This event featured seven brunch dishes paired with seven craft beers, listed below:

• MateVeza & Mill Valley Beerworks Morpho Herbal Ale (Aged with Lactobacillus) with El Porteño Pollo Empanadas
• Cascade Apricot Ale with Pear and Kumkwat Salad with Taragon
• Moonlight Toast (Slightly Burnt) with Chicken Waffles with Salsa Verde
• Kern River Just Outstanding IPA with California Deviled Egg
• Ballast Point Victory at Sea Coffee Vanilla Imperial Porter with Churro Dusted Mexican Truffle
• Allagash Curieux Bourbon Barrel Aged Tripel with Pigs in a Puff-pastry Blanket with Spicy Honey Mustard
• Marin Three Flowers IPA (Cask) with Potato Chip Crusted Fried Mac & Cheese

One of my favorite pairings was the Moonlight Toast with the Chicken Waffles. The chicken salsa verde was actually in the waffle itself. It may sound a little odd but it was very delicious. Moonlight Toast paired just perfectly with the flavors in the waffle.
A special treat was the availability of Cascade Apricot Ale, which is a sour lambic fruit beer. Cascade can be found in the SF Bay Area but it can be hard to come by. Another favorite of mine was the GABF Award Winning Marin Three Flowers IPA and the deep fried mac & cheese both were very delicious offerings.

My only criticism of the event was that food ran out well before the end of the event. Given that it is brunch on the first weekend of SF Beer Week, I’d actually rather have them run out of beer first and run out of food second. You can always buy another beer at the bar but when the food is gone it’s gone.

Despite not being able to completely gorge myself, which was probably a good thing, the food was creative yet comforting and the beer selection was superb. I highly recommend attending Beerunch the next time it comes along.

Full disclosure: Public House gave me a complementary ticket to attend this event. I did, however, purchase a ticket for my wife.

More Photos from Beerunch

Friday, February 10, 2012 marked the beginning of SF Beer Week with the Opening Celebration and it started off with a bang. This festival expanded on the previous years to become one of the best beer festivals I have attended.

The highlight of this festival was the strong presence of over 50 (likely close to 65) breweries from the San Francisco Bay Area and neighboring counties. Not only were they pouring some of their favorites but each brewery brought special and rare releases of beer. I’ve never been to a festival with such a high percentage and variety of special, seasonal, or limited release offerings. The Barrel-Aged Beer Festival at The Bistro in Hayward comes close but all of that beer is barrel aged. The Great American Beer Festival has a large number of special releases but the breweries are also their to show off and compete with their everyday selections. It was fantastic to be able to try Drake’s Hopocalypse Black Label Triple IPA, Triple Rock’s Rodger’s Last Stand, Russian River’s Pliny the Younger and Beatification, and more. The stand out beer of the evening, for me, was Speakeasy’s Massacre, a black wheat wine made with cherries and aged in bourbon barrels.

On top of great beer there was great food at reasonable prices (for a beer festival). I tried options from both Rosamunde Sausage Grill and TomKat Asian Street Food. The food was great and the price was about what I would expect if I went directly to the food vendor.

One great thing about the Opening Celebration is that the organizers listened to and learned from the feedback from the Opening Gala last year. This year there was plenty of water, tons of food options, and a large open space. The only problem this year was the lack of bathrooms, which can even be a problem at the Great American Beer Festival.

 More Photos

View all Beer 47 SF Beer Week photos on Flickr.

Special Thanks

A special thanks goes out to Dom and Brian from Uber. They were curious about my photography and posed for a couple of great photos. They were nice enough to offer me a complementary ride home on Uber, which I shared with some fellow Bay Area Beer Bloggers (John Heylin and Dave McAcoy), at the end of the evening. Uber is not cheap but if you have the means, I highly recommend using their car service during SF Beer Week.

