The seventh annual Celebration of the Suds will have an expanded lineup of Garden State-based craft brewers and bands .
ATLANTIC CITY — When the atmosphere is festive if not a bit offbeat, everybody’s acting like this is the place to be and you’re wondering “Why didn’t I think of that?” — it could be because event organizer Jon Henderson thought of it first.
Henderson’s got his hands in more conventional events like the Atlantic City Seafood and A.C. Food and Wine festivals later this year, but more often his name is linked with the popular Atlantic City Beer & Music Festival slated for this weekend — or anything else involving beer, rock ‘n’ roll, hot rods, hot chicks or tattoos. The beer and music fest may become Henderson’s most enduring Atlantic City legacy if you consider how popular it’s been since he started it seven years ago.
Presented by 100.7 WZXL-FM radio, the A.C. Beer & Music Fest has grown in size, scope and status since it began, and this year includes a vastly expanded musical lineup featuring punk rock legend Marky Ramone, whose band closes out the first of three sessions Friday night (10pm).
There will also be 14 other bands, many locally based, playing on two stages throughout the weekend, culinary demonstrations from local chefs, and beer seminars featuring local author and beer expert Gary Monterosso (conducting an Artisan Beer seminar Friday at 9:45pm, Saturday at 2:45 and 8:45pm) and others.
Of the nearly 80 breweries represented, about 10 are in-state including Carton Brewery (Atlantic Highlands), Kane Brewery (Monmouth County), Cape May Brewery and Tuckahoe Brewing (both Cape May County), Turtle Stone (Vineland), Flying Fish (Cherry Hill), River Horse (Lambertville), Cricket Hill (Fairfield) and the N.J. Beer Company (Bergen County). Several of these craft breweries are newly licensed within the last year, according to Henderson, among them Kane Brewery, founded by former home-brewer Michael Kane in August 2011.
“We launched with two year-round beers — Head High, our West Coast-style IPA, and Afterglow, a rye pale ale — and we also had a summer seasonal called Single Fin, a Belgian-style blonde ale, that will return this year around Memorial Day,” says Kane. “Our current limited-release beer is an Imperial IPA called Overhead. Head High, Afterglow and Overhead will all be available to sample at the A.C. Festival, along with our American Extra Stout that was a limited release for St. Patrick’s Day.”
Turtle Stone owner Ben Battiata also started as a home brewer. Turtle Stone will have an American stout called Red Rye (its flagship brew along with Jasmine Green Tea Blonde Ale) and its Chocolate Milk Stout available at the festival.
Horner created a 40-bottle craft beer menu while GM at Mia, schooling the staff on the different beers and how they might be paired with meals. Since taking on a broader role at the property, he extended that to include the entire service staff as advocates or “beer ambassadors” for all the craft brews, bottled and draft, on the entire property.
The festivities include beer tastings and pairings, live music, beer-related specials at multiple venues throughout the property, and educational elements hosted by beer experts Gary Monterosso and Tara Nurin.
“All and all I’m excited to bring the festival back — I think it was a piece missing from Atlantic City.”
For years at Gardner’s Basin and in 2007 at Sandcastle Stadium, locals and visitors alike gathered to enjoy the bounty of the sea at the popular Atlantic City Seafood Festival. After four years away, Good Time Tricycle and the City of Atlantic City have announced the triumphant return of the Atlantic City Seafood Festival, to take place on Saturday, September 15 and Sunday, September 16.
Plus Ventnor's Chef's Night Out, New Venues at Showboat and the Album of the Week
In celebration of this weekend's Atlantic City Beer and Music Festival — which is promoting craft beers and the brewers who create them, we’re going to hop back in our hot tub time machine and explore the start of micro brewing. From the 1920s Prohibition era to 1970s England, there’s a sudsy story that’s led up to this weekend’s Beer Festival.
MY MOM SAID THAT IT TOOK her 30 years to realize the meaning of the saying, “you are only as strong as your weakest link.” And although we may understand it, life’s actual experiences give it an even deeper meaning. The topic came up when my mom and I were in the car and had to merge into one lane on the Parkway due to road work. I noticed after going around a bend that the first car in the line was moving extremely slow and therefore was causing the rest of the line to go the same speed. It was quite frustrating, especially because it was during morning rush hour and we had to be somewhere on time. But we could only go as fast as the cars in front of us. I turned to my mom and said,...
“It’s steers and beers in the city this weekend,” laughs Henderson. “You know you hear so many negative things about the city, but really, look at what we have here and these attractions. This is an amazing April Fool’s weekend that’s scheduled and we’re really happy to be part of it.”
"“Let’s face it, there are numerous beer festivals throughout the year and throughout the country — probably one going on every week somewhere and Anheuser-Busch has really thrown their support behind the one in Atlantic City. That’s the respect they have for a show like the one we have here."
'I didn’t want to do the Ramones clones thing. The guys I play with sound like themselves. We have Michael Graves from the Misfits, who doesn’t sing like Joey. He sings like himself. We do 34 Ramones songs.'
One of southern New Jersey’s ... heck, one of the East Coast’s foremost authorities on all things beer, Gary Monterosso, was joined by a packed house of local and national brewing and culinary personalities Tuesday night, Nov. 29, at House of Blues’ Foundation Room.
This year’s event runs in conjunction with the inaugural “Lightning on the Water” powerboat racing competition co-sponsored by Geico and Trump Entertainment Resorts, which will have a preview of the boats and racers at Trump Marina on Saturday from 10am-5pm.
"Can I pour you a beer, Mr. Peterson?" "It's a little early isn't it, Woody?" "For a beer?" "No, for stupid questions." -- Cheers An understandable yet somewhat unfortunate facet of a depressed eco...
THIS WEEKEND BRINGS A BIT OF A CHANGE of pace for the Atlantic City Convention Center. Very often the center is filled with conventioneers wearing suits and shaking hands as they try to network and b...
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