As October steadily creeps up on us, so do the additional Oktoberfest celebrations; including Vegan Oktoberfest which will be held at Beach Park 1 in Santa Monica on October 4. While I am not sure I ever heard of a German vegan, this event looks like it should be pretty entertaining.

This inaugural event is a fundraiser for Expand Animal Rights Now, an organization that uses the legal system to help animals. Since this is a vegan event it is a safe bet that you are not going to find any bratwurst or sauerbraten available but there will be plenty of gluten free pretzels and food trucks such as Sage Organic Bistro, The Grilled Cheese Truck, The Green Truck, and Southern Fried Vegan which will be providing traditional Bavarian food such as pretzels, potato pancakes, chicken, sauerkraut and ice cream. There will be vegan sausages available also.

The breweries in attendance that will be pouring their vegan beer include Angel City, Anderson Valley Brewing, Bravery Brewing, Golden Road Brewing, Saint Archer Brewing, Karl Strauss Brewing, Drakes Brewing, Lagunitas, Bison Brewing, Modern Times Beer, Epic Brewing, Oskar Blues Brewery, Ace Premium Hard Cider, Eel River Brewing Company, Coronado Brewing Company, Hangar 24, Venice Duck Brewery, Four Sons Brewing, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, Ninkasi Brewing Company, The Dudes’ Brewing Company, Lammsbrau and Einstock.

In addition to the beer and food there will be beer maidens, games and music provided by Oompah band Stewedsheidzel, tribute band Knyght Ryder and MC/DJ Shawn Alexander. For the true vegans in the crowd, there are rumors that Vegan Boss will be making a special appearance.

Beach Park 1 is located at 2600 Barnard Way at Ocean Park Boulevard in Santa Monica. Vegan Oktoberfest runs from 1:00-6:00 PM. General Admission (sorry, VIP is sold out) is $45.00 and includes admission plus one beer stein and unlimited beer. For more information and to purchase tickets online please visit VeganOktoberfest.com. Prost!