A festival that has been part of Labor Day weekend in Simpsonville for nearly four decades will offer alcohol sales for the first time and will be repackaged as the Upstate Harvest Moon Festival.

Visitors can expect craft-beer sales, a Sunday wine-tasting with three local vineyards and a free show Sunday night by the rock band Drivin' N' Cryin', said Jennifer Richardson, who has been helping organize for the Simpsonville Area Chamber of Commerce. "We want them to come out and see what we've done differently this year," she said. "I think we're really going to have a great product to deliver." The menu has expanded with vendors cooking up shrimp and grits, along with the standard fair food, such as burgers and nachos, Richardson said.


Also part of the festival is a local installment of the Color Vibe 5K, which is expected to draw thousands of runners to Heritage Park on Saturday morning. Runners will be blasted with brightly colored cornstarch in what will be the first run of its kind in the Greenville area.


Some parts of the festival will remain unchanged. Parking and admission are still free. Most activities will still be centered on the intersection of Main and Curtis streets by the Clock Tower. The Antique Car Show will be back, going from noon-4 p.m. Monday. The price of entering the Kidz Zone is going up to $5. Adults will be admitted free. Expanded offerings in the zone include a bungee run, laser tag and a petting zoo.


Hours have been shifted to have more of the activities later in the day in hopes of avoiding morning rain and some of the afternoon heat common at this time of year, Richardson said.