Photo: Klaus Vedfelt (Getty Images).
Everyone enjoys a good road trip. Whether you are visiting a college friend or attending a football game at your alma mater, road trips are as American as apple pie and Taco Bell. There’s no better reason to take a road trip than to visit one of America’s best beer festivals. Here’s some of the top beer festivals to take a road trip to this winter.
Best Winter Beer Festivals in America:
Holiday Ale Festival, Nov. 30-Dec. 4, 2016
Attending this Portland, Oregon based beer festival is definitely the best way to get into the holiday spirit. The City of Roses really knows how to throw a festive party with more than fifty brewers will be on hand to hand out samples of all of their best brews. The event will take place right in the center of downtown Portland and, if you’re anywhere near the city, is definitely worth a road trip. The real attraction, besides a giant Christmas tree, is the winter ales that fifty different brewers have crafted for the event.
Philadelphia Winter Beer Festival, Dec. 26, 2016
Philadelphia is home to the 9th Annual Winter Beer Festival taking place on the day after Christmas. What better reason to put down that impossible Lego pirate ship than to sample some of the best beers in America. World Café Live is throwing this shindig, featuring fifty brews from forty unique breweries, including: Oskar Blues, Troegs, Dogfish Head, Allagash and so many others.
San Diego Beer Festival, Jan. 7, 2017
Ron Burgundy’s home town is the place to be in January for the 7th edition of the San Diego Brew Fest. Located at Liberty Station, this can’t miss festival features tons of amazing brews, but that’s not all. Revelers are also treated to tasty treats from the food trucks on hand as well as live music. Plus, you’ll be eating, drinking and dancing for a good cause because proceeds from the event will go to Southern California Golden Retriever Rescue, a charity designed to rescue, rehabilitate and find forever homes for Golden Retrievers.
Hibrewnation Gettysburg, Jan. 21, 2017
This is a festival for beer fans. This no frills beer fest isn’t concerned with fancy foods and raucous music. Their goal is to allow you to sample some of the best beer this country has to offer. This is one of the bigger brew fests on the east coast with more than one-hundred breweries represented. Not only will you be able to try tasty brews that you see at your local grocery store, you’ll also get a chance to try a wide variety of extremely rare and hard to find beers. This is definitely the road trip for a seasoned beer nerd or novice beer fan alike.
