HISTORIC ST. MARY’S CITY, MD — It’s perhaps the only beer festival people will swim laps to.

People gathered on the grounds of Historic St. Mary’s City Museum for the sixth annual BeerFest June 25. Local bands such as The Robbie Boothe Band, No Last Call, and Come Back Iris rocked the afternoon while event-goers sipped and guzzled on all kinds of beers.

Representatives from Flying Dog, DuClaw Brewing Company, Calvert Brewing Company, Ruddy Duck Brewery, Mully’s Brewery, Brewer’s Alley  and Raven Beer were on site to give event-goers just a taste of the best of the local and statewide brews available.

When not sampling beer, the Ruddy Duck, Brewers Alley and The Raven also gave attendees the opportunity to try out local cuisine. 

Other activities included beer-making demonstrations with Hollywood Hop Heads and a colonial cider-making demonstration with Godiah Spray Plantation, said Susan Erichsen, museum director of development.

“Millennials really seem to like hard cider. I know my daughter does,” said Erichsen.

Before joining the fun, event-goers were given an event pint glass and four beer tickets with admission to Beerfest.

“One year we had a couple of young guys swim from their boats on the river to join the fun, and one of our volunteers asked them for identification. And they said they didn’t have it on them because they swam from their boat to get here. And she made them turn around and go get their IDs before they could come in,” said Erichsen. “We like to say we’re the only beer fest that people will swim laps to get to.”

People also had the chance to enjoy a variety of activities, such as taking a tour of Van Sweringen’s Ordinary, one of the first taverns of the colony, said Erichsen.

A Kid’s tent hosted fun activities for the youngsters at the event. BeerFest is a fundraiser to support the education and research activities of the museum, said Erichsen.

“This event is put on, not only to raise funds for the museum’s educational programs, but to bring in a group of people that may or may not have had the opportunity to come here before. It’s also a friend-raiser,” said Erichsen.

Artisans offered up a selection of wares, including crab embroidered flour towels, hand-crafted pottery, Indian inspired clothing, and electronic cigarettes. 

Festival-goers could also commemorate attending the event by purchasing shirts provided by the Chesapeake Custom Embroidery and Screen Printing, with a design echoing the Miller High Life Girl in the Moon. Event shirts from previous years were also available.

Crafters and vendors include Buy and Lady Barrel Cigars, Diane’s Treasures, Beth’s Jewelry Shop, Scentsy Home Fragrance Company, Whiskey Creek Wood Works, Rainbow’s End, Caught My Eye, Carter’s Country Classics, Mountain Laurel Handcrafted Soap, One: Eleven Pottery, Snow’s Maryland Mysteries, Breton Bay Publishing, Drift Away Design and Designs by Michelle, Old school Embroidery, Teachers with Cameras, jrgARThur, Paintings by David Zippi, Sarah Houde Pottery, Tidewater Arts, Patuxent Dental, Hollywood Hop Heads, Vape Jungle, LSI, Mid Atlantic Bath Solutions, Gourmet Steve, Something Special, and Lexington Park Rotary Oyster Shooters. 

Other food vendors such as Grizzly Mountain Grill, Bear Creek BBQ, Bollywood Marsala, Mrs. Moo, Hunter’s Hotdogs, and Shake and Pop were on site. Kettle Corn and Snow-cones were also available.

Sponsors include Patuxent Dental, Quality Transfer and Storage, Baldwin and Briscoe, Ruddy Duck Brewery and Grill, Waldorf Ford, Avian, FitzWay, Jan Barnes from Century 21, Bottom Feede, Cedar Point Federal Credit Union, Compass Systems, Elements, Green Door, Hampton Inn, Hilltop Signs and Graphics, Home 2 Bath, Mr. and Mrs. Mead, O’Brien Realty, Old Line Bank, Patuxent Pump and Well Inc., Raley, Watts and O’Neill, Taylor Gas, Vape, Wyle Cares, Olde Town Pub, St. Mary’s Lighting, Bailey’s Party Rentals, Phocus Video Communications, NAIAN Dynamics, and W.M.Davis Inc General Contractors.

For more information about the event, call Historic St Mary’s City Foundation at 240-895-4977, email SusanE@DigsHistory.org or visit their website. 

Contact Jacqui Atkielski at j.atkielski@thebaynet.com.