Burp Fest at Great Vegas Festival of Beer 2026

Brian Chapin landed in Las Vegas a few years before 2011, working for a home builder during a time when the city was still reeling from the housing crash. But Chapin had developed a passion for craft beer while exploring the scene in Phoenix, and he saw something that Las Vegas — a city defined by excess — was strangely missing: a serious craft beer culture. In 2011, he founded Motley Brews and launched the inaugural Great Vegas Festival of Beer. It sold out immediately, drawing more than 2,000 attendees to what would become Nevada's largest craft beer celebration.

The festival's growth has tracked the revitalization of downtown Las Vegas itself. While the Strip remained the domain of corporate megabrands, Chapin planted his festival in the Fremont East district and the Downtown Las Vegas Events Center — neighborhoods that were simultaneously being reimagined by the Downtown Project and a wave of new bars, restaurants, and small businesses. The Great Vegas Festival of Beer became both a product of and a catalyst for that urban renewal, bringing tens of thousands of craft beer enthusiasts into streets that had been quiet for decades. By 2017, demand had grown enough to expand the event to two days, and the festival now features over 500 craft breweries across a 200,000-square-foot outdoor footprint.

What makes the Great Vegas Festival of Beer different from the city's casino-driven entertainment is its insistence on authenticity. The VIP Brewers Lounge pairs rare and limited-release beers with dishes from local executive chefs, not celebrity restaurant chains. The lineup prioritizes craft producers over macro brands. And Motley Brews has used its platform to launch a second annual event, the Downtown Brew Festival, further cementing craft beer's place in a city that most people associate with cocktails and bottle service. In 2026, Motley Brews celebrates its 15th anniversary — proof that even in Las Vegas, something real can take root.