Get Your Keystone Festivals Ticket Paired with Lodging for the Best Summer Weekend in the Mountains!

Keystone Resort is celebrating summer with the old and the new. It’s the 20th anniversary of the Keystone Bluegrass and Beer Festival Aug. 6-7 and the first year for the Keystone River Run Village Art Festival July 30-31.

“This is a special summer for us at Keystone’s River Run Village,” says Maja Russer, marketing and events director for the Keystone Neighbourhood Company, the organization that organizes and produces six summer festivals in River Run Village at Keystone Resort. “We’re proud that we were a pioneer when we started the first ‘micro-brew’ festival in Colorado 20 years ago. Since then, we’ve grown and improved the Keystone Bluegrass and Beer Festival and launched new festivals like the Mountain Town Music Festival three years ago and this year’s debut of Keystone’s River Run Village Art Festival.”

Since its inception 20 years ago, the Keystone Bluegrass and Beer Festival has grown in size and popularity. As one of the longest running craft beer festivals in Colorado, the Keystone Bluegrass and Beer Festival is now a must-do event in Colorado and one of the top-rated beer festivals in the country. Not satisfied to rest on their laurels, the Keystone Neighbourhood Company is adding a bike-in cinema event with New Belgium to kick off the weekend, a Collaboration Tasting with Fat Tire and Friends and the Homebrew Hub sessions taking place at Warren Station in the festival village.

According to Russer, this summer is shaping up to be the best and biggest in Keystone’s history. In addition to the Keystone Bluegrass and Beer Festival, the Keystone Neighbourhood Company is hosting five other festivals celebrating everything from bacon to wine and mountain music to oompah bands.

“If you’re looking to add an epic weekend in the mountains to your summer bucket list, we have six options for you,” Russer says. “Plan a weekend getaway at Keystone including your favorite festival and then add on a Rocky Mountain activity like mountain biking, hiking, fly fishing or just relaxing and you’ll have the perfect Colorado adventure vacation.”

Here’s your summer event planning guide for Keystone:

Pig Out at Keystone’s Blue Ribbon Bacon Tour June 25-26:

Live high on the hog and enjoy bacon, bacon and 3,000 pounds of bacon at Keystone’s Blue Ribbon Bacon Tour. This popular event brings the sizzling smells and tastes of bacon to Keystone’s River Run Village June 25-26. Don’t miss the Bacon Bloody Mary Bar, the Blue Ribbon Bacon Whiskey Tour and the return of Hell’s Belles on stage for the 6th year in a row.

Challenge yourself to the Bacon Eating Contest and win bacon for a year, post your favorite Bacon Selfie and hashtag and share it (#keystonebacon) or earn your Bacon Diploma at the Bacon Education Center.

When: Saturday, June 25 – Sunday, June, 26 2016. 1pm – 6pm daily.

Tickets: Free music. Get tickets for bacon samplings.

Lodging Packages that Include Accommodations & Festival Tickets: www.keystonefestivals.com/lodging/

Advance tickets: $20 Piglet Package; $30 Samplin’ Swine; $50 Hungry Hog. (at the gate, tickets will be $22 / $35 / $55)
A-la-carte Tasting Tickets: $4 for one Tasting Ticket – each tasting ticket will be exchanged for one item at any of the participating food vendor tents.

Music:
Hell’s Belles, the all-female AC/DC cover band, returns to rock River Run Village for their 6th year of the Blue Ribbon Bacon Tour. Other free music is provided by: Banditos, Dirty Bourbon River Show, King Cardinal, Rhythmic Statues and The Ballroom Thieves.

Hashtag: #keystonebacon

Sip and Savor 300 Wines at the Keystone Wine and Jazz Festival July 16-17

Want to learn about the sin of Zin(fandel) and the passions of pinot? Then Keystone is the place for you July 16-17. It’s the return of the Keystone Wine and Jazz Festival in River Run Village with over 300 different varieties of wines to sample and free jazz music, along with wine seminars and culinary events.

