It is probably a good time to start recapping our most recent trip to the Seattle area before I forget any of the details of our time there.  Today makes perfect sense as a FAT (Food and Travel for those of you not in the know) Monday post, but there will be a handful of others from the trip peppered around in the next few weeks as well.  Looking back, there was at least one occasion of beer enjoyment on each day of our time there (maybe save for one) so the whole trip relates well to the site.

Why not start with the first day of the trip?  I think it was also the most beer intensive (and sleep deprived) by far.

Getting up incredibly early for the first flight out of town to the west coast makes for a long day for us east coasters.  So we were sure to grab a snack and some (local) coffee during our layover time in Salt Lake City.

Love me a good cup of coffee!

I will go ahead and skip over the details of our incredibly long wait at a rental car counter that we had no patience for once arriving at SeaTac.  Besides being sick of airports and traveling, we had a schedule to keep.  We needed to meet Seattle Jeff for a little of this . . .

Just a fantastic sight after a long day of travel.

Actually our intent was to pick Seattle Jeff up so he would not have to walk the two miles or so from work to the brewery, but he beat us there on foot after our rental car delay.  However, after tasting the beers (and sampling the cheese paired with them) I don’t think he minded the walk that much.  I will save further mention of our time with Cody at Epic Ales for future posts since I have much more of the day to get to and the post will be quite long enough without that content.  That and I liked the beer (and the person) enough to dedicate entire posts to them sometime relatively soon.

After Maureen (Seattle Jeff’s wife and currently without nickname) met us at Epic Ales and after having a few more beer samples, we decided to head up to the Seattle International Beerfest.  That was not before buying a case (or whatever you want to call 12-22oz bottles) of beer and a few souvenirs (which you will likely see some other time) from Cody on our way out the door.

Some of our friends for the afternoon.

Having so many beers to choose from was a bit overwhelming as we tried to decide where to start (or technically continue) our sampling at the festival.  Having a few before arriving probably worked to our advantage as the rain that started to fall did not seem to affect our focus at all.  Though I will let the pictures do most of the story telling for me, I should mention some of the beers that we tried during our time there.

Deep in thought or possibly staring at the Space Needle.

We split our efforts by enjoying some beers from breweries that we (or I) never see much of and also some new beers (at least to us) from some of our favorite breweries.  That meant jumping around (in no exact order) from Firestone Walker (Velvet Merkin) to Nøgne Ø (#100) to Ninkasi (Maiden the Shade & Kraken) to Deschutes (Mirror Mirror) to New Belgium (La Folie) to Stone (Sublimely Self Righteous & Cali Belgique) to Great Divide (Chocolate Oak Aged Yeti & 16^th Anniversary Wood Aged Double IPA) to, well you get the idea.  There are some that I surely forgot, but that is a pretty good rundown of our draft heavy (very few from bottles for us) sampling for the day.

One way to remember what was sampled.

Decisions, decsions.

We did not do much in the way of reviewing what we drank, but there are a few check marks next to the Great Divide and Stone and New Belgium offerings indicating our particular enjoyment of them.  That and we actually remembered to make a mark about them as we sampled!

By that time The Wife and I realized that we had not really eaten a decent meal all day.  Fortunately we were all due for something good to help settle our stomachs, so there was no resistance to finding some dinner.

Making sure we were good to walk to the car.

So instead of settling our stomachs, we went for some good burn by going to one of our favorite spots in town.  Actually this was the first visit for The Wife (after a failed attempt at going years ago), but it is now one of her favorites as well.  If I ever remember to do so, I have video from one of my previous visits that shows the crazy speed at which the chef works to keep the constant line at the door moving along.  Someday I will get to that.

The line speaks volumes.

Burns so good!

After leaving dinner we headed to Seattle Jeff’s place to finally settle into a seated position for the remainder of the evening.  The only appropriate way to deal with our still burning mouths (from dinner) and to also continue abusing our bodies for the day was to enjoy a few brews from Deschutes and Full Sail that were waiting in the fridge.  That is just what we did and after being our designated driver for the day, The Wife was even able to join us for those.

Our after dinner snack

I would say that was a great first day in Seattle for us and an appropriate end to the work week for our hosts.  Though probably the most beer intense day of the trip (it would have taken a lot to top it), there was more fun with beer to come.

Until day two . . .

Again this week I received some assistance in compiling my beer news stories for the week.  It seems that Seattle Jeff (formerly Colorado Jeff) is now going to make a push to be my Northwestern correspondent and The Wife continues to pass along good stories that I might miss otherwise.

