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Where to Find Authentic Oktoberfest Celebrations in Brooklyn

By Mathew Katz | September 13, 2012 8:58pm

BROOKLYN — The borough’s Oktoberfest celebrations focus not just on beers from Bavaria, the traditional home of the festival, but also tried-and-true local brews. With activities ranging from pig roasts and stein holding contests to craft beer tasting festivals, Brooklyn offers an intoxicating array of Oktoberfest events, further proof of Brooklyn’s emergence as a premier international drinking destination.

Freaktoberfest

When: Sept. 15, 12 p.m. to 5 p.m

Where: Greenwood Park Beer 
Garden, 555 Seventh Ave.

As its name suggests, Freaktoberfest features the so-called “freaks” of Coney Island, along with burlesque, bands and beer. Mustachioed sideshow performer Donny Vomit will host the whole shindig for a decidedly Coney Island feel.
    Dozens of brewers will show off their top beers — and give out samples. For the fest’s fifth year, it has added brews from Flying Dog, Dogfish Head, Two Brothers, Ballast Point, Bronx Brewing Company and Coney Island Craft Lagers.

Tickets are $60, available online and include samples from all the breweries.

Oktoberfest Pig Roast

When: Oct. 6, 2 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Where: Radegast Hall & Biergarten, 113 N. 3rd St.

Radegast, Williamsburg’s German beer hall, has several events on tap between Sept. 22 and Oct. 6, but the biggest celebration is the seven-hour festival featuring all things German, including a pig roast. The party includes an epic battle to see who can hold up a one-liter stein of Hofbrau Oktoberfest the longest.

On top of everything else, the hall will be showcasing Zlatne Uste and the Kavala Brass Brand to belt out traditional German oompapa music, along with Eastern European favorites.

Radegast will host special beer tastings on Tuesdays throughout Oktoberfest.

Admission is free.

Oktoberfest for Lutheran Social Services

When: Oct. 2, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Where: Brooklyn Brewery, 79 N. 11th St.

This $75-a-mug fundraiser will let you enjoy an evening of bratwurst and Märzen while benefitting Lutheran Social Services, which provides support to needy families and individuals around the city.

Your ticket includes beer for the night, an authentic German meal from Staten Island’s Nurnberger Bierhaus. There’s also a $50-a-ticket raffle for one of 100 bottles of wine.

Tickets are $75 online or $100 at the door.

Oktoberfest Beer Tasting

When: Sept. 8, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Where: Prospect Heights Beer Works, 648 Washington Ave.

Prospect Heights’ massive new beer store boasts some of the borough’s best selection of craft brews in bottles, cans and growlers. The shop plans a tasting of beers by Left Hand, Flying Dog, Krombacher and Weyerbacher.

Admission is free.

Brooklyn Pour Craft Beer Festival

When: Oct. 6, 1 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Where: Skylight One Hanson, 1 Hanson Pl.

While not technically an Oktoberfest party, the second annual Brooklyn Pour festival has a lot in common with one — namely, it’s a ton of people drinking a ton of beer, along with live music and food. With more than 100 craft brews available to sample, you’ll never run out of drafts to try over the course of one of two three-hour sessions in the Williamsburg Savings Bank building.

Tickets for the festival include a souvenir tasting glass and proceeds will benefit the Brooklyn Animal Resource Coalition, a Williamsburg-based no-kill animal shelter.

Fort Greene beer hall Der Schwarze Kolner will host an afterparty — complete with drink specials for buzzed Brooklyn Pour guests wearing their wristbands. The first tasting session runs from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. The second runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Tickets are available online, and are $45 for general admission or $65 for VIP admission.

Oktoberfest Party at Loreley

When: Sept. 17, 3 p.m. to 12 a.m.
Where: Loreley Williamsburg, 64 Frost St.

Nothing says Brooklyn Oktoberfest more than Borough President Marty Markowitz tapping a keg of Hoffbrau beer — and that’s exactly what you’ll find at the Brooklyn outpost of the popular Loreley beer garden. Visitors will each get one free half-liter mug of the brew until the keg runs out, so get there early if you want free booze and the chance to rub elbows with the beep.

The staff at Loreley is also roasting a suckling pig on a spit — in true German fashion — accompanied by an array of German side dishes. Finally, the bar is serving up nine different kinds of sausages from the charcuterie specialists at Schaller & Weber.

Admission is free.

Check out www.DNAinfo.com New York's Oktoberfest Brooklyn 2012 deals and specials here.