The SIPtemberfest Book Club is now reading Ambitious Brew – The Story of American Beer, by Maureen Ogle. Admittedly some of us are only oh, say, about one chapter in. However this is not indicative of the quality of this book and only speaks to the amount of time available to sit down and read it!

So far Ogle has painted a wonderfully vivid picture of a  burgeoning American beer culture in the mid-1800s and the concept of “German sociable drinking;” that happy place between sobriety and drunkenness that Americans were just starting to realize.

In the 1830s, whiskey was America’s poison of choice and was at it’s peak consumption rate (seven gallons annually per capita – no that’s not a typo.) But as the prohibitionists tried to crack down on “the devil’s handmaid,”  those trusty Germans and their lower ABV lager elbowed their way into our American culture and proved – for the time being at least – that drinking and violence were not  bound at the hip and that it was possible to “combine alcohol with respectability, pleasure and decency.” Which is exactly what we hope to do at SIPtemberfest!

We like to think of SIPtemberfest as kind of like being in a beer garden: leisurely enjoying quality beers while surrounded by beautiful fall foliage, local food and music, and the company of your beer-drinkin’ peers in the base area of Mad River Glen. And we have an open door policy at the SIP which means that you don’t have to have a ticket to come hang out with all of us responsible beer geeks. You can hang out with us completely for FREE! But the catch is that we expect EVERYONE to be respectful of this policy. Abuse (i.e. getting drinks for your non-SIP-ticket-holding friends,) is not only super uncool and will earn you mega-bad beer karma, but it’s illegal and you will risk getting tossed out by our eagle-eyed security guards and possibly ruining it for everyone else by forcing us to close our gates to ticket-holders only.

Since there are NO MORE TICKETS to Saturday, we want to make sure folks know they can still come up, hang out and head to the General Stark’s Pub for some bottled beer or wine. But don’t cheat the SIP. It’s very un-German and you really, really don’t want to be that guy.

There ARE STILL TICKETS to Friday night’s Meet the Brewers Dinner & Tasting, so if you are really into appreciating beer to it’s fullest, this is a wonderful chance for you to channel your inner German and be in the presence of Vermont Beer Greatness at the same time! Click here for more information about this wonderful event and don’t hesitate to get your tickets!!

And if you’re a history/beer geek like the folks here at Team SIPtemberfest, pick up a copy of Ambitious Brew and let us know what you think!

Cheers!

Online tickets for SIPtemberfest are SOLD OUT! There are still a handful of tickets left at Hostel Tevere in Warren, the Mad Taco in Waistfield and Montpelier, and Three Penny Taproom in Montpelier.

But there is GOOD NEWS:

1. You can still buy tickets to our Brewers Dinner & Tasting on Friday 9/28! This is such a cool event that you should really take advantage of it! Four courses of delicious food paired with beers hand-selected by Sean Lawson of Lawson’s Finest Liquids and Mike Gerhart of Otter Creek Brewing. Plus you’ll get an exclusive chance to pick the brains of these two beer connoisseurs in a question and answer session. And in true SIPtemberfest style,  we will have a couple surprises in store for you! These tickets are limited so don’t hesitate – get yours sooner than later!
2. You can still WIN tickets to SIPtemberfest! Very shortly we will be giving away tickets to some lucky contest winners! There will be a Caption Contest and a Swag Shot Contest. The winner of these will both be awarded TWO SIPVIP packages which includes entry for two, two t-shirts, meal vouchers and more! Finally, you can enter to win two tickets to the above mentioned Brewers Dinner & Tasting by simply RSVPing to our Facebook Invite!

So while tickets might be running out, there is still hope! Stay tuned because the contests will start this week! If you’re not much for contests and you still don’t have your SIP tickets, then get on it because they probably won’t last much longer!

Cheers!

We’ve had some questions come up a couple times recently so we’re going to address a the Top Ten for you here:

1. What’s with this Dinner on Friday thing?  Great question. We are really excited to present this exclusive opportunity for people to drink & dine with two of the most reputable brewers in Vermont: Sean Lawson of Lawson’s Finest Liquids and Mike Gerhart of Otter Creek Brewing. Guests will get to try beers paired specifically to a four course dinner and take part in a Q &A session with these beer-connoisseurs. We are working on a couple surprises too! Tickets are limited so get yours while they last!
2. So, for Saturday, I have kids/friends that don’t drink/pregnant wife…  No sweat. They don’t need tickets but they can totally come and hang out. Kids will love taking a ride on Mad River Glen’s Single Chair and we’ll have live music and great local food. Plus the General Stark’s Pub will be open to all so you can head inside and take a team-break from the fest.
3. I take my dog everywhere! Can Spot come to the SIP?  Yes. BUT we ask that all dogs remained leashed and attended to the entire time – not everyone loves dogs as much as you do. We reserve the right to ask that misbehaving dogs be taken home, so if your four-legger is a mischievous one, maybe he should ride the couch all day instead.
4. If I already bought my ticket and then I win one of your contests, can I get a refund?  Sure. We’d love for you to bring your friends too, but if you have no one to fill the tickets you’ve purchased, email us and we’ll work it out for you.
5. When are you going to release the whole brewers list???  Soon – promise! But for now, you’ll have to manage with the Sneak Peeks we keep posting. We can tell you that we already have more brewers than ever, but we are still lining more up! And we have a couple of surprises in store for you too so stay tuned!
6. What’s your sign?  Libra.
7. Are you single?  That depends who’s asking. Are you independently wealthy?
8. I from outta-town. Where’s a good place to stay in the area?  There are a ton of great places around here, but our personal favorite is the Hostel Tevere which will be hosting a killer post-party Saturday night and hangover breakfast on Sunday. But check the Mad River Valley’s Lodging listing, or the VT State Parks listing for more options. Staying in Waterbury or Montpelier areas will mean plenty of post-SIP options for you too!
9. I’m not really into buying tickets online. Anywhere I can get them locally from a real live human being?  Yes! Hostel Tevere, Mad Taco in Waitsfield or Montpelier, and Three Penny Taproom are all selling tickets to Saturday. If you want tickets to Friday, you have to get them online, or you can email us if you really really really don’t want to use TicketLeap.
10. How about transportation?  If you don’t have your own DD, you can take our FREE Shuttle – the Alpine Limo – that will be going between the Hostel Tevere and SIPtemberfest all day long. The schedule is still being finalized, but we’ll keep you posted on how that shakes out soon.