An authentic German Oktoberfest is coming to Frisco on September 28, 2019! If you’re thinking about going you must listen to this episode to get the inside scoop from SBG Hospitality organizer Kaylee Kelley and Presenting Sponsor Nine Band Brewing Co. founder Keith Ashley.
You’ll get all of the details as well as some inside tips on getting the most out of the event.
SHOW NOTES:
[01:38] What will the Frisco Oktoberfest experience be like?
[03:40] Presenting Sponsors Nine Band Brewing Co.
[04:36] What beers will be on tap for Oktoberfest?
[04:55] Tapping the keg to kick off Oktoberfest.
[06:11] Visiting the Nine Band Brewing Co. brewery
[07:02] When is Frisco Oktoberfest?
[07:20] Featured performers.
[09:07] How much is Frisco Octoberfest and how to get tickets.
[11:09] Oktoberfest competitions.
[13:12] Where to get Nine Band Brewing Co. beer.
[13:45] Chris Kyle Frog Veterans Foundation.
[17:00] Family-friendly activities.
LINKS & RESOURCES:
- Frisco Oktoberfest Website
- Get Tickets to Frisco Oktoberfest
- Full Post on Frisco Oktoberfest
- LIFESTYLE PROFILES video interview – Frisco Oktoberfest
- Nine Band Brewing Co.
- SBG Hospitality
- Traditional German Dress:
- Frisco FastPacs
- Chris Kyle Frog Foundation
Connect with Lifestyle Frisco on:
Transcript
Scott Ellis: Welcome to the Frisco Podcast. I’m your host, Scott Ellis. And today we are here with Kaylee from SBG Hospitality and Keith from Nine Band Brewing. And we’re going to talk about one of, one of my favorite topics, beer, or more specifically, Oktoberfest. Frisco’s having its first October fest and SBG is putting that on. So thank you guys for joining me today.
Keith Ashley: Well I’m happy to be here and I’m glad we were able to be invited.
Scott: Yeah, good to have you here.
Kaylee Kelly: Absolutely. We’re glad to share what’s to come at Frisco Oktoberfest with everyone in Frisco.
So I’m gonna start off by saying that Oktoberfest is an idea, it’s something, I’ve been to the Oktoberfest in Munich before and it was so much fun. I’ve wanted to see one come to Frisco for a long time. We thought about doing one at lifestyle Frisco. But as you know, events of that scale are a huge undertaking and it takes a lot of work to pull something like that off. So we just, we never did it. And we’re really glad that you guys are doing it. Cause you did a fantastic job with the wine festival last year or so. Or was it the spring I should say?
Kaylee: Yes, it was the spring. And you’re definitely right about festivals like this with the attendance rates. They are massive and a lot of work goes into it. But we are so excited to do it all and to bring this style of event to Frisco, especially with all the expectations being so high of knowing what a general Oktoberfest is. Um, we’re definitely excited to bring a whole authentic German experience to Frisco.
Scott: So you already started down the road of my first question and that is what is the experience going to be like? Because I’ve Bend Oktoberfest in Munich, which is kind of like the granddaddy, but I’ve been to other Oktoberfest here around the country and they’re all a little bit different and sometimes they’re not quite like the, um, what I would consider the authentic or original German Oktoberfest. So how were you guys kinda queuing up the experience for what’s going to happen in Frisco?
Kaylee: So something that is great that we think is not only are we bringing in authentic German experience, but we’re also involving a lot of the local restaurants and vendors as well just to kind of bring fresco together as a whole. But as long as far as the Oktoberfest experience goes, there will be live German music and dancers as well as some entertainment such as some stilt walkers. So you’ll definitely have plenty to be entertained by. We’ll also have some delicious German cuisine so you can expect lots of a Broadway or sinned, sauerkraut and things of that sort. Um, and then aside from that we’ll have, we’ll have costumes. Everyone is recommended to come out in their best German attire as well as our entertainment. We’ll be all decked out in German attire. And then as far as for the local Frisco, we’ll have a ton of local restaurants. They’re serving up food as well. And then local vendors probably have over a hundred of them out on display for lots of shopping.
