Posted on Wed, Oct. 14, 2009

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NEARLY 400 BEERS ON TAP AT MIDWEST BEERFEST

Nearly 400 beers will be on tap at the annual event.

BY DENISE NEIL

The Wichita Eagle

Serious beer fans will travel long distances to sample new and unusual microbrews.

Serious Kansas beer fans won't have to travel far this weekend, though. Saturday's annual Midwest Beerfest is featuring more microbrews than ever before.

Eight of the 11 registered microbreweries in Kansas — including Wichita's River City and Cheney's Hank Is Wiser — will be providing some of the nearly 400 beers on tap.

"Breweries are seeing our festival as a good venue to bring their brews to," said Beth Bower, one of the event's co-chairs. "It's a good way to get noticed."

The annual event, now in its ninth year at Century II, is a tasting intended to familiarize beer fans with the seemingly endless varieties available.

Sponsored by the American Institute of Wine and Food, the beerfest also features beer-friendly food from local restaurants, beer-related cooking demonstrations, vendors and a silent auction.

Those who purchase a $30 ticket will receive a tasting mug, which they can use to sample unlimited 1 ounce pours of beer.

Visitors can roam the room, deciding which beers to taste. Before they do, though, they can purchase inexpensive food items such as hot wings and hot dogs from local restaurants that will help absorb all those tastes.

Among the restaurants providing beef-friendly snacks on Saturday: Old Chicago, The Anchor and Bubba's Nekked BBQ.

Nondrinking designated drivers will be admitted for $12, and fest organizers will help arrange transportation for anyone who shouldn't drive.

Organizers expect a crowd of around 2,000 people, Proceeds will benefit Starkey's Lighthouse Project and will also go toward the AIWF Wichita chapter's culinary scholarship, named this year for Terry Palmer, a longtime beer enthusiast and festival organizer, who died of cancer this summer.

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