New West Virginia Beer Festival:
Some of my friends, who happen to be native West Virginians and very Mountaineer proud, have not appreciated my labeling the Country Roads State, "The Vast Wasteland Void of Craft Beer".
Unfortunately, the State beer remains Bud or Bud Light and in some beer establishments Shock Top at the worst or Yuengling at the best is considered to be craft beer.
OK.... before my West Virginia wife throws me out of the house, I must admit the craft beer scene is changing for the better. Progress is slow, but the craft beer revolution is taking hold in Wild Wonderful West Virginia. The State Government has passed Legislation that permits breweries to brew beer slightly above 11% ABV and has made it easier for breweries to sell their beer on site. The laws are not perfect, however, they have come a long way from the days of selling near beer ( less than 3% ABV). There is a light shinning at the end of the tunnel for Craft Beer and it's not the Coors Express. The brewers have responded and there are now 18 breweries in the WV, with more on the drawing board. Watch Out Inbev distributors your WV beer market share is dropping.
In addition to the growth of Breweries, Beer Festivals are starting to sprout around the Mountain State. Snowshoe Mountain , a topnotch skiing and year round resort, is the Venue for the Brews, Blues and BBQ festival. Not a large festival for brews, however, it was the start. One of the larger beer festivals is the Rails & Ales Festival in Huntington, WV. This festival inspired the Mayor of Bridgeport, WV and his wife to start the " SOUND WAVES and IPAS Festival". This was the first WV Beer Festival I attended. There was a nice variety of WV Brewery beer available along with a few other national craft breweries. The music was good, the food was provided by a few food trucks( the best ran out of food early). All in All it was a very nice event, which I'm sure they will make improvements for the 2nd Annual Sound Waves and IPAS Festival in June 2017.
If the Craft Beer Revolution continues to grow, almost Heaven WV, Blue Ridge Mountains, Shenandoah River, Mountain Mamma, Country Roads, may lead you to a nice craft beer.
Some of my friends, who happen to be native West Virginians and very Mountaineer proud, have not appreciated my labeling the Country Roads State, "The Vast Wasteland Void of Craft Beer".
Unfortunately, the State beer remains Bud or Bud Light and in some beer establishments Shock Top at the worst or Yuengling at the best is considered to be craft beer.
OK.... before my West Virginia wife throws me out of the house, I must admit the craft beer scene is changing for the better. Progress is slow, but the craft beer revolution is taking hold in Wild Wonderful West Virginia. The State Government has passed Legislation that permits breweries to brew beer slightly above 11% ABV and has made it easier for breweries to sell their beer on site. The laws are not perfect, however, they have come a long way from the days of selling near beer ( less than 3% ABV). There is a light shinning at the end of the tunnel for Craft Beer and it's not the Coors Express. The brewers have responded and there are now 18 breweries in the WV, with more on the drawing board. Watch Out Inbev distributors your WV beer market share is dropping.
In addition to the growth of Breweries, Beer Festivals are starting to sprout around the Mountain State. Snowshoe Mountain , a topnotch skiing and year round resort, is the Venue for the Brews, Blues and BBQ festival. Not a large festival for brews, however, it was the start. One of the larger beer festivals is the Rails & Ales Festival in Huntington, WV. This festival inspired the Mayor of Bridgeport, WV and his wife to start the " SOUND WAVES and IPAS Festival". This was the first WV Beer Festival I attended. There was a nice variety of WV Brewery beer available along with a few other national craft breweries. The music was good, the food was provided by a few food trucks( the best ran out of food early). All in All it was a very nice event, which I'm sure they will make improvements for the 2nd Annual Sound Waves and IPAS Festival in June 2017.
If the Craft Beer Revolution continues to grow, almost Heaven WV, Blue Ridge Mountains, Shenandoah River, Mountain Mamma, Country Roads, may lead you to a nice craft beer.