Budapest beer festival started with 250 beers – PHOTOS

The 8th Downtown Beer Festival in Budapest’s famous Szabadság Square, only one street away from the iconic Hungarian Parliament, started on 3 September. On the offer, there are more than 250 different types of beer, some produced by 17 small breweries, the others made by big beer companies. Without a doubt, we may taste all kinds of beers in Budapest’s heart in the upcoming four days.

According to Blikk, a Hungarian tabloid, the beer festival on Szabadság Square opened yesterday with lots of different types of beer: lager, pilsner, and stout to pale ale and wheat beer. Moreover, you may also taste Gombóc Artúr’s favourite chocolates. Gombóc Artúr is a well-known and beloved Hungarian cartoon character eating every chocolate he can in the PomPom series. Read about the series in THIS article.

You may buy your beer cup at the venue. The organisers said most people search for IPA beers, but flavoured beers are catching up unstoppably. They are popular in every season of the year, while people tend to buy lager beers in the summer and dark beers in the autumn-winter period.

Festival Hippie is the official beer of the festival, and you can taste it at SPAR’s booth. SPAR is the main sponsor of the event. Just like previously, fans determined the new taste of the festival beer. Based on their votes, Máté Ábrahám and his team produced the new beer. They used five types of hops from Germany, the United States and Australia. As a result, tropical fruit and pineapple aromas are defining the unique beer type.

Gabriella Heiszler, the CEO of SPAR Magyarország, said their customers need an increasing number of variants and a wide offer. She added she believed Hungarians no longer drink their beer alone, sitting in front of the TV. Instead, drinking beer has become an opportunity for social and family interactions, spending time with the people we love, friends, and acquaintances. Therefore, good quality and taste are essential.