Archive for the ‘dc craft beers’ Category
DC Beer Festivals Kick In – 2015 Fall Issue
DC Beer Festival season kicks in again – an amazing number of craft beer festivals – from 1-price all you can drink to the Mega Snallygaster “money is no obect” – there are festivals for the craft beer lover this Fall, 2015
As the head of TasteUSA, it’s my job to attend and cover as many food and drink festivals in the U.S. as possible – and since DC is my home base, here’s some upcoming events and maybe a recap or 2 to help you plan your Festival Season.
Beer, Bourbon & BBQ (September 19th, 2015 – Tyson’s Corner – but this festival visits many different cities during the season)- Trigger Agency’s series of over the top porkiness (?porkyness?) events that combine too much of what every hearty foodie wants: pigliciousness, Bourbon and of course craft brews! Expect more bacon too – it seems this is the current foodie draw to over-the-top events. Medium on the Beer Geek/Bourbon Geek scale, Trigger really specializes in a more laid-back vibe for the city slickers who want to just throw on some jeans and kick back a bit!
Arlington Backyard Beer Festival (September 19th, 2015 – Arlington Gateway, Rosslyn, VA) – although a first year event, the Organizers have put together multiple other local beer festivals including Drink the World Beer Festival and All-American Beer Festival . Expect a nice selection of craft beers and really great food trucks for food – the price is also right – you can save 30% off the ticket price at our site with promo code “tasteusa” and the VIP Tickets are only $45 before discount!
Das Best Oktoberfest (September 26th, 2015 – National Harbor, MD) – Hey, again you can get discounted tickets – only $29 for VIP all-you-can-drink – another Trigger Agency event that is very popular. You can do the German Oktoberfest thing, or simply enjoy lot’s of great beer – and since our discounted price is $29/per person (VIP) – you get a very affordable event to enjoy craft beers at!
Past Events (hey, they’ll be back next year!)
Snallygaster 2015 – Holy Smokes, this is one Great and expensive craft beer festival – Very High on the Beer Geek scale, maybe an 11 on a scale of 1 to 10! 300+ beers this year and many rare, cask, unique examples of hops, grain and yeast combined in an amazing array of choices. I actually tried a beer that
Annapolis Craft Beer & Music Festival – September 12th, 2015 – Outside the Navy-Marine Corps Stadium in Annapolis, this event is always fun and has a nice selection of local beers including Jail Break, Oliver Breweries, and Heavy Seas.
Have fun at upcoming craft beer festivals – I’ll include an article soon on new food and drink events at TasteUSA – Cheer!
Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler
Beer, Bacon, Booze..Festivals That Is!
We’ve hit the big Foodie Festival Season in Washington, D.C. now that it’s the first week in May..more Bacon Festivals, more Beer Festivals, more Booze Festivals..ohh, and a few wine festivals, food crawls, Big Charity high-ticket dinners..ohhand of course DC Lamb Jam .. here it goes, a fun rollick through the Washington, D.C. Foodie Festival Season..
Saturday, May 9th, 2015 – DC Craft Beer and Cider Festival – Hey, they added Ciders and more Speciality craft beers impossibly hard to find.. Did I mention that Mess Hall (the Food Incubator) is Catering the event?
VinoFest, May 9th, 2015 – More Music than Foodie, but with over 20 wines included and some awesome food, I can see getting my boogie on and sipping away at this one
Beer, Bacon & Music Festival , May 16th, 2015, Frederick Fairgrounds – C’mon you got all the good stuff – plenty of craft beers, bacon both in 2 Tons to eat right away, and a bevy of food trucks and Bacon purveyors..and frankly a bit away from the city..
DC Lamb Jam , May 17th, 2015 – This is a Serious Chefstravaganza – 17 chefs, tons of food, wine, craft beer and Foodie Heaven – Chefs competing to win your tastebuds over .. and only $60.. c’mon, I’ve spent more than that at a Food Truck Festivals (well, I promote them!)
St. Michael’s BrewFest, May 30th, 2015 – hey sometimes you gotta get away and visit the Eastern Shore..I mean this could be a whole weekend, especially if you visit Lyon Distillery and other distilleries and breweries around the corner..I mean, that’s travelling for food and drink!
DCIST List Here – Hey, check out this short list from DCist..there are actually more Bacon Festivals coming, more beer, wine, cocktail festivals..and well..this just forces me to drink on the Job – Cheers!
Eater DC Added some events like Edible DC’s Cocktail Derby ..
