Santa Barbara Beer Festival 2017 was a huge event that apparently has been rooted in this community…read morefor years on end, I had just never been in the loop? Very glad to be looped into the festivities this year and see many familiar faces out there having a blast and supporting local breweries. The staff at the entrance of the event were all rugby player volunteers, from what I understand, and while their heart was definitely there, they were a little less professional than they could be. Very glad, though, the festival is set up to help a good, local cause and think they should promote the rugby foundation a little more in the festival advertisements. The beer samplings themselves were great, of course. A lot of the same vendors from the multiple September/October festivals this year were there, including: Captain Fatty's, Rincon Brew, Island Brew, Sierra Nevada, Draughtsmen Ale, Brass Bear, & 3 Window. It was awesome to see, though, the surprise michelada option at M Special and chips and salsa from Mesa Salsa Company. Oh my gosh that green salsa was to die for! The VIP blow up tent was fun and festive and the pizza bread inside was nothing like I'd ever tasted before. I also loved seeing all the men walking around in kilts throughout the event. I wish I got the memo, I'd totally be on board to dress up Oktoberfest like. Next year they should invite everyone to, the pictures would be hilarious! There was life sized Jenga, cornhole opportunities, lots of space to dance or picnic, multiple port-o-potty locations, and live music throughout the day. I thought the venue was beautiful but a little too spaced out for what it contained. I also wouldn't recommend driving unless you get there way before opening and don't mind paying $5. The Uber or Lyft will be safer and well worth the money.

The Santa Barbara Beer Festival is as good as it gets when it comes to beer festivals. It's a…read moregrand ol' time to eat, drink, be merry, hang with friends, and make new friends. The 2010 Santa Barbara Beer Festival is upcoming, and although it's about 4 months away, I'm already getting excited. 2010 Santa Barbara Beer Festival details: Saturday, October 16, 2010 from 12 - 4 pm at Eling's Park. Tickets as well as the list of brewers are not available yet. Parking is $5 and available along Jerry Harwin Parkway. Designated drivers can enter the festival for free! And Bill's Bus will offer free rides. When the list of brewers becomes available on-line, I will edit this review to reflect that update. Santa Barbara Beer Festival 2009: October 17, 2009 My friends and I, all UCSB alumni of course, arrived at Eling's Park about an hour or so before the scheduled opening time of the festival. We turned over our tickets and were given a wristband and a small beer glass, and then waited. As noon approached, the crowd had grown substantially, and included a man in a gorilla suit. It was obvious who the veterans were; those were the ones equipped with necklaces customized to hold the beer glass. Maybe I will try to fashion one this year. Tents peppered the lawn of the park, and my friend's and I devised the strategy to start at the tent farthest from the entrance. It really didn't matter though, because although there were a lot of people at the festival, the lines weren't long, and moved so quickly that it wasn't a hassle. There was plenty of time to try each brewery many times over, and also stop by the sponsors and food vendors as well. The weather was beautiful, clear, sunny, and hot. Definitely apply sunscreen. The food was great; award winning chili, sausages, etc., and the prices were not inflated. The portable bathrooms were not a nightmare, but were surprisingly big and clean, and there were sinks set up outside the restrooms as well. Overall, a great experience at a great venue with great friends. 2009 Santa Barbara Beer Festival Brewers: The Brewhouse Downtown Brewing Company Hollister Brewing Company Island Brewing Company Santa Barbara Brewing Company Telegraph Brewing Company Union Ale Brewing Company Firestone Walker Brewing Company Alaskan Brewing Company Anacapa Brewing Company Beer Guy Blue Moon Brewing Co. Bootlegger's Brewery Cal Poly Brew Crew C.A.R.P. Homebrewers Chau Tien Pale Ale Deschutes Brewery Einhorn Beer Company Karl Strauss Brewing Co. Kona Brewing Company Lagunitas Brewing Company Leinenkugel Lost Coast Brewery MateVeza MillerCoors Moylan's Brewery Nakhon Premium Beer Nectar Ales New Belgium Brewing Company Peroni Pilsner Urquell Samuel Adams Santa Barbeerians Sequoia Brewing Company Shock Top Belgian White Skyscraper Brewing Company Widmer Brothers Brewing Company Wolf Creek Brewing Company 2009 Santa Barbara Beer Festival Music: Debra Farris Band The Kicks The Brewery Boys 2009 Santa Barbara Beer Festival Vendors: Judge's Sausages 2009 Santa Barbara Beer Festival Sponsors: Montecito Bank & Trust 99.9 KTYD Discount Party Rental DSR Audio Santa Barbara Independent SportFence Allied Waste Service MarBorg Industries Santa Barbara Ice Company Santa Barbara Sailing Center Twiin Productions

Lions, tigers, and wine ohhh my!!! This event was definitely a Roaring good time…read more With 20+ wineries to try, a couple food trucks, free train rides, and free giraffe feedings what more can you ask for! Even the animals got to stay out late and party with us. I love the Santa Barbara zoo and wine so this was a perfect event to treat myself to for Mothers Day weekend. All proceeds to this event benefit the animals at the zoo. I'm all for local support and happy to know I could contribute to such a great cause. I would definitely recommend checking out this event when it comes around again.

