Please read this section carefully and direct questions to GABF Events Team.
All festival beverages must be sent with a no-charge/$0 invoice indicating that your GABF beverages are donated. This will be emailed to all festival makers prior to shipping. Be sure to attach this to your festival beverage shipment and provide a copy to GABF Events Team and the point person who receives your beverages at your chosen drop- off point.
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. No exceptions. If you have any questions about acceptable kegs at the festival, please email us.
After the festival: All maker-owned kegs (non-MicroStar), must be picked up from the Colorado Convention center on Sunday, October 12, 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 beverages to the Brewers Association GABF warehouse in Louisville, Colo. during the delivery window.
All beverages entered in the festival must be delivered to the GABF host distributor for legal and inventory purposes. Festival beverages 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 you to fill with your festival beverages. If you request MicroStar kegs, they are shipped directly to you at no cost. 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 maker who is not currently a Micro Star, KegCraft, or Kegstar client (current Micro Star/Kegstar/KegCraft clients are required to send their own MicroStar kegs as well).
- We recommend that makers request at least 2 – 1/6 barrel kegs or one 1/2 bbl keg for every brand you are sending for the festival. (Makers in the Meet the Brewer area at the festival should request at least one 1⁄2 bbl per brand). If you typically go through beverages 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 you have previously run out of beverages at the festival, you may request additional kegs during the registration process but need to do so before July 12.
Festival Keg Labels
The Brewers Association will be supplying makers participating in the GABF festival with GrogTags. This is to help our beverage service team see booth numbers and beverage 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 for drop off during registration.
- Please fill out the style field on each tag.
- Tags were not sent for case product. For case beverages, you should tape the following label to each case you are sending.
- IF A BEVERAGE HAS CHANGED FROM THE TAGS YOU RECEIVED: Email GABF events team about the change (if you haven’t already) and cross out the old name and write the new name in the “style” field (no need to add “style” for the beverage 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 location of your booth in the festival, and fill out all required information and print IN COLOR so that our beverage service crew knows where this beverage needs to go. Attach it to your case product and bring to your drop off point with the rest of your festival beverages. If you have any questions, contact us.
Other Area/Pavilion Labels for 2024:
- Brewery Booth
- Awards Ceremony
- Brewers Gathering
- Brewers Studio
- Collaboration
- Pro-Am
- Gluten-Free
- Guild Pavilion
- Heavy Medal
- Non-Alcohol Pouring Stations
- Paired
- Wish We Were Here
- Themed Bars: Biergarten, Beer & Beyond, Backyard, Halloween, or Sports
No-Charge Invoice
Please complete this no-charge invoice and turn it into your drop off point when delivering your beverages. Please also email a copy to Mike Aronson.
Festival beer donations will be due at either the Brewers Association warehouse OR your nearest GABF consolidation point (dates and details coming soon!). Please do not contact consolidation points with questions. If you need assistance, please contact BA Cellar Manager Mike Aronson. No deliveries will be accepted directly to the Colorado Convention Center. Drop off points and dates are posted here.