On the final Saturday of September, Rochester brought a little piece of Germany to High Falls. Specifically the Genesee Brewery.
Ok, if you’re local to Rochester, you might have just gotten confused there. A brewery, known more for its Cream Ale and Genny Light than German heritage and strong beer doesn’t seem like the venue for an Oktoberfest celebration. Fortunately this was called ROCtoberfest.
My faithful companion and fellow beer enthusiast arrived at the Genesee Brewery earlier than the 3 o’clock start time. We decided to hit up the brewery itself, which offers tastings and growler fills on the bottom floor (it’s just past the gift shop). For a mere $2 you can sample four beers from their current selections. Added bonus? Most of the proceeds go to local charities.
And, in case you were wondering, I was able to find four delicious beers that weren’t Genny Light.
After enjoying our flights, we walked to the festival, located across the street in a parking lot. It was a nice sunny, warm day, the perfect setting for an outdoor event.
After seeing online that the event was tentatively going to have a $5 cover charge, we approached the entrance with our IDs and cash in hand. To our delight, admission was free and I got to apply that cash towards a stein.
It was bigger than my head and probably held a full six pack and cost me $17.
The band that began the day is Die Lustigen Almdudler, who played many traditional German songs and led the crowd in dancing, cheering and revelry.
It was a great excuse to get out of the house, enjoy the company of good people and honor my German heritage as well as some cold beer. Not to mention the venue has stellar views of the Genesee River and the Rochester skyline, for those of you into that kind of thing.