I intended to get to this a bit earlier, but it has been busy in the Lyke2Drink world for the last week or so...The Great American Beer Festival has come and gone for another year. It is sort of like Christmas. You start thinking about it months in advance, you make plans to visit old friends, you pack up and run the travel gauntlet, and then everything happens so quickly that when it is over you are left drained and wishing that you had an extra day or two before going back to work.
A few random thoughts on America's grandest beer bash:
Records Are Made to Be Broken: A ton of records fell at this year's GABF. The most impressive to me are the 3,362 beers entered in the medal competition. That's a 16 percent jump in just a year. A total of 51 breweries were first timers this year.
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More Categories = More Fun: The GABF competition featured 78 categories (+ the Pro Am category) in 2009, up three from the previous year.
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More Elbow Room: The GABF added 46 percent more space to accommodate more brewers and more attendees this year. It was hard to find the additional space of Friday or Saturday night. Still, a good idea.
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Farm to Table Pavilion: The Brewers Association hosted a food and beer matching event in a quiet corner of the Colorado Convention Center on Thursday and Friday evenings. It was a good chance to get away from the noise of the GABF and a reminder of the fact that beer can play an upscale game that trumps wine in many respects.
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What Happened to the Time?: This GABF was a bit more of a blur this year for me because of all of the activity that went into launching the Denver Rare Beer Tasting and having a stand alone Pints for Prostates booth at the event. The Brewers Association graciously donated the space and volunteers Mark Sohasky, Dan Rabin, Darrin Pikarsky, Chad Henderson and Charles Willet helped me staff the booth. We had the chance to talk with a bunch of men about the need to get regular prostate health screenings, while at the same time raising funds for the Us TOO International Prostate Cancer Education and Support Network. The lucky winner of the kegerator drawing was Ben Carlisle of Vestavia Hills, Alabama, a new homebrewer attending his first GABF.
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Big Kick Off: Once again Great Divide Brewing was the place for brewers, media and beer hangers on Thursday afternoon. The traditional kickoff of the GABF marathon was a chance to see old friends and drink some excellent house brews. If you find yourself in Denver, the Great Divide taproom should be on your list. This brewery makes a very solid range of beers that are worth your time.
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American Craft Beer Week: Mark it down, May 17-23, 2010. Check out www.AmericanCraftBeerWeek.org.
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Michelob Tasting: The Anheuser-Busch InBev folks had a nice gathering for the media at Earl's Restaurant. The mix of beer included commercial offerings, some brewery only treats to show flexibility (a very good Doppelbock and a pear brew) and a beer designed by the media. Rye-ter's Block was a beer by committee -- beer writers -- that was very drinkable.
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