Tomorrow kicks off the Northern Virginia Brewfest, which will be held at the Bull Run Special Events Center in Centreville, VA.  Tickets are $25 each and tastings run from 11am until 7pm.  More than 40 breweries from across the country will be sampling their products and will be accompanied by food vendors and local bands providing entertainment.  More information, including the breweries list, is available at DCBeer.com.

If you’re looking for something a bit closer to home, DCBeer will be hosting its own beer festival on Wed. Oct. 28.  In conjunction with The Black Squirrel, the “Great Pumpkin Beer and Food Tasting” will be offering tastings of seasonal pumpkin brews and similarly themed foods.  The Black Squirrel is located at 2427 18th Street, NW (in Adams Morgan) and tickets are available through the link above for $40.

Review forthcoming...

We’ll be heading shortly to see if we can squeeze our way in to ChurchKey on its second night open.  If we’re successful, we’ll be providing periodic updates on our first impressions!

To leave you salivating, here’s a partial list of their draft brews excerpted from the Washington Post’s full list of 55 published earlier this afternoon.  Brews are divided into categories labeled Crisp, Hop, Malt, Roast, Smoke, Fruit & Spice and Tart & Funky:

CRISP
Delicate Fruit

• Bear Republic Global Kolsch Bear Republic Brewing Company American Blonde Ale California 4.8%

Malt Accented

• Brooklyn Lager Brooklyn Brewery Amber Lager New York 5.2%
• Hofstetten Hochzeitsbier von 1810 Brauerei Hofstetten Krammer Märzen/Oktoberfest Austria 6.3%

Brisk Hoppiness

• EKU Pils Kulmbacher Brauerei German Pilsener Germany 5.0%

• Prima Pils Victory Brewing Company German Pilsener Pennsylvania 5.3%

HOP
Malty Backbone

• Hop Head Red Ale Green Flash Brewing Company American Amber Ale California 6.4%

Bold, Herbal & Citric

• 12th Release Harvest Wet Hop Ale Sierra Nevada Brewing Company American Fresh Hop Ale California 6.7%
• A Little Sumpin’ Extra! Ale Lagunitas Brewing Company AmericanImperial IPA California 8.8%
• Avery India Pale Ale Avery Brewing Company American IPA Colorado 6.3%
• Glacier Harvest ’09 Wet Hop Ale Harpoon Brewing Company American Fresh Hop Ale Massachusetts 6.7%
• Gordon Oskar Blues Grill & Brewery American Imperial IPA Colorado 8.7%
• Heavy Seas Loose Cannon Clipper City Brewing Company American IPA Maryland 7.3%
• Stone Pale Ale Stone Brewing Company American Pale Ale California 5.4%
• Two Hearted Ale Bell’s Brewery American IPA Michigan 7.1%

MALT
Toasty & Nutty

• Bonator Klosterbrauerei Weissenohe Doppelbock Dunkel Germany 8.2%
• Christoffel Bokbier Bierbrouwerij Sint Christoffel Dunkles Bock Netherlands 7.8%
• Old Man Ale Coniston Brewing Company Northern English Brown Ale England 5.0%

Fruit & Toffee

• Palo Santo Marron Dogfish Head Craft Brewery American Brown Ale Delaware 12.0%
• Third Coast Old Ale 2008 Bell’s Brewing Company English Strong Ale Michigan 10.2%

ROAST
Soft & Silky

• Gonzo Imperial Porter Flying Dog Brewery Baltic Porter Maryland 7.8%
  

• Obamagang Brewery Ommegang Belgian Stout New York 6.2%
  

Dark & Dry

• Canadian Breakfast Stout Founders Brewing Company American Imperial Stout Michigan 9.4%
• Otter Creek Russian Imperial Stout Otter Creek Brewing Russian Imperial Stout Vermont 10.6%

SMOKE
Subtle Smoulder

• New Holland Smoked Rye Bock New Holland Brewing Company Smoked Beer Michigan 6.2%

FRUIT & SPICE
Bright

• Ayinger Bräu Weisse Privatbrauerei Franz Inselkammer Hefeweizen Germany 6.0%

• Dogma BrewDog Gruit Ale (Pale) w/ honey, kola nut, poppyseed Scotland 8.5%
  Kasteel Triple Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck Tripel Belgium 11.0%
  La Trappe Isid’or Bierbrouwerij De Koningshoeven Belgian Strong Pale Ale Netherlands 7.5%
  

Dark

• Adoration Ale Brewery Ommegang Belgian Strong Dark Ale New York 10.0%
• Aventinus Private Weissbierbrauerei G. Schneider & Sohn Weizenbock Dunkel Germany 8.2%
• Brother Thelonius North Coast Brewing Company Dubbel California 9.0%

TART & FUNKY
Delicate

• 1809 Berliner Style Weisse Brauerei Weihenstephan, Fritz Briem Berliner Weissbier Germany 5.0%

Fruity & Vinous

• Petrus Oud Bruin Brouwerij Bavik Flanders Oud Bruin Belgium 5.5%

To help get you in the spirit, here’s a great list of seasonal beverages and brews curtesy of Real Simple.

A few of our personal favorites also include Rogue Dead Guy Ale, Blue Moon’s Harvest Moon and Abita Amber.

From Real Simple:

Beer

• Belgian: Saison Dupont, $11 for a 25-ounce bottle. Hearty, malty.
• Pumpkin: Dogfish Head Punkin Ale, $10 for four bottles. Pumpkin, spice.

Red Wine

• Sparkling Shiraz: Rumball Sparkling Shiraz, $28. Effervescent, bold.
• Pinot Noir: Twin Fin Pinot Noir, $10. Light, fruity.

White Wine

• Riesling: Dr. Loosen L Riesling, $12. Fruity, slightly sweet.
• Prosecco: Mionetto Prosecco di Valdobbiadene, $15. Delicate, bubbly.

Hard Cider

• Still: Farnum Hill Extra- or Semi-Dry Still Cider, $9 to $15. Crisp, sophisticated.
• Sparkling: Woodchuck Amber, $7.50 for six bottles. Sweet, sparkling.