FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Great American Beer Festival® in Downtown Denver
Savor Americas finest beer at this world-class event.
Boulder, Colo. 09.06.2002-Where can you sample over 1,200 of Americas
finest beers in a single weekend? At the nations largest beer festival
Denvers Great American Beer Festival (GABF). The excitement begins
Thursday, Oct. 3 and runs till Saturday, Oct. 5, 2002 at the Colorado
Convention Center, located 14th St. and Stout St.
Approximately 22,000 beer enthusiasts from Denver and across the globe will
peruse Americas brewing landscape and enjoy one-ounce samples from more
than 300 American breweries during this three-day festival. A showcase, if
you will, of Americas finest beers.
What people in Denver dont realize is that Denver is considered the Munich
of the West, the Napa Valley of beer, remarks downtown business owner John
Hickenlooper of Wynkoop Brewery. This is the greatest opportunity in the
world to sample a full array of styles and appreciate the incredible
diversity of beer that America has to offer.
Want to sample a beer from Virginia or Hawaii? How about those great Alaskan
beers you tasted on vacation, but cant get at your local liquor store.
Breweries are arranged by regions of the country on the festival floor. If
you dont remember your geography you can always consult the giant
color-coded maps to help you navigate. When you step up for your one-ounce
sample you might just be served by the brewer themselves.
The Great American Beer Festival is a terrific event, says Chris Black,
owner of Falling Rock Tap House, located at 1919 Blake St. Its like the
Super Bowl of beer events. Black has been celebrating the festival at the
Falling Rock Tap House for years, making sure festival beers are on tap at
his bar. A festival count-down clock hangs above Falling Rocks doorway,
exciting beer enthusiasts about the festival weeks before the event.
Public tasting sessions are offered 5:30 -10 p.m. Thursday, Friday and
Saturday nights and are $35 in advance and $40 at the door. Special
Connoisseur Tasting Session Saturday afternoon is also open to the public
for $50. The public tasting sessions sell out quickly so advance-ticket
purchases are strongly recommended. A $15 Designated Driver ticket and
special group discounts are also available. Each ticket gets you a coupon
for a $20 lift ticket from Winter Park Resort, a tasting glass, a festival
program and a six-ounce pour in the beer garden.
The festival also hosts one of the worlds largest and most prestigious
tasting competitions. Ninety professional judges, called the Professional
Judge Panel, from the U.S. and abroad will evaluate approximately 1,900
beers entered by more than 400 domestic breweries during the two and a half
days of the GABF Beer Judging, prior to the public sessions. Gold, silver
and bronze medals in 58 beer-style categories will be awarded Oct. 5 at the
1:30 p.m. awards ceremony held during the Special Connoisseur Tasting
Session. A dont miss for beer lovers!
Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased in advance from the Great
American Beer Festivals official web site,
www.beertown.org, the
Association of Brewers 303.447.0816, finer Denver area beer retailers and
restaurants or at ticket outlets, including all Ticketmaster locations (or
by phone at 303.830.TIXS), Argonaut Liquor Store, Falling Rock Tap House,
Wynkoop Brewing Co., Boulder Liquor Mart, Beer At Home, Union Liquor and
Applejack Liquor.
Sponsors of the 2002 Great American Beer Festival include: Anheuser-Busch,
Inc, Westword, The Mountain 99.5 FM, Pabst Brewing Company, Colorado
Lottery, AT&T Broadband, Petes Brewing Company and
www.beertown.org.
The Great American Beer Festival has been held every year since 1982 and is
presented by the Association of Brewers, a not-for-profit educational and
trade organization founded in 1978 that is devoted to making quality brewing
and beer information available to anyone. The Association of Brewers also
hosts the bi-annual World Beer Cup® and is based in Boulder, Colo., U.S.A.
# # #
Cindy Jones
Sales and Marketing Director
Association of Brewers
303.447.0816 x 144
cindy(a)aob.org
The Great American Beer Festival
October 3-5, 2002 Colorado Convention Center
Visit
www.beertown.org for details!