San Diego Festival of Beer

My fiancé and I have now been two years in a row, and it is spectacular! Her brother lives in San Diego, and we just happened to visit him during 2011 Beer Week, and decided to check out the fest. We had such a good time that this year we planned our trip around the fest. We went with the VIP tickets both years, and did not regret it.
This year, you got access to a lot of specialty brews, and some excellent food from local establishments. As an example, one of my favorites was AleSmith’s Speedway Stout Brewer’s Blend (a blend of their 2010 and 2011 batches). It was every bit the imperial stout, but incredibly tasty. They also had my favorite pumpkin beer of the season, Manzanita’s Witches Hair Pumpkin Ale. My fiancé loved Pacific Beach Ale House’s Wild Ginger Ale.
Down in the main area, I had my best beer of the fest, hands down. Karl Strauss made a specialty beer just for San Diego Beer Week, a Peanut Butter Cup Porter. This thing was so good, it almost made me believe in a divine power. My friends and I just kept getting back in line until the keg was killed. It was spectacular.
I definitely recommend the fest and the VIP tickets. My fiancé and I will be sure to plan our next vacation to San Diego around the Festival of Beer yet again.

Come on, a beer festival that allows you to sample tons of different beers and contribute to the fight against cancer at the same time? I’m totally there! Seriously, how can you say no?
I was fortunate enough to actually win some tickets (thanks to Unilocal) to this event. So the decision was really easy. I felt like it was impossible to resist so I hopped on a trolley and headed downtown.
My brother and I arrived there at just a little after 6. The line was really long but it moved very quickly and we were inside the event in about 5 minutes.
There were tons of brewery stations there. Even with only a 4oz plastic mug, there was way too much available to drink. It’s good to get here early and hit the sampling stations before the masses start pouring in. Some lines get a little longer than others and the wait can be upwards of 10 minutes or so but that was a rarity. For the most part the lines moved quickly, almost too quickly. I had to slam down a couple drinks really quickly because before I knew it I was at the front of the line! I also found myself returning to a couple ones over and over. For the most part beer was plentiful, but towards the very end of the night, some stations ran out.
You have to hand it to the volunteers for helping out, pouring the beer and manning the stations. They also had a decent police presence which was nice, gave you a little extra peace of mind just in case a few people wanted to get rowdy.
Overall it was a really cool event that I was glad I got to attend. Went through my ten drink card and went and got a another for 5 more for $ 5. By the end of the night I felt like I drank too much and spent the trolley ride home sobering up. I’d definitely do it again.

This year I purchased a designated driver admission. No mention of the fact that I would receive no beverages with the purchase. And what did I receive… a small plastic beer mug and zero beverages. There were no stations with non alcoholic beverages for the DD (but of course they would sell me a bottle of water) and when I asked about where I could receive non-​alcoholic beverages I received… attitude like they were doing me a favor for letting me in the event.
My husband paid $ 5 dollars more and received 10 beer tastings. They are so busy pushing the alcohol sales and addition purchases for more beer tastings that they forgot about the sober drivers taking the drunks home. Big rip off and I will never go again.

When one of my coworkers yelled, «Hey anyone want tickets to Beer Fest?» I was all over it like Kim Kardashian on diamonds.
Being nuevo poor means I can’t usually afford events like this ($ 40) but the free ticket gave me the green light to enjoy the festivities.
And guess what? Those 4 oz. samples can really give you a buzz. Especially if you forgot to eat beforehand.
The selection was also a really great group of craft beer. The Big Bear Lake Mountain Brew was by far my favorite, but Karl Strauss has a special place in my heart. It was nice talking to brewers about making the suds, which apparently you can’t do in your bathtub like I previously thought.
Bad side? I don’t feel like drinking beer for a few weeks. Me and my friend also figured out how to get extra samples, turning us into a bit of a drunken mess. But for free, why not!

First time in SD and what do I do? Definitely not acting like a tourist. We went to the beerfest.
$ 40 for 10 samples of 4 oz beer each = tipsy me by end of the night. It didn’t help that the vendors kept marking the same number twice.
Lots of port-​a-​potties with no-​so-​long lines. Short lines for samples — except that Hawaiian vendor which had a ridiculously long line for some reason.
There’s also a section with food and tables. Food prices were a bit overprice but what-​the-​heck. I’m buzzed and needed food before I can continue the tipsy-​fun night.
You also get a cute miniature beer mug which I use for storage.
Highlight of the night: Seeing the «cancer lounge» and taking a minute to realize it was the smoking room. Yes, beer makes me think slower.
Overall, great fun in a new city with great friends. Minus one star for the steep price of $ 40. It’s a great one time experience, But I doubt I’ll be going to any more beerfest.