Brasserie Dupont, located in the rural town of Tourpes, Belgium, has been brewing under the name Dupont since 1920 but their site has house breweries as far bas as 1844. These days Brasserie Dupont is more well known for their quintessential saison, Dupont Saison, but their entire line up of beer is off the same caliber as Saison, including this wonderful Belgian strong blond ale, Moinette.

Moinette is one of the oldest beers made by the brewery dating back to 1955, right around when this style became popular. The name comes from the historically swampy area where the brewery is located, the “moëne region.” Like all of their traditional beer, Dupont bottle conditions, or “re-ferements” Moinette for at least two months at a controlled temperature of 73º F, which results in a very well carbonated beer.

Date Reviewed. June 10, 2011

Where I Found It. Costco, San Francisco, CA for only $7.99! I’ve never seen it there since.

Serving Type. 750 ml bottle into a tulip glass.

Appearance. This beer has a hazy golden straw color with a white head. When I first poured it from the bottle the head was an enormous mound of frothy white foam. It took a while for it to dissipate. After that however, subsequent pours had average to below average head retention. There is a thin layer of foam throughout drinking this beer.

Aroma. Moinette has a strong hop bouquet with floral, earthy, and straw notes. I’m guessing styrian goldings hops in this one. The aroma also includes a good dose of cloves and spice, like un-cracked black peppercorns. There is a hint of banana. It smells inviting

Taste. This beer has a good balance of bitter and sweet. It highlights malty flavors while not being overly sweet. The sweetness that is present is like a just ripened banana.  The bitterness is present and complements the aroma by revealing itself as spice, like the sensation of a crushed peppercorn but not as intense as a szechuan peppercorn.

Mouthfeel. This is a full to medium bodied beer with quite a bit of carbonation that makes the mouthfeel not quite as fizzy as a soda. This is due to the bottle conditioning or “re-fermentation.”

Overall. Moinette is an excellent example of a Belgian strong pale ale. It has all of the best qualities of a Belgian ale with no apparent flaws. The banana and clove aromas, from the yeast, meld perfectly with the spicy, earthy, floral hops and the sweet grainy malts. Truly a wonderful beer.

The bottle I had was relatively fresh but the “refermentation” still produced a quite a bit of extra carbonation.

Rating. My ratings below are on a five point scale with five being the best score.

• Appearance (6%): 4.5
• Smell (24%): 4.0
• Taste (40%): 4.5
• Mouthfeel (10%): 4.0
• Overall (20%): 5.0
• Total: 4.43

Information

• Style: Belgian strong blond ale
• Brewery: Brasserie Dupont [more info]
• Alcohol by volume: 8.5%
• RateBeer scores: 98 overall, 99 style (as of Dec. 8, 2011)

Other Reviews

• BetterBeerBlog – Beer in Review: Moinette Belgian Ale
• Pints and Panels – Dupont Moinette Blonde reviewed!

Troublette is a flavorful yet refreshing Belgian-style witbier, or white ale, brewed by Brasserie Caracole in Falmignoul, near Dinant, Belgium. If you’re looking for an alternative to Hoegaarden, then Caracole Troublette will be a treat being much more interesting and just as refreshing with zesty notes and a balanced flavor.

Date Reviewed. October 6, 2011

Where I Found It. The Jug Shop, San Francisco.

Serving Type. 330ml bottle to glass.

Appearance. Troublette has a beautiful hazy golden yellow color with a white fizzy head. The head has very poor retention but does leave a touch of lacing.

Smell. At first, while the head was still on the beer, the aroma expressed fruity ester notes of fresh bananas and green apples. As the head died down and the beer warmed up, the green apple aroma dissipated revealing the more phenolic notes of lemon zest, coriander, and a touch of white pepper with a hint of cloves. The grain also more apparent with a slight aroma of baked bread and honey.

Taste. Troublette nicely expresses the wheat in the flavor of the beer further expressing the baked bread that is in the aroma. This beer is slightly sweet with very little bitterness. What bitterness there is expresses itself more like an herbal bitterness like white pepper.

