After many weeks of many festivals, things slow down a bit this weekend. You might head to North Carolina for Outer Banks Pig Stein 08. Or over to Leesburg where Hamburg Döner is holding an Oktoberfest celebration. Otherwise stop by for a beer tasting at a local local retailer.

Friday, October 24 - 5:00 - 8:00pm
Total Wine, Fredericksburg
Friday 5 @ 5 Beer Tasting:
Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout, Troegs Mad Elf Ale, Magic Hat #9, Flying Dog In Heat Wheat, Otter Creek Pale Ale

Friday, September 24 - 5:30 - 8:30pm
Virginia Wine Experience, Fredericksburg
Beer Tasting:
Rogue Double Dead Guy Ale 2008, Legend Tripel

Friday, October 24 - 5:30 - 7:30pm
Corks and Kegs, Richmond
Beer Tasting:
Gouden Carolus Classic Brown, Otter Creek Copper Ale, Golden Pheasant Traditional

Saturday, October 25 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Kybecca, Fredericksburg
Beer Tastings in 2 Locations:
William Street (Downtown):
McChouffe Belgian Brown Ale, Legend Tripel, plus 1 Customer Choice
Plank Road (Next to Ukrops)
Coney Island Freaktoberfest, Legend Tripel, plus 1 Customer Choice

Saturday, October 25 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Rick's Wine, Alexandria
Beer Tasting:
Charles Wells Banana Bread, Clipper City Winter Storm, Boulder Brewing Co. Never Summer Ale, Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale 2008, He'Brew Jewbelation 12th Anniversary

Every Saturday, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
Blue & Gray Brewery, Fredericksburg
Beer samples and brewery tours

Please support the folks who bring us these events. Let them know there is an active craft beer community in the area. When you attend any of these events, tell us about it in the comments, and be sure to let the proprietor know you heard about it here.
Have something to add? Let me know, my contact information is here.

Event schedules subject to change. Call ahead before traveling.

Saturday, October 18, 2008
8:00 am—2:30 pm
1380 Central Park Blvd, Ste. 109
Look for us at left of Ice Park
Directions: Take road that runs between Border’s &
Target (Trade St.) . Proceed straight past Chuck E
Cheese towards the Ice Park.
We are next door on the left.

The Fredericksburg Brewing and Tasting Society meets this Saturday at Kybecca. The theme for this month is "Oktoberfest beers." Also, in Baltimore, the 5th Annual Chesapeake Real Ale Festival takes place on Saturday.

And, as usual, local retailers offer plenty of opportunities for tasting some new beers.

Friday, October 17 - 5:00 - 8:00pm
Total Wine, Fredericksburg
Friday 5 @ 5 Beer Tasting:
Lancaster Hop Hog, Rogue Dead Guy Ale, Brooklyn Oktoberfest, Carib Lager, Miller Chill

Saturday, October 17 - 5:00 - 8:00pm
Rick's Wine, Alexandria
Beer Tasting:
Victory Moonglow Weizenbock, Moylan's Kilt Lifter Scotch Ale, Victory Hop Wallop, Moylan's Moylander DIPA

Friday, October 17 - 5:30 - 7:30pm
Corks and Kegs, Richmond
Beer Tasting:
Rogue Morimoto Black Obi Soba Ale, Bell's Special Double Cream Stout, Hacker-Pschorr Weisse Dark

Saturday, October 18 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Kybecca, Fredericksburg
Beer Tastings in 2 Locations:
William Street (Downtown):
Dogfish Head Punkin Ale, Bell's Two Hearted IPA, plus 1 Customer Choice
Plank Road (Next to Ukrops)
Victory Moonglow Weizenbock, Blue and Gray Borman's Belgian, plus 1 Customer Choice

Saturday, October 18 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Rick's Wine, Alexandria
Beer Tasting Featuring Brad Phillips of Sierra Nevada:
Sierra Nevada Porter, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Sierra Nevada Harvest Ale

Every Saturday, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
Blue & Gray Brewery, Fredericksburg
Beer samples and brewery tours

Please support the folks who bring us these events. Let them know there is an active craft beer community in the area. When you attend any of these events, tell us about it in the comments, and be sure to let the proprietor know you heard about it here.
Have something to add? Let me know, my contact information is here.

Event schedules subject to change. Call ahead before traveling.

The Great American Beer Festival is taking place in Denver Thursday through Saturday. If you're reading this, you're probably not at GABF. But that's okay, there are still things to do locally. In Timonium, MD the Maryland Brewer's Oktoberfest is being held on Saturday.

And don't forget these free tastings sponsored by local retailers.

Friday, October 10 - 5:00 - 8:00pm
Total Wine, Fredericksburg
Friday 5 @ 5 Beer Tasting:
Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest, Erdinger Weissbier, Lagunitas Only In It For The Money (a Belgian-style Tripel), Sea Dog Blueberry Wheat, Saranac Pumpkin Ale

Friday, October 10 - 5:30 - 7:30pm
Corks and Kegs, Richmond
Beer Tasting:
Floreffe Tripel Ale, Samuel Smiths Organic Cider, Harviestoun Old Engine Oil Black Ale

Saturday, October 11 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Kybecca, Fredericksburg
Beer Tastings in 2 Locations:
William Street (Downtown):
Coney Island Freaktoberfest, Bell's Hell Hath No Fury Ale, plus 1 Customer Choice
Plank Road (Next to Ukrops)
Southern Tier Pumking Ale, Hofbrau Oktoberfest, plus 1 Customer Choice

Saturday, October 11 - 12:00 - 5:00 pm
Rick's Wine, Alexandria
French Artisanal Breweries Featuring Jocelyn Cambier, Importer:
Brasserie Mont-Blanc: Mont-Blanc La Verte
Brasserie Mandrin: Amber With Walnuts, Amber With Pine Tree Buds & Needles
Brasserie La Sancerroise: Rose Blanche, La Drolesse, Val d'Or, au Gruyt
Brasserie du Bouffay: L'Orge Du Bouffay Organic
Brasserie St. Rieul: Grand Cru

Every Saturday, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
Blue & Gray Brewery, Fredericksburg
Beer samples and brewery tours

Please support the folks who bring us these events. Let them know there is an active craft beer community in the area. When you attend any of these events, tell us about it in the comments, and be sure to let the proprietor know you heard about it here.
Have something to add? Let me know, my contact information is here.