This year, the Godfather of Zin, Joel Peterson who is the founder of Ravenswood, will share the secrets and stories of Zinfandel at the Saturday Wine Seminar in Warren Station Center for the Arts. Other weekend seminars topics will include Pinot Envy, Cigars & Craft Distillers and the Wine Olympics.

The festival kicks off on Friday night with a special Reserve Wine Tasting event at Warren Station (tickets are $85 in advance). If you’d rather say cheers with some bubbly, Sunday morning’s Prosecco & Pancakes culinary event is your ticket ($30 in advance).

With so much going on, you might miss a beat or your favorite wine. Don’t fret. There’s an app for that. Download the Keystone Wine and Jazz Festival app and you’ll have all of the wine seminars, wine tastings, jazz performances and culinary events right at your finger tips. Look for it in the app store.

When: Saturday, July 16 – Sunday, July 17, 2016. 1pm – 5pm with free admission and music daily. Don’t miss the Reserve Tasting which kicks off the event on Friday, July 15 at Warren Station Center for the Arts

Tickets: Free music. Get tickets for the wine tasting and food sampling.

Lodging Packages that Include Accommodations & Festival Tickets: www.keystonefestivals.com/lodging/

Advanced tickets for Wine Tasting Glass: $60 per person for one day; $100 for 2-day pass per person, unlimited wine tasting plus gourmet food tickets. Prices will increase at the gate to $65 for one-day and $120 for a 2-day pass.

Wine Seminars at Warren Station Center for the Arts: Price varies for each seminar (range from $25-$35)

Special events include:

Friday, July 15: Reserve Wine Tasting at Warren Station Center for the Arts: $85 per person in advance ($90 at the door)

Sunday, July 19: Prosecco & Pancakes at Warren Station Center for the Arts: $30 per person in advance ($35 at the door)

Music:

Free jazz music from Phil Denny, The Deano Quartet, Quantum Jazz, Lin Rountree, Joey Sommerville, Jessy J and festival favorite, Dotsero.

Hashtag: #keystonewine

The New River Run Village Art Festival Debuts July 30-31:

Keystone’s River Run Village will be awash in colors and artistic displays July 30-31. The Keystone Neighbourhood Company is debuting the River Run Village Art Festival with local and national painters, sculptors, photographers, ceramic artists, jewelry artisans and other artists in this juried show. Admission is free and open to the public.

In addition, there’ll be strolling musicians and a wine garden to pair with the artistic flair.

When: Saturday, July 30 – Sunday, July 31, 2016. 10 am. – 6 p.m. daily.

Tickets: Free admission. Prices for art vary.

Weekend Lodging Packages: www.keystonefestivals.com/lodging/

Hashtag: #keystoneart

Keystone Bluegrass and Beer Festival Celebrates 20th Anniversary with 40+ Breweries

For 20 years, craft brews and bluegrass have been on tap in Keystone’s River Run Village for the Keystone Bluegrass and Beer Festival. It’s the longest-running beer festival in the state and returns Aug. 6-7 to celebrate the two-decade mark with more than 100 brews from 35-plus breweries.

The battle of the brews social media throwdown is back by popular demand. The beer with the most #keystonebestbrew social votes will be crowned the festival’s “Best Brew.” New this year, stop by an Instaprint station to get a free print of your Festival Instagram photos at various River Run restaurants and shops.

To celebrate 20 years of cheers’ing, the Keystone Neighbourhood Company has partnered with New Belgium to offer a “Fat Tire and Friends” Collaboration Tasting on Saturday and a New Belgium bike-in cinema on Thursday night in River Run Village. The Homebrew Hub seminar with the American Homebrewers Association on Sunday will cap off the weekend. Throughout the two days, pair your favorite brews with free bluegrass music from Jeff Scroggins and Colorado, T Sisters, Lonely Heartstrings Band, Mason Town, Mandolin Orange, Tim O’Brien, Peter Rowan Band, Larry Keel Experience and more.

