Thanks to the smoked knackwursts of Butchertown Hall and the impending openings of Von Elrod’s Beer Garden and Sausage House (from Austin Ray and Jason Brumm) and Eastern European emporium Kuchnia & Keller (from former City House sous chef Aaron Clemins), Germantown is turning into a real sausage fest. So it only makes sense that thousands of local volk will descend on the neighborhood for the 38th Nashville Oktoberfest this Thursday through Sunday, Oct. 5-8. Billed as Nashville’s biggest and oldest festival as well as the second-largest Oktoberfest celebration in the country, this fest can be a bit difficult to navigate, but it sure is fun to try. Allow us to offer some guidance.
First, don’t even try to drive there. At all. With more than 300,000 visitors expected to fill the 10-block area centered around Fifth Avenue North and Jefferson Street, ridesharing, bicycling or public transportation are the ways to go. If you must drive, there will be some parking in the state-employee lots off James Robertson Parkway after business hours and on weekends. But you’re here for beer, right? Leave the driving to someone else, if possible.
Highlights of Oktoberfest include a dachshund derby, a huge 5K bier run, a parade, lots of activities for the kiddos and more than a hundred arts-and-crafts booths. But of course the real attractions are the food and drink booths, offering German food and other specialties from local restaurants and food trucks, plus plenty of beer served in the biergarten. All of the seven draft-beer stations scattered around the festival grounds will be serving famous Bavarian brews from Hacker-Pschorr Brewery and Paulaner Brewery, including Paulaner’s rare Oktoberfest Wies’n, brewed only once per year in Munich and shipped to Nashville in special casks just for the festival.
Paulaner’s Hefe-Weizen is acclaimed as the No. 1 wheat beer in the world, thanks to tropical aromas and a lovely strong head of foam. Unfiltered and slightly cloudy, this beer defines the style and is made for outdoor drinking. The brewery’s deep-golden Oktoberfest Wies’n has a slightly higher alcohol-by-volume content, so you can still enjoy it, just maybe order fewer of them. Or you might prefer the maltier Paulaner Oktoberfest Märzen, a more full-bodied brew with hints of toffee. Lager lovers will probably want to opt for Hacker-Pschorr’s Munich Gold, a crisp, pleasantly bitter blonde that has been brewed in Munich since 1417 — they’ve had plenty of time to get the recipe exactly right.
Domestic breweries are participating as well, with locals Mayday and TailGate joining regional and national favorites like Sierra Nevada, Yellowhammer Brewing, Napa Smith, Goodwood and others to offer up autumnal beers in honor of the famous Munich Oktoberfest. These beers will be available inside the VIP area for two-hour tasting blocks, during which guests can enjoy unlimited samples. Following the tastings, participants will vote for their favorites in several categories, with the winning brews announced on the final day of the fest.
About that VIP area: Is it really worth the extra $109 for a one-day pass, or $149 for the full weekend, especially considering that admission to Oktoberfest is free? Well, only if you enjoy perks like free entry into the all-you-care-to-drink beer tasting and tokens for two free 20-ounce beers or glasses of wine in the VIP lounge. Or a free private catered buffet serving German and Southern specialties all weekend. Or a free tasting glass, stein and other swag, plus access to the VIP lounge with air-conditioned bathrooms and plenty of shade, a benefit that might come in really handy if the mercury rises and the sweaty crowds start pressing in on you. So in a word, yes, it’s worth it. VIP pricing goes up once the festival kicks off, so head to the site to grab your pass behind the velvet rope.
Even though they are just outside the Oktoberfest grounds, the folks at Von Elrod’s want to take advantage of the opportunity to introduce themselves to the neighborhood, especially considering they have a captive audience of Germanophiles descending on their backyard at 1004 Fourth Ave. N. Von Elrod’s has been scrambling to officially open in time for the fest, but just to be safe they have planned a special experience that is set up under the same sort of catering provisions as the restaurants selling at the Oktoberfest.
Von Elrod’s is offering a few different options, but the gist of your choices is either to buy a seat in their festive main beer hall and covered patio, or just walk up to their open-air beer garden, which will be tented for festival-style service — first come, first served. The reserved-seat option is based on the original Oktoberfest in Munich, where guests may purchase tickets for eight different seating times throughout the weekend. More info and tickets are available at Von Elrod’s website.
Tickets include Von Elrod’s soon-to-be-famous hand-cranked sausages, house-baked pretzels and traditional Oktoberfest fare served buffet-style, plus a commemorative Von Elrod’s Oktoberfest stein. Guests will also enjoy live entertainment, games, air conditioning and access to restrooms away from the crowds. Sunday reservations include Von Elrod’s brunch selections and New Orleans second-line fun from Half Brass.Â
The nonreserved option offers access to the open-air beer garden, which includes tented, communal-style seating, sausages and beer for sale, and additional bathrooms, all open to the public for the entire Oktoberfest weekend. The beer garden will be 21-and-over for the duration of Oktoberfest. And just because you visit Von Elrod’s doesn’t mean you can’t also be a part of the bigger festival.Â
So whatever you decide, just remember that big crowds are part of the fun. Just slow down and enjoy yourself. Prost!Â
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