Central Texas Beer Fest Canceled In Wake Of Austin Beer Fest Disaster: Can Beer Fests Make An Austin Comeback?

The Central Texas Beer Fest, a $20 event scheduled for April 21st at the Austin Music Hall, has been canceled by its organizer, Steve Farrer, who announced the cancellation in an e-mail yesterday. Via Lee Nichols of the I Love Beer Blog, Farrer writes that the Austin Beer Fest failure last weekend is in part responsible for his decision:

"The disastrous Austin Beer Festival that was held last Sat at the Travis County Expo Grounds. The complete fiasco – well documented online – has contaminated the market for beer festivals – especially ones run by private companies.

Eater Austin reached out to Chris Troutman of the Austin Beer Guide, who has made it his business to know about these things. Are commercial beer festivals going to be the bane of craft beer in Austin? His reply:

"I think Austinites and area brewers are savvy enough to not fall for a second round of ABF, but as this is a booming beer market with 100's added to the demographic daily, we won't see the end of capitalistic beer events for a while. Like many of the veteran beer folk knew to skip ABF, I think the more genuine events like Texas Craft Brewers Fest and Austin Beer Week will rise to the top and eventually be proven over time. Like any bubble, once it bursts or climaxed the wheat will be separated from the chaff."

· Local Beer Festival Canceled [I Love Beer]
· Central Texas Beer Fest [Official]
· All Craft Beer Coverage on Eater Austin [-EATX-]

[Photo: Central Texas Beer Fest/Official]