Novemberfest! Why should October have all the fun?

Virginia has been lapping the field compared to the District and Maryland for some time now, both in terms of Great American Beer Festival medals (Port City, Lost Rhino, and Ardent, among others) and buzz (Aslin, The Answer, and The Veil). Well, what if you could sample all these beers in one place? The hype-worthy hazies, the classic award winners, the boozy stouts, the sours, and a whole bunch of Virginia-grown and -made ciders as well? Do we have an event for you!

Rustico’s annual Novemberfest will return November 2nd with an outdoor block party featuring no less than 80 local, delicious beers and ciders – from 40 of Virginia’s top craft brewers and cider makers.

Rustico Novemberfest featured beers.

Unlike Snallygaster, Rustico’s Novemberfest is pay-as-you-go. Advance tickets are $25 and include 20 food & drink tickets and admission (a savings of $5 off the door sale price; day-of admission is $10). You can certainly buy more tickets once you’re there, and expect to pay somewhere between 5-9 tickets ($5-$9) for a beer, with smaller pours available if you’d like to sample.

You can also use those tickets to buy food from the Rustico team. Executive Chef Stephen McRae is serving up BBQ pork sandwiches, Red Apron hot dogs, chili, vegetarian fare, sweets, and more.

Sponsorship

Kids under 14 are free, and they’ll be games and other activities for them, and live music for all, but no dogs, please.

As is customary at Neighborhood Restaurant Group events, a portion of the proceeds benefits Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food & Agriculture, a local nonprofit organization dedicated to creating a more equitable and sustainable local food system in the Washington, DC area.

Novemberfest Beers (our picks in bold):

The Ciders:

The Wine: