For the thirstiest of the ‘Cuse nation, one way to kick off Syracuse Beer Week is with the Syracuse Beer Festival.

American On Tap, the largest producer of craft beer festivals in the country, puts on the Syracuse Beer Fest. The company, based out of Albany, has been hosting beer festivals throughout the U.S. since 2009. The Syracuse Beer Fest will be held at the Oncenter Convention Center Friday at 6 p.m. with a special VIP “Hoppy hour” beginning at 5 p.m.

This will be the second year that America On Tap has brought a craft beer festival to Syracuse. The first was in 2012, when the festival was held at the Syracuse Chiefs’ NBT Bank Stadium. After struggling with a location, the festival was forced to skip Syracuse last year. AJ Bodden, the vice president of Townsquare Media, which hosts America On Tap, said the festival is happy to be back and at the Oncenter this year, which he considers an ideal location.

American On Tap’s events differ from other beer festivals because they enforce an “open festival” style event. Beers are served from breweries throughout the country, as opposed to just promoting local craft beers from a particular region.

“Our goal is to put together the best variety of beer under one roof,” Bodden said.

The festival will feature 50 breweries nationwide and 25 breweries from New York. In total the festival will include a minimum of 70 breweries, each of which are required to serve two craft beers. Bodden estimates a total of about 150 brews for guests to choose from.

“We’ll have everything from small local brewies to the Sam Adam’s of the world,” he said.

Bodden added that the motive behind “open” beer festivals is to educate people about beer. The crowd is given the opportunity to sample a wide variety of beers, which helps them become more educated on the types of craft beers available to order at a local pub or purchase at the grocery store.

In addition to a variety of craft beers, the Syracuse Beer Fest will also feature live music, games, food and a silent disco.

“The idea behind a beer festival is that while it is about the beer, that is not the only thing going on,” Bodden said.

The silent disco will occupy a 30-by-30 space within the Oncenter where a DJ will play two different types of music. The music can only be heard from the set of headphones worn by the attendees, with only two channels to choose from.

“From the outside looking in, you have 100 people singing and dancing to music you can’t hear,” said Bodden, who thinks the silent disco will add a fun and crazy party element to the event.

David Kern, a student representative for the Syracuse Beer Fest, said transportation will be provided from Armory Square to the Oncenter so visitors can get back and forth easily. If 50 or more Syracuse University students sign up using a special online promo code, Kern added, an additional shuttle will be provided to ride students coming from campus.

Kern thinks the festival is a great way to “experience local culture and get a little buzz” and recommends using the event as a pregame experience.

“I think students should try to do something new every weekend, and this is one of those unique experiences to take advantage of,” Kern said.

Visitors can also play air hockey, foosball and other games through vendors that will be scattered around the event.

“It is more than just coming into a room and drinking beer for three hours,” Bodden said. “The selection of beer is tremendous and the level of entertainment is unique.

“That is something you won’t find at any other beer festival.”

Published on November 6, 2014 at 12:01 am

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