And of course Fritz Hahn’s Going Out Guide Washington Post Article for 2015 Beer Festivals
Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler
Beer & Bacon Fest = Fun..
Gee wiz..after seeing this Video, I Gotta go to Bacon & Beer Festival – Must be Fun Video – Save some money out of your Piggy Bank by purchasing Discount Tickets at TasteUSA’s Site – Beer & Bacon Festival All-Inclusive VIP Tickets (Save $10 Ticket)
Ohh, and if you can’t make it, the same people who organize this – the Trigger Agency – we also have discounted tickets to Beer, Bourbon & BBQ – Tysons VIP Tickets on Saturday, Sept. 20th, 2014..Cheers!
Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler
DC Craft Beer Festival – DC Is Now a Craft Beer Festival Mecca
DC Is Now a Craft Beer Festival Mecca..
March 8th, 2014 saw a new craft beer festival – DC Craft Beer Festival – Spring Seasonals Although a first year event, it was from the organizers of the New York Craft Beer Festival and they had plenty of experience organizing events – they also put together music festivals!
150+ beers and ciders to taste and a slightly new wrinkle – rather than a mini-beer glass, we tasted with a beer shot glass – smaller pours, but way more efficiency in pour management which made for quicker lines and the ability to actually sample 60+ beers without getting drunk and losing focus!
Breweries and Beers:
Breweries Beers
Alewerks Springhouse
Alewerks Shorty Time
Anthem Cherry
Anthem Hops
Bells Smitten
Bells WO Hearted
Duck Rabbit Milk Stout
Duck Rabbit Hoppy BUNNY
Founders All Day IPA
Great Lakes Conways
Great Lakes Commodore
Jacks Hele sns
Jacks Jacks
Lagunitas IPA
Lagunitas Lil Sumpin
Mad River Steelhead Extra Pale
Mad River Stellhead Double IPA
New Holland Poet
New Holland mONKEY KING
New Hollanndd Full circle
North Coast Brother THELONIUS
North Coast Le Melrle
port City Wit
Port City Collosal 3
port City manaical
Speakeasy Big Daddy
Speakeasy Prohibition
Wild Wolf Alpha Ale
Wild Wolf Blonde HONEY
Yards Brawler
Yards Tj
Atlas Rowdy
Atlas District
Boulevard pop up
Boulevard 80 acre
terrapin Lager
Brooklyyn Brown
Foothills Hoppyum IPA
Foothills Torch Pilsner
Ommegang Rare Vos
Ommegang Hennepin
Sam Adams Cold snap
Sam Adams Rebel IPA
Saranac Prism
Saranac Pale Ale
Shiner White Wing
Shiner FM 966
Starr Hill Bandstand
Starr Hill Grateful Pale Ale
Terrapin Rye Pale Ale
Terrapin Hopsecutioner
Angry Orchard Crisp
Angry Orchard Ginger
Woodchuck 802
Woodchuck Reserve Pink
Abita Andygator
Abita Turbodog
Anchor California Lager
Anchor Anchor Bock
Harpoon IPA
Harpoon Long Thaw
New Belgium Fat Tire
New Belgium Snapshot
Dogfish Midas Touch
DogFISH 90 Minute IPA
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
Sierra Nevada Torpedo
Firestone Walker Union Jack
Firestone Walker Wookey Jack
Heavy Seas Loose Cannon
Heavy Seas Black Cannon
Flying Dog Doggie Style
Flying Dog In Heat Wheat
Magic Hat Pistol
Magic Hat Dream Machine
allagash Black
allagash White
Legend Brown Ale
Legend Hopfest
Aviator Frost Nipper
Aviator Mad Beach American Wheat
Mother Earth Dunkel
Mother Earth Weeping Willow Witt
Blue Mountain Dark Hollow
Blue Mountain Local Species
Breckenridge Agave Wheat
Breckenridge Vesper French Saison
Brewers Art Ressurection
Brewers Art St. Festivus
Burley Oak Aboriginal Gangster
Burley Oak Bulletproof Tiger
Oliver Ales Watermelon Honey Wine
Oliver Ales Strawberry Hard Cider
Peak Organic King Crimson
Peak organic Pomegranite Wheat
Union Craft Old Pro Gose
Union Craft DuckPin
Stillwater Artisanal Folklore
Stillwater Artisanal As Follows
Fordham Rt 1 Session IPA
Fordham Gypsy Lager
Dominion Candi Belgian Triple
Dominion Oak Barrel Stout
Goose Island Sofie
Goose Island Illinois
Kona Big Wave
Kona KoKo
Redhook Longhammer
Redhook Audible
Widmer Upheaval
Widmer Columbia Common
Victory Swing Saison
Victory Dirt Wolf
Troegs Perpetual IPA
Troegs Dreamweaver
Smuttynose Finest Kind IPA
Smuttynose Robust Porter
Sweetwater Blue
Sweetwater Sweetwater 420
Omission IPA
Omission Lager
Omission Pale Ale
Devils Backbone Eightpoint IPA
Devils Backbone Pear Lager
Bold Rock Cider Apple
Bold Rock Cider VA
Natty Greenes Red Nose
Natty Greenes Old Town Brown
Natty Greenes Buckshot
Ace Cider Perry
Ace Cider Berry
Lone Rider Peacemaker pale ale
Lone Rider Sweet Josie Brown
Lone Rider Shotgun Betty Hefe
Craft Beer Goes Crazy in DC!
