A glimpse inside a west coast beer fest

As temperatures soar across the country, summer marks the start of beer fest season. And like clockwork craft beer lovers head out to get their fill of free tastings at festivals that are becoming more and more frequent.  We took a moment between our own free samples to slow down and take in the full beer fest experience.

For many a craft beer event isn’t just about the free, sometimes limitless, tasting of their favorite beers. It isn’t just to get free stuff as big guys toss t-shirts, hats, stickers and anything else they could plaster their names on and schlep out to each passerby. Instead, if one can push aside the veil and look beyond the drones of frothy samples, things start to look a bit interesting.

The craft beer community is just that, a club for boys and girls that anyone can join with the right gumption, know-how, and proper assemblage of yeast, wort, and hops.

Despite the growth and fragmentation the industry is starting to see, what remains deep down is still a bunch of big time home brewers with shiny equipment busting out some wild and exciting recipes. But the job of running a brewery doesn’t allow many of our heroes time to exchange quips or samples with each other.

Luckily, we have a festival for that.

They question the process, provide tips to the new guys, or just get drunk like the rest of us. Sometimes the criticism is harsh.

“Sterilizer and soap shouldn’t be a part of the flavor profile” says a brewer laughing as he pours his sample out.

Other times, the praise is well founded. “This is amazing. So how did you…” trailed off a brewmaster as he held his sampler glass to the light to admire the color.

Despite the lines getting longer and many attendees going just to slam a few high gravity beers from the places they know, among the pretzel necklaces and free stickers, is the backbone of the craft beer community still sharing secrets and experience and enjoying doing what they love.

Making and sharing their beers.