Scott: Okay, wonderful. And so are we gonna have the beer tents or is the getting your beer experience going to be a little different than that?
Kaylee: Well, it wouldn’t be Oktoberfest without the beer tents.
Scott: Ok, Good News.
Kaylee: So we will definitely have beer tins filled with a Nine Band Brewing beer. They’re breaking out some special edition beers for the October fest. So we’re really excited about that. And um, absolutely with a beer pass that you can buy on Frisco octoberfest.com it does come with a vintage Bier stein, it’ll be 16 ounces and that’s what our attendees will use to drink beer out of for the entire Oktoberfest.
Scott: Wow. Wonderful. That sounds like fun. I’m already getting excited. And so we’re going to talk to Keith now a little bit. You are with nine band brewing and you guys are the presenting sponsor for this first October fest in Fresco. Tell us a little bit about what we can expect, um, in the beer treatment.
Keith: Well, we are a very thankful that we were chosen to be the, uh, presenting, uh, beer sponsor. Um, we’re very excited. Uh, we, uh, we have a specialty beer that, uh, outside of our Oktoberfest beer of course, but, uh, we have a specialty beer that will not be tapped anywhere else except the Frisco Oktoberfest. And it will be the first to actually have it and it’s probably gonna um, make Starbucks, uh, pumpkin spice run for the hills. It’s going to be a pumpkin beer, uh, and it’s going to be filled with a lot of flavor. I can promise you that.
Scott: That sounds like fun. Yeah, I’m looking forward to that already. So, uh, what else will be on top.
Keith: We’re going to have a, uh, four beers, uh, are going to have a half advising and that’s our hoop snake. Kevin buys them. Okay. And then we’re going to have a cactus cat Kolsch and it’s a true style Kolsch um, and then our October fest, of course, and then our, uh, brand new, uh, first-ever pumpkin spice beer.
Scott: Okay. So one of the, um, the events that kind of kicks off October fest is tapping the CAG. And I, I’m, I feel very, very fortunate that, uh, in conjunction with Mayor Cheney, he and I get to tap the keg at this inaugural event. So I’m super excited to do that, but I have no idea what I’ve gotten myself into here, so.
Keith: Oh, well I’m gonna tell Ya, that is an experience that you’re going to remember for all a long time.
Scott: Am I going to be wearing it? Uh, no.
Keith: You might not wear it if you do it right. We’ll see how that goes.
Scott: I’ll bring a change of clothes or just wear some rubber boots.
Keith: You’ll be fine. Okay. There you go. Can you tell us what we’ll be tapping in that first keg?
Keith: Ah yes. That is going to be Oktoberfest. Okay. Of course. I mean, I, yeah, I was thinking of filling it with water, but I didn’t think that’d be too fun.
Scott: No, no, no. We’re gonna we’re going to say cheers or Prost, kicked off
Keith: So and so, uh, we’re gonna, um, we’re gonna be having a great time out there. Uh, you know, uh, whoever taps that keg, um, get ready to drink a lot of beer immediately.
Okay. So, uh, if that’s going to be you, you might need to have a, you know, bring a few straws. Okay. So because it’s gonna come out fairly quickly.
Scott: Okay. I’ll be ready for that. I’m like I said, change your clothes just in case it sounds like I might need all wore all worn Mary Cheney as well, so he’s prepared. Oh yeah. But it sounds like a lot of fun. So it’s going to be a blast. Where is Nine Band located?
Keith: Uh, we’re located in Allen at Bethany and 75. We’re actually off of prestige. Um, and we’ve got an 8,400 square foot structure out there. We do tours on Saturdays. Uh, we have all our beer on tap and thanks to the new law. September 1st we can have beer to go. So bring your growlers by your cases of beer. You can do everything right out of our location.