And for this week we have . . .

• This story goes first if only so that I can find it faster when looking back to find out when to set my DVR to catch this new show on the Discovery Channel.  Take a channel I already watch too much of, the production team behind one of my favorite shows, and combine them with a great ambassador for craft beer and I will not be missing an episode.
• Does anyone know what the beer drinking situation is in Russia?  I have no idea what they have available right now, but they will soon have another American invader (speaking of all the fast food chains that we have infected other countries with).
• I know that many people look at the calorie content when drinking beer, but I also think that most craft beer drinkers are not included in that group.  This article does a nice job of making counterpoints (like the “would you rather have four of these or one of these” argument that I often use) and has a great quote to end the piece.
• Starbucks is moving ahead with the idea of a coffee shop by morning turned craft beer and wine bar by night that I had dreamed of opening one day myself.  Sure it never made it past a concept in my head, but I still wish that I had beaten them to it.
• There are far worse places to attend a beer festival than in Colorado.  They have even started a themed one that I hope soon spreads to other places in the country (preferably closer to me).
• Since last week I mentioned drinking beer before their victory in a match, it is only fair to show them drinking a few after a loss in a match this week.  Surely some die hard England fans will not like to see it, but I can’t blame a guy for wanting a pint (or two, or . . .) after that kind of disappointment.

Consolation in a glass (via http://www.dailymail.co.uk/)

Cheers!

Each time I have the opportunity to help out at a beer festival or event, I never hesitate to do so (when I don’t have the time otherwise spoken for).  I really enjoy interacting and chatting about beer with the people that attend the event and doing that makes the time just fly by.  On top of that, the more that I do these events, the more I get to spend time with some of the same beer industry folks and become (at least somewhat) friends with them.  To date nothing has happened while working at these events that would stop me from continuing to volunteer for everyone that I possibly can.

Did you see how I went on and on about how much I enjoy working at the events and I never even mentioned that I get to sample some good beer?  That is a great bonus on top of everything else.

If you could see through those people you would see a car.

So you have likely guessed by now what The Wife and I did on Saturday.  As hot as it has been here lately, what better place was there to be than at a beer event inside the local Total Wine and More here in Orlando?  I was initially unsure how enough space could be made to serve samples of 150 (or so) beers inside, but after hearing that Tom the Beer Guy had his OBP vehicle inside the store I was certain that we would be enjoying the air conditioning during our time there.

After riding down a bit early with Emily and Ian and doing a bit of a briefing with the other people there to work at the event, I wandered to the corner of the store that I would call home for the afternoon.  Though I bring the camera to these events, once it starts I don’t get away to take as many photos as I would like to.

Our (awesome) neighbors doing work.

The Wife and I found ourselves initially pouring for Merchant du Vin, offering Ayinger Bräu-Weiss, Lindemans Framboise, Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout, and Samuel Smith’s Organic Cider.  As many of these as The Wife has done now, she is a pro (especially after pouring these previously) and did all of the heavy lifting as we were at the table while I tried to stay out of her way.  Fortunately I soon had an opportunity to help out Cindy at the Bell’s Brewery table next to us, allowing me to get out of The Wife’s way and also to pour some really good beer (Oberon, Two Hearted Ale, and Consecrator).

The new photo for their ad campaign.

As a bit of a side note I would like to thank Cindy for not only letting me take over the table for her but also letting me have a sweet Bell’s Brewery bottle opener to take home with me!  It made me feel much better after our cat broke my Bell’s Brewery glass some months ago.

This event was an interesting change for us with it being inside a store where the beers are available for sale.  More so than at other festivals, we were able to really sell the beer.  After describing the beers to people and talking them through the samples, it was nice when they grabbed a bottle or a six pack from the display at the table to take home.  It was great to see people having the opportunity to try some beers they probably walked by numerous times and then buy some shortly after getting a free sample (yes the samples were free).

Even without much publicity for the event there was a pretty good turnout for the afternoon (including Ken and Gregg) and I think it cannot hurt the chances for another similar one there in the future.  I know that I can’t wait to work at the next one, whether there or anywhere else!

Again this week I have rambled slightly too much in introducing each of the stories.  At least one of the articles is a bit long as well, so this is another good time to cut the intro short to give you extra time to read it all.

So for this week we have . . .

