The weekend couldn't have been more perfect for the 20th annual Colorado Brewers' Festival in old town Fort Collins. Around 20,000 beer enthusiasts turned out on a bright sunny day on Saturday June 27th to sample over 50 different beers from 30 Colorado breweries. There was plenty of beer, food, music and good times abound for this annual event. Every year the Colorado Brewers' Festival seems to get more and more popular.
The event spanned the entire two day weekend. Sunday's crowd was well attended as well but Saturday is normally the busiest day of the festival. Admission to the festival was $10 for a 2-day pass and beer tokens were just $2 for a full glass. Sunday, a one day pass ran for just $6. There was also plenty of food from dozens of local vendors. If you went away hungry from this event then it was your own fault for not trying at least one item.
Below are about 59 pictures from Saturday's session of the CBF that I posted out on Flickr. If you find a picture you like all I ask is that you provide a link back to Fermentedly Challenged and let everyone know where you got it from. Enjoy!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/chipperdave/sets/72157620578455231/
Brewery participants at this year's festival included: Anheuser-Busch, Aspen Brewery, Avery Brewing, Backcountry Brewery, Blue Moon Brewery, Boulder Beer Company, Breckenridge Brewery, Bristol Brewing Company, CB Potts Restaurant & Brewery, Coors, CooperSmith's Pub & Brewing, Crabtree Brewing Company, Del Norte Brewing Company, Dillon DAM Brewery, Durango Brewing Company, Estes Park Brewery, Golden City Brewery, Great Divide Brewing Company, Left Hand Brewing Company, New Belgium Brewing Company, Odell Brewing Company, Oskar Blues Brewery, Pitchers Brewery, Ska Brewing Company, The Fort Collins Brewery, The Grand Lake Brewing Company, Tommy Knocker Brewery, Twisted Pine Brewing Company and Wynkoop Brewing Company.
Later on, I hope to post some video highlights from this festival.
This is definitely an event not to miss. The CBF will be back again next year around the end of June. It's the perfect time of year for a beer festival - sunny, normally dry and not too hot yet. Don't miss it in 2010!
Related articles:
- 2008 All Colorado Beer Festival highlights
- 2008 Great American Beer Festival highlights
- 2008 Rocky Mountain Brewfest highlights
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Monday, June 29, 2009
2009 Colorado Brewers' Festival highlights
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8 comments:
It wasn't about the beer. Too many people were just about getting drunk. The lines were horrible, from getting in, to getting a beer. They charge you $10 for a wrist band and let anybody onto the grounds. I would have rather gone to a bar then to go through that again. They had great beers there but the distribution of them and the labeling of where they were didn't make it easy to get what you wanted. I would have had more fun if I knew what to expect going into it. I guess I should have going to Ft Collins for a beer fest.
Having to negotiate the crowds at a beer fest is par for the course. What really helps is that you have some friends with you, hang out, target a few beers you want to try, eat some food and just chill out listening to the music. Sure, it's always going to be a bit cheaper and quieter getting a beer at a bar, but then again for some, the big concert-like crowd scene is what many people enjoy as well. If you've ever been to the Greate American Beer Festival in Denver each year, that place is just as crowded and you almost have to have a game plan going in there to find the beers you want to try. Worth going at least once.
Dane you gave me an idea to write to the beer fest organizers and see if they can publish a map on their web site a couple weeks in advance and point out where each brewery will be and what beer(s) they will be featuring. Also have the map point out where certain food vendors are and clearly identify all of the other facilities available. This event continues to grow and with over 20,000 people there at one time it does take a bit of patience and persistence to get what you came for.
I saw a list published by the Downtown Business Authority before Brewfest with a list of breweries and their beers. The last time I went, which was probably 4 or 5 years ago, they gave everyone a map when they got their wristband.
I agree with Dane about the drunks at this thing. Two other things really bother me about it, and I haven't gone in years because of these:
#1. Breweries only offering their mainline beer. Who hasn't had Fat Tire? Why not offer a Lips of Faith beer? It's not just New Belgium that does this. Of the list this year there were a couple that I wanted to try, but it wasn't worth the crowds/hassle.
#2. The people serving the beer are volunteers with Brewfest, so if you have a question about a beer chances are they won't know the answer.
All in all this is an even that, as Dave said, is about fun, relaxing, and hanging out downtown. I don't think it's really meant to be about beer nerdery or opening anyone's eyes to what beer can be. If that's what you expect and that's what you want then it's a pretty decent time.
The Fort Collins Coloradoan newspaper reported a revised estimate of 15,000 people who paid for a wristband for both days of the brew fest. Supposedly around 26 people were issued a summons by the FoCo police, so ya, there apparently were a few too many drunks getting out of hand (sadly).
It was outstanding as usual. I've gone the last 4 years, never had anything but a superb experience. The lines weren't bad at all in my opinion Dane, I didn't wait longer than 10 minutes for a beer. It took longer to get a drink in the bars during it.
And the entrance line... there was a stand in the very middle of the plaza to buy a wristband and cup, took 2 minutes, compared to the 1-2 hours the rest of the people waited. That was a nice secret to know I guess.
For ME.. FoCo Brewfest IS about the beer. My buddies and I LOVE going to sample new beers and getting eachothers thoughts on them.
I saw in the Coloradoan today that the FoCo Downtown Business Assoc is pushing to get Brewfest moved from Old Town. Maybe Brewfest IS outgrowing Old Town, but I can't think of a better place to host it.
I always have a good time at Brewfest, but I'll admit that the drunken idiots bother me more and more each year. These are the folks who are giving it a bad name. I have a few friends and fellow beer lovers that won't even go anymore. A couple of people I know even refer to it at "Fort Collins Drunkfest".
A slower paced fest, as well as a really good time, is Odell's Small batch festival. I hope they keep that going!
Take it easy Dave. Great Blog! I'm going to link to you right now....
Nice comments Matt and Darrin. Sadly, for some, beer fests will always be about getting drunk. That's something that some people just have to grow out of I suppose. For me, it's all about getting a chance to find a beer that I haven't had before. Fort Collins Brewery and others brought in a new beer for their fans to try.
At some point every brew fest that gets real popular is going to have growing pains. Not sure where else they could host it in FoCo. May have to move it to the Larimer County Fair Grounds but then again it wouldn't have that downtown feel to it.
Just look at the GABF in Denver. It had to be expanded to 4 sessions with around 10,000+ people each. I can't really grow much more than it already is without adding another day to the fest, but I doubt the brewers would want to bring more kegs of beer than they already are.
Best thing we can do is to send along our constructive comments and suggestions to the fest organizers.
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