ATASCADERO — The City of Atascadero’s annual Brew At The Zoo event is moving virtual for 2020 and beers from local breweries in Atascadero and San Luis Obispo County will be delivered to your door.
On Sept. 26, fans of craft beer, ciders, exotic animals, and live music will be delighted as a virtual party will be coming into their living rooms and backyards, all supporting local businesses and the Charles Paddock Zoo.
Attendees will have two options to choose from. Both, the standard which costs $65 and the VIP which costs $80, will come delivered to your door on Sept. 24 with a 14-pack of 12- and 16-ounce cans and assorted swag from participating breweries. The VIP package will also include an exclusive commemorative t-shirt.
The breweries participating so far are Wild Fields Brewhouse, Central Coast Brewing, Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co., Firestone Walker Brewing Company, M. Special Brewing Company, and Santa Maria Brewing Co., Silva Brewing, SLO Brew, Topa Topa Brewing Co. and Bristols Cider House.
“A lot of swag will also be included in these virtual boxes. Everything from your coaster or bottle openers to luggage tags and koozies will be all kinds of fun things added to it,” Atascadero Deputy City Manager Terrie Banish told The Atascadero News. “You are getting a little bit more than just a box of beer, but each of the beers will be from one of our craft breweries here in Atascadero and San Luis Obispo County.”
Those who have purchased virtual beer boxes will get a link sent to their email the day before the event where they can log into the virtual festival where the real fun begins.
“You will hear from each of the brewmasters that are in your brew virtual box,” Banish said. “There will be a segment on each of the individual breweries in the box, and you will also be going on behind-the-scenes tours with different zookeepers and learning about the animals. They will take you behind the scenes and show you things you don’t normally get to see at the Charles Paddock Zoo, and it focuses on some of the surprises we have that people aren’t aware of.”
On top of discussions from local brewmasters and behind-the-scenes looks at the zoo’s animals, the City will also stream in live music from Bear Market Riot and Ricky Montijo. The event will begin at noon on Sept. 26 and run until 3 p.m.
All proceeds from the event will benefit the ongoing conservation and educational efforts of the Charles Paddock Zoo and will also support the local breweries that are a part of the festival.
“Paso Robles has wine, but we have breweries and cider houses. We have quite a bit of breweries here, and we really want to support our breweries and do this outreach to keep them at the top of our mind, whether in our backyard or our county. So this was an opportunity to say that this is worth it to support them as well as support the zoo,” Banish said.
Those interested can head to visitatascadero.com/brew-at-the-zoo for more information or click the link below to purchase tickets while supplies last. Only 300 tickets will be sold for the event. Must be 21 or older to purchase.
