Special Event Brewers, beer fans to gather for conference, public festival - Arkansas Online
Craft beer lovers and brewers across Arkansas will converge at the State Fairgrounds in Little Rock this weekend for the first Arkansas Brewers Conference and Festival. Brewers from several Arkansas-based breweries will gather to talk beer and business on Friday and Saturday afternoon, and on Saturday night, the grounds will open to the public for the festival. Breweries will be serving samples of beer at the event, including Bubba Brew's, Lost Forty, Rebel Kettle, Stone's Throw, Saddlebock, Damgoode, Diamond Bear, Vino's, Fossil Cove, Leap of Faith, Apple Blossom and Ozark Beer. The festival is being organized by the Arkansas Brewers Guild, a nonprofit group dedicated to promoting Arkansas breweries. Ian Beard of Stone's Throw Brewing in Little Rock says the festival was created after the guild decided it wanted to gather as many Arkansas brewers as possible in one central location. "I said, 'If we're all going to get together and learn something about each other, if we're gonna get together at all, we better pour some beer too,'" Beard says. Tickets are available for $9. 99, which includes entry and 10 beer samples, or $19. 99, which includes entry along with 25 beer samples and a souvenir glass. Proceeds from tickets to the Saturday night festival will go to help fund the guild, Beard says. Source: www.arkansasonline.com
