St. Louis has its fair share of beer festivals, but few of them rock it out better when it comes to beer and music as well as Schlafly’s HOP in the City festival.  This year’s edition will hit our town on September 16th from noon to 4 p.m. at the Schlafly Tap Room at 2100 Locust Street.

The big news this year, if you remember last year’s heat and long lines, is that the brewery felt your pain and this year has taken major steps to make the festival experience better for everyone.  They’ve added tons of shade to the festival grounds, doubled the seating area with up to 50 picnic tables this year and will have several “cocktail table” barrels scattered throughout. They have also reformatted the tasting layout to allow for more space and easier line flow.

The Brew

Beer wise, come thirsty because, among all the brews, Schlafly is likely to have one of your favs available.

The one-day annual festival will feature more than 40 Schlafly beers and 6 specialty tappings, which will include everything from hopped-up IPAs and wood-aged beers to traditional ales and lagers.

As a new tradition that began a couple years ago, Founding Brewer/Gong Master Stephen Hale will be ringing in several of the specialty tappings with his variety of costumes.

Some of the highlights you’ll want to look for at Hop In The City include this year’s Hop Trial pack. This year’s sampler features four new hops: Barbe Rouge, Chinook, Perle and Ella!

Fruit beers are on the rise, and while they may not be everyone, they are worth experimenting with and seeing if your hardcore palate can adjust to them.  I find fruit beers a nice addition to most beer menus and some of these have become some of my favorites, including the Grapefruit IPA, which this year joined Schlafly’s year round menu.  The Pineapple IPA is a new one to me, and will only be available at the festival.

Berry Berry Tart | ABV 6.0% | IBU 15

This is one, I’m looking forward to trying for the first time.  This beer is part of Schlafly’s Caged Keg series.

APPEARANCE: Light Pink/Purple, Hazy
PROCESS: Ale brewed with berries, lemon juice and vanilla
TASTE: It blushes with color from raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries, which give an irresistible tart-fruit flavor. Vanilla beans round out the semblance of a pastry–this is the ale version of a French tart.

American IPA | ABV: 7.2% | IBU: 65

APPEARANCE: Golden amber, slightly hazy
PROCESS: New World American IPA, dry hopped
HOPS: Amarillo, Simcoe, Centennial (US)

This beer is American IPA is bold, hoppy and comes from 100% American hops.  Its deep gold and full body from pale and crystal malted barley. A blend of Amarillo, Centennial and Simcoe hop varietals imparts AIPA with bitterness and prominent aromas of citrus and fruit. Our brewers select these hops on an annual pilgrimage to the hop farms of Pacific Northwest.