Rejoice , craft beer fans : DC Beer Week is upon us . Now in its 8th yr , the eight - day festivity of malt , record hop , and barm is our scenery ’s heavy display case , and from within the District to just outdoors of it , local breweries and Browning automatic rifle are take the good . If you want an mind of the profundity , quality , and range of DC - sphere brewery , calculate no further than this week ’s fete , release parties , contender , and beer dinner . But withover 50 events , choosing among the choice can be a little consuming , so we ’ve compiled a list of 10 that are gearing up to be especially great . cheerfulness !
Best chance to indulge your inner hophead:DC Beer’s Blind & Bitter: Vol. 4
Saturday , September 24th ; 12 - 4pm
Oh , you like India Pale Ales , huh ? Well , Blind & Bitter is your luck to try out 20 of the best IPAs and doubled IPAs available – although often surd to find – in the DC market . For the fourth year running , the brewski gurus at DC Beer have assail up a collection of brewery indisputable to tickle hopheads ’ palate , from local hop masters ( Ocelot , Union , DC Brau ) to nearby up - and - arriver ( Cambridge ’s RAR , Richmond ’s Triple Crossing ) to industry heavy ( Founders , Great Lakes , Firestone Walker ) . They ’re all contend for the title of estimable IPA , and you ’re the judge . On this Saturday good afternoon at ChurchKey , sampling a selection of the beer or go H.A.M. on all 20 , then vote for your darling . The turn ? It ’s a unreasoning tasting , so suss out the ballyhoo and preconceived idea at the door , and let flavor , aroma , and ( maybe ) clarity be your guide .
Friendliest event for craft beer newbies:Old Ebbitt Grill’s 4th Annual BrewHaHa
Saturday , September 24th ; 7:30 - 10:30pm
The wiliness beer world can be an intimidating spot sometimes , full of barm and foedres and IBUs , oh my . If you ’re a newbie , Old Ebbitt Grill ’s BreHaHa is a great entry point . The prescribed DC Beer Week offset draws together 10 sphere breweries , each of which will have two beers for your tasting pleasure , as well as representatives to pour … and explain what you ’re drink . And luckily , you wo n’t be doing this on an empty abdomen : beers come pair off with humble plates from an telling raiment of local eating place , including Red Apron , Smoke & Barrel , Sixth Engine , and Red Hen . For $ 75 , you get full access to all of these great bit , so whether you ’re a newbie or not , it ’s kind of a outstanding deal .
Best opportunity for the ultra hip to ride the zeitgeist:3 Stars' Hopfunk Fest
Sunday , September 25th ; 1 - 6pm
Right now , the two hottest mode in trade beer are hops - saturated IPAs and sharp-worded or ill-scented crazy ale ; the hoi polloi have spoken , and they want opposite ends of the bitterness spectrum . While some outcome narrow down in one or the other , 3 Stars pay back you a festival that can do both . That ’s exactly what the Takoma brewery is presenting with its first Hopfunk Fest , and it ’s invited some of the buzziest names in the industry to join the party . Perhaps most notable are Florida ’s J. Wakefield ( whose fruit - instill Berliner Miami Madness caused a stampede at Snallygaster over the weekend ) , the seldom - seen - in - DC Brooklyn brewery Other Half , Oregon bbl schoolmaster Logsdon Farmhouse Ales , and San Diego ’s dominating Modern Times . So allow it be hump : 3 Stars is formally sitting at the cool kids ’ board . $ 15 get you ingress to the fete , your first beer , and a sweet commemorating field glass .
Biggest olive branch to spirits aficionados:Ryes of DC
Monday , September 26th ; 5 - 10pm
Jack Rose Dining Saloon is best known for its collection of whiskey – 2,687 feeding bottle and counting ! – but the Adams Morgan establishment also has a hell of a beer program . Beer Director Nahem Simon once in a while bridges that gap by lend a local brewery a whisky ( or even a brandy ) barrel he ’s larn , and then serve the answer of the mature project at Jack Rose . On Monday , Simon debut entries two , three , and four of Jack Rose ’s ongoing Willett Rye Barrel Collaboration Series , and the beer that last into these particular barrels hail good manners of Atlas Brew Works , Port City , and Denizens , so , we ’ve got all three letters of the DMV covered . If you ’re more of a whiskey fan , this might be your night to explore the interplay of beer and hard drink - soak , charred oak tree barrels . While you ’re there , enjoy a incentive showcase of 3 Stars ’ growing portfolio of sullen ale .
