Ideas for Strassenfest? It's coming to the Riverfront Amphitheater on Saturday, Sept. 17.

This much is clear: New Albany’s second annual Strassenfest will be held on Saturday, September 17 at the Riverfront Amphitheater. Once again, admission is free.

New Albanian Brewing Company (NABC) is coordinating beverage catering for this date, and we’re going to be doing something we haven’t done before: Using genuine Bavarian yeast from Kloster Andechs to make Helles and Marzen (Oktoberfest) lagers. As with last year’s Strassenfest, there’ll be a tie-in with Louisville Craft Beer Week. There’ll also be wine, and perhaps an inaugural tasting of German schnapps. Other components of the day, including music and food, are still in the planning stages.

It is instructive to note that while many Americans instinctively associate the concept of Oktoberfest with the Bavarian style of its celebration, other locales in Germany are less bound to the template. An autumnal harvest fete can take numerous forms, and with Bavarian-style beers providing the consistent thread, there’s plenty of room for us to improvise in New Albany, especially seeing we have no German heritage organization in Southern Indiana the equivalent of the Celts on the River group.

What can be done to expand New Albany’s embryonic Strassenfest beyond the stereotypical Oktoberfest party, while retaining sufficient German themes to make the day worthy of the name? Even I’m not sure, but the possibilities intrigue me, and ideas are welcomed.

If we could just get Kraftwerk to headline … at any rate, as you brainstorm, here’s a September/October calendar check:

September 11
Sandkerwa NA begins at NABC’s Pizzeria & Public House. It is our annual draft-only homage to German beer styles, including American craft brewery interpretations.

September 16 – 24
Louisville Craft Beer Week, with events throughout Metro Louisville

September 17
Strassenfest at New Albany’s Riverfront Amphitheater

October 1
Harvest Homecoming Parade in New Albany

October 6 – 9
Harvest Homecoming Booth Days (and NABC’s 4th Annual Fringe Fest at Bank Street Brewhouse)

October 28
Reverse Recycling & Decommissioning Party at NABC Bank Street Brewhouse. Leticia Bajuyo will be dismantling her temporary Bicentennial Art Project sculpture, “All Bottled Up,” and recycling components