Lovers of craft beer and microbrewery creations in Costa Rica will be able to enjoy their first festival of the year this coming Saturday, March 7^th in San Jose; this is when Beerfest 2015 will take place at La Sabana Metropolitan Park, close to the Scotiabank branch.

For this year’s Beerfest, attendees will be treated to more than just craft beers proudly made in Costa Rica; there will also be special guest appearances by Latin American microbreweries and their products. As has become customary in craft beer festivals in our country, hands-on workshops on how to make beer at home will be conducted at Beerfest 2015. Craft beer tastings and socializing, of course, will be the highlights of this event.

In addition to lots of beer and snacks, Beerfest will also feature live music from bands such as infibeat, Diesel (highly recommended), Mumble Riot, and Los Garbanzos. Additional musical performances may be added prior to the event. Tickets for this event cost 15,000 colones (less than $30), and include a commemorative beer mug as well as two beers. Beerfest will start before noon and will fold its tents before midnight. Children are welcome to the event, and their tickets only cost 5,000 colones.

The Beerfest 2015 event is being organized by La Bodega de Chema, a pioneering microbrewery and beer importer located in San Jose. La Bodega de Chema has been instrumental in promotion and growth of the craft beer movement in Costa Rica. Tickets may be obtained directly from this microbrewery (cash only) or through specialticket.net (online payments).

As recently reported by The Costa Rica Star, the global craft beer movement is threatened by the Big Beer oligopoly, which is aggressively pursuing the acquisition of microbreweries. Events such as Beerfest 2015 help keep the craft beer movement in the hands of real microbreweries that emphasize on taste and tradition instead of massive profits.

Beerfest 2015 is listed as a Facebook event; you can confirm your attendance here.