C.A.T.S. meow

Locals can purchase tickets to next weekend’s C.A.T.S. Fest 6 (also called CATSFEST 6), a three-day craft beer and cigar tourist event.

Festivities will include live music, chili cookoffs, Hard Eight barbecue, a golf tournament and more.

The Visit Granbury Convention and Visitors Bureau worked with the Cigar Aficionados Trades & Sales (C.A.T.S.) organization to bring the group’s annual festival to Gran-bury.

As a result, the event’s host hotel, the Best Western Granbury Inn & Suites, is booked for Memorial Day weekend, according to CVB Director Tammy Dooley. She said that other hotels and B&Bs are benefiting from the overflow.

Some C.A.T.S. members will arrive in town on Thursday, Dooley said.

According to C.A.T.S., CATSFEST 6 will be the first craft beer and cigar festival in the United States.

The weekend-long event is a fundraiser to send premium cigars to deployed men and women serving in the U.S. military.

Most of CATSFEST 6 will take place at the Lake Granbury Conference Center, but chili competitions will be held across East Pearl Street at Hewlett Park, Dooley said.

Friday night’s Denim and Lace Dinner will feature food catered by Hard Eight Pit BBQ in Stephenville.

Saturday’s events will include live concerts, a beard and mustache competition and a Scavenger Crawl in which participants will learn about Granbury, its people and its history.

Sunday’s schedule includes a golf tournament at Harbor Lakes Golf Club, a “Crazy Pizza Party” and Day 3 of chili competitions.

A full schedule of events can be found at https://catsfestival.com. Tickets can be purchased online.

Various ticket choices are available. The most expensive is an individual VIP ticket good for the entire multi-day festival. Those tickets are $265, plus tax.

The least expensive individual ticket is $10. That ticket is good for Saturday night’s festivities, which include live concerts and a silent auction.

Companion tickets are also available for those who want to accompany a cigar- or beer-loving friend.

kcruz@hcnews.com | 817-573-7066, ext. 258