4th Annual Festival of Iowa Beers
Sunday, August 31, 1-5 pm at Millstream Brewing Company in Amana, Iowa. Yes, okay, it’s a small festival — but hey, it’s ours. I’ll be there, talking about and signing copies of my book. (Millstream’s press release omitted that information. Bummer.)
3 Responses to “4th Annual Festival of Iowa Beers”
This is a fun little festival. The brewers themselves are usually the ones pouring. Iowa homebrewing clubs show up in good numbers to pour their beers alongside the pros. Always an intertaining day.Find a driver or a hotel room. After 4 hours of beer in the Amanas there is no way to walk home.
Good to see these fests are happening elsewhere–I do think they are key in developing a market for local beers. So how many breweries are there in Iowa?Even the Oregon Brewers Fest started out small!
There are only maybe nine or ten breweries, of which two are chain restaurants. It’s definitely not Oregon or California — or whatever.Part of the problem is that Iowa is still quite rural, and the state’s population is very small, so it’s hard to support a brewing scene. But the laws here are also not exactly pro-beer. I think 5% is now permitted (as opposed to the 3.2% of 20 years ago), but that’s about it.But, hey, it’s Iowa! So the festival will be fun. Plus members of the Iowa Homebrewers Union will be there, and they’re a great group of people.