Mouthfeel. This is a light to medium bodied beer with a wonderfully strong champagne-like effervescence on the tongue. Like many Belgian-made beers this is due to a thorough regimen of bottle conditioning.

Overall. Troublette is a refreshing, flavorful, and easy drinking examples of a Belgian-style witbier. Looks may be deceiving with this beer, despite the pale, unassuming color, it is a very flavorful beer.

Rating. My ratings below are on a five point scale with five being the best score.

• Appearance (6%): 4.0
• Smell (24%): 4.5
• Taste (40%): 4.0
• Mouthfeel (10%): 4.0
• Overall (20%): 4.0
• Total: 4.12

Information

• Style: Belgian-style witbier
• Brewery: Brasserie Caracole [more info]
• Alcohol by volume: 5.0%
• Malt: pilsner malt, raw unmalted wheat (source)
• Hops: Styrian Goldings and Saaz
• RateBeer rating: 84 overall, 94 style

Other Reviews

• PEI Beer Guy – Caracole Troublette

During my first visit to The Great American Beer Festival in 2010 I came across the Souththeast section where I discovered The Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery. The very first beer I sampled was Duck-Rabbit Milk Stout and it was so delicious that I had another 1 oz. sample and another. From that moment I knew that I had discovered one of my favorite stouts ever.

After I discovered this wonderful brew from a small brewery in Farmville, NC, I knew I had a problem: Duck-Rabbit beer is not distributed to California. Luckily, a few weeks later, I made some new friends at the 2010 Beer Bloggers Conference and I was able to enjoy an entire 12 oz. bottle, thanks to Doug Brumley, author of The Fledgling Brewer. Finally, in May 2011 I made a trip to Raleigh and Durham, North Carolina, the home of Duck-Rabbit, where the Milk Stout was be plentiful. I even had the opportunity to try Left Hand Milk Stout side by side with Duck-Rabbit Milk Stout. Both are great beers but I enjoyed the Duck-Rabbit just a little bit more.

After my trip to North Carolina, I was able to bring back a few bottles of beer including the bottle that I used to write and photograph this review.

Date Reviewed. November 2, 2011

Where I Found It. Sam’s Quik Shop in Durham, NC.

Serving Type. 12 oz. bottles into a nonick pint glass.

Appearance. Duck-Rabbit Milk Stout is opaque black through and through. It has a long lasting, frothy tan head with a color similar to latte foam lightly mixed with espresso.

Aroma. This beer smells like cream and chocolate with just a touch of coffee. The roasted malts come off with more of a rich dark chocolate aroma than a coffee aroma. Any espresso notes are very muted, much like an espresso con panna that is heavy on the whipped cream. The sweetness of the malt and milk sugar is apparent in the nose. It is very inviting.

Taste. Duck-Rabbit Milk Stout is a sweet stout with a rich, roasted bitterness that gives it a flavor more like a dark chocolate milk than a standard chocolate milk. The roasted malt comes off ever so slightly harsh and a touch like espresso but is very nicely balanced by the sweetness of the lactose and malt. It is a sweet, rich and for the style a bit more bitter than average, which is a flavor that I really enjoy.

Mouthfeel. This milk stout is a medium bodied that despite the milk sugar comes off a bit thinner than I expected. It is neither light nor heavy but it doesn’t have a rich thick velvety texture that I might have expected. It still has a very nice mouthfeel.

Overall. Duck-Rabbit Milk Stout is a fantastic beer that almost fits well within the style guidelines for a milk stout. It is a touch more bitter than average but I find this to a great way for the brewer to differentiate their milk stout from others. I always like to describe this beer as dark chocolate milk.

Rating. My ratings below are on a five point scale with five being the best score.

