Fairfax Brewfest 2008 Recap
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| 13th Annual Fairfax Brewfest 2008 click for photo gallery |
With the weather threatening to put a damper on the day, Sammy and I make the drive up to Fairfax to attend their 13th Annual Brewfest. It was well worth the drive up as we got a chance to visit a part of California we’ve never been to as well as try out new beers and hopefully meet new people.
The brewfest was held in the Pavilion, located in downtown Fairfax on top of a hill. It’s a red, mulitipurpose building that suited the festival well. Despite being an enclosed building, the wide floorspace was open. The crowds concentrated mainly around the breweries and there was enough open space to be able to get around relatively easy. After experiencing both the Double IPA Festival and the Barleywine Festival, it’s nice to be in a venue where you can walk around freely.
Pleasantly unexpected, we ran into Brandon whom we met at the Double IPA Festival. It was through his email that I found out about the Fairfax Brewfest so I thank him for passing on the information regarding the event. I wasn’t expecting to see Brandon until the upcoming Firkin Festival in Berkeley because it’s closer to his neck of the woods. One good deed done ends up coming back to you as Brandon ended up winning a raffle with the prize being a box of Clif bars. Coincidentally, the Clif bar people are staring their own winery as well.
While I’m at it, I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank Richard Pedemonte for passing on the information about the Brewfest. All the information came directly from the Director of the Fairfax Chamber of Commerce. Unfortunately for me, I never got a chance to thank him in person. Thankfully, my wife was able to find him and thank him on our behalf.
I had wanted to get to the Brewfest a little early in hope of chatting up the different breweries that were in attendance. It’s always nice to meet new people in the industry and maybe pick their brains a bit regarding some of the future topics I am interested in writing about. Since we were late, it was close to impossible to hold anyone’s attention but I was lucky enough to have spoken with the Jeremy, the New Belgium representative. It turns out the company moved him out to California and he works as the Norcal “Beer Ranger”. Even though it was a bit short, I just wanted to thank Jeremy for his email and I look forward to meeting up with him again soon.
Continuing on in my tradition of poor reporting, I bring you my list of beers Sammy and I tried between the two of us.
- Beach Chalet - Saison*
- Broken Drum - Double IPA
- Black Diamone - Belgian Blonde
- Lagunitas - Gnarleywine*
- New Belgium - Mothership Wit*
- Triple Rock - Pinnacle Pale Ale
- Marin Brewing Company - Hefeweizen
- Lagunitas - Czech Pilsner*
- Iron Springs - Brown Ale
- Broken Drum - Golden Lager
One of the brewfest staff members announced the fan favorite winners in three categories. Unfortunately for me, I didn’t write them down but Richard proved to be invaluable by supplying the the results via email. Here they are:
Lagers
- Broken Drum - Golden lager
- Magnolia Kolsch
Pale Ale
- Broken Drum Hop Head Double IPA
- Iron Springs IPA
Dark Beer
- Triple Rock Stonehenge
- Marin Brewing Pt Reyes Porter
I mentioned to Richard that my only critique of the Brewfest was the apparent lack of vendors when it came to food. Other than the Sausage and Garlic Fry place in the back, there wasn’t anyone else. Richard informed me there were sandwiches earlier on but I guess Sammy and I missed them because we arrived late.
Sammy and I ended the day by taking a leisurely stroll about town. We visited a toy shop, a garden sculpture shop and the corner taqueria for a bite before we headed out of town. The 13th Annual Fairfax Brewfest was enjoyable and I look forward to coming back next year.
* Denotes a favorite of either Sammy or myself.
