Summer is heating up, and Kim Martin, business manager at the Barry County Chamber and Economic Development Alliance, has promised that summer is about to taste better. She is announcing the 10th Barry County Brewfest. The Brewfest will take place Saturday, July 18, from noon to 6 p.m. at the Barry Community Foundation parking lot in Hastings, Michigan.
“We started this event in 2016,” Martin says. “The premise behind this was to have a traveling event around Barry County. The first time through, we hit everyareaof Barry County. We tried to pair it with other community events, so it wasn’t a stand-alone event and would hopefully bring in more people… it was a great turn-out. Mind you, we had a tornado warning that night, so that made that event pretty fun.”
Tornadoes aside, the event has become increasingly popular, now featuring a roster of the region's best craft beer, wine, hard cider, mead, spirits, and non-alcoholic options.Attendees can also look forward to live music from headlining band Silent Bark and a selection of local food trucks.
“Middleville, Delton, Nashville, and Hastings—those are the four communities we will stay with now,” Martin says. “They were probably our better attended communities, which makes sense, because they are some of the bigger areas in Barry County. We’ve evolved quite a bit, though. It was originally just craft beer. We have added since then wine, seltzer, meads. We have a distillery that attends. This year and last year we have also had some non-alcoholic drinks.”
VIP admission, including early entry at noon and other VIP perks, is $65. General admission, with entry at 1 p.m., is $40. Designated driver or non-drinking admission is $10. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.mibarry.com/brewfest.
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