Wow. I loved this event! You get to take in the most…read moreamazing view of the ocean at the top of the hill while sipping vino and socializing. 30+ wineries. Favorites included Zaca Mesa, Grassini, Area 5.1, Cebada, Coquelicot, Larner and Lieu Dit. The Burger Bus was present, however we were wise to have a big lunch and then go out to dinner after the fest as to have the most time possible for vino and zoo shenanigans. This was my first time at the SB Zoo and I was impressed by how great of a venue it is for a wine fest. Plenty of green grass and shady trees. Fun filled and fairly priced, I will definitely be in attendance for Roar and Pour next year. Hope to see you there!

SBBF 2017 was such a hoot! From the awesome live bands to the fabulous food and small plate bites…read morein the center of all the festivities, this beer fest had it all going on. The volunteer staff were very kind and you could tell the representative running it were very organized with attention to detail, in headsets and all. Though it looked small from the outside, the festival actually turned out to be a great size with a perfect amount of beer, wine, and food vendors. I maybe would have liked to see some optional food trucks on the outside but it was also great (and different) to have free food samples on the inside. A few of my favorite tastings were by Kerrygold with their cheese samples, Barrel Brewing Co with their Raspberry Sour, and Jean Marie's Ciders. There were tons of local breweries there as well that rocked the IPA game and wineries that shinned through with their rosés. The home-brewing beer set up by the SB Brewers was my favorite attraction, but others also enjoyed dancing to one of the 3(?) live bands on the grass dance floor, and playing cornhole in the sun with a gorgeous ocean view. This festival had a little bit of everything for everyone. It was amazing how much they pulled together for year 1 which gets me so thrilled for what will come around year #2! Crossing my fingers on no timed/payed parking options. See you next year!

This was my 3rd Brew Fest. First off let me tell you how beautiful Santa Barbara is and how the…read morelocation was perfect for this event. Upon arriving I noticed the many tents from breweries and was very excited to see some familiar ones and new ones I've never heard of. We entered and were given full size glasses to drink from not the tiny tot sized tasters like the previous festivals. I liked this because it means I am take it home and use it for my drinks instead of it just being a keepsake. The beer itself was non stop flowing and delicious. Of the over 15 I had I can honestly say I probably had about one that watered the grass. My favorite was common cider with their 4 different flavored ciders. In second place for me was the Session IPA can't recall the brewery because well I was a few deep in already and feeling mighty fine. Food was pretty good. It was all finger foods, beef jerky, bread from La Brea, and some chicken taco samples. I had a really good time. The vendors were extremely nice and the crowd was cool too. Everyone minded their own business and there was zero beef. I walked back to my room even though this event offered us a free first time use Uber (which was very awesome and cautious of them). I laughed the whole walk back. Hangover was crazy bad but now that I think about it, I had a blast. The beer and cider was way too awesome to bypass. Thanks again to Dani, the Santa Barbara Ambassador for the tickets!

This new wine and food event is quickly becoming one of my favorites in town. This is the second…read moreyear SB Culinary Experience is hosting their wine and food event and it's bigger and better than ever!! This event is at the historic and gorgeous El Presidio in downtown Santa Barbara. The organizers took advantage of more of this beautiful property than last year, adding a lovely picnic area in the front with more food tasting, wine tasting, shade umbrellas and tables than last year! I really appreciated how much information the event organizers communicated prior to the event regarding parking, weather, entry process and more. At $60/ticket, this event is a steal!! Extremely well-priced, I'm certain the price point will continue to rise as this event gets better and better!! I'm looking forward to more events by SB Culinary Experience.

Well this year was a lot different than last years tasting. The tacos from the Catering company…read morebig G's Barbecue were the best. The service was outstanding. It was nice to see Gretchen from La Lieff wines. Austin from Rusak was also very cool both wineries have very good wines. The ambiance was at the Presidio which is. Spanish colonial church which was great. You could drink wine in a church which was nice without having to attend church.

