Rails & Ales shines in August

One sure way to beat the August heat is to hit a local beer festival. And, one festival that continues to evolve and lead the state’s beer event lineup is the Rails & Ales Craft Beer Festival in Huntington, WV.

The 11th annual Rails & Ales Festival occurs this year on Saturday, August 10, at the Harris Riverfront Park

As far as beer festivals go, Rails & Ales is the leader in beer selection — and not only because it’s the state’s largest beer festival. Festival beer procurer, Jeff McKay, carefully curates the beers and works throughout the year to secure breweries to attend the event. No festival in the region has a better selection of imported specialties than Rails & Ales.

This is absolutely the widest variety of beers we’ve ever had. The fact that you can get everything from Estonian beers to beers made less than a mile away speaks to the character and makeup of the festival and to why it’s such a special event.

Jeff mcKay

“We have new importers in West Virginia this year,” McKay says — and that means opportunities for brand-new beer experiences.

“We’ll have D&V International represented with their St. Bernardus and Duchesse beers. Also expect a nice selection of beers from Lime Ventures including Põhjala from Estonia and Frau Gruber from Germany— both focused on American-style beers. We’ll also, for the first time, have beers from the great Belgian brewers 3 Fonteinen, De La Senne, and De Ranke, along with others.”

If you’re looking for hazy IPAs and fruited sours, McKay says you will be taken care of. Some of the highlights will be beer from regional brewers such as Jackie O’s, Cinderlands, and Aslin.

Plenty of standard beers too

“You don’t have to be a beer nerd to enjoy this festival,” McKay says. He promises plenty of approachable and enjoyable beer styles made by a wide variety of breweries.

“You can get you a beautiful Pilsner from Weinstephaner, the oldest brewery in the world, or you can get a locally-made Blonde Ale or similar from Koerber and The Peddler.”

A beer judging team led by nationally recognized beer judge, Jane Zalewski, will select the best beers of the festival. The top picks earn Ollie Bailey Best of the Fest trophies and banners.

Music highlights

Music entertainment will include a Tom Petty tribute show presented by John Inghram and his all-star band. That show begins at 7:30. Other bands playing in the earlier afternoon and evening slots will be Dinosaur Burps, The Infidelfonics, Mamba Beats, and DJ Sober Doberman.

For those who may be more interested in the festival music than the beer, a special concert ticket is available that doesn’t include beer sampling. Instead, concert ticket holders may purchase individual full glasses of beer at a special vendor table in the beer garden adjacent to the concert stage.

Food vendors & crafts

Always some of the best festival-food vendors in the region set up along the fairway at Rails & Ales.

Among the dozen or so expected, look for three tasty BBQ vendors including Smokin Davenports, Wild & Wonderful, and Twisted Sisterz. Popular local WV food specialists like Sam’s Hot Dogs and Giovanni’s Pizza will be there. We’re also fond of the South Side Sliders truck, and we love Scragglepop’s sugared-up popcorn for our sweet tooth.

If you’re into local crafts and other artisan stuff, they’ll have a dozen vendors for that too.

Tickets

General admission tickets allow entry at 5:00 PM and include beer and cider samples from over 60 craft brewers, a special tasting mug, and entry to the concert stage area to hear the bands. The cost is $55.00 plus taxes and fees.

Concert tickets are $20.00 plus taxes and fees and include admission to the concert stage area at 3:30 PM. Beer is available at an additional cost.

While plenty of General Admission tickets remain available, V.I.P. tickets are already sold out. The festival runs until 9:00 PM.

Rails & Ales ticket link