Saint Arnold Brewing Co. to Present Feast of Saint Arnold on July 14th

A dad’s desire to ‘fix it’ leads to fundraiser to aid Texas Children’s Hospital IBD Center

HOUSTON, June 27, 2013 – Saint Arnold Brewing Co. (www.saintarnold.com), the oldest craft brewery in Texas, has opened reservations for the third annual Feast of Saint Arnold to benefit Texas Children’s Hospital’s Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center. The Feast of Saint Arnold, which features four main courses as well as hors d’oeuvres and dessert all accompanied by a variety of regular and special brews, is a centuries-old tradition that honors the Houston brewery’s namesake, Saint Arnold of Metz (582-640), who is the patron saint of brewers. This year it is on Sunday, July 14.

Saint Arnold Executive Chef Ryan Savoie and Landry’s Executive Chef Scott Castell collaborated on the menu, which will include beef, pork, fish and fowl. The event also will feature Saint Arnold’s regular beers, plus limited edition brews such as Divine Reserve No. 12, Divine Reserve No. 13 and the release of Barrel Aged Brett Old Ale with Cherries, a beer that will be available only at the brewery.

“We do a lot of activities for charitable organizations throughout the year, but this one is very special because it hits close to home,” said Saint Arnold Founder/Brewer Brock Wagner. A few years ago, one of Wagner’s children was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

“The first thing as a parent that you want to do is fix it, so I started researching the disease and treatment, and it was stunning how little is known about the gastrointestinal system and what causes this disease,” said Wagner. “Once we became part of the Texas Children’s Hospital community, we found they have lots of needs for more funding — everything from research on causes and treatment to support for activities that help the children cope with their disease.”

Last year, the Feast of Saint Arnold raised approximately $15,000, some of which was earmarked to make Texas Children’s Camp Survived It All, the annual camp for gastrointestinal (GI) patients, free for all the children who attended.

“This is a fantastic experience for the children. It’s important for them to be in a situation where they aren’t different from everybody else and they can just interact like typical kids,” said Wagner.

During the past year, Saint Arnold has helped to raise more than a half million dollars for various charitable causes, including about $325,000 at the 2013 BP MS 150 and $125,000 for Operation Homefront through last summer’s Hops for Heroes initiative.

Table sponsorships for the Feast of Saint Arnold range from $1,000 to $3,000, and individual tickets cost $100, a portion of which is tax deductible. For more information about reservations, visit http://www.saintarnold.com/news/index.html#feast.

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About Saint Arnold Brewing Company

Saint Arnold Brewing’s 16 brews are made and sold by the company’s staff of 52 dedicated employees. Ranked 45th on the Brewers Association list of top craft breweries, Saint Arnold was listed by USA Today as one of the “10 great places to see what’s brewing in beer,” and Smart Meetings magazine named it among the “Top 5 breweries to host an event.” Saint Arnold is located at 2000 Lyons Avenue and its brewery tour and tasting is offered every weekday at 3:00 P.M. and Saturdays starting at 11 A.M. For more information on Saint Arnold’s seven year-round and five seasonal beers as well as root beer, log on to www.saintarnold.com. Contact: Dan Keeney, APR

DPK Public Relations (832) 467-2904 dan@dpkpr.com