August is craft beer month in Virginia, and to kick it off there will be a craft beer tasting, Virginia Beer Live, at the Richmond Coliseum on Friday August 2. This indoor craft beer event, featuring over 20 Virginia breweries, will become an annual event. “We’re going to have a sampling of more than 40 of the local craft brews around the state. It’s an unlimited sampling, so you can try them all and pick your favorite,” said Samantha Sawyer, the marketing manager for SMG Richmond.
Along with a plethora of new beers to sample, there will be live music and food from local restaurants. Food will be sold by Boka Tako Truck, Capital Ale House, On the Rox, Popkin Tavern, and Rappahannock. Music being featured will be Brickwall Jackson, Psychobilly Cadillac, and The X Band. Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. and will remain open until 10:30 p.m.
Tickets to this succulent event can be purchased at the Ford Box Office at the Richmond Coliseum, located at 601 E Leigh Street. The box office is open Monday-Thursday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the day of the event 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tickets are also available online, for additional fees, here.
Ticket prices vary in price as well as in what is included. For $12, you can purchase advanced designated driver tickets. $17 gets you a day of designated driver ticket. Advanced general admission with samples is $22, and a day pass of advanced general admission is $27. The final and most expensive option, at $37, is the advanced preferred admission, which comes with early admission to avoid the crowd and a commemorative sampling glass. There are only 300 of the preferred tickets available so be sure to purchase your tickets ahead of time.
Mike Killelea will be featuring his craft beer at Virginia Beer Live. He is the head brewer at Center of the Universe Brewing Company in Ashland, and is also the chairman of the Virginia Craft Brewers Guild. Killelea has been brewing beer for over a decade. “Drinking craft beer at all the local brew pubs and breweries really sparked an interest and after home brewing for 5 or 6 years, I decided it was something I wanted to pursue as a career,” said Killelea. He received an internship with Legend Brewing Company where he worked for six years.
His favorite part of participating in an event like this is getting to interact with people who are passionate about beer. “There’s no substitute for that direct interaction with the consumer. You’re getting immediate feedback, you’re hearing from people that love your beer. It’s a really rewarding part,” said Killelea. A beer that Killelea deems very worthy of your tasting is an IPA called Pocahoptus. If you fall in love with their beers, they can be purchased outside of the event at most bottle shops in Richmond and Ashland. Their website can be viewed here.
Other breweries that will be participating are Extra Billy’s‐ Richmond, VA, Hardywood Park Craft Brewery‐ Richmond, VA, Legend Brewing‐ Richmond, VA, Roanoke Railhouse ‐ Roanoke, VA, and many more Virginia breweries.
“This is going to be a very exciting event, it’s a great opportunity to come down town after a busy work week. Come down and spend some time with us, we are looking forward to having a great crowd and a great event,” said Sawyer.