people).

British beer festivals

London's GBBF beer festival

Festivals are often organised by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA), by local pubs and occasionally by other groups. CAMRA festivals are run by volunteers under direction of the local CAMRA branch. There is an admission fee which is reduced for CAMRA members. Pub festivals use professional bar staff, and there are usually no entry fees. Beer festivals organised by student real ale societies - some CAMRA-affiliated and some not - have existed for many years, but are currently enjoying something of a boom. These festivals are typically held in students' union premises, and entry is hence sometimes restricted to students and staff, though exceptions may be made for card-carrying CAMRA members. Student beer festivals vary in size but can easily rival local CAMRA events, with beer numbers in the 80-100 cask region. Good examples include Cardiff and Warwick.[1]. One of the last sporting bastions of real ale drinking is rugby. A number of rugby clubs organise festivals combining beer drinking with rugby and even live music. A good example is Ashford Rugby Club in Kent, which organises an annual 3 day beer festival each August.

The format of British beer festivals tends to follow a set pattern. Casks of ale from many different brewers are placed on stillage behind rows of trestle tables. Staff serve beer directly from the cask, and take payment in the form of cash or via a token system, where sheets of tokens are purchased at the entrance to the venue in bulk. Consideration must be given to cooling; this is commonly achieved using wet sacking or blankets for evaporative cooling, though refrigerated cooling saddles and coils are increasingly being used. Some festivals in the winter months simply keep the whole venue, or a smaller tap room, at cellar temperature by leaving doors and windows open. Glasses are distributed at the entrance to the venue, usually for a small deposit although often included in the entrance fee. The glasses usually bear a design specific to the festival and are therefore considered to be collectable. A beer list is usually available, often indicating where in the venue the different casks will be situated. Food is usually available, and entertainments and games such as live music, pub quizzes or tombolas are often organised.

In all British festivals the beer is sold in quantities of half or full pints. From 2006 the GBBF additionally served beer in "nips" (one-third of a pint), for the benefit of those who wish to sample many beers wthout consuming excessive amounts of alcohol.

Notable British Beer Festivals

  • The Great British Beer Festival held annually in August in London is the largest and most famous beer festival in the UK, and is organised by CAMRA. The "GBBF", as it is known, was founded in 1977 and was attended by over 66,000 people in 2006, and 350,000 pints of ale were consumed over the five days of the festival.
  • The Peterborough CAMRA Beer Festival held in three giant marquees on the Embankment, Peterborough, PE1 1EF has been running since 1978 and is the largest outside of London with 350+ draught real ales, 100+ ciders and perries. Takes place on the Tuesday to Saturday in the week before August Bank Holiday.
  • The Farnham Beer Exhibition in Surrey, having been held every year since 1977 at the Farnham Maltings, is the longest-running beer festival to be held annually on a single site in the United Kingdom, and every year sells over 29,000 pints of real ale during its 3 day opening.
  • The Cambridge Beer Festival, held since 1974, is the longest running beer festival, although it has changed venue three times. Currently, it is held for a week each May in a large marquee erected on Jesus Green in Cambridge. It is the second largest festival outside of London and had 32,000 people attending in 2007.
  • The King's Meaburn Beer Festival, held annually since 2004, in 2008 the festival attracted over 2,000. One of the smaller festivals although rapidly growing (weather permitting). It is held for three days spanning a weekend in July. The majority of beers and ciders originate from Cumbria and the surrounding area.

Other festivals are held in London, Nottingham, Peterborough, St Albans and Reading, Berkshire and in many other places. They are both very large and offer an interesting and distinctive selection of British and foreign beers.

Festivals in other countries

Europe

Asia

Australia

  • Hobart, Australia The Tasmanian Beerfest is held on the 2nd Saturday of November. Showcasing over 100 boutique and Premium Beers [Hobart Regatta Grounds]] [2].
  • Brisbane, Australia has many small celebrations of Oktoberfest. Mainly supported across the local university populations, it has spilled over into local restaurants and pubs, looking to join in the festival.
  • Sydney, Australia celebrates Oktoberfest at the Fairfield Showgrounds in the Suburb of Prairiewood.[3]
  • Canberra, Australia celebrates Oktoberfest at the Thoroughbred Park, Lyneham.[4]
  • Adelaide, Australia celebrates Schuetzenfest in January at Bonython Park just outside the CBD.[5].
  • There previously was an annual Oktoberfest Beer Festival at the Royal Melbourne Showgrounds in Flemington, Victoria, after a break of two years another Oktoberfest was celebrated in 2007 at the Dandenong Showground.[6]

New Zealand

South America

North America

See also

References

  1. ^ Farnham Beer Exhibition programme, 1977

External links

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