Union Market had a Memorable Craft Beer Shindig on Saturday, July 27th, 2013..
I attended the Eat Local First Farm to Street Party on a sunny day with a late outpour that brought true Foodies together..Capital Kombucha, Route 11 Potato Chips, Uncle Brutha’s Hot Sauce, Vigilante Coffee and a whole slew of local foodies, artisans, restaurants and craft beers all came together to create a true Foodie Gathering!
Craft Beer is really Hot in DC right now, and here’s the list of craft beers that Meridian Pint sponsored and poured at the event:
Recent List of Local beers served at the Union Market “Eat Local First” Block Party –
3 Stars Citra & Lemon Peel Saison
Blue Mountain Full Nelson Pale Ale
Brewer’s Art Parking Lot Beer
DC Brau The Tradition
Devils Backbone Vienna Lager
Dogfish Head Festina Peche
DuClaw Euforia
Evolution Lot 3 IPA
Flying Dog UnderDog
Franklin’s Mandarin Summer
Hardywood Singel
Heavy Seas Loose Cannon
Lost Rhino Meridian Kolsch
Mad Fox Post Meridian Schwarzbier
Monocacy Riot Rye
Oliver Modern Life Is Rubbish
Port City Optimal Wit
Stillwater Cellar Door
Troegs Perpetual IPA
Union Balt Altbier
I enjoyed quite a few of the beers – 6 to be exact, but I had recently tried the Stillwater Cellar Door at Birreria in Georgeotwn, and I’ve had the Port City Optimal Wit many times at local bars. Since it’s Summer, most of the offerings were lighter, lower in alcohol beers to refresh – it was about 90 degrees until the rains came!
Overall, the crowd was pretty young – I would say even younger than the average Union Market crowd, and I would assume that’s because of the nature of the event: an outdoor affair with great craft beers. To really tell you what it was like is impossible – the new DC Foodie and craft beer scene has to be experienced..so many people with exciting ideas, lofty goals and unique perspectives on what the future will hold. Looking at a crystal ball, my first assumption is that coffee is really happening – quite a few companies are opening roasting facilities soon and I’ll keep readers up to date on that. Kombucha is here and with over 3 vendors at the event, I think you’ll start seeing more in markets. The one question spot is food delivery – will people engage in websites that deliver specific ingredients with recipe instructions (I’m extremely skeptical) or more general delivery of food..it’s hard to say, but it’s also hard to know – personally, I still shop for all my ingredients at local stores, but honestly the strange behavior of shoppers (weird outbursts, unfriendly staff, and frankly limited selections) may change that for me soon – who knows..
Cheers!
Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler
So You Wanna Throw a Beer Festival?
Things don’t always go right when you plan a Big Event – especially in Washington, D.C..
So I had an “interesting” conversation with the organizer of the inaugural DC Beer Festival a few months before the event. The Organizer was frankly quite cocky about his ability to fill up the event (which he did – pretty unbelievable for a first year event without using Groupon/LivingSocial!) and when I mentioned that he “might not be the first and only beer festival ever”
here in our fair city, he didn’t seem to hear my words..but what caught my attention more than anything was the date and the fact that this was pretty much an outdoor event at Nat’s Stadium..he said “and end of March is a good time, we can expect better weather..” – HA – he doesn’t know DC!! Originally meant to be a one day event on Saturday, March 23rd, 2013, the Organizer added Sunday because sales were so strong – One Problem – the weather – snow was predicted for Sunday evening and that meant cancellation of that evening’s session, the one I had planned on going to..Thus, photos of the Saturday evening event..
