The Peoria Jaycees International Beer Festival

By Karen Iwicki

Almost twenty years ago, Steve King of Specialty Import Distributing Company, Peoria, IL, had a vision. He felt that he could expand the tastes of local beer drinkers beyond macro-beers. He wanted to tease the palettes of serious beer drinkers and coax them to enjoy more of what the world-wide beer industry and the craft beer industry had to offer.  He also enjoyed contributing to the community.  He approached a friend of his in the local Peoria Jaycees chapter and a partnership was born.

On March 17, 1993, The Peoria Jaycees International Beer Festival opened its doors. For this first annual event, they had 200 advance tickets to sell. What a surprise! 850 people showed up to the venue that only held 350. Steve’s vision was now reality.

The Peoria Jaycees International Beer Festival now claims its title as the longest-running international beer festival in the country. Spread throughout the grounds of the Exposition Gardens on the city’s northwest side, this festival includes beers from all over the country and all over the world.  Also home to the Heart of Illinois Fair each July, this venue is the perfect place to relax and enjoy yourself. Chairmen of this year’s event were Roxy Baker of Specialty Import Distributing Company and Victor Dzekunskas of the Peoria Jaycees.

Peoria Jaycee's International Beer Fest

Activities began with a Friday night preview featuring 180 different brews at 34 tables in one building. Local food vendors offered samples of everything from Wild Boar & Wort Soup to jerky and smoked sausages to blueberry chocolate ice cream and everything in between. The reasonably-priced $20 tickets included a punch card to sample one thing from each vendor. Special beer releases included Left Hand Brewing 2006 Twin Sisters Double IPA and 2006 St Vrain Tripel, followed by Mikkeler Barrel-Aged Breakfast Stout and Hoppin’ Frog Doris the Destroyer Double imperial Stout. Music was provided by Creek Road Ramblers.

On Saturday, a special VIP tent was offered for the first hour. Later, beer selections expanded to over 350 different brews offered at 3 locations throughout the Expo Garden grounds. Offerings also included special beer releases throughout the day, including Duvel Triple Hop, Flying Dog Barrel-aged Gonzo Imperial Porter, Left Hand Good Juju Cask Ale, Flossmoor Station HiFi Rye, Boulder Killer Penguin Barleywine, and Mikeller 1000 IBU Imperial IPA.  Several local food vendors were on hand offering samples and selling their wares.  The bands Four Leaf Rovers and Cody for Chicago Fame entertained the crowds. All in all, about 5,000 people attended this year’s two-day festival. Next year’s festival is set to be a milestone as they kick off their 20th year.

Homebrewing Clubs on hand this year included Abnormal Beer Society, Bloomington, IL; Burlington M.O.B. (Makers of Beer), Fort Madison, IA; GONZO Brewers (Galesburg Ostracized Neo-Zymurgical Organization) , Galesburg, IL; Homebrewers of Peoria (HOP’s), Peoria, IL; Warthogs of Macomb Homebrewers, Macomb, IL; MUGZ (Mississippi Unquenchable Grail Zymurgists ) Homebrewers, Quad Cities, IL; and M.A.S.H. (Marseilles Area Society for Homebrewers), Marseilles, IL.

The Peoria Jaycees is a chapter of Jaycees International, a leadership training organization for 21 to 40 year olds. Leadership skills are learned and developed by organizing and running projects such as the Peoria Jaycees International Beer Festival.  They are always looking for new members willing to take on the challenge.

Interested and want to join? If you are in Peoria, visit their web site at www.peoriajaycees.org. Not from Peoria, but interested in joining a chapter in your area? Visit www.jaycees.org to find a chapter near you.
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