I attended and had a great time at the 2nd annual Fredericton Craft Beer Festival (FCBF) on March 8th at the Fredericton Convention Centre. This years event attracted 30 brewers and suppliers toting in 160 different beers from the all the maritime provinces, Quebec, Maine, Saskatchewan, Europe and beyond. In true maritime fashion it didn't matter where you were from as all the brewers were all intermingled.
The layout of the FCBF worked really well having the event on the second floor. Entry was past ticket takers and a coat check with an escalator up. The festival was in a large main room with lots of area to go sit in a more quiet setting if you needed a break or wanted a chat with friends.
The 1025 tickets sold were four types Ladies VIP, VIP, regular and designated driver. The Ladies VIP ticket was in partnership with the Ladies Beer League Halifax and was in recognition of International Women's Day. It offered access at 6:00, a Beer 101 with brewmaster Kellye Robertson, special beer samples and a custom glass. VIP tickets granted access an hour earlier than regular holders and of course the designated drivers tickets.
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| Photo courtesy of Dassouki Photos |
FCBF organizer Lloyd Chambers seems like a guy he is not satisfied with status quo and took many notes he said to improve next years event in the same location and noted five more breweries are planning on attending.
For me I got to try and some awesome Maritime beers and ciders, meet the brewers, and some very nice people. I had too hits to mention them all. A nice ending was that two Nova Scotia breweries, Boxing Rock Brewing and Bad Apple Brewhouse, won Best of Fest.
I am looking forward to attending next for an even bigger and better show.
