Craft Beer and Cider Tasting Booms at Sonoma County Harvest Fair
Step aside chardonnay; make way for the I.P.A.! The Sonoma County Harvest Fair announces the return of craft beers and ciders to the Tasting Pavilion at the Harvest Fair, October 2-4. The Harvest Fair, which is now in its 41st year, celebrates Sonoma County’s fine wines and culinary wealth, and more recently its handcrafted beers and ciders—the region’s newest artisan beverages gaining world-wide attention.
“This is our third year of showcasing Sonoma County beers and ciders at the Harvest Fair, in addition to our world-class wines,” says Katie Fonsen Young, Interim Manager of the Sonoma County Events Center at the Fairgrounds. “Our craft beers and ciders are highly sought-after and the demand to taste them at the Harvest Fair has grown each year,” she adds. “We’re excited to showcase this booming industry and to give fairgoers the chance to taste from more than a dozen local breweries and cider makers.”
One of the breweries on tap to pour at the Harvest Fair is Moonlight Brewing Company of Santa Rosa, which won the 2015 Harvest Fair award for Excellence in the Craft Beer Industry. Moonlight’s brew master Brian Hunt, who uses Redwood twigs from the tree in his front yard to create his popular “Working for Tips” beer, says the industry is on fire right now with amazing growth and phenomenal product being produced.
“I’d say we’re in the midst of a revolution.” says Hunt. “In 1980, when I got out of brewing school, there were 43 craft breweries in the World. Today, we have that many in Sonoma and Napa counties alone. Plus, we’re using new ingredients or some not found in a beer mug since The Middle Ages; and based on sales, I’d say people like it,” Hunt adds.
More than one dozen local breweries and cider makers are currently slated to pour in the Tasting Pavilion at the Harvest Fair including: Petaluma’s 101 North Brewing Co., Lagunitas Brewing Company, Petaluma Hills and Henhouse Brewing Company; Ace Cider Co. and Specific Gravity Cider Company of Sebastopol; Healdsburg’s Bear Republic Brewing Co.; Carneros Brewing of Sonoma; Fogbelt Brewing Company, Foxcraft Hard Cider and Moonlight Brewing Company of Santa Rosa; and Windsor’s Old Redwood Brewing and St. Florian Brewery.
The Grand Tasting Pavilion is open Friday, October 2nd from 5:00 - 8:00 pm, and Saturday and Sunday, October 3 and 4 from 1:00 - 4:00 pm. Tickets are $55 each and available online at HarvestFair.org or at the Box Office, which is located at 1350 Bennett Valley Road in Santa Rosa or at the door the day of the event.
The Sonoma County Harvest Fair is Friday, October 2 from 4:00 - 9:00 pm and Saturday and Sunday, October 3 and 4, from 10:30 am to 5:00 pm. Gate Admission is free when you bring four non-perishable food items for the Redwood Empire Food Bank, otherwise entry is $5. Children 12 and under are free. Harvest Fair General Admission includes audience participation in the World Wrapped Cooking Competition, Chef Demonstrations, Wine Tasting Seminars, the World Championship Grape Stomp, Harvest Fair Marketplace and other grounds activities. Parking is $7 to $10 depending on the location of the lot.
