Summer may be over, but that doesn't mean the opportunity to enjoy a cold one with your friends outdoors has ended for the year.
Georgetown’s Head For The Hills is back this Saturday (Sept 16) and is bringing dozens of drinks to Trafalgar Sports Park.
“Our festival is almost like a homecoming for some people,” said Head For The Hills president John Fini. “People come back to Georgetown to visit family and friends, and they all come to the festival.”
Now re-branded as the Head For The Hills Craft Beverage Festival, beer still remains the focus, but past visitors have asked for a bit more variety in their drinks.
Mainstays such as Georgetown’s own Furnace Room Brewery will be showcasing its selection, along with Royal City from up the road in Guelph.
Royal City was the first brewery to ever sign up for the festival back in 2014.
For those who are looking for something other than beer, Dixons Distilled Spirits, also from Guelph, is bringing pre-mixed gin drinks.
“About one third of our vendors now are non-beer beverages. We have wines, gins, even hard waters, which are like flavoured water with alcohol,” said Fini. “We’ve been getting emails thanking us for broadening our selection.”
In addition to beer from the area, local music is also on tap for the festival. Headlining the event is the Mountain Lion Trappers, who have played the festival every year since it started, performing rock and cover songs. The group will be performing two sets on Saturday.
Jake Chisholm, a blues-rock performer with a backing band is also performing, as is Josh Taerk, a Toronto rocker who takes clear influence from Bruce Springsteen.
Food trucks will be on site, with visitors able to choose from 16 options serving everything from kettle corn at Auntie Jo’s, to ice cream from Heavenly Dreams, to perogies from Forkin’ Perogy.
“Some people even stop by just for the food trucks; they have a following of their own,” Fini noted.
Head For The Hills Craft Beverage Festival is a charity event that was founded by Georgetown's four service clubs. All profits go to local charities such as Food4Kids Halton and Cancer Assistance Services Halton Hills, among several others.
“It’s the real reason we do this. We started out as a fundraiser and every penny we raise from tickets, tokens, anything and everything, goes right back to local charities,” said Fini.
Head For The Hills kicks off Sept. 16 at 11 a.m., with taps flowing until 6 p.m. at Trafalgar Sports Park. Shuttle buses are available from several locations throughout Halton Hills to ensure people can enjoy the event responsibly.
For more information and to purchase tickets, check out the Head For The Hills website.