IT HARDLY SEEMS POSSIBLE, but Oktoberfest, that celebration of beer, brats and brass instruments, is back in full swing:
SEPT. 9-11 and 16-18 The beer belly of them all: Larimer Square goes first with its 35th annual Oktoberfest, which covers two long weekends, Sept. 9-11 and Sept. 16-18, promising approximately 100 performances of “The Chicken Dance.”
The fest officially opens at 6 p.m. Friday, when biermeister and Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper taps the first wooden keg of Paulaner. But we’re saving our calories for 1:30 p.m. Sept. 11, when a sea of accordion players ages 5 to 75 gathers to oom-pah through the polka playbook before the Broncos’ season home opener.
Larimer Square, on Larimer Street between 15th Street and Speer Boulevard in Denver. Information: oktoberfestdenver.com
SEPT. 9-11, 16-18 Raise a stein to fantasy: No better place than a fake Bavarian village to celebrate a co-opted Bavarian holiday. Vail’s Oktoberfest runs Sept. 9-11 in Lionshead Village and Sept. 16-18 in Vail Village. If you’re feeling guilty about the amount of Erdinger Weissbrau you plan to consume during the polka season, you may want to sign up for the Oktoberfest Fun Run that steps off at 9 a.m. Sept. 11 at Checkpoint Charlie in Vail Village.
Information: vailoktoberfest.com
FRIDAY, SATURDAY Under the Pavilion: After at least one soggy Oktoberfest night per season, the Longmont Symphony Orchestra has moved under solid shelter at Roosevelt Park & Pavilion. It all gets rolling at 5 p.m. Friday and then again at noon Saturday.
Nina Storey headlines the fun Saturday, but we’re getting there early Friday, when Dick Svodny’s Polka Band warms up for Chris Daniels and the Kings.
Roosevelt Park, on Coffman Street between Longs Peak and Eighth avenues in Longmont. Information: longmontsymphony.org/
SATURDAY At high altitude, you need only one day: Snowmass Village gets in and out with an all-day Octoberfest on the mall. Music, food, dancing, singing traditional music. You get the drift.
Information: snowmassvillage.com
SATURDAY Volksmarch, nicht run! The town of Frisco kicks off its Oktoberfest at 11 a.m.on Main Street. Build up a thirst on a 5K or 10K Volksmarch (that’s German for a brisk hike around Frisco and Copper Mountain.) Register at the Historic Park Schoolhouse Museum at Second and Main from 8:30 a.m. to noon. But you’ll need to be back by 5:30 p.m., when the taps turn off. On Sunday, the 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. party moves to Burning Stones Plaza at Center Village in Copper Mountain.
Information: townoffrisco.com
SEPT. 16 Food, then beer: Breckenridge wisely begins its Oktoberfest celebration with the Brewmasters Dinner, 6 p.m. at the Swiss Haven Restaurant, 325 S. Main St. A many-course meal is exactly what you need to prepare for the two-day street party Sept. 17-18 that includes beer, food, etc. and brags about its live music, including T.A.G. – Those Austrian Guys led by local fave Peter Krainz. If you get bored with the brew, head over the Team Summit’s ski swap at the Riverwalk Center.
Information: gobreckevents.com 970-547-4333.
SEPT. 24 Proof of strength: There’s plenty of time to practice for the Stein Holding Contest at Fort Collins’ Oktoberfest Fall Festival, 9 a.m.-9 p.m. . The contest tests the arm strength of two-person teams, but, unfortunately, involves absolutely no beer. The festival also has a bratwurst-eating contest and a traditional costume contest, plus the promise of prizes for the best polka dancers. Horrified by the notion of putting on a dirndl or lederhosen? Rest easy that your pain will be eased by beers from local brewers, on tap.
Between Mountain and LaPorte avenues on Mason Street, in Fort Collins. Information: oktoberfestival.com.
SEPT. 24 Polka country: Brush has its own one-day festival on Clayton Street. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the town will be filled with family-friendly activities like a craft festival and a dog show on Clayton Street. But when the sun goes down, the professionals come out and the party moves to the Polka Dance, featuring Al Holman & the Polka Tunes, at 7-11 p.m. at the events center at the Morgan County Fairgrounds, 718 Ellsworth St. in Brush.
Information: brushchamber.org