Doing Events in DC is Difficult – I spent 14 years organizing events here and I can tell you that it’s very tricky, especially pertaining to weather: rain, snow, hurricanes, you name it..oh, and let’s not forget post 9-11 Security..tough! I’ve been snowed out of a few events – the Israeli Embassy wine tasting comes to mind – and how do you cover your catering costs? I mean, I ordered $3,500 in food from a kosher caterer, do I expect them to keep the food? At the last second we both compromised and I paid them 50% – which probably covered their food costs and gave them a little extra. How about cancellation and refunds? Oh, and forgot to mention, that the freak snow storm that cancelled the Israeli Embassy event made it very difficult to confirm all the refunds..some people literally came to the event even though we tried every way to tell them it was cancelled..they ignored the blizzard, howling winds and impossible conditions!
Deciding when to limit ticket sales is the balance between profit and insanely crowded..As a promoter, I know how it is – you need to maximize profitability, but you need to consider the attendees experience. Overall, crowding is less desirable to attendees as they get older – they don’t want to be hassled, pushed, shoved or wait in line. The younger crowd actually desires “some” lines – just as in clubs/lounges, this suggests its the place to be!
Choosing the Right Beers Can Make a Statement-Everyone’s into local – Locavore, local beers, local chickens, on and on! DC Beer Festival had a very good mix of beers – Beer List DC Beer Festival. Unfortunately, I don’t have the Beer List, but there was a good selection of many craft beers – even Burley Oak, a relatively new craft beer from Maryland’s Eastern Shore. The trick with Beer Festivals is to promote the local craft beers like DC Brau, Chocolate City and 3 Stars with some of the nationals like Sam Adams and Harpoon..the trick is to include the bigger names without making the event seem like a pure marketing play for Big Beer – it’s really a “craft” beer festival an organizer should go for..
Make sure there is sufficient food Not a problem for this event – many of the Concessions like Ben’s Chili Bowl were open and serving the perfect food for the conditions – chili cheese fries and dogs! Food Costs usually aren’t an issue for Beer Festivals – they simply don’t include them in the price – but normally beer is unlimited or significant amount of tastings. Each jurisdiction has different laws (for example, Virginia does NOT allow unlimited beer tastings at festivals for a fixed price, so people are normally purchasing sampling tickets). Of course, unlimited beer samplings can create drunkenness issues – especially with today’s high alcohol craft beers – so having a small sample glass, and actually some wait for each beer is a good thing. I will say this – drinking beer in excess is somewhat easier to control than spirits – whiskey festivals can tricky to manage crowd control!
Hope this gives an overview of “some” of the issues pertaining to organizing beer festivals and events in general in the DC Area – Cheers!
Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler
Upcoming Festivals:
– Taste of Japan, Thursday April 4th, 801 K Street, NW , Washington DC
– Washington City Paper’s Best Of 2013 Fete Presented by Verizon Wireless, Wednesday April 10th, 801 K Street, NW, Washington DC
– Decanter: A Celebration of Maryland Wine and Racing, Saturday April 20th, Pimlico Race Course 5201 Park Heights Avenue , Baltimore MD
If It’s March, It Must Be Beer Time!
It seemed that beer classes and beer dinners had disappeared..

It may seem unusual, but DC was full steam ahead with beer events over the past few years, but it just kind of stopped late 2012..I can’t explain it, but beer dinners disappeared, beer classes were impossible to find, and you really had to search out beer events other than tap takeovers (maybe it was a hangover from too many recent beer festivals?)..Well Great News – as of March, 2013, that all has changed! One of the reasons is that the American Craft Brewer’s Conference is in Washington, D.C. this year and so many great American Craft Brewers will be here from March 26th-29th.

Here’s a List of upcoming DC Beer Events (no affiliation with DCBeer.com – but they are an excellent resource!)
–March 6th, 7-9 pm – La Cuisine du Québec: Exploring the Passion and Depth of Québec’s Emerging Microbreweries, $30/per person, Smithsonian – Celebrated beer sommelier Sylvain Bouchard joins us from Québec to showcase the microbrewery movement and the wealth of variety that defines craft beers in Québec.
