Bratwurst unbridled | Photo by Ernesto Andrade

The following guest post is written by Eliza Cross, an associate of the Antlers’ public relations firm WordenGroup.

I just returned from a great weekend at the Antlers, including a visit to Vail’s Oktoberfest. This annual celebration of beer, brats, polka music, cabbage, dancing, strudel, lederhosen, Fahrvergnügen and all things German is held in Lionshead this year, making it extremely convenient to weave walk back to the Antlers after partaking of the festivities.

I met up with Mary Abel, the lovely and talented Editor in Chief of Colorado Homes & Lifestyles magazine, and her charming husband Chris. Soon we were joined by the Antlers General Manager Rob LeVine, which was handy because Mr. LeVine seemed to be the only person in the crowd who could answer the oft-asked question of why Oktoberfest is celebrated in September.

“The tradition started when Crown Prince Ludwig von Wieneschnitzels was reviewing the catering options for his wedding to Princess ‘Caraway Spice’ Therese,” he would say with a faraway look in his eye, regaling revelers with facts that would make him a fierce contender in the popular German game Das Trivial Pursuiten. We quickly came to a consensus that we should sample some of the readily-available Beck’s beer; it just seemed more German-ish than Bud Light.

Cheers!

In the midst of the crowd we ran smack into Jennifer Williams, publisher of Colorado Homes & Lifestyles. A little while later, we stumbled upon freelance writer Joy Overbeck. Then we collided with Jennifer Aniston and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. Okay, I exaggerated that last part—but there were a lot of extremely important celebrities around in addition to ourselves. Approximately every two minutes, various people in the crowd recognized long-time local Rob and shouted greetings and/or insults (sometimes both), depending on how they knew him.

Before long it was time to get another beer and make a rather important decision:  what type of bratwurst should we eat? This was not an easy choice, given that one could indulge in rattlesnake, elk, wild boar, alligator, buffalo or even chipmunk bratwurst. Okay, I made that up about the chipmunk— but seriously, we had a lot of options.

After securing four enormous bratwurst sandwiches loaded with sautéed onions and sauerkraut, we delicately and neatly ate our sandwiches NOT, and began planning our next move:  dessert. We drooled over the sophisticated gelatos at Rimini…

…but ultimately decided to indulge in cherry strudel and chocolate-dipped almond cookies, both of which pair surprisingly well with beer.

The happy news for you is that Oktoberfest continues next weekend, September 17 and 18. Anyone on the Antlers staff can point you in the right direction toward the festivities, and you can purchase beer and food tokens on the spot. If you’re looking for something fun to do on a gorgeous Colorado autumn day, head to the Antlers, get settled in a nice room, and then weave your way over to Oktoberfest.

And if you order the chipmunk bratwurst, be sure to tell ’em Prince von Wieneschnitzels sent you.

The Town of Vail is hosting two full weekends of oom pah parties, lively demonstrations and traditional German fare in Lionshead and Vail Village. Festivities include brat-eating and Beck’s Keg Bowling contests, yodeling and alpenhorn blowing, and Bavarian dancing. Oktoberfest is two full weekends the whole family will enjoy.  It is in Lionshead near the Antlers at Vail condominiums on September 9 – 11 and then down in Vail Village September 16 – 18.  Both Schedules can be printed here.  The Antlers at Vail will have Vail room rates from $156 per night during this weekends, but these mountain view, Studio suite units will book up early, so call soon.

Party in Lionshead