All the Oktoberfests: A Rundown of Fall's Best Beer Events in DFW

Ever since Americans learned the word "Oktoberfest," September and October have become two of the busiest months for breweries and beer fans. Factor in a new batch of fall and winter seasonals and you've got a busy season filled with tastings, tappings and festivals. Plan your own beertoberfall with a rundown of the best beer events happening in DFW over the next several weeks.

Addison Oktoberfest
Addison Circle Park, 4970 Addison Circle, Addison
6 to 11 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 15 and Friday, Sept. 16, noon to 11 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 17, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 18 
Addison's annual Oktoberfest will feature beer, food, live music and vendors of all kinds. Free to the public on Thursday, admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children, on Friday through Sunday. Additional packages can be purchased ranging from $45 to $60, and include items from commemorative steins to food tickets and more. Event details and admission pre-sales can be purchased here.

Oktoberfest at Community Beer Company
Community Beer Company, 1530 Inspiration Dr.
Noon to 6 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 17
Community Beer Company will have three traditional German beers on tap for their Oktoberfest celebration: a hefeweizen, a Munich-style dunkel and their Helles Lager. Each ticket purchased ($20) gives attendees three beers and a commemorative beer stein. Throughout the day, there will be live music and guided tours of our brewery. There will also be German-style food options. Event details and tickets can be purchased here. 

Barks, Brews & BBQ
Intrinsic Smokehouse and Brewery, 509 W. State St., Garland
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 17 
Friends of Rowlett Animals is holding an event in partnership with Intrinsic Smokehouse in downtown Garland where there will be pet adoptions, vendors and of course, food and beer. While attendance is free, for a $20 donation, you'll get a special event pint glass and three beers. The pint glasses can be purchased here.

Buffalo Ruckus CD and Beer Release Party
Shannon Brewing Co., 818 N. Main St., Keller
Noon to 9 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 17
Local band Buffalo Ruckus is hosting a release party for a new album and the Ruckus Rye, a beer they partnered up with Shannon Brewing to create. For $15 in advance or $20 at the door, drinkers will get a pint glass and three beers. The brewery is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., with live music starting at noon. Tickets can be purchased here.

Oktoberfest Fort Worth
Panther Island Pavilion,  395 Purcey St., Fort Worth 
5 to 10 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 22 and Friday, Sept. 23, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 24
This Oktoberfest features three days of live music, beer tappings and entertainment. On Thursday, there's a "Young Professionals Olympics" where teams will compete in various Oktoberfest events. On Friday, there will be two different bier stein-holding contests to see who can hold a five-pound beer extended in front of them for the longest. Saturday, before the gates open at 11 a.m., there will be a 15-mile bike race, fun run and 5K for those who sign up in advance. Additionally on Saturday, there will be a Dachshund Parade, costume contest and race. Other Saturday events include bier barrel-rolling races, stein-carrying contest and live music. Tickets are $5 for Thursday, $10 for Friday and Saturday, or a three-day pass is $15. All event details and tickets sales can be found on their website.

McKinney Oktoberfest
Downtown McKinney, 111 North Tennessee St., McKinney
4 to 11 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 24 and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 25
McKinney will host an Oktoberfest with various events including stein-holding contests, brat-eating contests and weenie dog races. Attendees can expect to have plenty of locally made German food and snacks, as well as beer from McKinney's own Tupps and Franconia. Tickets for events and special event bier steins can be found here.

Goodfriend Oktoberfest with Franconia Brewing
Goodfriend Beer Garden and Burger House, 1154 Peavy Road
11 a.m. to midnight Sunday, Sept. 25
Benefiting the Bath House Cultural Center, Goodfriend will co-host an Oktoberfest with Franconia Brewing that will feature live music, special Franconia tappings, stein-holding contests and more. Event details can be found here.

LUCKtoberfest
LUCK at Trinity Groves, 3011 Gulden Lane
Noon to 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 25
LUCK is hosting their own Oktoberfest-style celebration in cooperation with three of the local German-style breweries: Rahr & Sons, Franconia and Legal Draft Beer Co. There will be live music, bier stein and pilsner glass giveaways, as well as German-inspired food specials throughout the day. Event details can be found here.

Crunktoberfest
Intrinsic Smokehouse and Brewery, 509 W. State St., Garland
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 1
Intrinsic is holding their first annual Crunktoberfest Beer Festival, where they will release an imperial Marzen/Oktoberfest beer named, appropriately, Crunktoberfest. There will also be beer from 3 Nations, 903 Brewers, Backcountry Brewery, Big Bend, Cobra, Guns & Oil and Rabbit Hole. The event is limited, with tickets starting at $35 for VIP and $25 for general admission, or $30 at the door. Event details can be found here.

Lake Highlands Oktoberfest
Flag Pole Hill, 8100 Doran Circle
Saturday, Oct. 1
The Exchange Club of Lake Highlands is hosting a family-friendly Oktoberfest featuring local bands Bowling for Soup, Rhymin' N' Stealin', The O's and Calhoun, as well as entertainment for kids. Restaurants like Kuby's Sausage House and One 90 Smoked Meats will be serving everything from brats to ice cream. Event details and tickets can be found on their website.