–March 7th (Thursday), $75/per person, 4-Course DC Brau Beer Dinner, 1905 Bistro & Bar 1905 9th Street, NW, Washington DC 20001 – This is inaugural Beer Dinner for 1905 with DC’s own 1st Brewery DC Brau
–March 9th, Noon – 4 pm – Real Ale & BBQ Fest at Heavy Seas Brewery, $49/per person – In addition to your Heavy Seas favorites from 10 taps, our award winning brewers will be creating many one-of-a-kind casks! We’ll be pouring real ale from 10 firkins, including from the wood.
March 11th 6:30 pm, Italian Craft Beer Dinner, Pizzeria Paradiso, 3282 M St., NW, Washington DC 20007 – Paradiso is matching food to Italian Beers
Bourbon Beer School – Series of 6 Classes, each is $25/per person, Bourbon Glover Park, 2348 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington DC 20007
– Session 1: Fermentation & Yeast (Only on 3/12)
– Session 2 Hops (3/19 & 3/26)
– Session 3 Malts (4/2 & 4/9)
– Session 4 American Craft Beer (4/16 & 4/23)
– Session 5 German Beer Styles (4/23 & 5/7)
– Session 6 Belgian Beer Styles (5/14 & 5/21)
Each Class is a Stand-Alone Class (no Prerequisites) – a series of educational beer tastings led by resident beer expert Rachel Murray – 6 Beers are tasted at each event.
– March 13th, March 21st & March 27th (3 Separate Classes) Local Charcuterie, Craft Beer, & Cheese, $59/per person, Righteous Cheese, Union Market 1309 5th Street NE, Washington DC 20002– We’ll explore the world of cheese pairing by tasting 4 cheeses and 4 local craft beers along with a bounty of charcuterie from local producers Red Apron Butchery, Three Little Pigs and Seasonal Pantry
–-March 23rd & 24th (Weekend), DC Beer Festival, $40/per person, Nationals Ballpark, 1500 South Capitol Street, SE, Washington DC 20003– The inaugural DC Beer Festival brings together dozens of craft and international breweries, as well as DC’s best local breweries.
–March 25th, 6 pm, Cheese and Beer Tasting with Janet Fletcher – Cowgirl Creamery is pleased to welcome Janet Fletcher, author of the brand-new guide, Cheese & Beer. Janet’s weekly cheese column for the San Francisco Chronicle has made her a nationally recognized cheese authority, and we’re the first store in the nation to have her beautiful new book. Come meet Janet at this private, walk-around tasting. You’ll sample a selection of the best American craft brews expertly matched to their cheesy soul mates. Ticket price includes a signed copy of Cheese & Beer. Space is limited. Reserve now for this tasty and educational evening.
–March 25th, 7 pm, The Craft Brewer’s Conference Beer & Food Experience at Birch & Barley, 1337 14th St., NW, Washington, D.C. – I haven’t gotten the list of brewers, but this is going to be some shindig! 5 Craft Brewers in town for the CBC (locals DCBrau and Flying Dog will be there..)
– March 26th, 6:30 pm, Belgian Beer & Cheese Inspired Dinner, $49/per person, Belga Cafe, 514 8th St., SE, Washington DC 20003 – Enjoy tasting menu and a very special line up of Belgian “rock star beers”
–March 27th – 5-Course Anchor Brewery Beer Dinner, $55/per person, Mayfair and Pine, 2218 Wisconsin Ave., NW -Mayfair & Pine and Anchor Brewing would like to invite you to an exclusive food and beer pairing dinner! Executive Chef Emily Sprissler and Brew Master Mark Carpenter will be your hosts during this elegantly casual evening. Chef Sprissler has chosen her pairings to develop a unique experience to create palate pleasing plates! Each course is accompanied by seasonal and perennial favorites crafted by Brew Master Mark at America’s first craft brewery in their traditional copper brewhouse. Souvenir Anchor Brewing Pint glass included! (See Complete Menu)
– March 28th, Beer & Cheese with Oxbow & The Bruery, $45/per person, Meridian Pint 3400 11th st NW , Washington DC 20010– The 6 PM seating is $45 (tax and gratuity included) and will feature Tim Adams, Oxbow Co-Founder and brewer, and at least one representative from The Bruery. Michelle Gardner
– March 28th, DC Craft Beer Bus Bar Tour, $65/per person, 801 Mt Vernon Pl NW, Washington DC 20001 – Featuring 5-6 Stops at various DC Beer Establishments (you’re on a Bus) – 21st Amendment, Elysian, Ninkasi, No-Li & Uinta Breweries plus a few surprises