I may be spoiled coming from the Pacific Northwest, but I was not all that impressed with the Northern Virginia Brewfest, especially when comparing it to other brew fests I've attended. And I've been to A-LOT. I attended the Northern Virginia Brewfest when I was last in D.C., as it seemed like a great opportunity to check out the local brews in the area. Located in a big open space in Leesburg, it was easy to find and parking was plenty. Yet, I was mostly surprised by the lack of Virginia breweries participating. Not only was there a limited amount of breweries, there were also breweries from other east coast states, which I found surprising. The selection of craft brews was not enough for me, so ended up going to the same breweries to use up tickets, especially for an IPA, which there were few of. The food stands were better than the beer. Can you believe that? There were various food stands serving paella, smoked turkey legs, oysters rockefeller, etc. They also had a few food trucks. I'm always down for beer events, especially when it's local. It's cool that the northern Virginia area has an annual event like this. I just think with a larger selection of beers, this event has the potential to be better. read more

Northern Virginia Brewfest - Sampler - Beer, Wine & Spirits Near Me - Leesburg, Virginia

Beerfest! And for the love of friggin' all that is sudsy, that's exactly what it is! This is an annual event, they do a summer one in Leesburg and a Fall one in Bull Run. Both are worth going - but you will be smart to sign up for Living Social and get the deal for $10. Otherwise, it's $20 online, or $30 at the gate. Designated drivers get in for $15 and get free water. Plenty of parking, ATM (with a HUGE line), port-o-potties and the crowd wasn't bad. Plenty of vendors selling stuff, some wine, and lots of good food; typical fair/type grub; most notably the brick oven pizzas that sold out early on Sunday. Live music was alright, but if you came for the music then please email me your bank account number. Bring some friends and hit the beer tents to taste the brews. I had somewhere in the vicinity of 20, and I gotta say that there was only one that was truly awful. The ones that were phenomenal were the other 19+. See you guys next year!! read more

Northern Virginia Brewfest - a crowd of people standing in a field - Beer, Wine & Spirits Near Me - Leesburg, Virginia

Great location, selection of beers AND food! The only cons I have is that they should put up more tents for shade, as well as another misting tent. It was great that a few breweries brought cornhole too. There is a good amount of grassy areas to lay out a blanket or set up some camping chairs and umbrella. The two cover bands we heard (though we never knew their names), did a good job. After going to a couple of beer fests at the National Harbor, this brewfest was better in regards to the length of lines/waiting to try a beer. We didn't have to wait to try any beer, the servers/volunteers kept it all moving well. The thai food truck that was there was a little misleading in their picture menus. The pictures make you think you're getting a few pieces of food, when in actuality, you're only getting ONE piece - not right...... We also had the turkey legs and those were decent. The skin was really chewy, but the meat was tender/not dry. At first I thought it was a stupid idea to have to buy beer tickets, but maybe that's what keeps these crowds more manageable. We'll be back next year for sure! read more

We went on Sunday, which probably was way less crowded than Saturday - this was both good and bad. It was nice that we never needed to wait in a line, but it also made the event seem relatively small and deserted. I missed the liveliness typical of most festivals, but some might see this as a positive. It was mainly an older crowd there too, especially near the cigar shops! I was pretty disappointed in the food options. If you're a vegetarian, opt for the pretzels or chips. I sprung for the $8 felafel pita, which was extremely dry. Good thing there was plenty of beer to wash it down! Even for meat-eaters, there wasn't a wide variety of food options that you might expect at a beer festival. If you like ciders, there were some really exceptional ones there. I've become a big fan of IPAs, and my favorite was Flying Dog's Bloodline Blood Orange IPA. Delicious! I also liked seeing that they had a Designated Driver booth serving Dominion root beer - it was good to see everyone being kept happy with a carbonated drink in hand. My main complaint with this festival was the fact that you needed to pay $1 per sample in addition to the admission. I'm used to going to wine festivals where you only pay the admission price. The brewfest ticket system seemed a bit flawed as well. Some stations didn't even request a beer ticket when filling up the glass. Despite the $1 sample price and disappointing food, we had fun. There were lots of cool little stands for jewelry, chile sauces (I bought a cool little caffeinated hot sauce made in Purcelleville), and all-natural foods. It should be interesting to see if I've won anything - I think I entered about 10 different raffles! Holding my breath! read more

