Dirtbag Ales Brewery and Taproom is set to host their fifth annual Christkindlmarkt This unique German Christmas Market offers attendees a selection of German-inspired food, local artists and makers, Weihnachts Musik — Christmas music — and community spirit.

The annual Dirt Bag Ales Christmas Market has changed and grown over the years.

“We started with 20 vendors the first year in Hayat’s Yoga Studio,” said Shannon Loper, the operations manager at Dirtbag Ales Brewery and Taproom. “That year we donated the beer."

This year there will be triple the number of vendors.

"There will be about 60 vendors taking part in the event this year,” Loper said.

What began as a small one-day event is now a weekend event like no other in the area.

"Five years ago, the German Christmas Market was a mutual collaboration with Hayat Hakim. Since then, we have carried on the tradition annually, growing it to a full weekend of events,” Vernardo "Tito" Simmons-Valenzuela, Dirtbag Ales Brewery and Taproom, co-owner/head brewer said. “People come because it is the only event like it in the area.”

German music is a part of the experience and there will be several groups performing. The Fayetteville Bavarian brass band, Cross Creek Chordsmen and Fayetteville Barbershop will all add to the ambiance of the market. Vendors will be selling different wares including soaps, honey, metalwork, Christmas tree ornaments and more.“We strive to find vendors that fit with the theme and spirit of the event,” Simmons-Valenzuela said.

The special food offerings at the event will focus on German favorites such as schnitzel, brats and German potato salad. The food trucks scheduled for the Dirtbag Ales Brewery and Taproom German Christmas Market are R. Burger, Vagabond, Street Fare, Household Six, Grazing Buffalo, Beefy Buns and Authentique.

Finally, what would a German market be without German beer? Dirtbag Ales Brewery and Taproom will be serving Ein-bahnstraße-Hefewiezen, Märzen Attacks (an Oktoberfest Lager), a special vanilla, bourbon, and cinnamon cask-aged beer and a house made Gluvine. This event runs into the evening and the market will be lit to create a magical space.

Dirtbag Ales is located at 5435 Corporation Drive. Dirtbag Ales Brewery and Taproom describe themselves as being “about great friends, a genuine passion for hand-craft-ed beer and breaking the status quo.”

The event will be at Dirtbag Ales Brewery and Taproom is located at 5435 Corporation Drive, just off Tom Starling Road. Dates and times of the event are Dec. 10 from 5 to 10 p.m.; Dec. 11th from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Dec. 12 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.