Event schedules subject to change. Call ahead before traveling.

This weekend three friends and I headed south to attend the World Beer Festival in Durham, North Carolina. As Frank, Jerry and I did last Spring when we attended the WBF in Raleigh, we made a weekend getaway of it.

Cris, Frank, Jerry and I started our trip on Friday afternoon. Our first stop in Durham was Sam's Quik Mart where we stocked up on beers we can't buy in Virginia. After checking into our hotel, the four of us headed over to Tyler's Tap Room. Tyler's was highly recommended due to it's extensive beer list and the beer list didn't disappoint. We enjoyed several "flights" of assorted beers before settling on standard servings of beer with dinner. After dinner we moved over to Tyler's Speakeasy to spend several hours playing pool and enjoying more good beers. A WBF brewer's reception was taking place on the outside patio. Though I wasn't on the guest list I did get to talk to many of the attendees as they walked in and out of the party. During the evening I also finally got to meet in person Stephanie Kerchner from Flying Dog Brewery. Stephanie is the kind person who regularly sends me samples of new Flying Dog beer. She's an enthusiastic promoter of Flying Dog beers and events.

Saturday it was time for the weekend's main event. We had tickets to the afternoon session, noon - 4:00PM. After a hearty breakfast we walked over to the Durham Bulls Athletic Park about an hour before the starting time. When we arrived there was no line yet, but that quickly changed as folks started arriving and the line quickly grew and wrapped around the stadium. About 30 minutes before opening WBF staff came out to check ID's and issue wristbands. (A note to wristband volunteers, the wristband should not cut into the wearer's circulation. A few of us had our overly tight bands replaced when we next saw an ID checker.) Before the gates opened our bar-coded tickets were scanned and we were issued green admission tickets. Both of these pre-opening procedures serve to speed getting through the gates at opening time. Hope for a fast entry process was a topic overheard in the line, and those hopes were fulfilled.

Once inside we funneled down the stadium steps onto the infield where the tents were set up. The entire festival ground was covered by interlocking plastic tiles. This "flooring" provided a clean and comfortable surface. I spoke with Julie Bradford, the festival co-producer, about these tiles. She told me they were new to the stadium, and in fact, when used short term, are actually good for the turf. The tiles aerate the turf and prevent it from being compressed by all the foot traffic.

We spent the next 4 hours trying out new beers, and revisiting old favorites. It was also a good time to talk with friends, both new and old. I'm sure there were as many picks for stand out beers as there were attendees. I won't even attempt to go in to all the good beers. I don't take many notes while enjoying a festival. I was pleased to see that Old Dominion Brewing was in attendance and had brought along some "specialty beers." I was told that the special tap would have three different beers throughout the afternoon, though I only managed to get by the booth once, for the Bourbon Barrel Aged Robust Porter. This porter had a bourbon aroma and a smooth, roasted flavor. The bourbon flavor was reserved and well-balanced. It's nice to know that the brewers at Old Dominion are still producing creative beers. Dominion brewery gets a lot of grief from local beer lovers, a lot of it based on internet hearsay and emotion. However, the talented brewers there are still producing unique and special beers.

A brewery I was surprised to see represented was New Belgium Brewing Company of Fort Collins, Colorado. They sent just one beer, their Fat Tire Amber Ale. New Belgium does not ship any of its beers east of the Mississippi. Fat Tire is the most well-known of the New Belgium beers, but I would have like to have seen some of their other beers as well. Folks on the east coast frequently lament the absence of New Belgium beers, and the booth at the festival was very busy, even with just the one beer. I asked the person pouring the Fat Tire about their presence at the festival even though the beers aren't distributed here, and was told simply "Wait 90 days."

I met up with Thomas Vincent, who writes the Geistbear Brewing Blog. Thomas and I had arranged via Twitter to meet up. Between his trademark fedora and the bright orange shirt I wore we found each other easily. It's always fun to meet fellow beer bloggers and Thomas and I had an enjoyable conversation. I also ran into bloggers Lew Bryson, Jay Brooks, and Rick Lyke, though we didn't get to chat much.

There were close to 150 breweries from all over the US and many other countries represented at the 13th Annual World Beer Festival. There were many North Carolina and other eastern breweries in attendance. Despite the "World" appellation, the local beer community provides the foundation for WBF. This year's event location was changed late in the game to the Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The organizers did an exceptional job in putting together a well-organized and well-laid out festival despite the last minute change in venue. I was speaking with a beer industry leader recently who told me that, after GABF, the World Beer Festival in Durham was perhaps the next best beer festival in the US. I've not been privileged to attend a lot of beer fests, but I can say that WBF is indeed exceptional. I'm looking forward to the next one.

Pictures often tell a better story than words. I've posted some pictures from the World Beer Festival here.