Northern Virginia Brewfest - a crowd of people at a gathering - Beer, Wine & Spirits Near Me - Leesburg, Virginia

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The Northern VA Brewfest is an annual event. This is the first one that have attended at the Leesburg location; it is more distant than previous venues. This event was better than I remember of previous years. There were more participating breweries. Most of breweries were reasonably local craft breweries from VA, MD, and DC primarily. The list of participating breweries included some from UK although I don't remember seeing their stations (maybe I had too much beer). Each of the participants offered tastes of their products. The admission fee included tasting glasses used to sample the products. I recommend the brewfest; I plan to attend next year and hope they have a fall version. Take a designated driver. read more

This was a pretty nice layout, and there were some great breweries represented and the madfox sampler glass is awesome. It was a little frustrating that you only get 6 tickets for sample size beers and then have to purchase samples at $2 bucks a pop... I would have liked a VIP option of all you can sample for a higher entry price that maybe works out to a small discount on the sample beer price. I felt like the cheap festival price was just to get you in the door but then you couldn't leave and everything they offered once inside came at a price. The atmosphere was laid back, but annoying as every 2 feet you had non-beer vendors trying to peddle window installation and grocery delivery services etc...some of the small vendors were awesome (i.e. Get Jerky with it Tent). The live music was hit or miss with one band sounding more like a drunk girl performing her best on hit 100 karaoke night...just painful. The food was okay, but not a whole lot of options and a lot of it was way over priced for not being food truck or better quality. The breweries were way to heavy on IPAs, it got redundant after a while, there were some great sours, lagers, and stouts out there, and other less championed brews that really stood out because you could take to steps with out an IPA or Oktoberfest being shoved down your throat. The only specific place I really have to speak out against was millstone ciders...they had no business being on the billet...it was like drinking bad vinegar, and you walked away feeling robbed of your ticket...just bad cider. NoVa Brewfest, please for the love of beer and all things fermented...don't invite them back next year, what they offered was shameful. read more

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First, the beer. The best of which in my opinion is Lagunitas Lucky 13 IPA. Also good are Williamsburg Aleworks, Mad Fox, and Heavy Sea. Don't bother with Left Hand, Legend, Oliver, or The Raven. And eff the 2-ticket kicks like Ballast Point, Ommegang, Schlafly and Widmer... it's foolishness like this that made once-free tastings $20 in wine country. Second, the logistics. Thankfully, the ticket system is only partially enforced: let them ask, as you often can walk away with a free glass o' suds. And there's plenty of port-a-potties. They also take credit cards for admission, and have an ATM on the premises. That said, admission is $30 on-site, plus about $15 in tolls on I-66 from DC. And there's no re-entry, which blows if you forget something in your car. The live music is God-awful ... seriously, the prerecorded music between sets is a Godsend. And lastly, there's not enough water, none of which is cold, another thing the organizers would be wise fix in the future. read more

This was my first year attending a NoVa Brewfest, but it certainly won't be my last! As noted in another review, there are actually two held each year. The one at the Leesburg address listed here is the Summer Brewfest. I attended the Fall Brewfest, which is held at Bull Run Park. The Fall Brewfest is held over a two-day period, and the wife and I arrived on Saturday before noon to beat the crowds. And even though the event didn't get overly crowded during the day, this was a great idea. We had free reign of any food and beverage options with no line for at least an hour. There was a solid selection of breweries represented - mostly local craft breweries, but those who had local distribution agreements were also represented. My only complaints were that I wish the breweries offered more choices - most only offered 2 selections. And unlike most beer nerds, fall is my LEAST favorite beer season. The festival was LOADED with pumpkin and Ocktoberfest beers. (Although admittedly, I am coming around on the pumpkin stuff) But this is a minor complaint, and I was able to find the stray saison or pale ale I hadn't tried before. If there was a "Best of Show" award, I would have cast my vote for Capital City's Grapefruit IPA - the bitterness of the grapefruit and the hops matched perfectly. The German eisbock they had there was also a personal favorite. Food selection was awesome if you love fair/festival food. The "pita pizza" we had was great, and the vendor that did the pretzel dogs, fried pickles and eggplant fries was my favorite. Eggplant fries = da bomb dot com. We also tried the vendor with the homemade empanadas and they were awesome. And if you wanted something to take home, many vendors were selling artisan, homemade goods. We took home four bags of Welsh cookies. Traditionally known as Welsh cakes, they are cooked on a cast iron griddle and came in a variety of flavors. (Including Maple and Bacon, YUM!) Another vendor had a selection of wonderful salsas, including one called the "Stupid Hot" - which I tried and got a sticker for, yay! We took some of their salsa home, but unfortunately missed the vendor who had the various cheese spreads, although they were fantastic too. My wife was the DD, and she mostly didn't get bored - that alone should tell you that they have enough activities for everyone, not just the beer nerds. The bands there were surprisingly good, yet far enough away that if you didn't want to hear the music, it wasn't on top of you. Overall, this was a great time and I am looking forward to coming back next year with family and friends. read more