• Appearance (6%): 5.0
• Aroma (24%): 5.0
• Taste (40%): 4.5
• Mouthfeel (10%): 4.5
• Overall (20%): 5.0
• Total: 4.75

Information

• Name: Duck-Rabbit Milk Stout
• Brewery: The Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery [more  info]
• Style: milk stout
• Alcohol by volume: 5.7%
• RateBeer rating: 94 overall, 89 style (as of November 2, 2011)

I find it refreshing when I find a full flavor stout with a wonderful aroma that is not strong or imperial. Firestone-Walker Brewing has done a wonderful job in doing this with creating this superb oatmeal stout with a familiar, yet complex, aroma and flavor profile.

Although Velvet Merlin is now available in bottles since 2010, and 6-packs for that matter, it started it’s life as a very limited release beer under a different name. It was previously called Velvet Merkin. Due to potential issues with labeling as well as possible marketing problems with the work merkin [wikipedia link but still NSFW], the name was changed to Merlin and a magical beer it is. Update: Additionally, Velvet Merkin is a slightly different beer, it is 100% barrel-aged whereas Velvet Merlin is partially barrel-aged.

One of the unique aspects of this beer is that it is partially aged in bourbon barrels. It’s not enough to detect a strong bourbon flavor but it does provide a little something extra that you might not find in a traditional oatmeal stout.

Date Reviewed. November 1, 2011

Where I Found It. Whole Foods Market in San Francisco, CA.

Serving Type. 12 oz. bottles into a nonick pint glass.

Appearance. Velvet Merlin has an opaque inky black color with just a tinge of glowing dark brown on the edges of the glass. The head is a tan color with large foamy bubble and a little above average head retention.

Aroma. This beer smells fantastic. It has a hint of oats that, when combined with the malt aromas, makes the beer smell a bit like an oatmeal cookie. It also has a creaminess that comes off like milk chocolate. The typical roastiness of a stout is nicely balanced by the sweet creamy bouquet. There is no discernable hops and little to no coffee aromas. If it were not for the oat smells, I would think this to be a milk stout. There is just a small hint of cola in the background.

Taste. Velvet Merlin falls half-way between a sweet stout and a dry stout. It has strong flavors of malt and dark roasted malt with out being too sweet. It is also not dry by any means. The bitterness from both the hops and the malt is quite light. The flavor is reminiscent of a chocolate milk with a dash of espresso with an oatmeal cookie on the side. The bourbon barrel aging comes off in the flavor as a hint of vanilla.

Mouthfeel. This beer has a smooth texture that is just short of velvety, despite it’s name. Even though this is a beer made with very dark roasted malt, it comes off as smooth with little to no astringency.

Overall. Velvet Merlin is a great stout that keeps you going for more and allows you to drink more without falling off your chair. It has just as much flavor as many stouts, that are higher in alcohol percentage. This is a full flavored oatmeal stout that I feel fits well into the category with the added benefit of a slightly creamy aroma pushing it close to a milk stout in aroma but not in sweetness.

Rating. My ratings below are on a five point scale with five being the best score.

• Appearance (6%): 4.0
• Aroma (24%): 5.0
• Taste (40%): 4.5
• Mouthfeel (10%): 4.5
• Overall (20%): 4.5
• Total: 4.59

Information

• Style: oatmeal stout
• Brewery: Firestone-Walker Brewing Company [more info]
• Alcohol by volume: 5.5%
• Original Gravity: 1.061
• Hops: U.S. Fuggle
• Malt: Maris Otter, 2-Row Pale, Roast Barley, English Dark Caramel, Medium Caramel, Carafa Malt, Oats (15%)
• Other ingredients: Partially aged in bourbon barrels
• RateBeer rating: 97 overal, 97 style (as of November 2, 2011)

Another day to celebrate beer is upon us and this time we will be celebrating stout. International Stout Day is on Thursday, November 3 and San Francisco will join in a with an event by Public House and Beer 47. Public House has arranged for 4 very special and hard to find stouts to be available on tap along with a selection of two rare bottles of stout.

