Big Beer Barn Fest Bring Together Breweries from Across Northwest Indiana

Big Beer Barn Fest Bring Together Breweries from Across Northwest Indiana

For three years the County Line Orchard has been hosting a Big Barn Beer Fest to raise money for charities in the area. Tickets sold out January 23rd, the morning of the event, at 1200 attendees.

To see more photos from this event, click here!

Guests at the Big Barn were asked to bring non perishable food items to help feed hungry families in the area. These proceeds, as well as the monetary ones generated by the Beer Fest, will go to the Hobart and Portage Township Food Pantries. Lake Area United Way will also receive donations.

“This event means a lot to the Lake Area United Way,” said Lisa Carpenter, their Senior Relationship Manager, “We have a great partnership with the Orchard and this is a great way to say thank you. It’s also a great opportunity to meet the community we serve, to talk to them, to see them. We appreciate the chance to help.”

The Brew Fest featured ales, crafts beers, wines, and even whiskies from all over the country. Some of them had been hidden in Northwest Indiana’s own backyard, Naperville-based brewery One Trick Pony.

"For a place like us, that doesn't advertise an event like this gets our face out there hopefully people will leave here and remember how good our brews were,“ said One Trick Pony owner Mark Kocal.

His company is part of Calumet Breweries Inc. So is the NWI branch of Lava Cap Winery. They are based in California, at a vineyard in the foothills 70 miles from Napa Valley.

Brand Activation Manager Shay Petersen appreciated what an event like this would do for the community. “I think [the fest] enhances the community because people drive out of their normal route to get to it. They see more of the businesses the area has to offer. And people will eat in the town’s restaurants after they leave here, which boosts the economy.”

The fest brought outside people into our community, and the people already here closer together. The Big Barn provided a closer environment than you typically feel at a beer fest. The live band, Crawpuppies, played familiar songs that got the crowd dancing together.

Matt Johnson, the Brand Manager for Indiana Beverage, said, “[The Big Barn Beer Fest] is a great way to promote brands, suppliers, and awesome craft beers. It’s a fun event, that raises a bit of money in a unique way that encourages people to come out and experience it together, as a community.”

January was a slow time for the County Line Orchard but owner Ryan Richardson saw that as an opportunity to give back to his community. “Northwest Indiana is a very tight knit area but sometimes the towns get separated. We always joke that we are on the county line, so this is the perfect place to bring everyone together and get something done.”