Most likely to inspire a road trip:Port City’s Commonwealth Classics
Tuesday , September 27th , 6 - 9pm
In a glaring display of Southern hostility , Port City intrude on the Dupont ’s Heurich House Museum on Wednesday in a solemnisation of Virginia ’s culinary prowess , so expect mess of oysters , barbecue , Sugar Shack donuts , peanuts , and Citizen Burgers . Oh , and there will be some adult beverage in the pattern of beer , from Port City and Richmond ’s Hardywood Park , plus condense spirit from Loudoun County ’s Catoctin Creek . It ’ll be a really gracious effect at a cool venue , which is precisely the kind of thing we ’ve come to expect from the country ’s reigning Small Brewery of the Year . slenderly less expected : they ’ll be bring a few barrel - senior oddity with them , too , and as an added fillip , the Alexandriatown crieris even slate to appear , so you know this affair is going to be lit . Why go to Virginia when Virginia can come to you ?
Most likely to ruin your next workday:Battle of the Barrel Aged III
Tuesday , September 27th ; 5 - 8pm
Boundary Stone ’s Battle of the Barrel Aged is not for the swoon of nerve . The marrow of the issue is wide-eyed : four local breweries each bring one cask - ripened beer , and for $ 20 , you get to hear 5 oz pours of all them , and project a voter turnout for your favourite . The winner gets a consecrated draught demarcation at the Bloomingdale barroom , plus 365 days of bragging rights , so brewery do n’t mess around with their offerings . It all sounds innocent enough , but the next thing you know , everyone is rate full pours , ABVs start to pile up , and things get … um … foggy . Unsurprisingly , this is an especially pop event within the industry . Thankfully , Boundary Stone ’s five - year anniversary ale , 5 Spot , is a academic term IPA ( brewed by DC Brau ) , so there will be a clean alternative to spell those boozier elixirs . Still … do n’t schedule any Wednesday meeting before noon .
Classiest way to relive college:Roofers Union’s 2nd Annual DC Beer Royale
Wednesday , September 28th ; 5:30 - 12am
How long has it been since you went to a good erstwhile keg kill ? Too long , right-hand ? Revisit the halcyon days of college with Roofers Union ’s 2d DC Beer Royale , an result that play off six DC breweries against each other in the name of charity . Attendees are boost to make a donation at the room access , and whichever brewery ’s keg kicks first gets the whole pot . Of course , that potentiometer goes towards the Jacob’s ladder of the brewery ’s selection and not , say , a new hopback . essentially , there are so many win involved in this scenario that I lost count . Make it to the rooftop of the Adams Morgan roof on DC Beer Week ’s hump daylight .
Largest marker of local growth:ChurchKey’s DC Total Tap Takeover
Thursday , September 29th ; 4pm-11pm
ChurchKey has 55 gulp and cask air , and on Thursday – for the second year in a dustup – they will all fall with beer brewed , fermented , and kegged right here in the District . What ? Why are my eyes ruddy ? I ’m not crying tears of joy and local pride … I have no mind what you ’re talking about . Anyway , DC breweries will work everything in their armoury from flagship and seasonals to one - offs and tenuity . enjoin up a glass of Right Proper ’s juiceless - hopped Berliner Weiss Kick . Kick . Snare , or Hellbender ’s 100 % wheat Dunkelweisse , and wonder at how far this view has come in the preceding seven age .
Most enchanting beer dinner date:DC Brau’s Evening of Magical Mystery
Friday , September 30th ; 6pm-11pm
OK , all of these competition and festival are dandy , but what about somethingextraspecial ? What ’s an event you could bring a particular date to or , hell , even fete an day of remembrance at ? DC Brau is stepping up its game this year , offer what could be the week ’s most challenging event . What on the dot it is stay to be watch , but here ’s what we get it on : on Friday , a autobus will pick up attendee at City Center and transport them to a “ truly one - of - a - sort outdoor placement , ” where a five - course beer dinner curated by Chef Mike Friedman ( Red Hen , All Purpose ) await . They ’re bill it as an eventide of Magical Mystery , and I am purchase . I expect to see severalLady and the Trampspaghetti buss followed by sip of On the Wings of Armageddon .
Most likely to expand your horizons:Denizens' ‘Make It Funky’ Wild Beer Festival
Saturday , October 1st ; 1pm-4pm
There ’s a whole world of tart , sour , and wild beer out there . If you tried a lusterless gose or two and decided they just were n’t your affair , you might be missing out on some beer you ’d do it … of course , the only means to find out is to do the savoring for yourself . You wo n’t find a good chance to do so than Denizens ’ ‘ Make It ill-scented ’ Wild Beer Fest . On the last day of DC Beer Week , the Silver Spring will pour over 75 unlike funky beer from at least 24 craft brewery . Attendees will get a chance to see what local operation have been acetify up , while sampling more established operations like Avery and the Brewer ’s Art . Denizens will serve almost ten foetid offerings , so there ’s no doubting its dedication to the cause . Tickets cost $ 55 and spread over infinity pints … crash courses do n’t come much cheaper .
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Courtesy ChurchKey and DAKOTA FINE
Courtesy of ChurchKey and Kyle Martell
Courtesy of 3 Stars
Courtesy of Jack Rose
Courtesy of Boundary Stone
Courtesy of Churchkey and Greg Powers
Courtesy of Denizens
