FoBAB 2025: I’m Ready for the Return of the Barrels
November 7 and 8, 2025 are already circled, starred, and underlined on my calendar. The Festival of Wood & Barrel-Aged Beer (FoBAB) is coming back to Chicago, and trust me, I’m already clearing my schedule. There’s just something about walking into Credit Union 1 Arena and catching that first wave of bourbon-soaked aroma that lets you know this is the weekend for beer lovers who crave depth, complexity, and a little chaos in a glass.
Let’s be real, FoBAB isn’t just another beer festival. It’s the Super Bowl for barrel-aged brews, the Met Gala of malt, the weekend where wood, time, and creativity come together to flex what craft brewers can really do. From rich, velvety imperial stouts to wild mixed-culture sours that taste like someone bottled art, it’s an experience every serious beer lover needs to have at least once.
This year, there are two sessions to choose from:
Friday, November 7, 2025 – 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM
Saturday, November 8, 2025 – 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM
If you’re bold enough, hit both. Friday night usually brings the early energy, industry folks, and plenty of brewers mingling in the crowd. Saturday tends to feel a little looser and more social, with everyone swapping stories, comparing pours, and chasing down that one booth everyone’s talking about.
I’ve already made my pre-game plan: hydrate, eat something hearty, and pace myself. You can’t go into FoBAB thinking it’s a casual afternoon. It’s an endurance event for your taste buds. I’m talking over 150 breweries and more than 300 beers. You’ll find everything from bourbon-barrel-aged barleywines to tequila-aged saisons. There’s always a surprise pour that makes you stop mid-conversation and just say, “Damn.”
And let’s not forget the competition. While we’re out there sipping, judges are tucked away, blind-tasting their way through dozens of categories, crowning golds, silvers, and bronzes. When those results hit the floor, the energy shifts. Brewers celebrate, the crowd cheers, and you realize how much this event means to the craft beer community.
FoBAB is where stories live inside the glass. It’s where you discover how a single barrel can change everything, how vanilla, char, whiskey, and patience come together in perfect balance. It’s also where Chicago shows up and shows out. The conversations, the laughs, the shared nods of appreciation after a perfect pour, this fest is community.
If you know me, you already know I’ll be there with my tasting glass in one hand and my phone in the other, probably talking my shit about which brewery just leveled up the game. Because that’s what I do, I taste, I talk, and I celebrate the people behind the beer.
Tickets and Info
Tickets for FoBAB 2025 are available now through the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild website at www.illinoisbeer.org/fobab or directly from the Credit Union 1 Arena box office and their official ticketing partner. General Admission tickets are typically $85, which includes access to unlimited samples, a commemorative tasting glass, and the experience of being surrounded by some of the best barrel-aged beers in the country. Don’t wait too long—this event sells out fast every year.
So mark your calendars:
FoBAB 2025
📅 Friday, November 7, 2025 – 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM
📅 Saturday, November 8, 2025 – 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM
📍 Credit Union 1 Arena, 525 S. Racine Ave, Chicago
🎟️ Tickets: www.illinoisbeer.org/fobab
If you see me on the floor, come say what’s up. We’ll clink glasses, trade notes, and talk barrels. Until then, I’ll be counting down the days and keeping my palate sharp, because when FoBAB hits, I plan to taste everything.