First off, this was a huge sausage fest. No, I don’t mean real sausage… although that would have tasted wonderful alongside some beer.
This event was full of guys. It was honestly 1 girl for every 5 guys. I like those odds ;)
But did I get any numbers? No!
They suck.
However, the beer was good and free flowing. That is, until I drank one beer in particular that was really gross and made me sick. It was disgusting. I wish I could remember which one it was so I could curse the day it was created.
Needless to say, it was ‘blacked out’ land for me after that.
I only remember short snippets of the night after about 9 pm.
So…I don’t remember what I did nor do I remember what I said.
[I curse this Asian tolerance of mine]
I did, however, have to take a break from beer for a week afterward.
So to backtrack to the part of the night I do remember… We never had to wait very long in line to get beer. The beer vendors were nice and friendly. It was an overall well organized event.
I know they had a lot of porta-​potties but at an event that centers around beer drinking… there can never be enough of them. Cause once people break the seal… Oh, and the faucets ran out of water.

These stars *really* belong to Danny, our splendid CM, who was kind enough to hook me up with free tickets to this raucous beerfest. (They’re normally $ 30 or $ 40 each, depending on when you buy them, which would’ve priced me out of here.)
I originally thought that the Festival of Beer was a beer snob’s sort of event, with lots of sophisticated palettes blabbering on about which cultivar of hops was blah blah blah…
It wasn’t that kind of event at all.
It was a total frat party.
And not just any ol’ frat party. This was a frat party that required cordoning off the streets outside the W hotel at Columbia & B streets. A frat party for the record books.
Whether or not that’s a good thing, I’ll let you decide.
Anywho, my ticket entitled me to an adorable little 4-​oz plastic beer mug and a ticket for 10 fills. Trust me, 40 oz is enough to make your head spin. But since I’m a glutton for punishment, I used a coupon from the Reader (thanks Heather W!) that gave me an extra 3 fills. So yes, that’s something like 52 oz of beer in total. Which is like 87 286 710 623 calories.
GOD I’M FAT.
Oh! The beer was delicious. Most of it, anyway. I really dug the coffee-​flavored beer. The orange-​flavorerd beer was terrible and just tasted like Tang powder mixed with Bud Light. The Hawaiian beer was my favorite traditionally flavored beer.
(Of course, I was too buzzed to remember the names of any of these beers. Total fail on my part.)
Despite the random gripes I might’ve had about how the event was run, I still enjoyed it, since it was a fundraiser for breast cancer research. Anything that combines boozing with charitable fund-​raising gets thumbs up from me. :-)

Five stars for San Diego Festival of Beer — why? Because I volunteer each year for this great event to cure cancer!
«BEER CURES CANCER»
Thanks to my beer Unilocaler friends who helped last Friday evening:
Patti P and her husband Frank — Patti you’re a PRO pouring for SHINER Beer!
Melanio — You’re COOL — A+ customer service our spokes person for the MAD RIVER Brewing Company Steelhead Fine Ales we were pouring JohnBarleyCorn Barleywine Ale 9.1% alcohol and the Extra Stout beer 6% alcohol
Maria V — a first timer she poured perfect!
Thanks to all beer drinkers you all just cured someone. Looking forward to see you all next year.

Dozens and dozens of beer vendors giving out samples and all for a good cause. I ordered my ticket ahead of time, online and used the Unilocal promo-​code. So for only 25 bucks, you get ten 4-​oz samples. That’s a pretty good deal. A couple of vendors forgot to initial my ticket. So I got 12… wheheww!!!
So, this fund raising event is for SDPAC, San Diego Professionals Against Cancer. It raises monies for cancer research, patient treatment, etc. Again, plenty of beer at the event as well as food and two different performances going on at the same time. Also met some fellow Unilocalers at the Unilocal booth. Cool. Got free stuff from pretty much most vendors out there. From, pens, buttons, bottle openers, and I won a cooler from spinning a wheel or something.
Organization could have been a little bit more controlled. Lines were a little confusing right before the start of the event. Some people were actually being allowed in at different parts of the venue. And the Elite Services crew seemed clueless. All they do is wear that polo t-​shirt and stand around not knowing anything. But once you get in, they give you a guide of the event and a cool 4 oz mug for sampling.

i love beer and they ran out.
so whats a beerfest without beer?
crap.

Very badly organized. Lines were too long, we basically had to get in another line as soon as we got out of another one. There were also recycling bins everywhere (even though the cups they give you are meant to be «souvenir») but hardly any garbage cans. There was no way to socialize. I actually stood in FIVE lines towards the end of the night that ran out of beer while I was waiting. I tried to ask for a refund of my ticket price but, conveniently, anyone with the authority to do that had already left with the money. Would have been better off staying at home with some friends and a twelve pack. I’m actually still kind of pissed off about the whole thing.

