I hope everyone had a nice Labor Day.  I wanted to spend mine at the Minnesota State Fair, eating fried food on a stick and drinking some tasty Midwestern beer, but a heavy rainstorm derailed my plans so I decided to drink that tasty Midwestern beer in the comfort of my own (dry) home.  AOL Travel posted an article right before the weekend started listing the 10 best places to celebrate Oktoberfest in the U.S.  Over the next two weeks I’ll give special attention to each city to get you ready for all the Oktoberfest revelry occurring throughout the United States and the world.  For now, get ready with this official United States Drinking Team 3-liter Boot, available at OktoberfestHaus.com or BierBootHaus.com!

First Up: Cincinnati, OH

“Zinzinnati” lays claim to the largest Oktoberfest celebration in the United States.  Started in 1976, the event started as a way to showcase Southwestern Ohio’s rich German heritage, and it now attracts over 500,000 people each year!  According to the festival’s website, a typical Zinzinnati Oktoberfest goes through 80,500 bratwurst, 23,004 soft pretzels, 56,250 sausages, 702 lbs. of Limburger cheese, and 3,600 lbs. of sauerkraut!  The festival was even entered into the Guiness Book of World Records 1995-97 editions for hosting the largest Chicken Dance in the world!

If you can’t make it to the real thing in Germany, you could do much worse than head to Cincinnati for this giant party of all things German.  If you’re going to go though, make sure you go in style; don’t forget your lederhosen and your authentic German Alpine hat.  To complete the look, bring your own beer stein.  I recommend the 1 Liter Hofbrauhaus Oktoberfest Munchen Glass Beer Stein.

Tomorrow:  Helen, GA