The festivities will begin at 4pm and will last until closing at 10pm. Get there early so you don’t miss out on all these great stouts.

The special stouts on draft will include:

• Avery The Czar Russian Imperial Stout
• Firestone-Walker Velvet Merlin Oatmeal Stout on cask
• North Coast Old #38 on nitro
• Speakeasy Sutro Chocolate Milk Stout

Additionally the following rare bottles will be available:

• 2010 Firestone-Walker Parabola
• 2010 Stone Russian Imperial Stout

In addition to the stouts listed above, Public House will has a great selection of craft beer as well as a full bar. Public House is located at AT&T Park at 24 Willie Mays Plaza, San Francisco, CA 94107. For more information about the venue please visit the Public House web page.

For more information about the Stout Day Celebration at Public House please see the Facebook event page.

Whether it is your first time or your 10th time to GABF, there are a few things that you should consider before you go. Here are 15 tips and suggestions to help make your visit successful and pleasurable.

1. Drink Water

This is probably the more important thing to do, besides enjoying the beer and one great thing about GABF is the plentiful amounts of water. There are pitchers at the booths, which are constantly filled. There are water coolers almost everywhere you look. There is no excuse not to drink plenty of water during the event. Generally, I just down the water I use to rinse my tasting glass. Thinking back on last year, I likely drank at least 2 servings of water for every serving of beer.

2. Eat

Eat before, after, and maybe even during the festival. Food will help counteract the impact of the alcohol in your system.

Don’t go to the festival on an empty stomach. You won’t be able to drink much before getting sick or you’ll waste your time waiting for over-priced food instead of exploring the massive convention hall.

In 2010, I was running late so I just grabbed a couple of slices of pizza and ate them while I walked over to the convention center. Whatever it takes, eat before. By the end of the festival, each night I’m usually hungry again so I just head over to Euclid Hall, Freshcraft, or The Cheeky Monk.

When you’re eating, try to eat iron rich food, such as beef and spinach. The iron content of these foods helps you acclimate to the high altitude.

3. Arrive early and bring ID

The line to get in can take you up to 45 minutes to get through. If you arrive 45 minutes to an hour early you’ll spend you time waiting for the opening instead of wading through the line. The less time you’re in line after the doors open, the more time you spend inside.

You will not be allowed to enter without identification so don’t forget it.

4. Not allowed: backpacks, outside food, bottles, cans

Leave your backpack at home it won’t be allowed in. You can, however, bring in a small over-the-should camera bag or purse.

Outside food and drink is not allowed. You will have to dump it before you enter. The exception to the food rule is pretzel jewelry.

5. Make a pretzel necklace

The exception to the food rule are pretzel necklaces because they are considered jewelry or a part of your costume. Some folks might think these are tacky and annoying but I think it is a great way to have a sack at your disposal throughout the festival. After all, eating will help minimize the affects of the alcohol.

6. Don’t drop your cup/glass

You only get one and if you break it, you won’t be able to get a replacement. It can also cause a huge ruckus because everybody around you tends to yell out when a glass is dropped and this noise carries in the huge festival hall.

If you need help not dropping your glass, buy a tasting glass holder. These are usually a ring with a lanyard attached. I bought mine from Brew Caddy and these are usually for sale at the festival. I would, however, recommend getting them before the festival in case they sell out.

7. Don’t yell out when somebody else drops their cup

It’s annoying. Set a good example and just don’t do it. Although, if you witness a glass getting broken during the Saturday members only afternoon session, it is hard to resist saying, “awww.” Because , well, it’s sad.

8. Wear a costume

One great aspect of the GABF is the number of people wearing creative costumes. Some are as simple as creative matching t-shirts and others are as elaborate as a full beer-pint body suit. Check out my article on the Costumes of the 2010 Great American Beer Festival.

