Boot Brew Festival This Saturday in Eunice

Last Sunday South Louisiana celebrated Easter. The arrival of Easter means the end of the Lenten Season and for a lot of people in South Louisiana that change in the calendar has affected the way they consume beer. Okay, for a lot of folks, giving up drinking alcohol for Lent is a thing. Now that the Lenten obligation is over who wouldn’t want to celebrate our blessing with some different and unique homebrewed beers.

That’s the mission of Boot Brew Fest. It’s a celebration of the best of the Gulf South’s best amateur beer brewers. It’s also a great way to meet new people, find old friends, enjoy some great music, and discover the “hobby” of home brewing. I put the quotation marks around the word hobby because for a lot of these homebrewers it’s so much more than that.

This year’s Boot Brew Festival is planned for Lakeview Park and Beach near Eunice in St. Landry Parish. This will provide a beautiful backdrop and atmosphere for what organizers believe will be the biggest event in the festival’s short history.

Organizers told KATC Television that ticket sales for this year’s event were running about 50% higher than last year. The event is organized by Acadiana Roots, a non-profit group that spotlights home-brewers from Louisiana and throughout the region.

Speculation is that more than 50 kegs of beer will be on offer during the festival on Saturday. The choices will range from IPAs to lagers and other styles for every taste and appetite.

If you’d like to go tickets are $10 dollars for general admission. That $10 ticket will get you into the festival grounds to enjoy the music and view the Homebrewing Exhibition. For $40 dollars you can purchase Full Festival Access. This includes your general cover plus beer samples, a souvenir tasting cup, and a voucher for a bowl of jambalaya. Or you can go big and purchase a $65 VIP Festival Access pass. This gets you all of the above, a festival t-shirt and early access to the festival.

Don’t forget to bring your state-issued ID. They will be checking and if you “left yours in the truck” be ready to walk back and get it. It’s all part of how we keep the festival fun and trouble-free.

Here’s the site map for the festival.

According to the Festival website here is the schedule for Saturday’s events.

Festival Event Schedule (April 23rd, 2022)

1:00 pm – 2:00 pm – VIP Access: The festival will open early for VIP access at 1:00 pm. During this time, beer will be provided by various homebrewers in Louisiana and the surrounding areas. You must be at least 21 years of age to be served alcohol.
2:00 pm – 5:00 pm – Beer Festival: During this time, beer will be provided by various homebrewers in Louisiana and the surrounding areas. You must be at least 21 years of age and purchase a Full Festival Access ticket to be served alcohol.

5:00 pm – Barn Opens: The Barn will open at 5:00 pm to purchase drinks.
5:30 pm – 6:00 pm – Awards Ceremony: The Awards Ceremony starts approximately 30 minutes after the festival is complete to give our homebrewers enough time to pack up tents and kegs as needed.

5:00 pm – 9:00 pm – Food Vendors: Food will be available outside of the Barn for purchase starting at 5:00 pm. This will be available until 9:00 pm.
6:00 pm – 8:30 pm – Pine Leaf Boys: The Pine Leaf Boys perform.
9:00 pm – 11:30 pm – Horace Trahan & the Ossun Express perform.

Now that’s a day full of fun, food, music, and award-winning homebrewed beer. A reminder you must be 21 to drink and IDs will be checked. For directions to Lakeview Park and Beach, click here.