Beer on the Pier fest

http://www.beerfestintl.com/chicago/flash.htm

Has anyone checked out their events in the past years before? 38 bux for all you can drink in 4 hours, 150 different vendors seems to be a pretty good deal, weather permitting...

The list of breweries looks pretty bland... That would be my concern.

gleam wrote:The list of breweries looks pretty bland... That would be my concern.

I agree -- I was surprised not to see many of my favorites that are in fairly wide distribution (e.g., Dogfish Head), including some local (Midwest) breweries that I would have expected to see (e.g., Bells, Three Floyds).

Any beer event in Chicago that Nick Floyd skips, probably ain't worth going to.

I had a chance to attend Beer on the Pier for free and decided it would be foolish to pass it up. It wasn’t an unpleasant few hours (except for the atrocious live music) but I’m sure glad I didn’t have to shell out the $35 ($45 at the door). Most of the offerings were pedestrian; the majority of the beers could be purchased at Jewel or Dominick’s. It was heavily skewed toward large breweries and few of those even brought their more exotic beers. Many of the more interesting breweries listed on the festival’s website were no-shows as far as I could tell. Most beers were served from bottles (there were a few taps here and there) kept in tubs of ice water, so were poured much too cold. Beer lists and dump buckets—standard at most tastings—weren’t available and I missed both a lot.

It wasn’t all bad. The clear highlight was Bam Biere, a Saison from Jolly Pumpkin, but the firkin ran out before I could be served (I had a couple sips from a friend’s glass). This was an outstanding beer and I need to find out more about this brewery. Goose Island had a keg of startlingly fresh IPA dry hopped especially for the event. Flossmoor Station brought three nice brews (though their Wit and Dwarf IPA aren’t personal favorites of mine). And an importer whose name I forgot had an assortment of 6 or 8 less-known French and German beers. I spent a good portion of the session there.

I rarely visit Navy Pier so this was the first time I saw the Smith Museum of Stained Glass, a fine collection. I need to revisit soon when I have time to view it properly.

I know Bam Biere is the current cask conditioned ale at the Maproom. Jolly Pumpkin has some excellent beers.

schenked wrote:I know Bam Biere is the current cask conditioned ale at the Maproom. Jolly Pumpkin has some excellent beers.

Thanks very much for the tip. Unfortunately I was a little late for the Bam because the keg ran out on Saturday. But I did get to try a new Jolly Pumpkin beer last night.

Since they were out of Bam Biere, I started with another Saison, from Victory. It was enjoyable but not inspiring (I like other Victory beers more).

Next was Jolly Pumpkin's Madrugada Obscura, a very dark, very sour stout. This was one of the most interesting beers I've had in a long time. Wow, so much going on. Based on a very small sample, I'd say this is one of the most intriguing breweries in this country. I don't know how I overlooked them for so long. The bartender assured me that Bam Biere would be back soon since it was so well received.

I wasn't sure what one could drink after that beast but chose Cuvee des Champions, an unblended lambic from Cantillon. A great beer, it cut through the previous tastes like a sharp knife.

If I can say at least two things about Rene G, the man knows his beer and is not prone to hyperbole. So when I read this:

Rene G wrote:This was one of the most interesting beers I've had in a long time. Wow, so much going on. Based on a very small sample, I'd say this is one of the most intriguing breweries in this country. I don't know how I overlooked them for so long.

I wasted little times in planning a visit to the Map Room. My wife and I first split a large 750mL bottle of Jolly Pumpkin's La Roja, described on their website thusly:

an artisan amber ale produced also in the Biere de Garde tradition. Rich and warming with hints of caramel, fruit and spice. Truly an ale of distinction. 7.2% Alc./Vol.

I don't know much about the Biere de Garde tradition, but this was also a very interesting and delicious beer. It also had a strong sour notes, but these were underwritten by a vanilla maltiness and a clean, slightly sweet, smooth finish.

The sourness initially put off my wife, afeared of last year's great lambic experiment, but she too came around after a few sips. I admit, I didn't necessarily want a "very strong, very sour" stout after this, but that was the beer I came to try, and the only Jolly Pumpkin on tap. Also a winner...very interesting, indeed. Thanks to Rene G and schenked for pointing out the availability and quality of these beers. Raise a toast to wild yeast.

Cheers,

Aaron