Those who have ventured to Denver to experience the glorious spectacle of breweries from across the country lined up in a giant hall to show off their beers to thousands of eventgoers, know the majesty of the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) is unquestionable. The three-day, four-session affair goes by the term “festival,” but it’s really more of a convention for ale and lager lovers and the beer-curious. Think Comic Con, with breweries inserted in place of sci-fi, fantasy and graphic-novel properties. Like that momentous mass gathering, GABF won’t be taking place this year…at least not in its traditional format. But thanks to its organizers at national trade organization, the Brewers Association (BA), and its partners at The Brewing Network, a fun plan B will be accessible online.
Obviously, there is no way to virtually pour thousands of beers, so the BA is getting creative, feeding peoples’ minds instead of slaking their thirst, by offering two days of programming on October 16 and 17, which will be available exclusively to holders of GABF passports that can be purchased online and will entitle their owners to deals at breweries nationwide from October 1-18. (Participating San Diego breweries include Ballast Point Brewing, Belching Beaver Brewery, Coronado Brewing, Deft Brewing, Dos Desperados Brewery, Ebullition Brew Works, Eppig Brewing, Gravity Heights, Karl Strauss Brewing, The Lost Abbey, North Park Beer Co., Pure Project Brewing, Rincon Reservation Road Brewery, Second Chance Beer Co., Smoking Cannon Brewery, Societe Brewing, Stone Brewing, TapRoom Beer Co., Thorn Brewing, WestBrew and White Labs.) The agenda will include guided beer-and-food tastings, with suggested beer styles and food items being listed ahead of time so that viewers can follow along to some extent.
Topical presentations and discussions pertaining to beer fans and members of the brewing industry will also be held. Pizza Port co-founder Gina Marsaglia and The Lost Abbey’s partner and Director of Brewing Operations Tomme Arthur will be the focus of a “Beerscapades” session at 7:20 p.m., Friday, October 16. The San Diego County operations they established have amassed more than 100 GABF medals between them. Marsaglia and Arthur will talk about how Pizza Port spawned The Lost Abbey, both operations’ rise to prominence and the many brewers who helped bring home the aforementioned awards.
Rounding out (and kicking off) the online content will be the GABF awards ceremony, where the winners of gold, silver and bronze medals in more than 100 beer-style categories are announced. In addition to being a free-for-all festival, GABF is also the largest, most revered annual brewing competition in the country. Last year’s edition included 9,497 entries from 2,295 breweries in all 50 states. Judging was conducted, in-person in Denver (following social-distancing and other health-oriented guidelines) last week. Certified judges from across the country made time to travel during the pandemic, a sign of how significant this competition is to the industry as a whole.
“We are thankful to be able to move forward with this year’s competition and have the opportunity to award brewers’ achievements and generate consumer awareness for beer styles and trends,” said Bob Pease, CEO of the BA. “We look forward to celebrating the annual accomplishments in brewing excellence and unveiling this year’s winners.” The BA expects more than 7,000 entries in the 2020 competition.
And while GABF is “the big show,” the events that take place in downtown Denver during the festival make up a large part of the overall experience. One that’s been going strong and attracting nth-level beer fans for 12 years is the Denver Rare Beer Tasting. Held each year to support charity campaign, Pints for Prostates, it’s a ticketed event that sees some of the hardest-to-procure small batch, aged and experimental creations from the country’s premier brewing companies rolled out for one amazing afternoon session. Due to COVID-19, it, too, is going virtual, and like GABF, leaning on members of the brewing industry to provide content and help to raise funds to raise awareness about prostate cancer.
The virtual edition of the Denver Rare Beer Tasting will take place from September 25-27. Each day will include virtual bottle shares where viewers are encouraged to finally pop the cork on that rare beer they’ve been holding on to, meet-and-greets with brewers (including Arthur, who will pair up with Lauren Limbach of New Belgium Brewing for his session at 1 p.m. on Saturday, September 26) and panel discussions moderated by brewery owners, beer media and more.
On the beer front, nearly half of the 70-plus participating breweries will hold releases at their locations to coincide with the virtual event, and ticketholders will be able to order an exclusive blended beer called Whole Sum Parts from Garden Path Fermentation online. There will also be a Beer Lovers Online Auction where bucket-list experiences and unique collectibles can be bid upon. A commemorative glass and t-shirt will be included in the price of tickets, as well. Additionally, those who participate this year will have access to VIP benefits that will not be made available to other ticket buyers at next year’s in-person Denver Rare Beer Tasting.
Here’s hoping large group gatherings aren’t so daunting in 2021, and here’s saluting the ingenuity allowing two yearly beer-culture staples to safely soldier on during a pandemic.