T&P Tavern Oktoberfest
T&P Tavern, 221 W. Lancaster Ave., Fort Worth
Noon to 2 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 1
T&P Tavern's 6th annual Oktoberfest is free to anyone over 21 and features a variety of German and Oktoberfest beers on tap as well as brats, homemade schnitzel and pretzels on their patio. For those who are willing to dress up, winners for the best Oktoberfest attire will receive a $100 cash prize. There will also be Oktoberfest games all day, including stein-holding competitions, a best beer belly competition, barrel-rolling races and a best mustache contest. T&P will also have live music throughout the day. Event details can be found here.

Rahr & Sons Oktoberfest 5k
Rahr & Sons Brewing, 701 Galveston Ave., Fort Worth
7:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 1
Rahr & Sons in Ft Worth will be hosting a 5k run and walk followed by a party featuring stein-hoisting and costume contests. The cost to register for the race is $40, which includes entry into the race, a special pint glass, a custom DryFit shirt, a pint for finishing the race and access to the beirgarten. For $10, a wristband can be purchased for entry to the biergarten, but does not include a shirt or free pint. Event details can be found here.

Texas Beer Camp
Long Road Farm, 2177 County Road 494, Princeton
11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 1 through noon Sunday, Oct. 2
Texas Beer Camp is an overnight camping trip intended to bring together homebrewers and beer lovers. The event centers around having fun, rather than competition. Attendees will be treated to live music, barbecue by LUCK, speakers and of course, beer, which you can bring and swap with fellow beer fans. Texas Beer Camp membership is $40 per person, which includes a free T-shirt. You can also pre-order your barbecue dinner with your ticket purchase. All of the event details can be found here.

Second Annual Red River Brewdown
Bitter Sisters Brewery, 15103 Surveyor Blvd., Addison
4 to 11 p.m. Friday, Oct. 7
In celebration of the Red River Shootout, Bitter Sisters will have live music from Mike Hosty, food from Pit Commander BBQ, and of course, beer on tap. Bitter Sisters will have happy hour pricing from 4 to 6 p.m. for those who show up early. Event details can be found here.

Granbury Oktoberfest
Granbury Town Square, 201 E. Pearl St., Granbury
Starts at 10 a.m. on Oct. 7, ends at 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 9
Ketzler's Schnitzel Haus und Biergarten is putting on Granbury Oktoberfest, which will feature live music, beer, food, dancing and venders of all sorts set up throughout Granbury Town Square. Currently, event details are limited, but updates can be found on their Facebook page.

Beer and Barbecue Festival
Trader's Village, 2602 Mayfield Road, Grand Prairie
11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 8 and Sunday, Oct. 9
With brisket and ribs on the menu for both days, this fest is equal parts hoppy and meaty. Chris Rivers will perform from noon to 4 p.m. each day. During band breaks, various pitmasters will speak about what helped them win barbecue cook-offs across the the Southwest. The festival will take place under the large red patio on the east side of the market. Admission is free, and parking is $4.

Microfest Royse City
Corner of Arch and Main Street in Royse City
Noon to 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 15
Microfest will take place during Royse City's FunFest, which features vendors, a kids zone, pie-eating contest, food and more. Microfest will provide attendees a biergarten featuring beers from Nine Brand, Karbach, Audacity, Community, Deep Ellum, Franconia, Saint Arnold and Royce City's own Thirsty Bro Brewing. Proceeds from Microfest will benefit the Children's Advocacy Center of Rockwall County. For $15, attendees will receive a pint glass that includes two pours. Additional pints will be $6 each. Event details can be found here.

Pride of Southside Homebrew Invitational
SiNaCa Studios — School of Glass and Gallery, 1013 W Magnolia Ave., Fort Worth
Noon to 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29
Sponsored by Chimera Brewing, Martin House and the Collective Brewing Project, the Southside Homebrew Invitational is a free event featuring samplings and a chance for attendees to meet local homebrewers and see live glassblowing demonstrations. For those who wish to join the Order of the Unicorn, $10 will include membership and the chance to score homebrews and vote on the Best in Show award; $50 will include membership, an event shirt, and a hand-blown beer mug. Event details can be found here.

North Texas Beer Week
Locations vary
Nov. 11-20
Starting on Friday and running through the following Sunday, expect to see a number of events and specials all throughout North Texas. Key events include the Untapped Festival in Dallas and the Brewers Ball.

Untapped Festival Dallas
Fair Park
3:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 12
This year marks the fifth Untapped Festival in Dallas, and will feature over 100 breweries and more than 400 different beers. Festival-goers will enjoy live music from local and national bands, headlined by TV on the Radio and Gogol Bordello. Local restaurants and vendors will also be on site. Tickets start at $35 and VIP packages are $132. Event details can be found here.

Third Annual North Texas Brewer's Ball
Omni Hotel Dallas, 555 S. Lamar St.
Doors at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 18
Put on by North Texas Beer Week, the Brewer's Ball offers a chance for the public to meet various members of the craft beer community while enjoying food from some of Dallas' beer-centric restaurants. A founder, owner and/or brewmaster from each local brewery will be on hand and only 500 tickets are available, going for $125. Tickets can be purchased here.