1. 2024 Festival Participation

Shipping Festival Beer

Please read this section carefully and direct questions to GABF Events Team.

All festival beer must be sent with a no-charge/$0 invoice indicating that your GABF beer is donated. This will be emailed to all festival breweries prior to shipping. Be sure to attach this to your festival beer shipment, as well as provide a copy to GABF Events Team and the point person who receives your beers at your chosen drop- off point.

Download a No-Charge Invoice

Kegs

You may send your own kegs for the festival, or have the GABF ship kegs to you via MicroStar Keg Management. (More details in box below)

Sending Your Own Kegs? – The GABF only accepts kegs that are refillable stainless steel or single-use plastic kegs. No exceptions. If you have any questions about acceptable kegs at the festival, please email us.

After the festival: all brewery-owned kegs (non-MicroStar), must be picked up from the Colorado Convention center on Sunday, October 13, before 12:00 pm (noon). The GABF is not responsible for any kegs left after this time.

Bottles/Cans

Deliver a minimum of 5-7 cases of each brand in bottles or cans to your collection point for shipment to Denver, Colo. Your local distributor may also deliver your beer to the Brewers Association GABF warehouse in Louisville, Colo. during the delivery window.

All beer entered in the festival must be delivered to the GABF host distributor for legal and inventory purposes. Festival beer received by the host distributor becomes the property of the host distributor for GABF and may not be used for any other purpose such as selling at retail.

What’s the MicroStar Keg Program (Highly Recommended)

The GABF works with MicroStar Keg Management to ship kegs directly to your brewery to fill with your festival beers. If you request MicroStar kegs, they are shipped directly to your brewery at no cost to you. Fill them, label them up with the assigned GABF keg tags, get them to your chosen drop-off point, and they’ll meet you at the festival. Once the festival is over, your job is done, and you won’t have to worry about handling any kegs. Click here for a handy infographic showing you how it all works!

Who is eligible?

  • Any participating GABF brewery who is not currently a Micro Star (or KegCraft or Kegstar) client (current Micro Star/Kegstar/KegCraft clients are required to send their own MicroStar kegs as well).
  • We recommend that breweries request at least 2 – 1/6 barrel kegs or one 1/2 bbl keg for every brand you are sending for the festival. (Breweries in the Meet the Brewer area at the festival should request at least one 1⁄2 bbl per brand). If you typically go through beer quickly at festivals, please request more kegs to meet your anticipated needs.
  • Current MicroStar/KegCraft/Kegstar clients should use their existing inventory and work with their local MicroStar rep on their keg inventory needs.
  • If your brewery has previously run out of beer at the festival, you may request additional kegs during the registration process but need to do so before July 12.

Festival Keg Labels

GrogTag

The Brewers Association will be supplying breweries participating in the GABF festival with Grogtags. This is to help our beer service team see brewery booth numbers and beer information more easily, especially when kegs are stacked in the reefer trucks.

  • You will receive the Grogtags in the mail in late August.
  • There will be one tag for every keg you indicated dropoff during registration.
  • Please fill out the style field on each tag.
  • Tags were not sent for case product. For case beer, you should tape the following label to each case you are sending.
  • IF A BEER HAS CHANGED FROM THE TAGS YOU RECEIVED – 1. Email GABF events team of the change (if you haven’t already) and 2. Cross out the old name and write the new name in the “style” field (no need to add “style” for the beer if you’re making this change)
  • The tags should be placed on the handle of your kegs. The tags are applied like luggage tags and fold over onto themselves.

Festival Case Labels

Please download the appropriate case label for the region your brewery is in in the festival, and fill out all required information and print IN COLOR so that our beer service crew knows where this beer needs to go. Attach it to your case beer product and bring to your drop off point with the rest of your festival beers. If you have any questions, contact us.

Other Area/Pavilion Labels for 2024:

No-Charge Invoice

Please complete this no-charge invoice and turn it into your drop off point when delivering your beers. Please also email a copy to Mike Aronson.


Download a No Charge Invoice

Festival beer donations will be due at either the Brewers Association warehouse OR your nearest GABF consolidation point between September 24 – 27 (Colorado drop off will be from September 30 – October 4) Please do not contact consolidation drop points with questions, if you need assistance, please contact Cellar Manager, Mike Aronson. No deliveries will be accepted directly to Colorado Convention Center. Drop off points and dates are posted here.