Beers Across The Wabash The Perfect “Chill” Festival

By Tyler McCord for Indiana On Tap

It was a gorgeous Saturday afternoon in Lafayette, IN. The vendors were set up and ready to distribute some of their best craft beer, and even the threat of rain couldn’t keep people away. The Beers Across the Wabash event had a slight venue change just before the start of the event,P which wasn’t actually all that bad: yes, it would have been great to have the event on the pedestrian bridge, but seeing as how it was moved right to the base of the bridge with a beautiful courtyard, I actually feel, just by looking at the bridge, that the courtyard was the perfect choice. 

At first, the fest started off nice and slow. Only a few dozen VIP attendees were there to enjoy a few select VIP-only pours. This gave everyone there a great chance to interact with all of the brewers and to find out about their favorite beers that they brew. Even when general admission was let in, there were still great opportunities to talk with the brewers. All the conversations that I was able to have with the brewers there were great! When you have an event like this that is just chilled and laid back you get to really get to know what all goes into the brewing process and how they even came up with the names of their beers. And there were some really interesting beer names there!

There were about 25 different brewers at Beers Across the Wabash, plus a few local food vendors. Not food trucks but actual food vendors! Setup in tents with wood smokers and everything! Oh man…the wood smokers…pizza ALWAYS goes with beer! Seriously, there is no exception to that rule. And not only pizza but also brats! Great…now I’m getting hungry. Anyway that wasn’t all! The Tippecanoe Homebrewers Circle was also there doing blind taste tests of Lafayette Brewing Company beers. There was also a chance for attendees to purchase a “Beer Geek Package”. This handy dandy fancy little package got you early access, a t-shirt, a keychain, and a food voucher from any of the food vendors that were there. I mean, they are already giving unlimited samples of amazing beer and then they throw all this other stuff at you? I mean, are they trying to become the favorite beer fest? Maybe. Next year will tell! 

So, about the beer now! Because, well, that’s what the entire fest was about, right? Like I said earlier, there were about 25 different breweries and they all brought a great selection of beers! I’m going to, like always, touch on a few of my favorites. 

Brugge Brasserie / Outliers Brewing - Madeline La Framboise – This isn’t the first time I had this beer, and it won’t be the last! This delicious brown ale is refreshing and, with a hint of raspberries, you just can’t stop drinking this beer. It’s rare to find a brown ale that has such a good balance between flavor and smoothness. Make sure you get over to Brugge Brasserie in Broad Ripple and try one, or many. 

Half Moon Restaurant & Brewery - The Kokomonster – This smooth and very easy to drink strong Amber comes with a powerful punch. Rocking in at 8.0% ABU this one will sneak up on you, so be careful! But don’t worry, the name is really the only thing scary about this beer. Feel free to drink it alone, in the dark, while watching your favorite scary movie, or Sesame Street…if the name reminds you of Cookie Monster. 

Barley Island Brewing Company - Nickel Plate Apricot Wheat – This wonderful, smooth, sweet, outstanding, delicious wheat beer has quickly become one of my favorites! I mean, obviously or else I wouldn’t have used so many adjectives to describe it. Unfortunately this beer is still only available at Barley Island, but it is so worth the trip! If you are ever up in Noblesville or happen to see them at a beer fest you have to at least stop by and see if they have this perfect blend of wheat and apricot. 

Four Fathers Brewing - Sloth Loves Chunk – BABY RUTH!!!! Remember The Goonies? Well, this double Milk Stout is the perfect tribute to that classic movie! I think I went back for this one a good six or seven times. It really did taste like a Baby Ruth, and I’m not exaggerating about that. Bottles are available at Four Fathers Brewing if you happen to be up and around Valparaiso. 

This fest was probably one of the most chill fests that I have ever been too. The attendance was perfect for the size of the festival, and it really gave everyone in attendance a great chance to learn more about the beer that they came there to enjoy. Fests like this really give you the great experience that you are looking for: you get a chance to try pretty much every beer that each brewery brings (responsibly though, please) and you get to know your favorite brewers. 

If you didn’t get a chance to attend this fest then you SHOULD be looking into the first annual Whitestown Brewfest coming up on September 19th! Tickets are still available for this new fest and it promises to be a great time! OH! On an added bonus, you’ll get to see most of the Indiana On Tap team there. So come on out, meet us, have a beer with us, and enjoy yourself! 

Until then, Cheers!


You can follow Tyler on Twitter at @TylerLee83