Ever wanted to try a Denny's Grand Slam beer? Maybe not, but Weird Beer Fest is your chance.
Coastal County Brewing Company is gearing up to celebrate its third anniversary with the Coastal County Weird Beer Fest on March 18.
The event promises to be the brewery's biggest and best birthday bash yet with 75 of its own unique specialty brews and some friends from various local breweries showcasing their special flavors at the beer garden party.
Fred Thibodeaux, Coastal County owner and brewmaster, has made a name for himself for his fun, playful flavors of beers, ciders, seltzers and meads that are constantly on rotation.
Thibodeaux has received several awards on the state level, affirming some of his unique flavor profiles, like his Fred’s Red and Coastal Cream Ale.
Now, he has invited other breweries in the Pensacola area to join him in creating beers so crazy, you have to read them twice. Some of the stand-outs including the Peanut Butter Jelly Time Stout, Indian Curry Brown and possibly the most intriguing of all — the Denny’s Grand Slam Sour.
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“That's kind of the idea of the event is to feature beers that are not normally available at our brewery or the other breweries, so that way people get a chance to try something different,” he said.
The event also encourages collaboration amongst local brewers and brings exposure to breweries that visitors may not have heard of.
“It’s kind of a cool way to bring in customers in your local market that may have not been to your brewery before, but just happened to be at our festival trying out some of these weird beers," he said. "So, it's like, ‘Hey, if you enjoy what you tried today, then come back to the brewery. Try another round, or you can buy a lot of these crowlers to go.’ It's a way to just kind of showcase the local talent here in Pensacola.”
Thibodeaux is personally bringing some of his favorites aside from the flagships, like the atomic tangerine, fruit sour roll-up, spicy pickle sour, seasonal pumpkin and Mexican Chocolate Cake Stout, along with some first-time flavors, such as the Indian Curry Brown.
“I haven’t made that one before, and I still haven’t tried it,” Thibodeaux said Thursday. “That’s another cool thing about this event is you don’t know what you’re going to get or what you’re going to see.”
In addition to new brews, Thibodeaux has added new entertainment, such as aerial acrobats to the festival this year, in addition to live bands and a fire dancing demonstration.
General admission tickets will offer all-you-can-drink access to every featured specialty from every brewer from 2-6 p.m. Those who wish to upgrade to the VIP experience will enjoy early 1 p.m. access, an extra hour of sampling, a free meal of their choice from the CCB craft kitchen, a specialty taster glass to keep as a souvenir, various beer swag party favors and five free raffle tickets for the Anniversary Year of Free Beer drawing at 5 p.m. on the CCB Stage to win a year's worth of Coastal County Beer.
Both tickets can be purchased at coastalcountybrewing.com/shop/ and will be available at will call upon entry to the festivities.
General admission is $50 per person, while V.I.P. admission is $75 per person. The event will also feature live music from local musicians, five food trucks with a wide variety of amazing local cuisine, shaded outdoor seating, a bounce house for children, fun games and entertainment options. Parking will be available on-site, as well as three extra overflow parking lots located within one block of the property.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Weird Beer Fest kicks off in Pensacola this Saturday
