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One of the city's most original festivals is returning this weekend.
IndiHop (Saturday, June 1, noon to 5 p.m.), now in its second year, gives participants the opportunity to become better acquainted with the businesses of both the Grove and Cherokee Street, while sampling the finest locally brewed beer.
Brooks Goedeker, one of the event's planners, says IndiHop started because he was frustrated by the competition he saw forming between the city's neighborhood festivals.
"We started wondering, why are we not just working together on this stuff," Goedeker, the Community Development Manager for Washington University Medical Center Redevelopment Corporation, asked. "We want all of St. Louis to do well, so why don't we have a joint event?"
The event's organizers teamed up with the recently created St. Louis Brewer's Guild, another group devoted to promoting St. Louis' independent businesses, and IndiHop was born.
The idea is simple—each participating business is provided with a keg of locally brewed beer. "IndiHoppers" then walk to each business, sampling the beers, meeting the owners and learning more about what these neighborhoods have to offer.
In its inaugural year, Goedeker says all 750 tickets sold out two days in advance.
This year the event coordinators have doubled the number of tickets and shuttles between the neighborhoods.
Businesses participating in this year's IndiHop will be pouring one of 51 beers from 13 of St. Louis' preeminent breweries including Schlafly, Four Hands, and Urban Chestnut.
For those who aren't beer fans, IndiHop offers three sodas and other non-beer beverages to sample, as well as party tents on each street serving locally-made Mastermind Vodka.
Goedeker encourages people to come to the event even if they don't feel like buying a ticket. Shuttles between Cherokee and the Grove are free and open to the public and you don't need a ticket to enjoy the 16 musical acts that will be performing throughout the day.
Tickets cost $20 and Goedeker is advising everyone to grab yours while you still can.
Goedeker says he hopes other neighborhood festivals will be inspired by what the Grove and Cherokee areas have done with IndiHop.
"We hope we can help set an example for other neighborhoods—that we can collaborate with each other," Goedeker says. Organizers are already beginning to look towards next year and potentially adding another neighborhood to the event.
