As October continues on the Plains, Auburn's Oktoberfest returns on Saturday Oct. 19 at the Agricultural Heritage Park with some of the best breweries in the country. As one of the largest beer festivals in the south, the event will feature a wide variety of live music, contests, dog races, food trucks and a large selection of local and national brewers. More than a dozen homebrewers will be competing at the festival for the votes of attendees to be anointed the best homebrewer in central Alabama.
Originating from the German state of Bavaria, Oktoberfest occurs at the beginning of fall, a traditional beer festival with carnival activities. Originally started as a way to promote agricultural harvests, the event quickly spread worldwide and became the largest annual beer festival to ever be held.
Auburn saw the first iteration of Oktoberfest in 2008, quickly becoming the favorite beer event of many Auburn students and residents. Now in the fourteenth year of operation, the festival is set to return once again with more activities than ever before.
Hosted by Ithaka Hospitality Partners, the festival, previously recognized as one of the best events by Southeast Tourism Society, will begin at 3 p.m. on Saturday. Over 60 different beer and wine breweries are already set to appear, with more to be added in the coming days. The brewers, offering over 175 different beverages, will appear in the 21+ tasting area, which offers attendees the opportunity to sample the products and get to know many of the companies.
The event serves as a way to introduce new patrons to up-and-coming breweries from Alabama and beyond, as well as celebrate the annual German-based holiday.
Separated from these brewers will be the "Homebrew Alley" section of the event, where over a dozen different central Alabama homebrewers will appear. Attendees will cast their vote to name which homebrewer is the best, which will be named at the end of the evening's events.
With over 3,000 expected guests at the event, there will be a large selection of live music featured at the event. Performances include Kidd Blue and the War Damn Polka Band, as well as German-style classical ballet performances by The Brenna Ballet Institute.
The evening will feature many other events, including the Samuel Adams Beer Stein Holding Contest, a Bavarian tradition wherein competitors hold a full one-liter beer stein in front of them for as long as possible. Weiner dog racing and stein racing, trademarks of the festival, will also be held this year. A pretzel stick toss, chicken dance contest and a medallion hunt will also take place at the park, as well as other yard games for patrons to enjoy.
Auburn Oktoberfest offers a variety of different ticketing packages for attendees, with separate general admission and beer/wine tasting tickets available. Guests under the age of 21 are allowed to attend the event, but may not enter tasting areas. A variety of non-alcoholic beverages will also be available, and a designated driver tent will be setup for guests. Dogs are allowed at the event as long as they remain leashed at all times.
The event will also see the addition of Friday Night Beer and Family Style Dinner on Oct 18 at the Hey Day Market on the lawn. New this year, the event will take place prior to the festival itself and will serve to kickoff activities. The evening will feature a ceremonial keg tapping, as well as live music from the War Damn Polka Band. Tickets for the dinner are available in separate ticket packages.
The Saturday event is set to conclude at 7 p.m. following the festivities.
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