A festival for the craft beer aficionado is this weekend

One of the state’s best craft beer festivals hits the slopes this weekend in Breckenridge.

The Big Beers Belgians and Barleywines Festival started Thursday with a special beer dinner and finishes Saturday with a tasting that will draw 150 breweries to the Beaver Run Resort and Conference Center.

At press time, there were still tickets available at bigbeersfestival.com.

The event caters includes a homebrew competition Friday and a series of educational seminars that take festivalgoers behind the scenes into the science and art of brewing.

“The caliber of brewers and attendees is extremely high both in knowledge and expertise,” said Laura Lodge, the event organizer.

The annual event moved to the slope-side venue in Breckenridge in 2017 after a long run in Vail. It’s reputation as a top craft beer event continues to grow and an increasing number of much-acclaimed breweries from outside Colorado will join this year’s roster, including California’s Modern Times Beer and Cellarmaker Brewing, Texas’ Jester King Brewery and Tennessee’s Blackberry Farm.

The only beer allowed at the festival are Belgian style beers, experimental brews and those with 7 percent or higher alcohol by volume — hence the event’s name.

A new addition this year is a pop-up Falling Rock Tap House, one of Denver’s top beer bars, that will feature a curated beer list, free tastings and music for much of the weekend.

Compared with other beer festivals, Big Beers is intimate with a maximum of 1,900 ticketholders, brewers and volunteers. Lodge said tickets are available online and at Basecamp Wine and Spirits in Frisco and Liquor Shed and Skee Vue Liquors in Breckenridge. The tasting event is $75, and the educational seminars and other side events cost extra.

For coverage of the event, follow The Denver Post’s beer writers on Twitter at @First_Drafts.