3 reasons to check out the Belgian Ale and Food Festival

The summer is filled with beer and ale festivals all around the Miami Valley, and it’s not easy to keep track of them or make tough choices about which ones to attend.

If you've never heard of the Belgian Ale and Food Festival or haven't been convinced to make the effort to cross the bridge yet, we assure that there are more than a few reasons to have this one on your radar for this Saturday, July 29th. 

>> Your guide to festivals in and around Dayton in 2017

1. It’s for a great community cause

Beer and food tastings are great on their own, but there's that little boost when you know you're helping to benefit a local cause. Ticket sales benefit the Salem Avenue Peace Corridor, an effort to build the thoroughfare on the north side of the Main Street Bridge into an environment of growth and sustainability.

Festival organizer Jule Rastikis, who runs ManCo Property Services at 1905 Salem Ave., helped develop the Salem Avenue Peace Corridor initiative to make the neighborhood an area of peace and community outreach. Since 2010, they have helped to create a community garden in the area, promote the local businesses, and involve the neighbors and business owners in creating and participating in safety programs that help reduce crime and change the perception of the neighborhood.

Bonus: $1 from each ticket sale will be donated to the Gem City Market.

>> 5 things to know about Gem City Market

2. Where else can you dive deep into Belgian beer and cuisine?

Sure, there are tons of beer festivals around town this month. But the wide breadth of Belgian offerings, from the Trappist Chimay to the Great Divide, is often overlooked. Savor 21 selections of beer that will make you ready to visit Brussels in no time. Here they are:

  • Bosteels DeuS Brut des Flandres
  • Bosteels Tripel Karmeliet
  • Spencer Monks Reserve Quad
  • St. Feuillien Triple
  • MIA Tourist Trappe Tripel
  • Maredsous Dubbel
  • Rodenbach 2014 Vintage Sour
  • Oude Gueuze
  • Ommegang Rosetta
  • La Trappe Quad
  • Duvel Tripel Hop
  • La Trappe Witte
  • Spencer Trappist Ale
  • Dogfish Head Namaste
  • Delirium Tremens
  • Duvel Belgian Golden Ale
  • De Dolle Oerbier
  • De Dolle Stout
  • Unibroue Trois Pistoles
  • St. Feuillien Saison
  • Unibroue A Tout Le Monde Dry Hopped Saison


And of course, special beers made or distributed locally or regionally from Fifth Street Brew Pub as well as Mother Stewart's, New Belgium and Woodburn Brewery.

To pair with your sips, treat your taste buds to beer-steamed mussels, Brussel sprouts with bacon, cheese and sour cream and sugar waffles with fruit — just a few authentic gourmet items prepared by Miami Valley Golf Club Chef Steve Taylor for the event.

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Here’s the menu:

  • North Sea Mussels steamed in beer with andouille, onions and lemon zest
  • Belgian Fries with Dipping Sauce — mayo, chopped pickles, Dijon, capers, herbs, hardboiled egg
  • Gratin of Brussel Sprouts — Bacon, Brussel sprouts, cream, gruyere, nutmeg, black pepper
  • Boulet au Sauce Lapin with Stoemp — meatballs in onion sauce with vinegar, brown sugar, syrup
  • Gentse Waterzooi — Chicken stew from Ghent
  • Liege Waffles — Pearl Sugar Waffles and a toppings bar with fruits, flavored whipped creams and syrups
  • Charcuterie Board — sausages, cheeses, bread and mustard

3. For the beer lovers: Win a basket full of rare Trappist beers

It's called "The Holy Grail of Trappist Beers" for a reason. Buy five raffle tickets for $10 to win a basket full of glasses and selections from the world's most famous brewing monasteries. This parcel contains a bottle of Westvletren 12, which has consistently been voted the world's best beer. Other selections include: Spencer from the only Trappist Brewery in the USA, Engelszell Gregorius from Austria, Achel Chimay, Rochefort, La Trappe, Orval, and Westmalle. You can start purchasing tickets now at daytonbaff.com, and don't even have to come to the event or stay all evening to win. But really, if you like Belgian ale that much, you'll probably be there.

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Want to go?

WHAT: The 2017 Belgian Ale and Food Festival

WHEN: Saturday July 29, 2017, 4 p.m.- 7 p.m.

WHERE: Miami Valley Golf Club, 3311 Salem Ave.

COST: $50 for food and drink ticket in advance or $60 at the door if any remain available; $40 for food-only/designated driver ticket; $10 for 5 entry tickets into "The Holy Grail of Trappist Beers" raffle.

INFO: Purchase tickets and learn more at daytonbaff.com. Learn more about the Salem Avenue Peace Corridor at peacecorridor.com. 

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