Warning

JUser: :_load: Unable to load user with ID: 752

Sunday, 29 November -0001 19:03

Saratoga On Tap

By | News

SARATOGA SPRINGS - I hope you’re thirsty, because the First Annual Saratoga Beer Week is set to kick off its run Thursday, February 23. The inaugural Beer Week is presented by Saratoga.com and Saratoga Festivals. This 21 and up event will take place over the course of three days, culminating with a pair of beer tasting summits at the Saratoga Springs City Center February 25. The featured events throughout the weekend include seminars on various topics relating to beer, and an exclusive rare beer and food pairing supper. Event representatives expect over 80 different breweries to be involved during the festival. Tickets must be purchased to all the featured events, and are available online at
www.saratogabeerweek.com

The First Annual Saratoga Beer Week is brought to you by the same group that hosts the Saratoga Brewfest each summer and Oktobeerfest in autumn. Garth Ellms and AJ Bodden of Saratoga Festivals say the success of Saratoga Brew Fest led to the creation of Saratoga Beer Week, as a way to break up the end of February with an annual citywide event. 


While Saratoga Brew Fest is more of a craft beer event, Saratoga Beer Week will offer a bit more in the way of variety. While the craft breweries will be represented in full force, Beer Week will include a more international selection, with breweries from places ranging from Chile to Poland and much more in between. 


If you’re so much of a beer fanatic that you’re planning to attend all the festivities, you may be interested in purchasing a “Beer Week Passport.”  Passport holders are granted entry into each of the marquee events during the week, without having to purchase a separate ticket.  Passports will only be sold prior to Beer Week, so be sure to purchase yours ahead of time. If you can’t make it to any of the featured events, you can try and attend dozens of promotions being held at local restaurants and venues over the course of the weekend.  Admission for many of the local promotions is free, but expect a cash bar at most venues.


With literally dozens of promotions taking place throughout the weekend, you’ll be able to experience what makes Saratoga Beer Week such a unique event. On February 23, you can head on down to the tasting room at Olde Saratoga Brewery to take part in the kick off party. Brewers from all over New York State will be in attendance for you to meet, and they’ll be serving up some rare brews for your tasting pleasure. New York State is home to many great craft breweries such as Brooklyn, Davidson Brothers, Ommegang, Brown’s and the unofficial host of Saratoga Beer Week, Olde Saratoga.


“It’s a unique chance for customers to try different New York State-brewed beer, all in one place,” said Max Oswald of Olde Saratoga Brewery. 


February 24 offers more in the way of beer education, with two separate seminars being held at the Saratoga Springs City Center. The first session starts bright and early at 9 a.m., and touches on food pairing and home brewing. Andy Schwarz, head brew master for Redhook, Widmer Brothers and Kona, will be speaking on his experiences running a craft brewery. Seminar two will feature speaker Adon Allen, the Brewing Ambassador with Anheuser-Busch. Tickets to each seminar are $30 and free to passport holders.


February 24 will feature a “Grand Food and Rare Beer” tasting event exclusive to passport holders only. Each brewery will be paired with a food of choice and participants can enjoy local musicians while mingling with national brewers.


February 25 gets going early too, as Olde Saratoga Brewery will offer tours of their brewery starting at 10 a.m.  This is in anticipation for the main event of Saratoga Beer Week, the pair of tasting sessions at the Saratoga Springs City Center.  Session one runs 12:30 p.m. - 4 p.m. and session two will take place from 5 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.  The only difference between the two sessions is when you’d like to start drinking. Tickets are $20 in advance, $30 at the door.  Summit tickets are going fast, so be sure to get yours ahead of time.  Your ticket includes admission, four beer or food sampling tickets, and a commemorative sampling glass.  More beer tickets can be purchased at the event. 


Ellms says he’d like to add a day each year, eventually making it a full week-long celebration. For now, the three-day festival is as much an experiment as it is a chance to bring a fun new tradition to downtown Saratoga Springs each February. The size of the festival should already rival the annual New York State TAP Festival in Hunter Mountain each spring, which featured 72 breweries at their 2011 festival.

Read 20823 times

Media

NULL

Blotter

  • New York State Police The New York State Police announced that it issued 5,576 tickets during this year’s St. Patrick’s Day enforcement initiative. The campaign began on Friday, March 15, and continued until Sunday, March 17. During the campaign, funded by the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee, State Police utilized sobriety checkpoints, additional DWI patrols, and underage drinking and sales to minors detail. State Police also ticketed distracted drivers who use handheld electronic devices. State Troopers arrested 132 people for DWI and investigated 199 crashes, which resulted in 25 people being injured and no fatalities. As part of the enforcement, Troopers also…

Property Transactions

  • BALLSTON Heather DiCaprio sold property at 473 Garrett Rd to Justine Levine for $288,000 Sharon Willman sold property at 99 Jenkins Rd to Charles Lemley for $165,000 CORINTH George Montena sold property at 422 Oak St to Stephen James for $142,250 Mark Makler sold property at 313 Oak St to Sabrina Sinagra for $195,000 GREENFIELD Landlord Services of Upstate New York sold property at 1935 NYS Rt 9N to Cochise Properties LLC for $210,000 MALTA  Linda LaBarge sold property at 35 Snowberry Rd to Qu Haozheng for $270,000 Dennis Mitchell sold property at 60 Village Circle North to BGRS Relocation…
  • NYPA
  • Saratoga County Chamber
  • BBB Accredited Business
  • Discover Saratoga
  • Saratoga Springs Downtown Business Association