Event_BeerFest
4/14/11
9:13 AM
Page 2
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event
By I.R. Hunthausen Photos by Phil Hanson
Beer Day Invasion The Great Arizona Beer Festival Lands on the Shore of Tempe Beach Park
up their mugs and stormed Tempe Beach Park, becoming brothers in brew and sisters in stout, at the 23rd Annual Great Arizona Beer Festival. The Arizona Sports & Lifestyle crew was there to soak up all the excitement, down to the last drop. This year the event featured over 208 craft, specialty and micro brewed beers — all of which were available for sampling. Attendees were armed with shot-sized beer mugs and stocked up with enough beer tickets (good for one free sample each) to keep even the most dedicated drinkers’ thirst at bay. Sipping brews on a warm Saturday afternoon is great, but it isn’t complete
without the food that goes with it. I’m talking about brats, burgers, barbecue — it was all there, sweet, salty and waiting. Vendors of all tastes and styles were dug in, providing fine chow to the masses. If this isn’t enough to have you eagerly anticipating next year’s event — this year there was also live music by The Crown Kings, a lavish VIP section, casino-style games, giveaways and raffles. Perhaps the best feature was the exclusive Designated Driver Pavilion, providing non-alcoholic drinks, food and free massages courtesy of Arizona School of Massage Therapy to all designated drivers. So what’s the catch you say? Nothing, in fact all the proceeds went to support the work of Sun Sounds of Arizona, which provides access to newspapers, magazines, periodicals and books for blind and print-impaired listeners by reading said materials aloud via radio, phone, internet and cable TV. Sun Sounds of Arizona even set a new record this year, netting $106,000 for the charity. The fest was a blast, at least that’s what the pictures said the next day. The Great Arizona Beer Festival is the largest of its kind in the Southwest for a reason, and a tradition we look forward to indulging in for years to come. ▲
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... the event featured over 200 craft, specialty and micro brewed beers — all of which were available for sampling.
ON MARCH 5, THOUSANDS OF EVERYDAY VALLEY CITIZENS picked