The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel, 215 Innovation Blvd., will host the 8th annual State College MicroBrewers and Importers Exposition from noon to 4 p.m. and again from 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday.
For $35, exposition visitors will receive a souvenir pilsner tasting glass, an International buffet and samplings of "as many beers as you can safely manage," according to the exposition Web site, www.scbrewexpo.com. This year, the exposition will feature more than 50 microbrewers and importers serving up over 150 different beers of all tastes, shades and types along with tasting seminars for everyone from the causal drinker to the beer connoisseur.
For local beer enthusiasts and local businesses, the exposition is a chance to celebrate the finer beers available in an environment that emphasizes quality over quantity when it comes to alcohol consumption.
"For us, many of the micro breweries featured are some of the finer micro beers and micro breweries out there," said Paul Pletcher, owner of exposition sponsor Pletcher's Beer Distributor, 330 W. Aaron Drive. "Of the beers featured, I'd say we probably carry about 75 to 80 percent of them, so this was a good thing for us to get involved with."
While there are other beer tastings and festivals held in the area, this exposition is the biggest and best received of them all, rated as one of the top 10 beer expositions of 2004 by USA Today. Pletcher said it's the extra perks and main focus of those organizing the State College Brew Exposition that set it apart.
"What makes it the giant in the area is its uniqueness," Pletcher said. "They focus on 'consume less, consume better.' They're bringing in guest speakers and hosting educational seminars which, along with its size, separates it from some of the other festivals."
One of those seminars will feature world-renowned beer connoisseur, author and Brooklyn Brewery Brewmaster Garrett Oliver, in what promises to be one of the exposition's highlights.
Oliver was the 1998 recipient of the Russell Schehrer Award for Innovation and Excellence in Brewing, the highest award given in the American brewing profession.
According to exposition co-founder and organizer Greg Summers, Oliver's book, The Brewmaster's Table: Discovering the Pleasures of Real Beer with Real Food, has become one of the premier references on pairing fine beer with fine foods. Oliver himself has traveled the world promoting the book and educating people on how they can incorporate great beer responsibly into their everyday lives.
While traveling throughout Europe and South America -- in addition to expanding Brooklyn Brewery's award winning line-up of beers from two to 12 -- Oliver has focused the tastings he's hosted to tailoring "real" beers to the local cuisine of those he works with.
According to Oliver, "real" beer is an affordable luxury that most people are really unfamiliar with.
"Recently, people are starting to pay attention to beer as a versatile and key part of the culinary world," Oliver said. "With beer, like wine, there's a high end and a low end. Most people are familiar with the high end of wine and the low end of beer ... for the vast majority of foods a real beer is definitely the better fit."
A veteran of hundreds of beer tastings, expositions and dinners, Oliver said he is excited to be back to State College for what he said is a very enjoyable experience.
Even those who think they don't like beer may walk away having found a micro-brew or two that they enjoy.
"It's a great opportunity for people who haven't tried a wide variety of beers to really open their eyes to what's available," Oliver said.
"Beer is really an affordable luxury. For less than the price of a Frappuccino at Starbucks you can enjoy some of the finest beers in the world with dinner every night."
