The National Beer Expo returns to Richmond for the second year this week from Thursday July 16th to Saturday July 18th.  The Grand Tasting on Saturday July 18th will allow you to sample over 150 craft beers; take look at the list of breweries here.  VIP admission gets you in two hours early plus a few exclusive tastes for $54 versus $42 for general admission. Check out the main ticket page for combo options to save some money.

VIP admission tickets include the following perks:

• Two full hours of additional time before General Admission ticket-holders may enter. (New for 2015)
• Enjoy exclusive access to 18+ limited release, rare or vintage beers – many of them pins (cask beers) and bottled beers – tapped especially for VIP/Early Admission ticket-holders. These beers will not be available to General Admission ticket-holders. (New for 2015)
• There will be a limited allocation of VIP/Early Admission tickets so that this two hour period will offer incredibly fast access to all exhibitors and beer at the Expo and the opportunity to taste all of the cask beers before they are gone.

All tickets include the following:

• Unlimited beer tastings and a Capital Ale House National Beer Expo tasting glass to take home
• Wine and cider will be available for tasting (very limited selection)
• Food will be available to sample (limited selection / not enough for a meal / meal-size portions of food will be sold separately)
• Complimentary water will be available throughout the convention center so you can hydrate and cleanse your palate and beer glass
• Shop for beer- and beverage-related accessories and products, including brewery paraphernalia
• Find high-quality exhibitors who sell products and services related to travel and culinary tourism

If you want to go a bit more in depth, try on these events for size:

Friday July 17th

Taco Throwdown Presented By Style Weekly — 5:30PM — $48

Love tacos? Love beer? Well, I guess you could say they go hand in hand.  Try these tacos on for size and wash them down with over 30 craft beers to sample.

Restaurants
Africanne on Main – Wild Life Taco
Aramark – Chorizo, beef & black bean with tomatoes and srirachi slaw in a flour tortilla
Boka Tako – To be determined
Capital Ale House – Pork belly tacos topped with roasted corn salsa, cilantro slaw, and roasted tomato aioli
Casa Del Barco – Braised Lamb Tacos with Mexican Coke BBQ sauce, apple-fennel slaw, crispy polenta and lemon-mint crema
Coco Bans – Chicken Curry with Coconut Rice & Grilled Jerk Pork Tenderloin with Creamy Apple Slaw
Culinard – Smoked Chili Braised Octopus, Mexican Street Corn Salsa, Avocado and Cojito Taco And White chocolate Grand Marnier mousse with fresh seasonal berries in a Pecan praline crunch Taco
India K’Raja – Chickpea Taco with Pickled Carrots
Mosaic – Three Day Prime Short Rib: Lavash Taco, Grilled Spring Onion Salad, Coffee Stout Glace, Crème Fraiche
Strawberry Street Café – Mahi Tacos with a Cilantro Lime Sour Cream
The Hungry Turtle – Banh Mi Tacos – Choice of either Braised Vietnamese BBQ Pork or Lemongrass Chicken: Topped with julienned carrots and daikon radishes in a sweet & tangy brine, julienned english cucumbers, cilantro and sriracha aioli on a flour tortilla

Saturday July 18th

Flapjack Craft Beer Brunch at Julep’s — 10AM — $45

Head over to Julep’s new location for an amazing, luscious farm-to-table brunch featuring fresh, local ingredients. Served with a flight of locally-made craft beers as well as locally brewed coffee, this is an ideal way to start your day before you attend the Saturday Walk-Around Grand Tasting. You will have time to enjoy FlapJack and walk to the Walk-Around Grand Tasting afterwards at the Greater Richmond Convention Center.

MENU

First Course
Sweet Potato Flapjacks with Nutmeg Butter and Spiced Maple Syrup
HOEGARDEN BELGIUM WHEAT

Second Course
Julep’s New Southern Benedict
Lump Crab Cake, Virginia Ham, Corn Meal Grit Flapjack, and a Lemon-Lavender Hollandaise
BLUE MOUNTAIN ESB

Third Course
Biscuits and Gravy Sage Biscuits and Surry Sausage and a Dark Roast Coffee Gravy
PARKWAY KOLSCH

Accompaniments
Peaches and Cream
Rosemary-Black Pepper Roasted Local Potatoes
Fried Pineapples
Julep’s Signature Fried Green Tomatoes

Julep’s
420 East Grace St
Richmond, VA 23219

Stone Brewing’s New RVA Brewery & Extraordinary Beers — 11AM — $15

If you’re looking to learn the latest on Stone Brewing’s new facility coming to Richmond in 2016, this would be the place to do it. Jason Armstrong, National Sales Director, and Pat Tiernan, COO, will guide you through a tasting of Stone’s beers as they explain what is to come for the massive destination Stone is building.

The History of Craft Beer — 11AM — $15

History and craft beer go amazingly well together.

It’s been 40 years since the first post-prohibition microbrewery opened in the United States, but craft beer is only now hitting it’s stride. There are now more than 3,500 small breweries opening in the country, and they are producing some of the most flavorful and innovative brews that have ever been created. Join All About Beer Magazine editor John Holl for a guided tasting through the world of craft beer, with interesting facts, colorful stories, and a look at why beer matters.

The Rise of Sour Beer — 1PM — $15

Are you a sour head or just getting into sour beers? Then this seminar is especially for you.

What’s with all the recent hype around sour beers? Join Michael Tonsmeire (author of American Sour Beers) for a tasting and discussion about tart and funky beers. This is what all beers were before Pasteur, stainless steel, hops, and refrigeration. They are the heirloom, foraged, farm-to-table, artisan beverage of the first 8,800 years of beer’s 9,000 year existence. Come learn about their extraordinary flavors and production.

Brewers of Virginia — 1PM — $15

Learn about the growth of Virginia craft beer from the people making it.

Go behind the scenes of Virginia beer on this lively panel discussion lead by All About Beer Magazine editor John Holl. The panel will be comprised of a variety of head brewers and owners from very diverse backgrounds. Lean about brewpubs, production breweries and trailblazers and how they have build their companies to put beer in your glass.

The Esteemed Panel:
Lisa Pumphrey, Co-Founder of Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery
Brian Knight, Brewer at Strangeways Brewing
Jeremy Kirby, Brewmaster at Sunken City Brewing Company