11 August 2009.
 
The King Size band is to open the Beer Fest in Belgrade, to be held for the 7th time, from August 12 to 16. A survey among foreign residents and tourists showed this is one of the most prestigious events in Serbia. More from Jelena Gligorić.

The ancient Sumerians and Egyptians enjoyed beer and so do people worldwide today. The most famous beer feast is October Fest in Munich, but recently, the Belgrade Beer Fest has also been ranked among the most popular events in this category. British daily The Independent ranked this even among the most important ones on the planet in 2006 and a foreign book on marketing mentions Beer Fest as a positive example of a PR campaign.

Last year, the festival drew more than 600,000 visitors and many are expected these days, especially those from ex-Yugoslav states, the director of the Belgrade Tourist Organization, Jasna Dimitrijević, says. This year, the event includes an ecological campaign, ranking Serbia among ecologically aware tourist desginations, she says. The campaign is called I Choose to Recycle and has been going on for several months now. The proceeds, collected with the purchase of tins and sending SMS, will be used to buy recycle containers for Belgrade schools.

Admission to Beer Fest will be free of charge and more than 50 well-known bands and musicians will be taking part in this festival.

By the way, the Serbs have been drinking beer since 15th century – the reign of Despot Stefan Lazarevic. As early as then, beer was served in households, taverns and the despot’s residence as well. However, brewery was intensively developed in the 19th century, during the rule of Prince Milos Obrenovic, where several breweries were opened.