DOVER, Del. (AP) - When Dover Downs Hotel & Casino first launched its craft beer-themed Brew Festival four years ago, there were about 1,800 craft breweries in the country. These days, there are more than 2,700 and the number keeps ticking up.
That same explosive growth is happening right here in Delaware with new breweries and beer festivals popping up every year.
For next weekend's Brew Festival in Dover, which runs Aug. 16 from 4-8 p.m., a record number of 1,000 people are expected. Each year, the number of attendees has grown right along with the beer scene in the First State, says George Fiorile, vice president and general manager of hotel operations at Dover Downs Hotel & Casino.
Twenty-one breweries from across the country, including Delaware's own 3rd Wave Brewing Company (Delmar), Fordham & Old Dominion Breweries (Dover), 16 Mile Brewery (Georgetown), Twin Lakes Brewing Co. (Greenville), Mispillion River Brewing (Milford) and Dogfish Head Craft Brewery (Milton), will be represented. Nearly 100 different beers will be available for tasting.
For $25, beer lovers get 10 drink tickets and a souvenir glass for guzzling at the hotel's Rollins Center, the 18,000-square-foot ballroom that hosts everything from concerts to boxing matches.
The hotel's chefs have also whipped up some off-centered finger foods to pair with the brews. There will be items like peanut butter and jelly waffles and "mac and cheese bombs" in three flavors, including feta and spinach, bacon burger and hot dog.
The hotel will also unveil a new concoction - a stout-battered waffle dog and it's exactly what you think it is: waffle batter infused with a stout cooked around a hot dog.
In addition to the food and drink, Bear-based island folk/rock act The Splashing Pearls will perform, giving the festivities a cool groove backdrop.
