HOPKINSVILLE, KY (CHRISTIAN COUNTY NOW) – What started out as a joke eight years ago has become a tradition at the Hopkinsville Brewing Company with Hoptoberfest: Beers, Beards, Brawn and Brains. This past Saturday, despite the dark clouds in the sky, competitors and spectators gathered at the brewery to enjoy all the festivities.
The all-day event had something for everyone. Co-owner Kate Russell explained that the beard competition started because her partner, Joey Medeiras, sports one of his own and they thought it would be fun. Over the years, the event has expanded from full beards only and now has categories for partial beards and mustaches and for artificial beards, which is open to everyone who doesn’t have one of their own. In the past, contestants of the last category have been very creative with their beard choices, from plants to paper to their own hair artfully rearranged.
Contestants are judged by Medeiras and local hairdressers on their various beards for length, creativity, appearance and even design of accompanying costumes. This year’s top beards were Randy Waller for his full beard, Chris McConnell for his partial beard and Millie King for her artificial masterpiece.
Another tradition is the brawn contest, an homage to Octoberfest celebrations everywhere, with stein hoisting. The art is very basic but very challenging, to hold a full stein of water steady and high in a manner of the judge’s choice. Two-time winner, Samantha Williams, says it takes a great deal of endurance and stamina to hold the stein without it tilting. She enjoys the competition so much that she and her husband were spending part of their anniversary at the event just so she could compete again.
There is a men’s and women’s category for the brawn contest and each vying for their own HBC stein to take home. Of the sixteen men, Kenny Larken held his stein up the longest. Elizabeth Moles won her own stein this year as one of the six female competitors.
A new game was added this year, an adult spelling bee featuring a beer theme. Drinking was encouraged before this new event, just to make things more entertaining for the crowd. They may not have gotten many words correct but no one minded. With Santa playing judge for the spelling bee and customers sporting lederhosen, enjoying good food from two food trucks featuring pizza and traditional sausages and peppers, Hoptoberfest 2024 was a crowd-pleaser.
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