Getting the most out of a beer festival

Before you go

Read the programme or beer list first. Pick a few breweries or styles you want to try and a few you have never heard of. Check how samples are served: many festivals use small pours of 100 to 150 ml. Eat a proper meal beforehand, bring a little cash or a card and check how you will get home. Never drive after drinking.

It also helps to check the venue. Is there seating, shade or water? In hot places, outdoor festivals can leave you thirsty. Beer served warm loses its flavour fast. Dress for the weather and take a hat or a light layer. A festival that sells food will usually have something starchy, which is the best base for a long afternoon.

Pace yourself

Small pours are the point. Ten samples of 100 ml still add up to a full litre, so count your pours. Alternate beer with water and eat during the day. Share samples with a friend if you want to taste more with less alcohol. Many festivals offer low-alcohol and non-alcoholic beers. You are welcome to use them for part of the day.

Many festivals have a quiet corner or a food stall. Use it to rest between rounds. Palate fatigue is real. After a few strong beers everything starts to taste the same.

Taste in a sensible order

Start light and finish strong. Lagers, wheat beers and pale ales first, then amber and brown beers, then stouts and strong styles. Sours can be tricky: acidity overpowers delicate beers, so taste them away from the light ones or last. Rinse the glass with a little water between pours if you can.

Smell before you sip. Hold the glass under your nose, take a gentle sniff, then taste slowly. Our how to taste beer guide lays out the routine.

A good rule is to judge each beer on its own terms. A beer you do not like may still be well made. Ask whether it matches its style and whether it is clean. Tasting like a judge as well as a drinker widens what you enjoy.

Take notes you can use

Phones work. Write the brewery, the beer name, the style and three words. Add a score out of five if you like. Next week you will not remember which one had the tangerine aroma. A short note is enough. It helps you spot what you like.

If you are a keen taster, sort your notes by style afterwards. You may find that you rate every wheat beer higher than every lager. That tells you where to explore next.

Talk to the people pouring

Brewers and volunteers like questions. Ask what the beer is, how it is made and what they enjoy about it. You will learn more from five minutes of talk than from an hour of reading. Ask what they would pair with it: see pairing beer with West African food for ideas that carry across cuisines.

Do not be shy about asking for a half pour or a taste of something before you commit.

Try something new

Festivals reward curiosity. Pick one style you have never tried: a sour, a smoked beer, a saison, a traditional sorghum beer if one is offered. If you dislike it, you have lost 100 ml. If you like it, you have found something new. Our beginner's map of world beer styles helps you place what you taste.

Cider, mead and non-alcoholic stalls are often tucked at the edge of a festival. They are worth a visit. Non-alcoholic craft beer has improved a lot. Our guide to non-alcoholic beer styles explains what you may find.

Afterwards

Drink water, eat and go home safely. The next day, look over your notes and pick a few beers to buy or look for. Over time your notes build a record of your own taste, which is the most useful thing a festival gives you.

If you went with friends, compare notes on the way home. Which beer did everyone like? Which split the group? Disagreement is useful, because it shows how different palates read the same glass.

Common questions

How much should I taste at a beer festival?

Sample sizes vary, so check. Keep pours small, alternate with water, eat and stop when you feel you have had enough.

What order should I taste in?

Light beers first, then amber and brown, then stouts and strong beers. Take sours either last or on their own.

Is it fine to ask for a non-alcoholic option?

Yes. Many festivals now offer them. They let you keep joining in while you pace yourself.

Should I take notes?

Yes. A few words per beer are enough to remember what you liked.