By Kristin Mastre
Feasting Fort Collins
6/27/11

If there’s one lesson I’ve learned in the leadership roles I’ve had in my life, it’s that you can’t please everyone all of the time. This is especially true when you are catering to an entire city. Brewfest has had a few rough years of trying to make everyone happy. First, there were the out-of-control years when the event was in Old Town Square and drunks ran the streets like wild hooligans pissing in doorways, puking on sidewalks and breaking storefront windows. Then, after complaints and petitions from Old Town businesses to have the event moved, the event changed the next year.

This change of location last year, along with a higher cost and 3 hour session time limits, resulted in happier businesses, but disgruntled event patrons. There were boycotts and a very low attendance which resulted in a loss of revenue for the DBA. I went, and while I did find it to be on the boring side, I really did enjoy not having to wait in lines, and the ability to chat with the people that were there pouring.

This year the DBA has tried to find a balance between the two years. They lowered event prices, got rid of the time limits, but kept it at the new location at Civic Center Park. They also added a few fun events in addition to the musical entertainment that really stayed true to the craft beer culture.

A couple of friends joined me for the Sunday session, and we started on the earlier side of noon (nothing like starting a Sunday morning with beer!). It seemed as though most people came on Saturday or were waiting to stop by at a later time on Sunday, because when we were there, the place was practically empty.

We strolled around to see who had the most interesting beers so that we could best budget our pre-paid tokens to fill our 4 ounce commemorative mugs. I first ruled out all Fort Collins’ breweries. While many of them had the most unique beers to share, I felt like this was a great venue to see what Colorado craft beer had to offer. I also decided to go with light beers – which was a total different direction for this hop-head drinker. Being a scortching 90 degrees on the pavement, I wanted to keep it light and nice, rather than dense and intense.

After walking around for a little bit, I began to feel like there weren’t as many breweries attending this year, and there wasn’t a whole lot to choose from.

Most notable beers were from:

Bristol Brewing Co. (Colorado Springs) Yellow Kite Summer Pils – a refreshing balance of malt and barley with a dry crispy snap on the finish.
Ska Brewing Co. (Durango) True Blond Ale – one of my favorite breweries of all time, this was a medium-bodied ale that was packed with a sweet honey flavor from Durango’s Honeyville Bees. I thought it had a great rounded flavor that hit every point in beer tasting for me.
Asher Brewing Co (Boulder) Green Lantern Organic Kölsch – brewed with organic hops and malted barley, this was a rich tasting lighter beer. I really enjoyed the fullness of it, and the ever so slight hops flavor, despite the climbing temperature outside.
Crabtree Brewing Co. (Greeley) Orange Blossom Saison – brewed with orange blossom honey for a crisp but mild flavor. I’m not big on sour ales, and it has to be something special to catch my attention. This was my favorite beer the entire time we were at Brewfest. I actually thought of the more mild-flavored beers, it topped out as [more flavorful, most refreshing, most delicious, and most loved. This was the ideal beer to drink in the sun, and hell, I'd drink this beer in the rain or snow, too.

The beer-centric entertainment this year was top-notch with the “experience beer” tent. Mouco Cheese did a cheese and beer pairing demonstration, and Pateros Creek Brewing spoke about how to judge a beer. There were brew discussions from large breweries and home brewers. This is what brewfest is all about, and I was trilled to see it happen.

ToolBox Creative also had an awesome Beer Geek tent offering a blind porter taste test between three beers. I don’t know if it was because it was at the end of the day for me and my taste buds were shot, or if I just sucked horribly (probably the case) but I completely bombed this taste test. However, it was a great addition to the event and I hope to see it again next year!

I would have liked to see more breweries participating this year, and many more options to drink, but overall – it was a great time. I think the DBA did a great job in balance, trying to make everyone happy, and kicking it up a level with the beer geekiness. I’m definitely looking forward to Brewfest 2012!
http://www.feastingfortcollins.com/1602/22nd-annual-colorado-brewers-festival/