8th Annual Uptown Beer and Wine Festival

“If sampling 100-plus craft beers and dozens of exceptional wines while enjoying food from some of the best restaurants in town sounds like the perfect way to spend an early autumn afternoon, then you’ll want to buy tickets now.”

by Tom Ingram

Just as the weather cools and afternoons become the perfect time to mingle outdoors, the Uptown Beer and Wine Festival returns. Hosted by Uptown Columbus, the 8th iteration of Columbus’s premier adult jamboree will be held in the Rankin Courtyard, between Broadway and 1st Avenue; entrance is at The Tap, 1024 Broadway. If sampling 100-plus craft beers and dozens of exceptional wines while enjoying food from some of the best restaurants in town sounds like the perfect way to spend an early autumn afternoon, then you’ll want to buy tickets now. Only two thousand tickets are available each year, and the Uptown Beer and Wine Festivals always sell out.

From 1 to 5 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 30, the Rankin Courtyard will open to two thousand visitors. More than forty breweries will be on hand with more than 100 craft beers to sample. Joining many of these beer vendors will be the brew masters behind the porters and pilsners, lagers and stouts, and they’ll be available to chat with local aficionados. Uptown Columbus has also decided to expand the wine selection this year. Enjoy a dedicated wine area with more than twenty-five selections of whites, reds and blends, sponsored by Uptown Wine and Spirits, a liquor store specializing in craft wine and beer and specialty spirits.

While you sample and sip your way around the Courtyard, you’ll also have the chance to explore culinary offerings from first-class eateries. Among those on hand with tasty treats will be Bare Roots Farmacy, a modern approach to healthy eating; Meritage, which offers classic European and American Regional dishes with a southern flair; and River and Rail, a farm-to-table favorite.

Music for the event will be provided by Caleb Gamble, on acoustic guitar, and DJ Mike Kelly. For football fans wary of missing a game, fret not; there will be plenty of TVs tuned to SEC games at The Tap and in the Livery.

Becca Zajac of Uptown Columbus calls the festival “one of our trademark events.” Throughout the year, Uptown Columbus hosts many events free to the public, and the Beer and Wine Festival is the organization’s biggest and best fundraiser. This is the event that provides for the free events. Not only does the Festival go a long way to subsidize Uptown Columbus’s busy calendar, merchants all over the community feel the Festival’s impact. After 5 p.m., when the Festival closes, two thousand people spill into the neighborhood. Restaurants, bars and coffee shops are quickly at capacity, while retail establishments see peak crowds.

Before area businesses welcome this influx of customers, the Festival has two more important things to offer: new beers. First, Omaha Brewing will host a firkin tapping, unveiling and making available for sampling a beer specially brewed for the Festival. The team from Maltitude, Uptown’s craft beer and wine shop, and Nonic, the neighborhood’s hot-spot gastro pub that features a rotating selection of craft beers and specialty cocktails, will also release a special beer for the Festival.

Because you’ll want to purchase tickets well in advance of the event, it’s important to know your options. Early bird pricing, available through Sept. 17, is $35. Regular pricing, which begins Sept. 18, is $45. Designated drivers can purchase tickets on the day of the event at the gate for only $10. Uptown Columbus is also offering a special Save Water, Drink Beer Package in conjunction with WhiteWater Express. For $65, guests can enjoy a 9 a.m. rafting trip and early entry into the Festival at noon, lunch provided. Tickets are available at The Springer Opera House box office and online at tickets.vendini.com.

There is much to enjoy at the 8th Annual Uptown Beer and Wine Festival and many ways to enjoy it. Get tickets now. We can’t wait to see you there.