Macon Beer Fest to be back in downtown

Since St. Patrick’s Day has come and gone, beer enthusiasts will be happy to mark their calendars for Macon’s next big beer event, the Macon Beer Festival which will occur on Aug. 24.
The festival won a Gold Addy Award, which is the world’s largest advertising competition, hosted by the America Advertising Federation.
The festival received praise for using “smart, creative media” to reach out to community members through an array of events.
This year includes events such as the first annual Macon Homebrew Competition and live music featured at several venues.
The self-proclaimed “party with a cause,” Macon Beer Festival allows people to venture through the streets of Macon sampling a wide variety of beer, all while supporting a worthy cause.
The Macon Beer Festival is a Pints for Prostates event. Pints for Prostates is an organization that seeks to raise awareness of prostate cancer and educate people about the disease.
The event offers free PSA (short for prostate-specific antigen) tests for men over the age of 40. These tests average at a $75 value, and they aid in screening for prostate cancer or other prostate-related problems.
Sponsored by dozens of local businesses, the beer festival is in the heart of Macon and seeks to really reach out to Macon in a fun, creative way.
Featured venues this year include Roasted Café and Lounge, Cox Capital Theatre, The Downtown Grill, The Rookery, The Hummingbird Stage and Taproom, Bearfoot Tavern and many more of Macon residents’ favorite spots.
The Rookery is beginning the party early with their upcoming event “Unveil the Ale,” which will begin in April and occur monthly at Dovetail, the restaurant above the Rookery. The event will showcase a rare beer, only available on that particular night, paired with an entrée.
As far as the actual festival, last year the Rookery presented the Sweetwater Brewing Company’s LowRYEder Pale Ale, which went on to win bronze at the Great American Beer Festival.
A representative of the Rookery said, “This year we are hoping to do something as impressive as that…we always have a few tricks up our sleeve.”
The Festival is put on by the Downtown Macon Rotary Club.
President Vicki Mills of the Rotary Club describes the club on their website, saying, “Our club is comprised of a group of business and community leaders who practice ‘service above self’ every day.”
The Macon Beer Festival exemplifies this kind of thinking by reaching out to the community and giving back to an important cause all through the universal language of beer.

Tickets, available through Mercer ticket sales, are $20 leading up to the event and $25 the day of.
All tickets will be picked up at will-call, which is located at Third Street Park.
The event lasts from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., and IDs will be checked upon ticket pick-up which begins at 2 p.m.

It may be a few months away, but there is a 500 person cap on ticket sales. It is not too early to call and order your tickets for this unique event.