9. Take notes on paper

Last year I insisted on using my smartphone to take notes but by the end of the night I was out of power. I was fully expecting this and brought along a charger but who wants to be hanging out in the corner waiting for their phone to charge? This year, paper notes.

You might also consider a beer notebook. There are all sorts of beer taking notebooks available and some of them like 33 Beers are usually available for purchase at the festival itself. 33 Beers was developed with the Great American Beer Festival in mind so I’ll be picking up a few notebooks this year.

10. Have a plan

There is much more beer than you can drink in 3 days. There are over 450 breweries serving over 2000 different beers. In order to maximize your time at the festival, you should have a game plan. Here are some game plan ideas:

• Try only one style of beer from as many breweries as possible.
• Focus on a particular region.
• Visit the popular breweries not available in your area.
• Go to every brewery without a line. As the night goes on, this become more rare but it does happen.

If your plan is to try beer from popular breweries that do not distribute to your home town, then get their early and visit those places first. Breweries like Stone, Lost Abbey, and Dogfish Head can have very long lines.

11. Check out the Brewers Guilds stations

Each brewers guild that shows up has its own station in the festival and they server the beers of their member brewers. It is a little known fact that the beers served at these stations are different than the beers served at the brewer’s stations. Avoid the lines and check it out.

12. Bring a camera

There is a lot of interesting things to see: people in crazy costumes, elaborate booths, your friends, and maybe even your favorite beer personality. It would be a shame not to have a camera to capture the moment.

Cameras are also useful for remembering details about what you are drinking. If you’re not writing down your notes, you can use your camera to snap the name of your new favorite brewery or the beer list at a particular booth that you might want to remember later.

13. Check out the other events in the area

There are lot’s of events going on in the Denver area. Most of them center around Falling Rock Tap House, Freshcraft, and Euclid Hall but there are breweries in town and news ones opening up all of the time. Check the internet, Facebook, Twitter, or the craftbeer.com events calendar for ideas.

14. Know beer vocabulary

If you’re not quite a beer geek yet or even fairly new to craft beer, now might be a good to catch up on your beer vocabulary. Check out this article I wrote for Menuism, For Beer Lovers Only: A Craft Beer Glossary.

15. Drink responsibly

You’re at high altitude in Denver so know your limits and adjust accordingly. Drinking lot’s of water and eating regularly will help slow down the effects of alcohol but if you drink way too much nothing will help. Don’t forget to drink water when it’s not around every corner like it is at the festival.

Drink responsibly, moderately, and don’t drive.

More information

For more information, visit the Great American Beer Festival website and FAQ.

Finally, if you have any other tips, suggestions, or strategies to add to this list, please leave a comment below.

Last year, 2010, I attended my first Great American Beer Festival and one of the things that caught my attention was the number of people wearing awesome and creative costumes to the festival. It wasn’t until the last day that I started taking photos of attendees in costume. Many of the costumes had some sort of beer or beer culture theme. There were quite a few women wearing dirndls, a few men wearing lederhosen, and everybody else wore something fun or outrageous but nothing shocking.

The follow photos are just a small sample of what I saw at the festival. What are some of your favorite costumes that you saw at or maybe wore to the Great American Beer Festival?

The turn out for the event was fantastic. In addition to the other great craft beer, we enjoyed 8 IPAs on tap: Russian River Blind Pig, Bear Republic Racer 5, Ninkasi Total Domination IPA, Stone Ruination IPA, Ballast Point Big Eye IPA, Brasserie d’Achouffe Houblon Chouffe, and Ale Industries East Bay IPA. The Ale Industries IPA was a  special treat because IPA Day at Rosamunde was one of the first places to have this new beer available. It seemed to be the crowd favorite too because it sold out by about 6:30pm.

It was great time and a great opportunity to meet old friends and even make a few new friends. Special thanks to Josh Margolis, owner of Rosamunde, and Ruggy Joesten, of Yelp, for making this so successful on such short notice, only 10 days.