Tallahassee Brews & Burgers Festival celebrates 4th year Saturday
In 2015, Tallahassee was used as a test market by the area's local Brass Taps for the inaugural Brews & Burgers Festival.
Fast forward four years later, and the event has not only turned into a mainstay on the Big Bend's event calendar, the same festival is now being held annually at the Lakeland Brass Tap location — with plans for others around the state in the works.
"Craft beer is a very community-centered industry and we wanted to do something that would help further build that community in Tallahassee," said Bharat Chhabria, the festival's founder who owns both Tallahassee Brass Tap locations on Gaines Street and in Midtown. "The first year, we had around 200 people, and this year we expect somewhere around 500 or 600, so it's been well-received by North Florida craft beer community and continues to grow every time we do it."
The 4th Annual Tallahassee Brews & Burgers Festival, sponsored by Tallahassee marketing firm the Current Agency, goes down Saturday once again at the Midtown location — rain or shine — with the VIP hour kicking off at 2 p.m., while general admission entry begins at 3 p.m.
The event lasts until 6 p.m, and the list of breweries participating continues to be impressive.
This year, 18 craft breweries from around the country will be pouring, including all five of Tallahassee's brick-and-mortar breweries — Proof, Ology, Deep, Lake Tribe and GrassLands — as well as festival-regular, Tally Brewing Company, which will be debuting a new beer brewed in collaboration with members of the Tallahassee Beer Society called "Collabo Red Ale."
Alongside those local flavors, festival goers will also get to try beers from Florida breweries Funky Buddha (Oakland Park), Cigar City Brewing (Tampa), 3 Daughters Brewing (St. Petersburg), Motorworks Brewing (Bradenton) and Brew Bus Brewing (Tampa). Those breweries outside of Florida that area attending include Ballast Point Brewing (San Diego), Oskar Blues Brewing (Lyons, Colo.), Rogue Ales (Newport, Ore.), Sweetwater Brewery (Atlanta), Alltech's Lexington Brewing and Distilling Company (Lexington, Ky.), Victory Brewing (Downingtown, Pa.) and Southern Tier Brewing Company (Lakewood, N.Y.)
Festival-goers will receive unlimited samples of the craft brews on hand, while several area restaurants will have booths mixed in among the breweries serving slider-versions of the best burgers on its menus. The burgers are available for purchase, and five local celebrity judges will take part in a blind taste-test for the "Best Burger" award, which will be handed out at the end of the event.
The festival also serves as a fundraiser for the Tallahassee Chapter of the Network for Young Professionals, who will staff the event and then donate a portion of the proceeds to area charities and nonprofits.
Chirag Shah, founder of the Current Agency, said this event continues to be one his favorite every year to be involved in.
"When you can eat and drink for a cause, you can never go wrong," Shah said. "I love this event because it directly impacts our community."
Chhabria said a gathering of so many different breweries also gives attendees a chance to step out of their "beer comfort zones" and try many different types and styles.
"When you go to a craft beer bar, you tend to stick to what you know and like," he said. "But at a festival like this, you can try so many different kinds it takes the stress away of buying it and not knowing if you'll like it. If you don't like it, you can pour it out and don't have to drink it. And if you do, then you've officially expanded your beer horizons."
If you go
What: 4th Annual Tallahassee Brews & Burgers Festival with 18 craft breweries from around the country and area restaurants
When: 2 p.m. - VIP Hour; 3-6 p.m.- general admission
Where: Brass Tap Midtown, 1321 Thomasville Road
Cost: General Admission - $44; VIP - $70.