One of the event casualties of the virus was the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) which sucks for many reasons. It has been a reliable revenue stream for Denver area breweries, the Colorado economy and the Brewers Association (BA) Due to the loss of their marquee event, the BA has had layoffs, most notably of the hard working and traveling Julia Herz who I have had the pleasure of hearing speak on a number of occasions.
As that news hit, the GABF announced the 2020 version of their event which is a t-shirt and a passport. That passport “will have exclusive access to beery deals at participating festival breweries nationwide, and access to exclusive online content October 16-17. Online content will include Brewers Studio happy hours, tastings and interviews with brewers from around the country.”
I would love to see a behind the scenes of the judging. I know this year is not normal but I think it would be to get a peek at the process of one of the biggest aspects of the festival. I also think they should have a monthly countdown to next year’s event to keep GABF in people’s minds.