By Gabbie Burton
Contributing Writer

Kennett Collaborative held the 14th annual Kennett Winterfest beer festival for a record-breaking crowd this past Saturday. Over 2,000 attendees crowded the Borough Hall parking lot to sample beers from 60 different breweries and enjoy the entertainment of the day. 

Mary Lou Baily, development manager for Kennett Collaborative, shared that entertainment was a focus for this year’s Winterfest. 

“We’ve been trying to up the experience,” she said. “We’ve been trying to add new and exciting musical guests and vendors.”

This year’s event featured 11vendors offering everything from dog training, to hot sauce, to jewelry all available for sale. But the biggest entertainment of the day came from the three musical guests who provided the soundtrack for the day's events. 

The Blank Pages, a pop-rock band out of Newark Del., The Tisburys, an indie-rock band from Philadelphia and Jake Dillon, otherwise known as Delco Donny to his social media following, performed covers of popular songs with distinct Delco twists.

With the main stage continuously rocking, beers were easily flowing for everyone in attendance. 

Per recommendation from The Tisburys, Troubles End Brewing was a mandatory stop to start the day. The Collegeville-based brewery featured two beers, a pilsner and a stout, for the long line of attendees. Brewer Zach Svoboda shared his thoughts of the festival and the unique festival fashion. 

“It’s a great festival and people always come out,” Svoboda said. “It’s like a pretzel necklace fashion show. I go to a lot of brewfests like this, but I’ve never seen pretzel necklaces like the ones here.” 

The extravagant pretzel necklaces tradition continued at this year’s Winterfest with another pretzel necklace contest as well as a vendor stall from ACE Hardware offering smoked and seasoned pretzels for those lacking in the snackable attire. The best-dressed competition also continued at this year’s event with attendees dressed up in kilts, lederhosen, onesies and other creative fashion statements. 

When asked why he decided to wear a kilt to the event, Sean Willis simply asked, “Why not?” Willis, who is from Exton, shared that this was his fourth time at Winterefest, and he said it is the “best festival of this kind in this area.”

Sean Redding, who donned a cat-patterned sweater, was a first-time attendee at Winterfest along with his friend Dan Cellucci. The pair came from West Chester to create content for their Youtube and social media account, Yardline Sports. Their friend, Matt Kohl, who’s full title is President of Beer Ops for Yardline Sports, is a veteran of the event and was intent to show his friends a good time. 

“Last year I got dangerous, so I’m trying to do the same thing,” Kohl said. 

While some attendees certainly drank more than others, the positive atmosphere coupled with record-breaking attendance left some breweries out of beer before the day was done, including the highly recommended Hipster Catnip from La Cabra Brewing in Berwyn and popular local spot, Stubborn Goat Brewing in West Grove, among others. 

Another local favorite, Victory Brewing Company, featured two of their Kennett Taproom bartenders, Avery Lemasters and Katelyn Weldon, at their tent serving beers to some familiar faces and new customers alike. 

“It’s good for customer service. We see our locals here and it's nice to see a familiar face and be recognized,” Weldon said. “Its a great turnout, the weather is nice and everyone is having a good time.”

 Lemasters added, “This is our first time working this event and it’s been a super-positive experience.”

In all, the day was highly successful for the Kennett Collaborative team and local beer enthusiasts alike. 

“We are really grateful for our volunteers and sponsors,” said Kennett Collaborative executive director Daniel Embree. “The more that this event grows, the more we are able to serve the community throughout the year.”