Beer lovers rendezvous in the Rockies for annual Great American Beer Festival

Over the course of three days — Oct. 10-12 — some 49,000 attendees will have the opportunity to sample beers from approximately 600 U.S. breweries at the 32nd annual Great American Beer Festival (GABF). The event, widely considered America’s premier beer festival and competition, offers the largest selection of U.S. beers ever served in a public tasting, bringing together the brewers and beer lovers that make the U.S. the world’s most diverse brewing nation.

Great American Beer Festival Brewers Association — Since the first Great American Beer Festival (GABF) in 1982, the event has grown and evolved hand-in-hand with the American brewing community. Today, some 49,000 attendees will have the opportunity to sample beers from approximately 600 U.S. breweries at the 32nd annual GABF.

GABF celebrates the accomplishments and ingenuity of American brewers, who help to make the U.S. the world’s most diverse brewing nation — offering more beer styles and brands to choose from than any other country. The festival recognizes these breweries through a public tasting event in Denver, and by hosting one of the most prestigious beer competitions and judge panels in the world. Since the first GABF in 1982, the event has grown and evolved hand-in-hand with the American brewing community. In 2007, the festival sold out the week of the event, while the 2012 event sold out in a matter of minutes.

New for 2013 — an expanded brewpub pavilion. Of today’s 2,500 breweries, roughly 1,100 are brewpubs. Last year, GABF recognized this growing trend with the debut of the Brewpub Pavilion showcasing 24 breweries, representing all regions of the country. For 2013, the number of brewers and spaces will be expanded to quench attendees’ thirst for great beers from small brewery-restaurants.

Additionally this year, the GABF competition will feature a brand new category for Grodziskie or Grätzer — a straw-colored ale that was originally a Polish style in the European Influence Enters Competition Category. It’s a crisp, light-bodied beer. On the other end of the spectrum is the addition of the Adambier category — a dark beer that hails from Dortmund, Germany. It’s a full-bodied beer with more unusual flavors and higher alcohol content. Adambier and Grätzer are both historically smoky ales, aged in oak. They are making a revival among U.S. and international brewers and were added to the Brewers Association Beer Style Guidelines for the first time in 2013.

For techies, there’s a new and improved enhanced mobile app that was redesigned based on attendee feedback from 2012. Among the new features, it will help attendees in choosing a way to navigate their GABF tasting experience by offering up “palate trips” of beers to try in the hall, grouped by style and other categories.

GABF tickets will be available for purchase to the general public online on July 31 at 10 a.m. MDT/12 p.m. EDT via Ticketmaster.com.

A ticket pre-sale exclusively for members of the American Homebrewers Association and Brewers Association will take place on July 30 at 10 a.m. MDT/12 p.m. EDT.

General Session tickets cost $75 and include: