April is N.C. Beer Month, and the Raleigh area is celebrating with plenty of beer events, tastings, festivals, dinners and more to enjoy all month long. Throughout the entire month, experience excellent beers and happenings area breweries have to offer.

Here are 10 reasons to raise your pint and celebrate here!
 

One word: Brewgaloo

Featuring craft breweries from N.C., plus local food trucks, vendors and bands, the ever-popular Brewgaloo—up for "Best Beer Festival" in the USA TODAY 10Best Readers' Choice Awards—is back with another two-day festival in 2019 in downtown Raleigh, April 26-27.

The Fri. night portion of the event, an exclusive chance to sample some of N.C.'s best beers, will be open from 6-10pm and requires a separate ticket. Beers on the Fri. night event include sours and barrel-aged beers and won’t be available during the Sat. event. The Sat. event, from 2-10pm on downtown Raleigh's Fayetteville St., gives you the option of purchasing either beer samples or full pints from more than 100 N.C. breweries.

One reason Brewgaloo is a favorite event for residents and visitors? Dozens of local vendors and bands will be at the event, as well as 50 local food trucks serving up the perfect grub to pair with cold brews. Need to know: No admission fee to enter the festival on Sat., so bring extra friends to hang out (plus a designated driver)!

Brewgaloo

 

A cask festival with 20+ N.C. breweries

The 6th annual kick-off party for Beer Month celebrations, Casks on Fools at Crank Arm Brewing, March 31, features truly-unique casks from more than 20 N.C.-based breweries—we're talking everything from a Dubbel with pineapple to peppercorn to a Grundgeist hop-influenced Pilsner and way more. The by-the-glass cask festival celebrates the innovation of craft beer across the area—this is for the beer lovers and the adventurous drinkers!
 

The Raleigh area has more than 30 breweries!

From a brewery that launched in an airplane hangar to N.C.'s first woman-owned brewery to a brewery born from a rickshaw company, Raleigh area brewers know something about thinking differently. And with more than 30 breweries all over the destination, you can bet on a craft beer experience like no other. Our brewers are just as excited to share their passion and inspirations as they are for you to taste the beer. Take Sumit Vohra, for example, from Lonerider Brewing Company, which is a staple in the N.C. beer scene celebrating its 10th anniversary in March and April!
 



A big celebration in downtown Cary with some of the best beer, food trucks and live music around

Join the 4th Annual Mid-Town Square Spring Fest at Bond Brothers Beer Company in Cary, April 13, for a full afternoon of supporting local artists, vendors, a variety of delicious food trucks and lots of beer! The Tall Tall Trees headline this year’s festival, performing from 5:30-7pm. Local food truck favorites like Chirba Chirba Dumpling, CockADoodleMoo, The Humble Pig and more will be there along with more than 30 vendors lining E. Cedar St. to show off their amazing talents. Plus, there’s a dedicated kids' zone, complete with a bounce house, rock climbing wall and face-painting! The event is free to attend, and drinks will be through ticket exchange only. Pro tip: You can pre-purchase tickets here, or they can be purchased on the day of the event at any available ticket station.

Hit the Raleigh Beer Trail

Like trying a variety of breweries? Well, pull up a barstool at one of the many breweries across the area! Download and print your free Raleigh Beer Trail Passport, get stamps and earn prizes. The more you visit, the more prizes you'll earn.

Raleigh Beer Trail

 

Special beer, live music and more at SpringFest

Head to the town of Fuquay-Varina for a day full of beer festivities at Mason Jar Lager Company. It's SpringFest time, which means German-style lagers, food, music and dancing. The best part? Guests will be drinking out of half-liter "das boots" this year. The fun kicks off at noon with the tapping of Lager Day Saints, a Maibock brewed in collaboration with Four Saints Brewing Company. Competitions start at 1pm, including pretzel tossing, bottle knocker and flip cup, with contestants vying for their very own "das boot." A special cask of Lager Day Saints will be tapped at 3pm to kick off The Little German Band and Dancers' performance from 3-7pm. Plus, local food vendors like 454 Grill and The Merry Franksters will be on hand.

 

Try beers at one of the best new restaurants in the country

What do you get when you mix books, beer, blooms and bao in Raleigh? One of the top 10 new restaurants in the country! Bon Appétit recently named Brewery Bhavana—the brewery, bookstore, flower shop and dim sum restaurant all rolled into one incredible offering—in their annual Hot 10: America's Best New Restaurants 2017 list. 

The beer, brewed just a couple blocks down the street, fills more than 40 taps along a marble wall and offers a host of experimental beers that include sours, saisons and barrel-aged brews (you can't go wrong, but consider a Glean, a mango peppercorn saison, or a Wilt, a cherry wood smoked quad).

Brewery Bhavana

 

Even more events focusing on beer or featuring local beer!

Bacon, more bacon and then some bacon! The Beer & Bacon Fest at Cary's Koka Booth Amphitheatre, April 6, offers plenty of local restaurants and food trucks with awesome bacon dishes. Each guest receives a souvenir glass with 75+ of their favorite craft beers, wine, spirits and ciders to taste! Live music and a whole hog butchering demo round out a full day of fun.

The annual, family-friendly Live & Local: Spring Fest, April 13, features a full day of music, artists, inflatables for kids, beer from Raleigh Brewing Company and more on Hillsborough St.

Enjoy a full afternoon along Academy St. for Cary's Downtown Chowdown, April 14. Taste some of the area's best food (barbecue, burgers, beignets and more!), enjoy cool beverages from craft beer and wine vendors and relax to the music of great local performers. More than 30 total vendors will be on hand—see you there!

The 11th annual North Carolina 'Cuegrass Festival, April 20, is a jam-packed day of fun from The Pit. What could be finer than a jam-packed day of drool-worthy barbecue, plenty of local brews and toe-tappin' bluegrass music in downtown Raleigh's Warehouse District?
 

Cheers to a cause

What better way to help solve the world's water crisis than by spending a day with friends enjoying a bike ride and beer tasting? Tour de Brew, April 13, brings together beer and cycling fanatics to support local bicycle charities and provide clean water access to people in Central Africa.
 

Raleigh, N.C.

Cool beer scene, cool destination. Watch the video below to see why the Raleigh area is thriving.