The Taste of Annandale beer garden will feature two local microbreweries

The beer garden at the 2018 Taste of Annandale.

The beer garden at the upcoming Taste of Annandale will be bigger and better than ever.

The Settle Down Easy Brewing Co., a microbrewery that opened in the Falls Church area of Fairfax County last November, will be participating this year, while Audacious Aleworks will be returning. The Taste of Annandale, a family-friendly street festival, is Oct. 5 on Tom Davis Drive.

Game time at Settle Down Easy.

The Settle Down Easy Brewing Co. at 2822 Fallfax Road, has a five-barrel system, with all beer made in house, says Jimmy Boykin, one of three co-owners.

Boykin and his partners acquired a brewing system a couple of years ago and began experimenting on a trial-and-error basis. Their homemade brews proved popular with the parents on the youth sports teams they coached.

Settle Down Easy.

They started getting requests for kegs, but since they weren’t legally allowed to sell beer, they decided to open their own brew pub.

They found a location in a strip mall, formerly occupied by the Bonzai bicycle shop, and hired a master brewer, Henry Jager, who had been at Heavy Seas Beer in Baltimore.

There are about a dozen rotating beers on the Settle Down Easy tasting menu, with a new brew added every couple of weeks.

Audacious Aleworks.

Their first brew, No. 1 Dry Hopped Kolsch, a clean, crisp balanced beer that’s not too hoppy, remains a crowd pleaser. Other current favorites include 2 Cloud 9, a New England IPA with a blend of fruity hops, and Darth Star Vader, a nitro black IPA.

Settle Down Easy is open Wednesdays through Sundays. Wednesday is trivia night, and the pub is hosting an oyster fest on the Aug. 3-4 weekend.

Settle Down Easy doesn’t serve food, but they have an arrangement allowing patrons to order food from El Tio Tex-Mex Grill in the same retail center.

Audacious Aleworks, at 110 E. Fairfax St., in Falls Church, offers a rotating list of 18-20 types of beer, all brewed on site.

A flight at Audacious.

Some of the newest popular brews currently on tap at Audacious include Tangerine Milkshake IPA, Spicy Southern Belle Peach Habanero Ale, Nut Brown Ale, and Coconut Key Blonde Ale, along with longtime favorites Thirsty Work IPA and Lucid Dream Cream Ale.

New features at Audacious include outdoor seating and a simple food menu featuring a variety of grilled cheese sandwiches. Tuesday is Trivia Night, Thursday is half-price growlers, and there are Happy Hour specials on Fridays and half-off food on Mondays.