Nothing quenches your thirst after a hot 5K like a selection of 100 craft beers from 28 national craft breweries. This past Saturday, the City of Alpharetta hosted one of the area’s best beer-centric community events – the World’s Hoppiest Road Race.

For Alpharetta, a sleepy suburb on the north side of Atlanta, a festival such as this was unthinkable just a few years ago – but a city ordinance passed in August of 2012 that allowed for the outdoor sale and consumption of alcohol downtown changed all that. Judging from the event’s success, it’s hard to even remember a time before those changes went into effect.

Beginning at 8:00 PM, the hoppy 5K started right in the heart of downtown Alpharetta and looped through the beautiful local roads. Race registration came complete with a T-shirt, a five-ounce souvenir glass, and free celebratory beer from Sierra Nevada. As the racers crossed the finish line, they were welcomed straight into a block party that filled the closed-off downtown blocks.

The event raised money for Canine Assistance, a national organization that provides helper dogs for people with special needs. Some of the lovable trained dogs were on hand to share in the festivities.

More than 28 of some of the nation’s best microbreweries offered an incredible variety of samples for attendees, including unusual fruity beers all the way to some mass-appeal lagers for good measure. After a few mouthfuls of IPAs, Wheat, and Pale Ales, we had worked up an appetite for hot-off-the-grill burgers from the local Olde Blind Dog Irish Pub.

The food wasn’t the only thing heating up this street fest. With heart-pounding drums and driving guitar riffs, The Salt Road Band cranked up the party with crowd-pleasing rock covers. Later in the evening, Augusta-based False Flag took over and kept the party going late into the night. The most unique aspect of the entire event was the truly breathtaking performance by Pyroteque, whose fire dancing, twirling, and eating are mind-blowing. Standing a few feet away, the heat was so intense it left you wondering just how anyone could withstand to perform – which made the show even more exciting.

Being the beer nerd that I am, I made sure to duck out of the party long enough to check out the homebrewing demonstration hosted by Blind Murphy Craft Beer Market.

This was the World’s Hoppiest Road Race’s sixth event, but it has already become a favorite for many locals who love running, craft beer, or in my case, both. Catch you next year!