It was about two weeks ago that the 2010 iteration of San Francisco Beer Week was kicked off by its inaugural Opening Gala. Yes, this may have been year two of the festival but this was the maiden voyage of the Opening Gala.
Last year, SF Beer Week was kicked off by an appropriately named Kick Off Party held at the venerable Anchor Steam Brewing Company. Far from being an impromptu affair, last year’s Kick Off Party had a very informal air to it. Many of the local brewers who’s beers I have since come to love were in attendance. In fact, the Kick Off Party at Anchor seemed to be a “who’s who” of the craft beer world. In addition to the brewers and their assistants, many of the SF Bay Area Beer Bloggers were in house as well. At the time, I didn’t really know them but by SF Beer Week’s end, I would become friends with many of them. Last but not least, the grandfather of American Craft Brewing Fritz Maytag himself, was on hand to debut Anchor’s first ever barrel aged beer, predictably named Our Barrel Ale.
This year’s Opening Gala had a decidedly different tone. Unlike last year’s casual celebration, the Opening Gala was much more organized and structured. Instead of being a party for those of us who had a hand in getting SF Beer Week 2009 off the ground, the Opening Gala was pretty much a beer festival of breweries participating in SF Beer Week on one level or another. Many of us who helped promote or plan events for SF Beer Week 2010, were allowed in an hour early during media hour. Everyone else was able to enter at 5pm. Unlike last year’s “invitation only” event, the Opening Gala was open to the public but I do believe tickets were limited.
Whereas my time at last year’s Kick Off Party was more of an eye-opening “I can’t believe we’re hobnobbing with all the local brewers at Anchor Brewing” sort of thing, this year’s Opening Gala was more of a jaw-dropping “Wow, they’ve really outdone themselves this year” event. While many will argue that Anchor Brewing is a much more beautiful location to have a beer-related party in, the Yerba Buena Center for the Performing Arts served as an excellent backdrop for the Opening Gala. While not cavernous by any means, the room the Gala was held in was large enough to accommodate all the brewers and guests. Like any other beer festival, the crowd was “shoulder-to-shoulder” at times with pockets of open space peppered within.
The majority of breweries that were pouring were arranged around the perimeter of the room with their names hanging on the walls above them. The center of the room was reserved for those breweries who supported SF Beer Week 2010 as sponsors. Off the top of my head, those breweries were Gordon Biersch, 21st Amendment, Magnolia and Speakeasy. I’m sure there were more but I just can’t recall them at the moment. On the side of the room with the windows was a stage where a 3-piece band was playing. About halfway through the night, Rich, of SF Brewers Guild, took to the stage to thank everyone for coming while Jay Brooks closed with a toast.
In addition to all the beer being poured, select food venders were in attendance as well. Typical beer festival foods such as sausages were being served but unexpected treats such as sushi were represented as well. Food was not included in the price of admission; you needed to pay the vendors individually. Really the only thing that went poorly the entire evening was a lack of water. It wasn’t until a little past the halfway point were water-filled kegs finally rolled out.
There were a lot of good beer being poured. I had the chance to try a variety of beers of which I took no notes of at all. Despite this there were a few memorable beers. The Imperial Common collaboration beer brewed by SF Beer Guild breweries specifically for the brewfest was debuted that evening. I found the beer to be good, reminded me of a stronger Anchor Steam, just a touch more malty. I also had the Bill Brand commemorative beer from Steve Altimari of Valley Brewing. Available only in bottles, and only if you knew to ask, it was a delightfully sour ale; mouthwateringly tart, aromatic and estery. Gordon Biersch brewed up a dampfbier, explained to me as a “German Steam beer”, I found to be balanced, not too malty or bitter, but I remember it having a “chewy” character.
The remainder of the evening was spent catching up with old friends I hadn’t seen in weeks, months even. In this respect, the Opening Gala felt a lot like a school reunion. My wife and I ran into people we knew just about everywhere. Whereas most beer festival conversation tend to be centered around beer, many of the conversations we had that night were more about how our friends were doing, what they were up to and what they had in store. Beer may have been the reason we all came out that night but the opportunity to see each other is the reason we keep coming out. I hate to say it but I think I spent more time catching up with old friends than I did trying some of the fantastic beers that were there.
Unfortunately, Sammy and I had to leave the Opening Gala hours before its end. My close friend’s mother passed away earlier in the week and that night was the viewing so we cut out early to attend and support him and his family. If that wasn’t enough, Sammy’s grandfather experienced some health issues that resulted in a trip to the emergency room. By the time I picked Sammy up and brought her home, it was 7am Saturday morning and we opted to stay in instead of taking a power nap before heading out to the Double IPA festival.
Overall, the SF Beer Week 2010 Opening Gala was a successful event to launch this year’s festivities. There were many breweries in attendance and lots of good, in some cases even rare, beers being poured. The theme presented on the SF Beer Week 2010 website was carried out in many aspects of the signage and collateral and really set a unified tone to the entire thing. I am looking forward to seeing what next year brings about!
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