Capital Ale House Oktoberfest beer stein

Capital Ale House of Fredericksburg held their first Oktoberfest last Saturday, October 3, and it was a success!  Capacity crowds were reached by about 1pm causing a bit of a line to form outside the picket fence around the event.  As people left, new Oktoberfest attendees were allowed in.  The free beer steins were available until about 8pm.  (I’m actually surprised they lasted that long!)  Three types of German beer were served, Lager, Hefenweiser, and an Oktoberfest special brew.  The Lager was the most popular selection and the Lager kegs ran dry around 9pm.  Capital Ale House served their entire beer menu inside the restaurant during the event.  For $8 or $14 you could choose from a selection of German dishes.  The weather was great, the beer was great, the food was great, and the atmosphere was fantastic!  

The overall feeling of the crowd was that Oktoberfest was an event they would like to see get bigger and incorporate more downtown merchants.  From what I could see, far more people ventured into downtown Fredericksburg throughout the day and into the night than usual.  Many of the other local restaurants benefited from the overflow crowds of the event.  Basil’s, located a few doors down from Capital Ale House, remained busy the entire event.  My group ventured up to Castiglia’s for lunch, a few blocks south of Capital Ale House.  The majority of the lunch goers at Castiglia’s had their Capital Ale House beer steins with them.  Spirit’s Bar and Grill even filled the Oktoberfest beer steins for a reduced rate!