The third annual St. Michaels Brew Fest gears up for Saturday, June 4th offering unique beers and a first-of- its- kind VIP ticket. The festival brings together over 70 American Craft Brews, including one offs, firkins and rarities, collaborations and casks from local, regional & national breweries. Ten new Firkins made only for the day of the event will be tapped. There is a specific tapping schedule you can follow at each venue to taste these unique offerings. One of the festival’s co-founders Ace Moritz of Eastern Shore Brewing shared “What makes this festival special is that it is attendee driven, not Distribution Company driven. These beers are curated by craft beer owners and true beer connoisseurs.”
Some of the featured Breweries include Dogfish Head Brewery – BBC – 16 Mile Brewery – Tall Tales Brewery – Eastern Shore Brewing Co – Real Ale Revival – 3rd Wave Brewing Co – Troegs Brewing Co – Devils Backbone Brewing Co. – Victory Brewing Co – Flying Dog – Port City Brewing Co. – Yards – Duclaw – Terrapin – Southern Tier – Brewers Art – Burley Oak – Lagunitas – Union Craft Brewery – DC Brau – Allagash – and that’s just to start with….
Foxy’s Harbor Grille’s owner and Brew Fest co-founder Terye Reese Knopp carries seventeen taps of craft beer at her restaurant. She explained, “We go to a lot of beer festivals both good and bad and we wanted to create our own for St. Michaels. We felt it would bring in a new younger demographic that was following the craft beer market and that was also good for tourism. It puts heads in beds too.”
New this year is a special VIP ticket aboard the double decker Patriot Cruise ship in the St. Michaels Harbor. Enjoy a one hour cruise on the Miles River with Hugh Sisson, owner of Heavy Seas Brewing. They will bring beer made especially for the cruise, only for VIP ticket holders. Music will be provided by local favorite, Emma Myers. Tickets are $100 plus tax and service fee. The cruise boards at 10:30am (next to the Crab Claw) and disembarks at 11:45am at the Crab Claw event. There are a very limited number of VIP tickets.
The St. Michaels Brew Fest organizers include Ace Moritz of Eastern Shore Brewing, Terye Reese Knopp of Foxy’s Harbor Grille, Jon Mason of the Town Dock and Tracey Jones-Wass of The Crab Claw. As organizers they also offer a Designated Driver ticket for $5.00 and partner with Check Yourself Talbot who offer free waters at hydration stations. “We applaud the Brew Fest organizers for their commitment to alcohol responsibility and are excited to again partner for the third year,” said Beth Williams, Check Yourself Talbot chairwoman. “The inaugural Brew Fest marked the first time our coalition participated in an event, and the response proved overwhelmingly positive! We handed out hundreds of waters and snacks, and had so many participants thank us for being there. This year, we’re bringing more than 1,000 waters to keep everyone hydrated. We look forward to another great festival and greatly appreciate the organizers for their continued effort toward hosting a safe – and fun – event.” The festival also has volunteers from The Rotary Club of St. Michaels coming to man the hydration stations to show fantastic community collaboration.
The Annual St. Michaels Brew Fest is always the weekend after Memorial Day. The festival hours are from 12pm to 5pm. General admission tickets are $45 plus tax and service fee. To buy tickets click www.missiontix.com or visit www.stmichaelsbrewfest.com or www.stmichaelsmd.com
St. Michaels Beer Fest Venues: The Crab Claw 304 Burns Street (right on Mill Street off Talbot), Eastern Shore Brewing at 605 S.Talbot Street(Old Mill), Foxy’s Harbor Grille at 125 Mulberry Street (right on Mulberry off Talbot)
CheckYourself Talbot is a community-based coalition of people who are committed to supporting positive and safer drinking choices among young adults. www.checkyourselftalbot.com.
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