Hermitage Green, Camembert Quartet, Spring Break and Live Rugby among entertainment line-up
2nd February 2017: The Alltech Craft Brews & Food Fair, Ireland’s largest craft brews festival, returns to the Convention Centre Dublin from Thursday 23rd – Saturday 25th February 2017. In its 5th year, the Fair has become a key feature in the Irish craft calendar and provides a benchmark for tracking trends in the craft brewing and distilling industry. The event will feature the best home-grown musical talent, a range of culinary delights and the latest craft beers, ciders and spirits all under the one roof.
Brews & Food
The year’s event will host 55 exhibitors* featuring the best craft beer, cider and spirit makers from Ireland and overseas and visitors will have the opportunity to sample more than 400 of the latest craft brews.
Natalia Lynch, Alltech beverage division Ireland said, “We are really excited with the line up for this year’s event. Among this year’s exhibitors are five craft drinks companies which did not even exist last year, showing that the industry is continuing to attract new people with innovative products. The event also offers a platform for companies to sample seasonal brews and introduce new products to a wider audience. It is a great way for those with an interest in craft brewing to keep a finger on the pulse of what is happening in the industry and we look forward to seeing what the most popular trends and styles will be this year.”
This year’s Fair will also give a nod to the popularity of Gin, with a marked increase in the number of exhibitors producing the in-demand spirit. Blacks of Kinsale, an established craft brewery, started producing their own Gin last year and expect it to be a big attraction at this year’s event.
Sam Black, who founded the company with his wife Maudeline in 2013 said, “We are really looking forward to this years event which gives us a platform not only to showcase our extensive beer range, but also our new handcrafted small batch distilled gin. We decided to produce gin because, in short, we love it! Gin is so exciting to make because there is no end of combinations. It is a fantastic gateway spirit for people who don’t really like the brown spirits but are looking for something more refreshing”.
Dublin Craft Beer & Cider Cup
Winners of the Dublin Craft Beer and Cider Cups will be announced on the first day of the Fair. The contest allows craft brewers to showcase their brews and entries are rated, tasted and analysed by an expert, international panel of judges who critique their appearance, aroma, flavour, body, style and quality. The judges will award gold, silver and bronze medals in eight different categories of beer and cider.
Head Judge, Dr. Gearóid Cahill, a Brewmaster with more than 20 years’ experience said., “As this competition has evolved over the years so has the range of beers we are seeing. In early years the majority of entrants were IPA’s and while the numbers have reduced, IPA’s are still very popular. As the offerings in supermarkets have expanded, craft brewers have had to diversify as they cannot thrive on selling just two or three beer styles. Craft consumers want to have a choice and seasonals are starting to emerge. Brewing ‘mainstream’ craft styles is starting to wane as innovative brewers bring on new beers with an interesting story or recipe”.
Entertainment & Opening Hours
Visitors to the Fair will be treated to live music from the best home-grown musical talent on the central stage and live Six Nations rugby on three of Dublin’s biggest screens. Opening hours and event schedule are as follows:
Thursday 23rd February: 5pm – 11pm: Music: Rackhouse Pilfer and Smash Hits
Friday 24th February: 5pm – 11pm: Music: Spring Break and Hermitage Green
Saturday 25th February: 12.30pm – 11pm: Music: Rhythm and Beats; Brass Tacks andCamembert Quartet
Live Rugby: Ireland v Scotland, England v France, Italy v Wales
Tickets are available to purchase now from EventBrite.
For further information visit www.alltechbrews.ie or follow the conversation on @alltechbrews and #alltechbrews.