Scott: Oh, wonderful one. You’re just kinda just over the border for Frisco. So for us that still counts. Yeah.
Keith: Okay, good. I was hoping that that was going to be okay, but absolutely. Yeah. I mean, I was here in like five minutes, so yeah, no, no, no problem.
Scott: So we’ll definitely, uh, have to come to check you guys out as well due to where the facilities sometime soon and uh, see what you guys have going on over there.
Keith: Oh yeah, we’re looking forward to it.
Scott: Okay. So Kaylee, back to you. What, what is the date for Frisco? Oktoberfest. Let’s make sure people know and get this on their calendar right now.
Kaylee: Absolutely it is this year. It’ll be Friday, September 28th from five to 10:00 PM and that will be at Frisco Square. We’ll be all in the grassy area. And you’re more than welcome to bring out blankets to sit out and watch all of the entertainment and enjoy your German cuisine and just take in the entirety of the festival.
Scott: Oh, that sounds like fun. Who, who are? Can you tell us who some of the acts are or some of the performers that we’re going to have there? No? No?
Kaylee: Okay. I have a hard time pronouncing their names, but one of them for a fact is the Polka Meisters and they’re actually coming from Oklahoma. So that’s exciting. And then we do have some dancers that will perform um, about halfway through the festival and um, you can jump on in and learn the ways of German dancing.
Keith: But I’d like to say something if you want to see that wonderful tapping of the keg. You better be there at five o’clock cause I hear it’s going to happen at Five o’clock sharp.
Scott: Yeah. Well, I will certainly be there.
Keith: Okay, good.
Scott: Good advice for everybody else.
Keith: It’s a fun experience. You can, you know, possibly get your Stein fields you never know right out of the gate. [inaudible] sounds like a fun way to kick it off.
Scott: And then, so we’ve got German food, we’ve got German dancing, we’re encouraging people to come out in German attire, traditional Oktoberfest attire. I don’t know where we would like, where would I go by later hosing around here. Okay. Any ideas?
Kaylee: Oh man, I’m almost thinking some online shopping is your best bet for some real
Scott: We’ll look some stuff up and link it up in the post associated with this, uh, this podcast so that everybody can go by their, their appropriate German attire and get ready to party.
Kaylee: I’m sure you’re not the only one asking that question. So,
Scott: So it sounds like fun. Um, anything else we should know about it? And so it’s five to 10. September 28th. Um, what was the website again?
Kaylee: It’s Frisco, oktoberfest.com. And then we’re also on Facebook as Frisco Oktoberfest.
Scott: Okay. So you can go out now, you can buy your tickets to get your Stein and your, uh, is it a wristband or something that they get or,
Kaylee: Yeah, so there’s a couple of different options that you can look at on our website. Um, it starts off at $20 and it goes anywhere up to 80 and the $20 pass gets you a beer Stein and a couple of free beers and that’s the way in to get beer. You cannot purchase beer or wine without purchasing a pass. So be sure to pre-purchase that. But then we’ll also have a VIP option. So at Frisco October festival, have a tent with exclusive beer and food tastings only available with the VIP pass and you’ll also get a swag bag full of goodies and some other fun experiences. So that’s just another option. It gets you some extra free beers in the general area. So whatever your price range is, there’s definitely a few options. But in general, the festival is free and family-friendly. Um, in fact, you can go online and register for a general admission ticket, and again it is free, but for everyone who registers for that general admission ticket, we’re doing a raffle to win a free bike from Richardson bike mart. Oh cool. So absolutely. So be sure to go on and either pre-purchase your tickets so that you’re not waiting in that long registration line and you can get straight to the beer or a just go ahead and register for that general admission for your chance to win a bike.
Scott: Okay. And is the $80 range, is that the VIP?