This beer festival has been going on for two days every summer and fall since 2007. I love going here and finding out about new local beers and enjoying others that are familiar to me. This place introduced me to Mad Fox, Duck-Rabbit, and a few others. They are generous with their pours and the crowds aren't too bad. They even have solid SWAG (I still use this Sam Adams bottle opener to this day). The only thing I would improve is to add more brewers tents and improve the live music (almost nobody goes to see it). However, everything else is fantastic. If you're unsure as to whether this place is worth it, I would tell you that I brought my brother here to expose him to the world of beers beyond the big three (Miller, Budweiser and Coors). It did wonders to broaden his horizons as it did for me years earlier. read more

Great time at the BeerFest. We arrived on Sunday with the entire extended family. Those in our group that were not really "Beer" people, found plenty of alternatives (ciders and one wine stand). SCORE! Will make getting them to return next year much easier. For the Beer. Lots of Ales, Pils...a few stouts and wheats...not so many lagers. Given that the breweries bring their freshest and finest, it was a good time. The sampling glasses were really cool. MUSIC: Rew Smith and Melodime. Nuff said. Both of these groups know how to play. There were a lot of options for food, mostly carnival stuff. Not too bad. Free Parking, Sober ride home and great beer. read more

Great time yesterday for Brewfest! This event is well organized and easy to attend - no stress. 50+ breweries, food, vendors and two stages of music. Parking was abundant and FREE! It was a great value for my husband who made it his mission to hit every brewery... Yes, I drove home! My only critique/suggestion would be to have some more substantial (dare I say 'refined'?) food available. Unless I missed it (totally possible) I mainly saw a lot of kettle corn, pretzels and handmade potato chips. That said, I won't be missing a Brewfest as long as we're here! We're new to the area and continue to be impressed by all that our new home town has to offer. Good on ya Leesburg! read more

My second year volunteering at the Brewfest, on father's day no less. I was on the 2PM to 6PM crew. If you love trying new beer, this is a great time. Thank you thank you for the complimentary ride home afterwards - It made for a lot safer experience. On the other hand...what could be improved: 1. Give us some shade - man, it's hot out there on the Bull Run battlefield in June. Could you move to an area that has better shade. 2. My station ran out of beer at 2:30PM, but the organizers wouldn't replace the keg because they felt that it wouldn't be fully drunk by the public and they would lose money. That's pretty weak...especially for the brewmaster and the micro-brew community in general and for the consuming public in particular. This festival runs until 6PM. Beer should be flowing from all taps until then. 3. As a tasting event, we need more information about the beer - how about handing out a card with the various breweries so the drinking public can jot down their tasting experience. It sort of all blends in together after a while. And the stations need better signage about each tap so we don't have to ask the bar-person. 4. Limit the number of one type of brew, especially IPA. There were far too many and not enough variety. People were tired of the limited variety. Have a lottery for those brewers who want the public to try their IPA's at the event. Let us know where we can buy the beers we tasted. 5. Save money on the live music - no-one was listening and the bands were poor. Or...bring a variety of music and set the stands around the stage. Can't wait till next year. read more

My husband and I love good beer and have been to a handful of other beer festivals in the area but the brewfest is by far our favorite. Nothing is perfect but it has the best setup (i.e., big field with lots of room) and makes getting the samples very easy. The beer selection is always great. We have started taking the bus from the Vienna metro, which is very convenient. We've been going to one or both of the yearly fests since 2009 and plan to continue for years to come. read more

This is something I look forward to every year. 50+ breweries, pretty good variety of food, and fun things to look at. Local restaurants actually shuttle you in and out so no need to drive. Its something fun and different and I have been to 4 out of 5 and am planning to go to again this year read more