Beer enthusiasts have a lot to look forward to this spring.
On Saturday, tickets will go on sale for the fifth annual St. Patrick’s East End Pub Crawl on March 19.
Selected by the Southeast Tourism Society as one of the top 20 events for the month of March, the crawl will span eight different restaurants and bars on the East End and feature live Celtic music from half a dozen local bands.
Friends of Old Time Music and Dance and pub crawl organizers will also honor Irish-American and West Virginia lawyer Thomas P. Maroney, an original organizer of FOOTMAD’s Celtic music program more than three decades ago. A performance stage between Tricky Fish and the Red Carpet Lounge will be named in Maroney’s honor, according to a press release from East End Main Street.
The event, which runs from 6 to 11 p.m., will be continued during Pub Crawl Late Night at the Monkey Barrel from midnight to 2 p.m.
Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at www.charlestoneastend.com.
Charleston’s largest-ever craft beer festival also is on tap this spring.
East End Main Street and the Charleston Convention and Visitors Bureau are hosting Foam at the Dome on May 7 at the University of Charleston Stadium at Laidley Field.
“The idea is to capitalize on the expansion of the craft beer industry in the state,” said Adam Stollings, East End Main Street project manager.
He expects more than 40 breweries to be represented at the event, including the 15 that exist in West Virginia. At least 150 different types of craft beer will be available, he said.
While beer is the main focus, the event also will highlight local eateries and artisans who commonly sell wares at the East End bazaar.
Stollings said the event, which runs from 4 to 7 p.m., was intentionally scheduled to follow the East End Yard Sale that day, which some say is the largest yard sale east of the Mississippi River.
“We know there’s probably going to be 10,000 people out for the yard sale — we want to keep them on the East End afterwards,” he said.
Breweries hailing from various states have registered for the event, including New York, North Carolina and Virginia.
“We worked with three distributors in the state and are using their contacts to reach out to breweries,” Stollings said.
Two thousand tickets are available for the event and will go on sale March 12. General admission tickets cost $35 and VIP tickets cost $60, which includes early access to the event, VIP tent access and a custom howler.
For more information about Foam at the Dome, visit www.foamcwv.com.
Reach Elaina Sauber at elaina.sauber@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-3051 or follow @ElainaSauber on Twitter.