4 Barbecue festivals to attend this spring in Alabama
Yes, spring blossoms make the air smell wonderful, but spring in Alabama also involves a second category of enticing aromas – the ones that storm your nostrils at the state's barbecue festivals. Smoked meat and smokin' hot blues get equal billing at Bessemer's Bob Sykes BBQ & Blues Festival, featuring the flavors that have kept Sykes a hometown favorite for 66 years. (Bob Sykes BBQ & Blues Festival/Facebook)
Barbecue is so integral to the diet of average Alabamians it might as well be considered its own food group. Several Saturday festivals scheduled through May pay tribute to our favorite smoked meats, cooked low and slow. Some of the events double as competitions — for bragging rights as well as cash. Others serve their ’cue with a side of tunes (blues music seems to pair particularly well). All support worthy causes. Here are four barbecue festivals that will get you fired up for spring.
CahabaQue (Birmingham)
April 15
The annual barbecue competition featuring professional and amateur teams is a benefit for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama. Sample all the meat you can eat and enjoy the best tipples from the Birmingham brewery and distillery at the Historical Continental Gin Complex on Fifth Avenue in the East Avondale neighborhood. Tickets, available online through April 13, are $15 for general admission ($20 at the gate); admission is free for children 10 and younger. VIP tickets ($50, while available) include early entry, beer and spirits tastings, a private restroom and entry to the Redmont Distillery VIP Lounge. Gates open at 1 p.m. (noon for VIPs). The festival ends at 4 p.m. or when the barbecue is gone.
Birmingham’s CahabaQue festival is a competition, a charity fundraiser and a place to sample all the barbecue you can eat from an assortment of pitmasters. (Cahaba Brewing Company / Facebook)
Bob Sykes BBQ & Blues Festival (Bessemer)
April 29
This is the thank-you card to the city that has supported Bob Sykes BBQ since 1957. Second-generation (of three) owner Van Sykes started the festival in 2010, which over the years has supported local charities including Children’s of Alabama, the Bessemer Education Enhance Foundation and the Caring Men and Caring Women tutoring and mentoring program. Music includes regional, national and international acts, headlined by Costa Rican guitarist José Ramirez and Kat Riggins’ Blues Revival Movement. Set for noon to 8 p.m. at DeBardeleben Park. Arts and crafts vendors, local food-makers and, of course, Bob Sykes barbecue round out the festivities. Bring a chair or lawn blanket.
Smoke on the Water (Florence)
April 29
This family-friendly event by the Rotary Club of Florence and the Greater Shoals Rotary Club supports the Shoals Scholars Dollars program. The main event is a barbecue competition sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbeque Society and the Alabama BBQ Association, with teams vying for cash prizes in pork, chicken and beef categories. Set for 9 a.m.-2 p.m. at McFarland Park, attractions include musical performances, inflatables for children, food trucks and a classic car show. Tickets are $5 per person ($20 maximum for families); vote for the People’s Choice award for $5.
Florence’s Smoke on the Water festival serves up family-friendly fun with a mouth-watering barbecue competition. (Smoke on the Water)
Rocket City BBQ and Soul Fest (Huntsville)
May 20
Scheduled 10 a.m.-11 p.m. at the NSS Conference Center, the fest is billed as a day of food, fun and sunshine with a touch of soul and luxury; part backyard barbecue and part competitive cook-off. Vendors sell food, arts and crafts. The Gwendolyn Baldwin Excellence Scholarship will be presented to a graduating high school senior who plans to study arts, music, business and STEM fields in college. Advance online tickets are $20 for general admission and $75 (plus a $6.20 fee) VIP admission that includes special access and catered food. Admission is free for children 12 and younger.
This story originally was published on the SoulGrown website.