Kaylee: That would be the VIP, yeah. Okay, good to know.
Scott: So yeah, get out there early. Get your tickets. Is there any cap on the number of people we can invite?
Kaylee: Nope. You can bring all your friends and family for VIP. However, there are only 250 tickets, so if you want some extra perks so you kinda gotta be quick on that. Um, and dogs are even welcome as well, so have them on a leash.
Scott: Good to know. Very puppy friendly. And uh, I can tell you from my experience at Oktoberfest, it is definitely advisable to get there early, not only so that you don’t miss the tapping of the keg, but you know, the beer tents, the tables, all those things start to fill up pretty quickly as people are getting there and hanging out. So go grab your space, grab your beer and get ready to celebrate.
Kaylee: Absolutely. And you also don’t want to be too late to the festival because there are a lot of competitions going on throughout the festival. So we’ll have some keg rolling comments. Oh yeah. Yes. I don’t know.
Keith: Those probably won’t be filled with beer. They might be. We don’t know yet.
Kaylee: Yeah, I think that that would be probably a bit of a struggle. They start rolling and keg full of beer. I don’t know how heavy those kegs are.
Keith: I think we’re gonna fill them with either beer or water. Okay. And see how strong people are. There we go. Warehouse. So they need a beer by the time. By the time it’s over. Yeah.
Scott: Leave mine empty. So I look super strong. Okay. I’ll lift it over my head and no one will know. Don’t tell anybody.
Kaylee: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Here we go. But aside from the keg rolling, I will also have a Stein hoisting competition and a brat eating. And for all of those different competitions, there’s a various array of prizes. So come out and participate also with the Stein hoisting competition, all the proceeds from people that sign up with that, we’ll go to Frisco FastPacs. So it’s also for a great cause.
Scott: Wonderful. Okay. So is there a cost associated with signing up for the competition? Separate from the ticket prices with the Stein hoisting?
Kaylee: Yes. I’m, it’s $20 per entry, but again, you are donating back to your community at Frisco Fastpacks. And then in general as well, all a portion of the proceeds from the entire festival are also going to Frisco FastPacs. Yeah. So for everybody that comes out, just know that you’re also helping out your local community.
Scott: Yeah. First go fast facts is fantastic nonprofit here in town. They do a lot of good work. So I’m glad you guys are connected with them.
Scott: Yeah. So anything else you want to tell us about Nine Band? I’m looking forward to visiting the brewery itself, but uh, and having you guys at Oktoberfest?
Keith: Uh, no, we’re just a privately owned and we are, I’m happy to be able to be a part of the first-ever inaugural, um, fresco October fast and hopefully there’ll be more to come and uh, we’ll just grow it year after year and be able to donate back more proceeds to this fast pack. Yeah.
Scott: Frisco FastPacs. Is there, are there places around town where people can get your beer?
Keith: As of right now, yes. We’re a actually a distributed through the whole state of Texas. So we’re in, I’m Kroger’s specs, total wine, I mean central market, market street, a bunch of mom and pops, a bunch of c-stores, a bunch of restaurants. So we’re growing, um, slowly. So we need a lot of people to buy six packs. So I can put my kids through college.
Scott: We’ll definitely put links up and let people know where they can find your stuff.
Keith: Yeah. And, uh, we also have a, a, um, nonprofit, so one of our beers called the badge honey blonde. Um, I don’t wanna, you know, deter, but being a vet, it’s very important there to me to let everybody know that, uh, portions of our, uh, products go back to a, uh, Chris Kyle Frog Foundation and, uh, that’s, you know, to helps families, spouses and everything through the military.
Scott: Okay. Well, can you tell us a little bit more about that? We’ve actually worked in, in done promotion for a number of, of veteran-related, uh, nonprofits around town. So go ahead and, and just tell us a little bit more about that one.
