1st Corfu Beer Festival

Better late than never (as always… 🙂 , an insider’s report of the First, Fine, Fun, Fantastic, Fabulous Corfu Beer Festival of this October!

The idea for the festival came late and the organisation started in June. In four months a million things had to be arranged, from beer brewers, musicians and dancers from Bavaria, local musicians, dancers and producers, equipment, planning, legal and fiscal arrangements, promotion and many more. It all came together thanks to the many enthusiastic volunteers who were involved in all stages of the planning and the actual realisation of the festival. It was a bigger project than any one of us had ever participated in but somehow it all magically worked out!

Wednesday 9 October, the big day of the grand opening, was sunny and the festival grounds were drying out from last night’s pouring rain. Next to the entrance was the tent where the local producers were showcasing their products, olive oil, wine, honey, jam, kumquat, fresh pasta, jams, natural cosmetics, local handicrafts from olive wood and glass, and of course Corfu beer products.

The band came, the ribbon was cut, the four different barrels of beer (weizenbier brewed exclusively for the festival by four different brewers!) were ceremoniously opened and the festival was officially opened. People started pouring in, slowly-slowly. The music started, we began to taste the beers,the souvlakia were sizzling on the grill and tables started filling with people enjoying the relaxed atmosphere. Our Bavarian friends were the hit of the evening with their happy music and spectacular lederhosen dancing! After that, the party continued with Corfiot music and dancing.

The next four days things continued in the same general motif, but more people were coming every day as word spread out around Corfu that something special was happening in Arillas! And every day, even though there were more people, things seemed to run more smoothly as far as the organisation was concerned. The volunteers were enjoying themselves as much as, or even more than the visitors!

In the course of the five day festival we enjoyed, next to our Bavarian friends, classical music, opera, music and dances from all over Greece, and practised dancing both Corfiot and German dances all together. All four beers, as well as our local corfiot beers were delicious, and so was the food offered by local restaurants and chefs.

The best thing of the whole festival though was the relaxed atmosphere. We had maybe 10 thousand people who drank about as many liters of beer, but there wasn’t a single misunderstanding or fight in all five days! It was a great experience and we are all looking forward to next year’s Corfu meets the UK festival (8-12 October 2014)!

For more videos of the festival you can visit our Green Corfu Youtube channel. And if you want to come to next year’s festival, you can check out our accommodations in Arillas.