The 2019 Great American Beer Festival (GABF) returns to Denver on October 3 – 5, 2019. Tickets go on sale to the public on Wednesday, July 31. The presale for Brewers Association (BA) and American Homebrewers Association (AHA) members is Tuesday, July 30.
GABF 2019: What You Need to Know
The country’s biggest and best beer festival, the Great American Beer Festival (GABF), is back for their 38th consecutive year! This year’s GABF is promising lots of fun and new experiences for attendees, and of course, plenty of great beer. Over four sessions, 62,000 attendees will attend the festival to choose samples from more than 4,000 beers poured by an anticipated 800 breweries. If you like beer, GABF is a festival not to be missed!
2019 GABF Session Dates
- Thursday, October 3: 5:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
- Friday, October 4: 5:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
- Saturday, October 5 Members Session*: 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
- Saturday, October 5: 5:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
All sessions take place at the Colorado Convention Center, 700 14th Street, Denver, Colorado 80202.
Ticket Sale Dates
- BA & AHA Member Presale*: Tuesday, July 30 at 10:00 a.m. MT
- Public Sale: Wednesday, July 31 at 10:00 a.m. MT
* Members Session tickets can be purchased by Brewers Association & American Homebrewers Association members only. Members have been emailed a unique presale access code to access the presale and to purchase Members Session tickets. Members may also purchase tickets during the public ticket sale.
Ticket Prices
- Members-Only Session: $70 each; limit 4 tickets per member
- General Sessions: $85 each (or $80 for members when purchased during the presale)
- PAIRED + GABF: $160 each (includes access to the PAIRED food and beer pairing event on Thursday or Friday night, plus access to the GABF festival hall)
- Designated Driver: $30 each
Your GABF Ticket Includes:
- Commemorative, collectible tasting glass
- Unlimited one-once samples
- Festival guide and the free My GABF app to help attendees navigate the festival hall
- Access to educational and interactive seminars on beer appreciation
- Opportunity to speak with and learn from personalities, brewers, and more
- Plenty of entertainment, including games, karaoke, silent disco, live DJ, and more
PAIRED + GABF tickets include the above plus access to PAIRED, with 50 unique beers (not offered elsewhere in the festival) paired with small-bites created by 25 award-winning chefs.
Designated Driver tickets do not include beer samples, but instead include a free gift, plus unlimited sodas and hospitality in the Designated Driver Lounge.
All tickets are sold via AXS.com or on the AXS mobile app. For more information visit greatamericanbeerfestival.com/tickets/ .
Want to get more hyped about GABF? Check out this video from the Brewers Association!
GABF 2019: What You Can Expect
As they do each year, GABF is bringing plenty of new fun to the 2019 festival. They’re also bringing back some of the more popular events from previous years. Here are the highlights of what to expect at the 2019 GABF that we’re most excited about:
Back & Better Than Ever
We’re very excited to see the Jameson Caskmates Barrel-Aged Beer Garden will be back and even bigger for this year’s festival! Featuring Jameson barrel-aged beers made in collaboration with 22 partner craft breweries, this was one of our favorite editions to the festival last year. This beer garden will also offer plenty of entertainment and interactive experiences and activities. Don’t miss it!
We are were also excited to hear that the festival format is returning to Regions this year! Breweries will once again be grouped in alphabetical order by state according to their region. The Region layout is coming back after organizing the breweries alphabetical by name last year, and we’re stoked for it. It’s a great way to taste your way around the country and better explore all those different areas have available.
Of course, PAIRED is also back for another year, bringing 25 award-winning chefs together with some of the country’s best independent breweries to design small plates with big flavors that perfectly complement one another. PAIRED is like having a beer-and-food festival with a beer festival, and it’s incredible. A separated PAIRED + GABF ticket is required.
New This Year
Get ready to keep a tighter grip on your GABF tasting cup this year, because the GABF tasting cups will be made of glass for all sessions this year! No longer reserved to just the Member’s Session, all attendees will receive a commemorative, collectible, glass tasting cup.
Wander through a three-dimensional timeline of craft beer in the History of Craft exhibit, featuring photos and items from the Brewers Association archive. Learn about the history behind the independent craft beer makers and how far the industry has come over the years.
In the GABF Backyard this year you’ll find the Ikon Pass Stage presented by WinterWonderGrass. Here, WinterWonderGrass will be presenting three sets of incredible live music per session. The 2020 WinterWonderGrass lineup will be announced at GABF, and Ikon passes and WonderGrass tickets will also be available for sale onsite.
GABF: More Information
It sounds like this year is shaping up to be another incredible festival, and we’ve barely scratched the surface on what you can expect. To learn even more about this year’s Great American Beer Festival visit them online at greatamericanbeerfestival.com/.
We’ll see you at GABF!
