You may have seen the acronym floating around various blogs and social media sites: GABF. But what is the Great American Beer Festival? Perhaps the biggest beer fest held in the United States. At heart, the event is a competition, and a gold, silver or bronze award in this prestigious contest is highly sought after by breweries around the world. In 2011, 3,930 beers from 526 different breweries entered contests in more than 80 different styles.

Attendees can choose from several sessions over the course of three days, October 11–13, Friday– Saturday. Your $65 ticket brings a commemorative tasting cup and four hours of unlimited 1-oz. samples of your choice of more than 2,200 beers, spread over the rooms of the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, CO.

Brewers Association and American Homebrewers Association members get an early opportunity to snag tickets, starting on July 31 (you’ll need your member number in order to complete a purchase), and the general public gets a chance starting Friday, August 2. Last year’s event sold out completely within ten days, so if you’re planning a trip to the Mile-High City, make sure you get yours quickly.