Keith: Yeah. Well, uh, that’s, that’s really near and dear to my heart is because I being in the military, um, and leaving the military, um, there’s a transition period that a lot of, uh, males and females go through, uh, not being able to, uh, be together with their spouses or their significant others. Um, and this organization, Chris Kyle Frog Foundation was founded for couples and they actually have psychologists, uh, um, uh, family counselors, social workers. When military personnel comes home in order to reconnect with their significant others, they do multiple retreats, they help them just get revitalized with each other. And it’s very, very important because it’s not just the person in the military, it’s the entire family. Right. And so, uh, Chris Call Frog Foundation, um, we have a beer called the badge honey blonde and we give a lot of proceeds back to try to help as many families as humanly possible.
Scott: Oh, wonderful. Thank you for taking that on. And are there any other beers, stuff that we haven’t already mentioned for Oktoberfest, but other things that you guys make that may be, are particularly popular or that you’d like to call out? So as people are going out and starting to look for your beers around town, they know kind of what to look for?
Keith: Uh, yeah. Um, we have a, um, few different partnerships, uh, one that, uh, took us about eight months. Uh, we partnered with pudge, Rodriguez as well. Um, he has a beer called 13 Gold and that’s a that’s a light lager. Um, but we also have, you know, Hazy IPA’s, we have kolsh’s, you know, honey blondes, we have a lot of products. Um, and uh, their new product coming online is this pumpkin beer and we actually are only going to tap it at the Oktoberfest and you guys will be the only ones who have it on tap.
Scott: Oh, I love it. Anything exclusive like that. We’re all about it, right?
Keith: Yeah. It’s not exclusive, but we just didn’t make enough. Okay.
Scott: Well that’s a good, we just have it. Yeah, that’s our story and we’re sticking to it. So, um, okay. Kaylee, is there anything else we should know other than we’ve got the date, we’ve got the location, we know how much it costs. Anything else about Oktoberfest? Um,
Keith: Rain or shine,
Kaylee: Rain or shine, rain or shine. As some of you may know from SBG’s event this spring, Frisco uncorked, we went on rain or shine. I’m so Oktoberfest with Texas weather. It can be unexpected, but we’re expecting a wonderful evening. I’m out in Frisco Square again, be sure to pre-purchase your tickets and get there early and stay for all of the fun. All right. Um, probably the last thing. Um, along with the family-friendly is we do have a play area for kids. A just again, to promote that family friendliness. We will have a rock wall as well with a few different activities. So if you’re thinking you need a babysitter for Saturday night, um, we got you covered. So wonderful. Absolutely. So everyone can come out and just, there’s something for everyone.
Scott: Yeah, no excuses now you now, no babysitter or excuses. Come on out. There’s going to be a play area or rock wall – sounds like fun, especially if you’re not drinking beer. Yes, I’d be careful with that.
Kaylee: I mean it is labeled a kid’s area, but okay, fair enough. I see you up there. I won’t, I won’t be surprised.
Scott: We’ll try to try to not let anybody get too carried away with that. All right, well Keith and Kaylee, thank you both very much for joining us today. Super, super excited to have our first Frisco Oktoberfest going down September 28th, 2019 just can’t say how thrilled we are to be a part of it.
Kaylee: Yeah, and we’re excited to host it. So thank you to Keith and Nine Band for helping SBG bring that to Frisco.
Keith: Absolutely. Can’t wait to try some of your beer. I can’t wait for you to drink.
Scott: It sounds like a plan. Okay, and thanks to all of you for tuning into the Frisco podcast. As always, please be sure to go out and subscribe on iTunes, Google play, Spotify, stitcher. Pretty much any place you can find a podcast, you’re going to find the Frisco podcast. So go out there and subscribe. We really appreciate it. It helps us out a ton. And if you have any questions about Frisco Octoberfest be sure to hit the, uh, podcast posts on lifestylefrisco.com we’re going to link up all of the information and then some for you. So get ready to party in September.
We’ll talk to you next time.