Headed to Pumpkin Fest Today? We Have Some Tips

If you have tickets, you’re going. If you don’t, you’re not. Sorry about that. Elysian Brewing’s Great Pumpkin Beer Festival is sold out and there are no tickets at the door. If you are fortunate enough to be heading to one of the two sessions today, we have a few tips. We also took some pictures at last night’s session (below).

We list some of our favorite beers below. Dick Cantwell told us that they expected to have 60-something pumpkin beers at this year’s festival but they ended up with over 80. We did not get to try them all, but we did find some favorites.

Here are some tips:

  • Get there early. There’s a lot of beer and each pouring station has several beers. The lines get long. You will appreciate being one of the first in the gate.
  • You cannot go wrong with any of the collaborative brews Elysian made with other breweries.
  • Try both versions of Elysian’s Great Pumpkin (pouring at stations one and two inside the brewery). This is a good bellwether: what a pumpkin beer should be, in my humble opinion.
  • If you want food, get in line for the food trucks right away. The lines get long. Eat first if you need to eat at all.
  • Cold weather and rain. Be prepared. There is room inside the brewery, and tents outside, but dress for an outdoor beer festival.
  • Don’t be afraid to dress up (see pictures below). As one of the Elysian brewers told me yesterday, “We take pumpkin beer very seriously… well, kind of.” Have fun, be silly. Remember, it’s only beer. Really good beer, but still.

Some of our favorite beers:


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  • Kick Sour Cranberry Pumpkin Ale (Elysian collaboration with New Belgium)
  • Avante Gourde (Elysian collaboration with Lost Abbey Brewing)
  • Headless Horsey (Elysian)
  • Pumpkin Saison (Puyallup River Brewing)
  • Hopsquash (Elysian collaboration with Ninkasi Brewing)
  • Black Jack Pumpkin Porter (Oakshire Brewing)
  • Treat Pumpkin Porter (Midnight Sun Brewing)

And there are plenty more. Do not be afraid to try some stuff that sounds kind of crazy. Have fun. Wear orange.

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