Grovetoberfest is returning to Coconut Grove!
BizBash Florida has consistently put the festival on their Top Events list, and The Wall Street Journal included it in their coverage of iconic things to do in Miami. Recently, Yelp! placed Grovetoberfest and its sister craft beer festival, Sprung!, on their list of Top Ten Festivals. It’s no wonder that last year, locals, businesses and craft beer fans were disappointed when the festival moved out of Coconut Grove, the namesake of the event into Miami Marine Stadium.
After much discussion organizers and Commissioner Ken Russell have reached an agreement to bring the beer festival back to Coconut Grove, where it belonged. The owners of SWARM, the agency that puts this festival together, met with Commissioner Russell to address concerns from all sides, including the promoter’s perspective, the park needs and what was best for the residents and businesses of Coconut Grove. In the end, it was decided that Grovetoberfest needed to be back in the neighborhood of its namesake.
“We never wanted to leave,” said Tony Albelo, CEO/SWARM. “As a former resident, I had always envisioned Coconut Grove as the ideal spot for a rather unique event that has been copied, but never replicated.” Much was written about the reasons behind the initial move, but those reasons, have now been ironed out.
“How could Grovetoberfest be anywhere else?!” said Ken Russel, City of Miami Commissioner, District 2. “I have worked closely with the parks department to minimize the impact of festivals on our green spaces. I was committed to bringing this event back and am thankful that the organizer felt the same way.”
Grovetoberfest continues to be one of the top craft beer festivals in the country and the top festival in Florida. Last year, it attracted 6,500 beer enthusiasts and hundreds of breweries offering over 400 different brews. Many beer companies have used Grovetoberfest as a launching pad for new beers and even new brew houses. “A lot of brewers working here in Miami started off at Grovetoberfest; either as homebrewers or breweries in planning. The festival was the first time for them to meet the masses, and that’s something we’re very proud of,” explained Tony.
So the great news is that Grovetoberfest will return on Saturday, October 14 to Peacock Park in the heart of Coconut Grove.
posted by Tom Falco at 5:00 AM
YOU MAY NOT LIFT THE PHOTOS & TEXT. IT'S COPYRIGHTED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY. YOU CAN HOWEVER SHARE A STORY ON SOCIAL MEDIA BY USING THE LINKS HERE.
For linking to this one story, just click on the time it was posted & just this story will open for sharing - only through social media. Not copying and pasting.
6 Comments:
There were pieces of plastic all over the ground at Regatta Park for months after the Pumpkin Patch. The clean-up was so bad that there were actual pumpkin plants growing in the grass. Let's hope our public officials that "have worked closely with the parks department to minimize the impact of the festivals on our green spaces" will actually do it this time. If the mess left by the Pumpkin Patch is an example of what is to come, then we will hold the commissioner at his word.
Commissioner Russell, Bring back Goombay Festival.
Does this mean the Seafood Festival will also be back. It was the Sunday after the Beer Festival.
AWESOME!!! Thank You Ken Russel
I assure you no beer plants will grow after Grovetoberfest.
This is bad news to my ears.so sad��
Post a Comment
<< Home