Held at Martin Luther King, Jr. Park, just outside of downtown Asheville, Brewgrass in Asheville, NC had a literal A to Z (well, Y for Yazoo) of breweries encompassing local, regional and national brands.  Local favorites like Asheville Brewing, Craggie and Green Man were nestled next to Terrapin, Sweetwater and Moon River from Georgia and other North and South Carolina breweries like Thomas Creek, Coast, Duck-Rabbit and Big Boss. Rounding out the list were big and small names like Sierra Nevada, New Belgium and a home brew tent that had a line all day.

Although the weather seemed threatening at first, the sky soon cleared and turned into a sunny day of almost 80 degrees. People were already lining up 2 hours before the event, wrapping around the fence of the baseball diamond park.

Brewgrass had the perfect mix for a festival, with wonderful bluegrass bands on a centrally-located stage that were just the right volume to not affect the tastings and conversation and just right for dancing down in front or relaxing on the lawn. Having extended hours of 12-7 left plenty of time to sample over 40 breweries at a leisurely pace, and to sample from local food vendors everything from pizza to Thai with beer that didn’t run out until the end of the festival. We think what makes Brewgrass so successful with thousands in attendance and a quick sellout is the local presence, especially in a town like Asheville that prides itself on just that. Local. Well organized with music, food, beer and the friendly people of Asheville. This was our first time at the Brewgrass festival, but it certainly won’t be our last!

http://brewgrassfestival.com/