9/25: Give Your Brewery a Reason to Celebrate Dolly Parton

There are certain entertainers who become more than celebrities. They become part of our lives.

Dolly Parton was one of those people.

Following Dolly's passing on August 25, 2026, communities around the country are finding ways to celebrate her extraordinary life, music, humor and generosity. September 25 has emerged as a day for Dolly celebrations, with the clever 9/25 connection to her legendary song and movie, "9 to 5."

For breweries, that makes Friday, September 25, 2026, a perfect opportunity to bring your customers together for a night of music, fun, trivia and a little bit of Dolly sparkle.

Make September 25 a Dolly Day at Your Brewery

You don't need to create a complicated event. Dolly's appeal gives you plenty of opportunities to build a fun evening around things your brewery already does well.

Start with a simple theme:

Dolly Parton Celebration — 9/25

Encourage customers to dress like Dolly. Think rhinestones, denim, big hair, cowboy boots and plenty of pink. You could even offer a prize for the best Dolly-inspired outfit.

Then build the evening around several activities.

Host Dolly Parton Trivia

Dolly trivia is an especially easy fit for a brewery.

Create a special trivia night featuring questions about:

• Dolly's music

• Her movies and television appearances

• Her songwriting career

• Dollywood

• Her childhood and Tennessee roots

• Country music

• Dolly's philanthropy

• "9 to 5"

• "Jolene"

• "Coat of Many Colors"

• "Steel Magnolias"

• Dolly's famous collaborations

You could even make the entire trivia night a Dolly Parton and Country Music Trivia Night, giving you enough material for a full evening.

Trivia also gives customers a reason to form teams and bring friends—which means more people sitting around your tables with beers in their hands.

Turn the Taproom Pink

Dolly gives you an easy visual theme.

Decorate with pink balloons, rhinestones, butterflies and flowers. Put Dolly's photos or album covers around the taproom. Create a photo area where customers can take their own "Dolly" pictures.

And don't forget the beer names.

You could give selected beers temporary Dolly-inspired names for the evening:

Jolene, Please Don't Take My Beer

9 to 5 Lager

Coat of Many Colors IPA

Backwoods Barbie Blonde

Islands in the Stream Ale

Keep it fun and recognizable without making the theme overly complicated.

Put Dolly's Music Front and Center

Dolly's music should obviously be part of the evening.

Create a Dolly-heavy playlist featuring her biggest hits and songs she wrote or performed with other artists.

Better yet, bring in a local country musician or acoustic performer to play Dolly's songs live.

A live performer can turn the event from a trivia night into a full evening of entertainment.

Add a Charitable Component

Perhaps the most meaningful way to honor Dolly is to incorporate her spirit of giving.

Dolly's Imagination Library has provided free books to children, making childhood literacy one of the causes most closely associated with her legacy. Her official site is encouraging fans to make donations to the Imagination Library in her honor.

Your brewery could collect donations during the event or encourage customers to bring new children's books.

For example:

Bring a new children's book and receive $1 off your first beer.

Or donate a percentage of sales from a particular beer during the event.

It gives customers another reason to participate and makes the evening about more than just entertainment.

Don't Forget the Food

Dolly's Southern roots provide plenty of inspiration for a special menu.

Think Southern comfort food, fried chicken, biscuits, barbecue, banana pudding or other regional favorites.

You could bring in a food truck specializing in Southern food and make the event a collaboration.

And, of course, a Dolly-themed dessert never hurts.

Promote It as a Celebration—Not a Memorial

This is an important distinction.

Dolly's legacy is filled with music, laughter, generosity, optimism and fun. Your event should reflect those qualities.

Don't make the evening feel like a funeral.

Make it feel like a room full of people who came together to celebrate someone who made millions of people smile.

Music. Beer. Trivia. Rhinestones. Laughter.

That's a pretty good Friday night.

Start Promoting Now

If you're planning a September 25 event, don't wait until the week of the event to announce it.

Start promoting it now.

Create an event page. Put posters in the taproom. Promote the Dolly trivia theme on social media. Mention the event in your email newsletter. Encourage your regular customers to put together teams.

And give people something they can share:

"Grab your friends, put on your best Dolly outfit and join us September 25 for a night celebrating the life and legacy of Dolly Parton."

There are already breweries and other venues around the country planning Dolly celebrations for September 25, including events featuring Dolly-themed drinks, trivia, live music, costumes and charitable giving.

That means breweries have an opportunity to join a much larger community celebration.

What Would Dolly Do?

That's really the question.

She'd probably tell you to have some fun, be kind, bring people together and give back when you can.

So on September 25, turn on the music, pour some beer, break out the rhinestones and give your customers a night they'll remember.

After all, what's a better way to celebrate Dolly than getting a whole bunch of people together and having a really good time?