Combining great beer and an even greater cause, the 15th annual Zapp’s International Beerfest is this Saturday. Held within the sprawling acres of the LSU Rural Life Museum, the event aims to bring new visitors to the museum and raise money to keep the historic site alive and running.
The event’s roots go back more than a decade. Ron Zappe of Zapp’s Potato Chips enjoyed the museum so much, he wanted to help create an event that would bring more people to the site than ever before.
“We were trying to come up with a fundraiser that would include demographics that weren’t typically coming,” says David Floyd, LSU Rural Life Museum director. “We were mostly looking at young professionals and 25-year-olds that might not even know about the museum.”
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The team brainstormed what would bring the most people to the site and quickly agreed on beer, of course, plus a heaping amount of Zapp’s Potato Chips. They decided that all proceeds would go toward the upkeep and maintenance of the museum, ensuring its preservation for years to come.
A decade and a half later: Zapp’s International Beerfest has only grown. Floyd and his team estimate there will be around 2,200 attendees over the course of the three-hour event this year, but remains confident there will be enough beer to go around.
This year, the festival will offer more than 250 different types of beer, with varieties from 42 brewers. The vendors vary by location and size, from nationwide beer distributors to local breweries and even homebrewers, all enjoying the good time of the festival. Floyd says guests can look forward to an influx of homebrewers and microbrewers, with more expected to show off their small-batch creations than ever before. Some homebrewers are even bringing upwards of 20 different beers to test out and show off.
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As for food, the Beerfest will sell jambalaya, hot dogs, pizza and nachos to go along with all those brews.
Tickets for the event are $35, or $100 for the VIP package, which gets you specialty food and early entry to the festival. There are also designated driver tickets available at a cheaper price for those who don’t plan to drink, and want to simply enjoy the event and/or offer friends a ride home after.
You can purchase tickets for the Zapp’s International Beerfest here. The festival will be held Saturday, March 30, at 4560 Essen Lane, 3:30-6 p.m. All guests must be 21 or older with a valid ID.