Category: Event

September 22, 2015

High Plains BrewHoff 2015 Recap

One of the many great events from this past Saturday was the High Plains BrewHoff in Brew Lab‘s Old Downtown Overland Park parking lot. I had planned on attending more events during the day, but I had a small injury in the morning and could only get to the BrewHoff. Below you’ll find a quick recap and some pictures from the event.

It was a good time overall with a lot of great, unique beers. It had the same bad/good things as last year. Bad: kids, event space too small/too many people. Good: the beers, free snacks, water stations, good bands, it was free. See my review for last year here.

They did try to expedite the entry by having a VIP line and letting people in 30 minutes early Although a line didn’t start to form until about 12:45pm, by 2pm there was still quite a line. They did also try to discourage children (and Broncos apparel) by posting on their Facebook, but there were still quite a few kids (and one Broncos hat).

I love the spirit of the homebrewers. There’s so much creativity and passion that goes into each beer and it’s
refreshing to be at the type of event where the server knows what they’re talking about. Many tents had entertaining setups, from a Craftsmen toolbox keezer to a group of Fuzzy Helmets.

There weren’t as many homebrewers that were in the process of going legit as last year. Crane, Red Crow, Torn Label, and Double Shift all had a tent last year and are either already open or within a month of opening. BVH Brewery (Twitter, Facebook, Untappd) will be spending 2016 promoting their beers at several events while working on getting a permanent location. Mount Anderson Brewery (Untappd) is in talks with Missouri Hy-Vees to start selling 22oz bottles of their beer. They’ll be brewing and bottling just outside of Peculiar, MO.

Speaking of Mount Anderson, their beers and brewery did really well as far as voting went at the event. They took first for Best Beer with their Vanilla Milkshake Porter (well deserved). Click here to see all the winners on High Plains BrewHoff’s Facebook.

High Plains BrewHoff will hold their third BrewHoff next year on Saturday, September 17.

High Plains BrewHoff

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November 17, 2014

Westport Strong Ale Fest Pictures & Review

Maybe I just like the cold weather, but the 4th Annual Westport Strong Ale Fest was one of the best festivals I’ve been to in a while. The street in front of McCoy’s Public House in Westport was closed off to celebrate Strong Ales this past Saturday.

The beers were great. The very last keg of Love Child No. 4 from Boulevard , limited amount of Owd Mac’s Double Russian Imperial Stout Aged on Templeton Rye Whisky Barrels from Free State, Sierra Nevada‘s Narwhal Imperial Stout, and the quickly-out 4 Hands Madagascar were the highlights of the beer selection. I tried everything I wanted to try except for Oskar Blues‘ Ten Fidy. They were listed to be there, but I didn’t see them. A few other breweries who weren’t on the list showed up, so it’s not like there was a lack of beer.

The lines at each brewery were nonexistent and the crowd was pleasant. Even though the beers were all 8%+ ABV, nobody was wasted by the end of the event. This is the type of event you enjoy the beer rather than try to drink to get drunk. The DJ played great music that appealed to the crowd with a mix of late nineties to current day songs.

There were enough heaters to keep everyone warm and with the amount of people there, it was easy to stay warm. A few more tables for attendees would have been great, but with McCoy’s open to the attendees it wasn’t that big of a deal.

Overall, if my biggest complaint was the lack of enough tables, it must have been a great event, right? 9.5 out of 10.

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November 2, 2014

The Pitch’s Crafts & Drafts Pictures and Review

Some of the best breweries and crafters were all packed into the Uptown Shoppes on Saturday. Starting at 11am, you were able knock out some of your Christmas shopping or splurge on something for yourself in an Etsy-in-real-life setting, while drinking some fantastic drinks from Crane Brewing, Boulevard, 4 Hands, KC Bier Co, Tallgrass, Urban Chesnut, Cooper’s Hawk Winery, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, and Crown Royal.

The event was planned really well, although I didn’t see a lot of advertising for it, which kept the crowd down. Even when I left at 2:30pm, there were still enough parking spaces to accommodate the vendors and attendees. I appreciate it was a free event, but before going I was unsure if the beer would be free and/or if I should bring my own glass. When I arrived, the bar was set up for $6 a beer, so I figured I would walk around a little bit, take a few pictures, and head out. When I got back around to the beer area, the breweries had set up and started to serve their beers for free. They provided small, plastic taster cups that were tossed away in a trash bin. It would have been nice to have some recycle bins set up. Bridging the Gap often provides these at events for a small fee. The floor plan of the event was perfect. Enough room for lines at the brewery tables, aisles were big enough to easily get through, and even a lounge area set up with couches, tables, a DJ, and college football on TV.

The beers were amazing and were drinkable with little-to-no wait. Crane Brewing was the best with their Orange, Peach, and Braun Weiss beers that were a dream to any sour beer lover. It was nice to watch as patrons excitingly inquired about their location, when they are going to open, where they could buy bottles. Although a bit out of the way in Raytown, they will be the brewery to check out whether you’re a Kansas City native or just a visitor.

The other breweries brought good beers and mostly good attitudes. The people working the Boulevard and Urban Chestnut booths seemed like they didn’t want to be there at first, but warmed up a little as the day went on. While this is a beer blog, I did indulge in some wine and Whisky. Cooper’s Hawk Winery‘s table had several wines from Sangria to a Cabernet Zinfandel and a well setup booth. The gentlemen at the booth were friendly and enthusiastic. Crown Royal was giving away their new Regal Apple along with some few other favorites.

Great, free event with plentiful parking, an upbeat crowd, enough space to chill out, and the crafters were amazing. 9 out of 10. Can’t wait for next year!

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October 5, 2014

Boulevard Oktoberfiesta Review

Maybe I got there too early (5:15pm), but Boulevard’s attempt to combine Oktoberfest and Día de los Muertos fell a little flat. The decorations were wonderful and the beer was great, per usual, but the atmosphere felt like any other day at the brewery. For an event lasting only 2 hours, I expected the fiesta to be going full steam when I arrived.

It seemed as though a tour had just let out, so they were busy. The food grill was just getting started, so I imagine the Chorizowurst and other food wasn’t ready until at least 6pm. I drank a Fall Flight of Collaboration No. 4; Tasting Room Oatmeal Stout; The Sixth Glass; and Dark Truth Stout, and bought two Smokestack beers to get my free Freaker, and left. I have been to Boulevard several times, but this time I felt a bit confused on what was going on; I expected the staff to be more warm and friendly and to get patrons involved in the party, but they stayed behind their counters and only spoke when spoken to. Next time, maybe have a greeter at the door or have someone walk around handing out some crafted flowers.

Overall, I would give the event a 6 out of 10. Maybe next time get more involved with the party guests.