I gotta say for being the «15^th» annual Festival of Beers they really should have the execution down better. It was for a good cause and any event that is solely for the purpose of beer drinking deserves 4 stars but the i think there is a LOT of room for improvement in coordinating this event.
First of all, I don’t think there was anywhere CLOSE to the 75 breweries they touted on the website which is fine since you only get 10 tastings but I was put off just cause I don’t feel it was honest.
The souvenir glasses were lame and mine actually cracked while i was still drinking out of it.
Super long and disorganized lines. It seemed the only way to get a beer from the more popular breweries was to cut in front of the line. I don’t normally condone doing this but since everyone was doing it the people in the back of the lines just waited and NEVER moved. Most people waiting were drunk and didn’t really notice so I don’t think they minded.
Not a big fan of all volunteer pourers either. I like being able to talk to the brewers and there were really any here.
I think the venue could be better. It was extremely convenient for me since it was 3 blocks from my house but I just think there has to be somewhere other than a parking lot to hold this, even a street-​type festival where they close down the street would be better.
I think this would do much better as a daytime event on a Saturday or Sunday too. The lighting seemed to be problem for a lot of the volunteers who couldn’t see much under their tents.
Overall though we had a great time and lots of good beers. I will go again for sure.
Favorite beer was the Alaskan Brewing Co’s White Ale.

I went to this event yesterday with some friends. It is held every year in September. It draws a good range of ages and backgrounds.
There were only a few food choices available and no snack options.
The proceeds go to a good cause so don’t go and expect this event to be a value. Including parking or trolley you will spend about $ 40 a person for 40 oz of beer.
I thought the 4 oz souvenir mugs would be glass and worth saving… they weren’t. After the first hour, there were long lines at every beer table. It totally reminded me of college fraternity party beer lines. We would get a pour and then get right into line for another one.
Many of the booths were staffed by volunteers. I guess the breweries sent beer but not sales representatives. The people at the tables knew nothing about the beer or the brewery. Funny, because there were bar owners in the crowd taking the opportunity to sample different beers…
Around 10 pm several breweries ran out of beer making the lines even longer at the remaining ones. Some of the pours weren’t cold… does anyone like drinking warm beer?
Some of the beers were really bad and people were pouring them out in the street.
Lastly, guys easily outnumbered girls 2 to 1.

3.5 stars. Brilliant idea (a beer tasting party for a good cause!) but the execution might have been better.
The lines to get in were a bit confusing: one line is for will-​call and one is if you want to purchase tickets on site (no one tells you that at the very end of the line though, where it would be helpful). The will-​call line was much shorter but took a longer time to get through.
Once inside, you pick up your commemorative 4 oz. plastic mug (with an inexplicably small handle, large enough perhaps for an average man’s pinky), and map (which I doubt anyone used but handy to have the next day) and you’re on your way. The base ticket gets you 10 tastes, but you can purchase extra tickets.
TIP #1: There are food vendors serving typical fair-​quality fare, but fortunately a Burger Lounge recently opened in Little Italy 5 blocks away, so instead we ducked out with our tickets half-​punched, got re-​entry wristbands and headed there for a breather and a bite.
This year the beer selection was excellent. All the biggies where there, but we also found it fun to go to the booths that DIDN’T have fancy signs, which either meant that they are just startups (Inland Empire Brewing), or they came a long way and didn’t want to lug lots of swag (Shipyard Brewing from Maine).
The setting is uninspired (a sloped parking lot between several dumpy buildings) and the chain-​link fences and portable lighting reminded me of that scene from «Red Dawn» in which all the dads had been rounded up by the invading Commies and put into the «re-​education» camp.
TIP #2: Get there on the early end (anywhere from 6 to 9:30), because even though the event runs until 11pm, most booths ran out of beer by 10. Before 7pm you practically have run of the place. The lines at the few vendors who had enough to last past 10pm were, naturally, very long.
But it’s easy to get past these quirks, once you start the tasting, meet other fun-​loving tipsy people, get some free swag, and help fight cancer!
TIP #3: Visit the Unilocal booth on the way in and plaster yourself with stickers & swag to advertise while you’re going around! Just remember to comport yourself accordingly. :)

I went to this great beer festival. I drank way too much beer. My girl friend said that there were more food choices last year. I had a bratwurst with sauerkraut. Very tasty. My favorite beer of the evening: blueberry pale ale from the San Diego Brewing Company.
Beer festivals are fun because you get a whole bunch of drunk people in one area and everyone has fun standing in line talking about beer and whatever else. This event is for a good cause: to fight cancer.
Cons: the lighting was not that good, some of the breweries did not have banners up, not enough free stuff given away by breweries, the people pouring the beer were mostly volunteers, so if you asked them about the beer they knew nothing, lines were a little long here and there.
I had a great time and will definitely go back next year.