While the beer industry took a hit during the height of the pandemic in 2020, it actually increased in 2021 as things started to make a comeback.
As events start to pop up around you again, you might be interested in going to your first beer festival. Whether you turned 21 in quarantine or you’ve been drinking for years and simply want to try something new, an event like this can be the perfect place to get started. What can you expect, though?
Read on for five of the best tips.
1. Hunt Down the Water
We all know staying hydrated while drinking is important, but there are other reasons it matters at a beer festival.
You only get one cup to sample from, and tastes can get jumbled up if you don’t have a place to rinse your glass. That’s why it’s important to immediately scan for water stations when you enter the event.
2. Try New Things
Don’t be afraid to try new things.
You might not like lagers in your day-to-day, but you shouldn’t assume you simply dislike them all. You might end up enjoying the second one you try, or even the tenth you try five beer festivals from now. The point is to branch out.
It’s easy to stick with what you’re comfortable with, but it’s beneficial (and even fun) to get out of your comfort zone at times. You have nothing to lose at a beer festival, so it’s the perfect place to do it.
3. It’s OK to Pour it Out
If you don’t end up enjoying a brew, though, don’t be afraid to pour it out. It might sound like blasphemy, but it isn’t going to make a difference.
You can also offer it to your friends if you don’t enjoy the taste, but it’s OK to dump one or two if nobody ends up biting.
4. Scan the Scenery
It’s easy to linger at the first few booths the entire time, but you’ll end up missing out on a lot of different tasting opportunities. To play things safe, grab a beer at the beginning and then take a stroll to check out the rest of the booths.
This will help you eye out some of the options you’d like to try, and it’ll help you end the potential FOMO you might’ve been feeling over missing beers.
Ready for Your First Beer Festival?
Your first beer festival is an exciting thing — especially if you live in an area with a big craft beer scene. It’s the perfect place to try new things and learn more about the beer scene around you. It can feel nerve-wracking if you’re going with people who avidly attend events — they know all the lingo and can talk about distinct flavors for hours, so why would you belong?
That doesn’t matter, though. What matters is having fun and enjoying yourself. Take a look at our events calendar to find the next beer festival to check out.
