Every fall, thousands of tourists flock to the Appalachian Mountains to witness the trees changing colors. Thousands more fly to Germany for a taste of its vibrant beer culture. Boone’s Oktoberfest offers the best of both. 

Alyssa Hasty, the marketing coordinator for Lost Province Brewing Co., helped plan the brewery’s Oktoberfest celebration. 

“Boonetoberfest is definitely our biggest event of the year,” Hasty said. “It truly takes a village to pull it off. Coordination with musicians, vendors, local organizations and our in-house teams is key.” 

Across downtown Boone, local businesses Lost Province, SouthEnd Brewing Co., FizzEd and 828 Real Estate banded together to create a large Oktoberfest celebration, dubbed Boonetoberfest, on Sept. 20. 

“SouthEnd is hosting their own Oktoberfest, and other downtown businesses, like FizzEd and 828 Real Estate, are hosting Bavarian-themed activities,” Hasty said. “We booked the Abby Bryant band to kick off our festivities and will be hosting various buskers throughout the day. This is also our first year having vendors.” 

To ensure entertainment for all attendees, Lost Province partnered with the Children’s Playhouse and Watauga County Public Library to provide activities for underage guests. 

Boonetoberfest also collaborated with the Watauga Arts Council to coincide with Buskers Fest, an arts festival that celebrates local artists and performers. 

“We definitely try to have a local-focused vibe at Lost Province, especially when we book musicians,” Hasty said. “The culture we have right here in Appalachia is unlike any other, and we do our best to highlight Appalachian-based artists.” 

Outside of Boonetoberfest, several breweries hosted individual Oktoberfest events. Appalachian Mountain Brewery, owned by cousins Chris Zieber and Nathan Kelischek, hosted its fifth annual Oktoberfest on Sept. 20. 

Zieber said Oktoberfest’s roots lie in a wedding celebration between the Duke of Bavaria and his wife, Therese, in 1800s Germany. Since then, the holiday has evolved into a festival filled with food and games, but is ultimately known for its beer. 

“We have a lot of German heritage; we have some family over there, so we’re trying to bring a little taste of that here to the High Country,” Zieber said. 

Aside from traditional Oktoberfest fare, including two specialty beers, a special menu and steinholding competitions, AMB gave visitors fun opportunities to benefit the local community. 

“One of the things we do is partner with nonprofits. We give tickets at the door, and those tickets go towards the games that these nonprofits bring,” Zieber said. “You play the game, you get to meet the people that are doing important work in our community, and they get a little money from it. It’s a fun way to give back and keep that Oktoberfest tradition alive.” 

Last year, breweries experienced difficulties with Oktoberfest celebrations following the devastation Hurricane Helene caused for local businesses. Some breweries, including AMB, were able to plan and execute Oktoberfest before the hurricane struck. Others were not as lucky.

“Last year was slated to boast the biggest downtown Oktoberfest celebration yet,” Hasty said. “Unfortunately, Hurricane Helene hit a week before we had scheduled the festivities, and we ultimately decided to cancel the areawide celebrations.” 

With the one-year anniversary of Helene haunting the fall season, local businesses continue to strengthen the bonds of community. This year, providing support for struggling neighbors has taken the forefront of Oktoberfest celebrations in Boone. 

“There are a lot of communities that are still struggling, so part of our conversations with nonprofits have been about the work they’ve done and contributing to restoration and conservation,” Zieber said. “We’re all here, on the same team, trying to help each other through difficult times.” 

While Oktoberfest celebrations continue to be filled with food, games, beer and fun, it also serves as a way to help strengthen the community within Boone. 

“We believe that the root of craft beer is community,” Hasty said. “Oktoberfest is a pretty good way to bring folks together over some brews.”