• This first one is a good follow up to the mention of lawmakers helping out craft brewers last week.  There is also a nice, relatively short video with some commentary from some famous faces in the world of craft beer.  Actually, if you watch that first you will already have heard many of the quotes that appear in the text of the article.
• It is no secret (at least among those who ask) that I love me some beers from Great Divide Brewing Co, so it was easy for me to choose to share this story of their recent/current expansion.  It is a happy day when you find out that more of your favorite beer will be available.
• Surely I have to be biased a bit toward the brewery in this case (even not having sampled any of their brews), but I have enjoyed wines from the winery included in this trademark battle as well.  Legal jargon tends to make my head spin, but I think this article explains the situation pretty well.  I just don’t understand the ultimate decision.
• There is a nice craft brewery for sale if you meet the parameters that the current owners have laid out.  For the record, if in the future there are brewery owners out there whose kids don’t have an interest in taking over when they are ready to step aside, give me a call!
• From what I read (and don’t hear) about the recent Boston Beer Week, it was a fantastic collection of events.  I say don’t hear because we have not heard from The Brother-in-law and The Father-in-law since they attended the American Craft Beer Fest on Saturday!
• Though not an official scientific study, I would say that we all know that the coach will allow a little beer to be consumed before their next match coming up on Sunday.  All of our running friends always say to eat and drink the same as you normally would before any race so your system does not throw you a curve.  Now we know that the drink can also include beer.

Go finish your beer first! (via http://www.guardian.co.uk/)

Cheers!

Over thinking and obsessing on what should be pretty simple decisions are things that I fall into quite often.  Sometimes that works to my advantage, but there are also times where it drives me (and The Wife) insane.  Now within my constant obsession with the world of beer, I have an enjoyable event to fixate my mind on for the next few weeks.

The beer festivals that I am used to going to here in Florida are typically involve an entry fee and a (relatively) short window of time (4 hours or so) in which to get your beer sampling in.  A few weeks from now I will be attending a festival that involves a fee that will equate to a number of tickets which you trade in for samples of beer.  Those tasters range from 1 ticket to 6 and you can buy additional tickets if you choose to do so.  I understand this approach since the drinking windows are about 10 hours per day over a three day festival and without tickets there would be many (more) people passed out on the grass.

Expecting a much busier scene than this.

Now to explain what I will obsess over for the next three weeks.  Since the tickets will be involved, I feel the need to have a plan of attack rather than sample randomly as I often do without such parameters.  The festival’s website has the list of what will be roughly 150 beers to choose from, though not how many tickets each will run you.  So that helps and gives me much to think about, though not having the cost of each hurts me in developing a specific plan of attack.

There are a handful of bullet points that I am going into this evaluation process with:

• Though there are some familiar favorites on the list, focus on beers that you have never had and have heard good things about.  This is a focus going into most any beer festival for me.
• Since this is an international beer festival and there will be many brews that I have never even seen, maybe it makes sense to pick a country or two to focus on.  I do purposely lean towards American breweries not because I do not enjoy beers from other places, but because there is so much out there in the US and I have much work to do just to put a dent in it.  So though I might mix in a few beers from other places, I will likely focus on the US beers that I have yet to try.
• Maximizing the number of tickets I have is important.  I plan on having the number of tickets that comes with the entry and (maybe) buying a few extra as soon as we get there.  When those are gone we are out.  Do I focus on just a few of those 5-6 ticket samples, do I go for a bunch of the 1-2 tickets brews, or a balance somewhere in the middle? 
• A good friend of mine is likely to join us at the festival.  Perhaps we can combine forces (tickets) to sample a wider range of the beers available?  That could be a good tactic.
• Be efficient with our time there.  We are going to this festival because we need to be in the area for another reason, so I have no intention (or desire) to spend very much of one of the 10 hour windows there.  I would like to move on to other things even though it would be interesting to see what condition the crowd is in toward the end of the 10 hours.

Probably even more busy than this.

Using those thoughts I already have a bit of a short list that I would be happy to sample a few from since I expect that I have expensive taste and the tickets costs will be high for each.

• Breweries I get products from here, but beers I (think I) have not tried yet.
  • Stone Sublimely Self Righteous Ale
  • Dogfish 120 Minute IPA
  • Great Divide 16^th Anniversary Wood-Aged Double IPA and Chocolate Oak-Aged Yeti
• Breweries I don’t see here much or at all.
  • Firestone Walker Parabola
  • Ninkasi Kraken
  • Deschutes Black Butte XXII
  • Nøgne Ø Imperial Brown Ale and #100 (Imperial IPA)

Now you can see that I have already put too much thought into it just days after I found out that we would be going!  The short list will continue to grow into quite a long one and hopefully my obsessing will turn into and enjoyable and successful time at the festival.

Stay tuned for the recap.