Empire holds inaugural Hops Festival, Oct. 4

From staff reports

Quaint and creative Empire already hosts the Asparagus Festival in mid-May and the revived Hill Climb racecar event in September. Next up is the village’s inaugural Hops Festival, which organizers hope will also become an annual event.

“What inspired this was the fact that we have 140 acres of hops being grown within a stone’s throw of Empire,” said Chamber president Paul Skinner. “As with the Asparagus Festival, we want to support local agriculture. And with only 373 residents in the village, we need to continue to promote ourselves and keep Empire’s name front and center. There’s no better way to do that than with a hops festival.”

The Empire Hops Festival will take place Saturday, Oct. 4, on Front St. between Union and LaRue. Breweries on tap include New Holland (Holland, Mich.), Right Brain (Traverse City), Stormcloud Brewing Company (Frankfort), Beards of Petoskey, Shorts (Bellaire) and The Workshop (Traverse City). Dishing out the grub will be local venues Art’s Tavern, Deering’s Market and Joe’s Friendly Tavern, and Scalawags Fish & Chips, Baytown Kitchen and Firedog Artisan Pizza.

The Benzie Playboys and Black Jake & the Carnies will perform music. Bay Area Recycling services of Traverse City will be on hand to ensure that all waste is recycled and that the event is a green one. Attendees can park for free at Johnson Park. The festival will run from noon until 9 p.m. Entry costs $10 and includes a complimentary glass and drink tickets.

“What’s unique about this hops festival is that, while there are microbrew festivals throughout the state, very few let you drink a pint with key ingredients that are grown less than a mile from where you’re standing,” says Skinner.

Read our August feature story here about the Whybrew hops farmers near Empire. For more information, or to purchase advance tickets to the Empire Hops Festival, visit EmpireChamber.com.