Kinkaider Brewery hosts inaugural Kearney Bockfest, debuts new outdoor stage

KEARNEY, Neb. — Kinkaider Brewery will host its first Bockfest in Kearney this weekend, bringing the German-inspired festival to the city after the event was held in Lincoln for the past several years.

The festival will also mark the first event to use the brewery’s new outdoor stage and seating area overlooking the lake near Younes Landing.

Organizers describe Bockfest as a seasonal gathering built around music, games and social activities.

“It’s kind of like an Oktoberfest in the winter,” said organizer and Kinkaider co-founder Barry Fox.“ We’ve been doing this in Lincoln for the past three years. This will be our first inaugural Bockfest here in Kearney.”

The event will feature live music throughout the day, including performances from Angie Kriz and the Polka Tunes, Omaha-based Uke Boys, and Uke 66 from Springfield, Missouri.

Barry's son Austin said the festival will also include several outdoor activities.

“We have music starting at 11 in the morning until 6 at night,” said Fox. And we do beer poking, which is really kind of a unique thing, plus a lot of games like hammerschlagen, cornhole and stein stamina contests.”

Fox said the idea behind the event is to give people an opportunity to gather and enjoy a different type of festival during the colder months.

“Winter gets long, and this is a great way to kind of break things up and come have a lot of fun and enjoy other people and get out,” said Barry.

The festival is scheduled to take place Saturday at Kinkaider Brewery in Kearney from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.