When: Saturday, Aug. 6 – Sunday, Aug. 7, 2016. 1pm – 5pm daily

Tickets: Free music. Get tickets for the beer tastings and food samplings.

Lodging Packages that Include Accommodations & Festival Tickets: www.keystonefestivals.com/lodging/

Beer Glass Pass: $40 per person for one day in advance; $75 in advance for a weekend pass per person with unlimited beer tasting. (at the gate, the prices will be $45 and $80)
Food tickets are $1 per ticket.

Music:

Jeff Scroggins and Colorado, T Sisters, Lonely Heartstrings Band, Mason Town, Mandolin Orange, Tim O’Brien, Peter Rowan Band, Larry Keel Experience and more!

Special events:

Thursday, Aug. 4: Bike-In Cinema with New Belgium featuring “The Goonies” in River Run Village.

Friday, Aug. 5: Kickoff the weekend with “Eat, Drink, Pick” in Warren Station Center for the Arts. It’s a beer makers pairing featuring brews from New Belgium and tasting dishes from Chef Chris Rybak. Tickets are $55 in advance and $65 at the door.

Saturday, Aug. 6 – Sunday, Aug. 7: Homebrew Hub at Warren Station Patio all weekend from 1 to 5 p.m. Learn more about home brewing or enhance your skills and celebrate beer making with other home brewers and enthusiasts.

Saturday, Aug. 6: New Belgium “Fat Tire and Friends” Collaboration Seminar and Tasting. New Belgium has partnered with five different breweries to craft a different version of their popular Amber Ale. Come and taste all five of the collaboration brews, as well as the original.

Hashtags: #keystonebestbrew #keystonebluegrass #keystonebrew

The Mountain Town Music Festival Features Fresh Music and Fresh Colorado Harvest

Music, food and beers. This is Colorado at its finest. The Mountain Town Music Festival celebrates the best of Colorado from the fresh sweet peach harvest to outdoor music with Colorado brews from New Belgium.

Free live music highlights the Saturday event with local fresh straight-from-the-farm peach dishes. It’s all capped off by a signature fireworks show on Saturday night.

When: Saturday, Aug. 20. Noon – 9:30 p.m.

Weekend Lodging Packages: www.keystonefestivals.com/lodging/

Tickets: Free music. No tickets are needed for the festival

A-la-carte Tasting Tickets: $1 for one Tasting Ticket – each tasting ticket can be exchanged for food items at all participating food vendor tents or beer, wine or liquor at the bar tents.

Music: Todo Mundo, Mingo Fishtrap, Miner and more!

Special event: Enjoy a farmer’s market with fresh peaches picked directly from the Palisade Peach farms.

Hashtag: #mountaintownmusic

Oompah Bands and the Das Bier Burner Race Highlight Keystone’s Oktoberfest Sept. 3

Start your day with the Das Bier Burner 5K Race. Wear your Lederhosen or dirndl during the race and dash over to the Oktoberfest festivities in River Run Village to celebrate with a stein of bier and some chicken dancing. Prost! You’ve earned it.

Your favorite seasonal beers will be on tap throughout the day. It’s the holiday weekend. Indulge and enjoy some German fare, Those Austrian Guys Polka Band and the Edelweiss Polka Dancers in the afternoon,

Don’t forget about the face painters, bounce house and other activities for the littlest Oktoberfest lads and lassies.

When: Saturday, Sept. 3, 2016: 10am – 6pm.

Tickets: Free music, admission and polka dancing. Get tickets for bier tastings.
$35 for a Commemorative Keystone Stein and 3 Beers or purchase beers a-la-carte for $6.

Weekend Lodging Packages: www.keystonefestivals.com/lodging/

Special event: The 5K Das Bier Burner Fun Run starts at noon. Register in advance at active.com

Hashtag: #keystoneoktoberfest