This is one of those times where you’re going to come here and expect a healthy explanation with significant details showing that I did my due diligence. You’re going to realize that this isn’t what this blog is about. I’m not an expert reviewer – I lack the dedication to do colorful comparisons and contrast things critically while siting accurate historical references and utilizing a myriad of special terms that make me look like a master of this stuff.
That being said, I went to Buffalo on Tap this past weekend, and I had a great time. I was given access to the VIP area, and got to enjoy an extra hour of consumption over the general admission. What did this mean? This meant being 2 sheets to the wind (out of a full 3) by the time the general admission guests were arriving. This was good. The beer in the VIP section consisted of higher end products and casks that that were absolutely perfect. I could have stayed there and drank those offerings all day – but then I would have missed out on the crowd factor, which is half of the fun of a show like this. Interjecting comments into other peoples conversations, asking people what beer they like, what they didn’t like, using the restroom and whooping the crowd up with local sports cheers for fun. A show like this is about walking around feeling like a boss, when in reality you’re just a drunk bastard – but then again – so is everyone else, so it’s fun. It is difficult to find a person having a terrible time at a brew festival – I’m sure there ARE people that have terrible times at these things, a boy friend and girlfriend might argue, someone might fight someone.. who knows. But in all of the brew festivals I’ve attended over the years, I have yet to ever notice it, or recognize it for that matter. People getting sick? oh you can be sure there will be someone drunker than you at these things.
What I really enjoyed about Buffalo on Tap 2017, was that the day was split up into 2 tastings. The first one started at noon, the second one started… after that… 530? I went to the first one because I wanted to get out and attempt to sober up before going to bed. Passed out drunk sleep is something I just can’t do anymore. I CAN do it – but I feel like garbage all the next day.. The other reason why I went to the first one was because I felt that the 2nd tasting might have more ‘amateurs’ for lack of a better word. Maybe a little more riff-raff than the first one – you know? I know that thinking goes against what I said in my introduction, but I guess I was just playing it safe. Great decision by the planning crew to cut the day in half. Keep the crowd manageable, and keep it fun. Overcrowded brewfests are terrible, this fest delivered a great time without a lot of bumping into each other.
This event is where you want to go when you want to discover your new favorite style of beer. Maybe you’ve been an IPA guy for 3 years, and you feel like you’ve tried everything under the sun and you just don’t have the passion for trying new beers like you used to – which may be a good thing! But what an event like this does is get you back into trying the other beer styles you steer away from normally – Like, I don’t really love porters and stouts, but found some barrel aged (not burbon barrel aged) options that were really magnificent. And again, don’t ask me to name the brewery, or site other porters that I don’t like – we’ll both be wasting our time, because my tastes are completely different than yours. You’re lucky we’ve gotten this far – the day was a blur people. I also found some awesome sours and saisons that were very refreshing. I think my goal in 2017 will be to brew something refreshing and tart, maybe a gosa or saison. Towards the end of the event I was really searching out the lighter crisp and tart beers. Goose Island was in the VIP area, they had some really good options – I only remember that because it was early in the day.
Secondary markets and beer related products are a big part of these things now, I got hoodwinked into buying a pair of sunglasses with a bottle opener built into the ear piece. They were expensive, but I was drunk and easily swayed into a compulsive purchase. There were also people selling dried meat, and various other snacks that pair super well with beer. Music is a big part of drinking, and a local radio station had a silent disco set up that we had a great time in. For those of you not familiar with a silent disco, you put on wireless headphones and then choose between three stations that are being broadcast simultaneously. Your headphones glow the station that you’re repping, and you can look around and see other people that are enjoying the same music as you. It was really fun! I guess there’s another one happening at Canalside on the 28th of January – I might be down for checking that out!
Well, aside from $20 for parking, and seeing a poor bastard vomit all over himself, who I played good samaritan to with a handful of napkins, the event was exactly what I was hoping for. Fun, public debauchery with amazing liquid refreshment that didn’t run out, and smiles all around. Buffalo on Tap was a great time. I am always nervous about an event like this, but I managed to survive, and going to the early session was a great idea, because I recovered before bed and I wasn’t a pile of shit today. Thank you Buffalo on Tap! AWESOME time!
These sunglasses can open a beer.
Cheers!