Looking for some beery fun this weekend? Napa’s annual Blues, Brews & BBQ festival returns Saturday from 1-6 p.m. They close down several blocks of downtown and set up food booths and music stages here and there.

The highlight, beer-ish-ly speaking, is the beer garden, a row of tents from various area breweries, along with Coors-affiliated Blue Moon, which is sponsoring the festival. Organizers haven’t posted a complete lineup, but Lagunitas, New Belgium, Newcastle, and Anchor will definitely be on hand. There will be about 30 beers on offer, including some new Blue Moon features (no grumbling, beer purists – if you don’t like it, don’t drink it and everyone will get along just fine). I went last year and, although the beer lineup is fairly modest and includes a fair percentage of mass market beers, it was still a lot of fun: small and intimate and the music was good.

Admission to the music areas is free. Tasting tickets for the beer garden are $20 for seven and you even get a cute little commemorative pilsner glass. Additional tickets may be had for $3 or four for $10.

Even the kiddies can have a good time. In addition to the food and music, there  is a kid’s area and street festival type entertainment, including the inevitable face painting booth.

– Sean Scully