Year THREE and the rain could not stop thousands of filling the park for taster after taster of…read morebeer but it still falls short of it's potential. The vibe has changed each year The food was a let down. The pizza was what I'd expect to eat on the streets of New York at 4am when the bar closes and the burrito was almost meatless. A beer fest is not about the food though. While I fail to understand how organizers could run out of sampler glasses when the tickets were sold out for weeks. You can count. Right? What they did right was apologize and offer a more than generous gesture. This is what was received via e-mail. "If you were one of the people who arrived after we ran out of glasses, we would like to either send you a replacement glass, or offer you discounted admission (20%) to next year's Brews at the Beach." Now that's how you make amends. Not my fave fest in town but it's drinking beer on the beach and that's more than 28 other states can do so for that, I'll come back.

I reviewed Brews at the Beach last year and gave them four stars. They did better this year. I…read moream not sure but it seemed like this year they had a few more Breweries. My absolute favorite was Indian Wells Whiskey Barrel! Loved that beer so glad I didn't discover it until the end of the day if you know what I mean! For the IPA fans they should have been in IPA heaven, seemed to be an IPA festival more than a beer festival. The food might have improved just a touch as well. Giovanni's pizza, two slices for $5. They also had burritos and Tri Tip. This year they allowed people to bring in their own food if they wanted as well. And everyone's biggest complaint last year was the excessive bathroom lines, no problem this year, I think they had four times the capacity and the lines were no longer than a couple of minutes. Great event! $35 last year $40 this year, hope that it doesn't go up next year.

Had to make it down to the last Brewhouse Oktoberfest before the new owners take over (and possibly…read morechange things up a bit). Checked out the brass band, filled my stein with a pilsner, and had the bratwurst plate. There will be many more festivities Saturday (Oct 8th) like a stein lifing contest and live music all day. So I suggest you get down there and help send off the current owners and welcome the new ones while celebrating the biggest Octoberfest in town. Make sure to get the soft pretzel!

French Festival--mehhh Greek Festival-mehhh Same goes for the Avocado Festival, Lemon Festival and…read moreany other food group or fruit festival. But Oktoberfest, Five Stars! A liter of Hiffbreau plus the Red Baron is a winning combination. As I sit here eating my Jeagerschnitzle waiting until the next time I can do the Chicken Dance I Channel my inner Deutchman and offer you all a hearty Prost!!!

It's interesting to see how this event has really grown. The Friday tasting used to be a bit looser…read moreand more breezy but now it's jammed full near as much as the Saturday event. Personally I still prefer Friday. Sure there aren't quite as many marquee names on Friday as Saturday ( Artesa, Clarice, Cirq, Goldeneye, Kosta Browne and Paul Lato, were all pouring Sat only). But, and its a big But, on Friday you get to taste the up-and-coming superstars, local heroes and a few Icons as well (Ancien, Aequorea, Brewer-Clifton, Diora, Gary Farrel, J Vineyards, Donum, Samsara and so on only poured on Friday :-) And, on Friday evening there's always the added possibility of finding an after-event- suite-party hosted by one of the several larger wineries that are pouring both days. Just Sayin', it happens :-) The venue is still spectacular, the organizers are still great though the food has sadly gone substantially downhill. I remember getting Kobe beef sliders a few years back ( a good one handed food item by the way ) This year it was goat cheese and figs on crackers and mac-n-cheese!! Very difficult to eat with a wine glass in one hand and table space in very short supply. Fair enough, we're not there for the food but we are paying a serious price for this event, which spirals higher and higher each year. And don't even ask about VIP entry which is now a $50 premium for getting in an hour earlier. As if $100 and $125 wasn't enough for Friday and Saturday respectively, an extra $50 for VIP! Getting a bit excessive IMHO. OK enough of that talk, I still really love the event and recommend it to any and all Pinot Noir lovers, you'll just never find such a great collection of various styles and locales all in one room, anywhere :-) You may not need to go every year but you should at least go once, if not occasionally :-)

The Santa Ynez Valley Wine Country Association puts together the Winter Pass once a year…read more You pay $40 and you get to visit 14 wineries located in Santa Ynez, Los Olivos, and Solvang. If you paid individually for each of these tastings it would cost $140. The wineries are lovely little places where you get to talk to the wine makers and learn about what you are drinking. All include seating and some have food to purchase and outdoor spaces to enjoy a picnic. With your pass you get a full wine tasting, usually of a selection of whites and reds, and sometimes they include sparkling wine, rose, or port. The best way to manage your pass is to break it up into at least three trips, one focused on each place. You can ride bikes between the Santa Ynez; you can walk everywhere in Los Olivos and Solvang (and there are lots of places to eat and shop in both). The pass is good from November through January 31st each year.