2012 Decatur Beer Festival Hits and Misses

The city

The husband and I had a wonderful time at the 2012 Decatur Beer Festival. For those of you who could not get tickets, They sold out in less than 30 minutes, you missed some good tastings.  A complete lists of participating vendors can be seen at www.decaturbeerfestival.org 

The weather

Our method is to first hit the vendors who are new to us and then hit our tried and true favorites. Local guys Blue Tarp Brewing was one of my favorite newbies. The brewery offered a taste of things to come from their new roost in Decatur and I must say that taste was a good one. They join the league of other local loves of mine and I look forward to buying their creations soon. 

The hubby

One of my usual beers Ommegang, from Cooperstown, New York,  brought in some great beers for the event and I fell in love with their Art of Darkness. It had the slight bite of most dark stouts but was still creamy with a warm chocolate finish. The day offered a few dark brews including.....

The beer

Taking my taste buds across the country to Boonville, California I found another dark option. Winter Solstice by Anderson Valley Brewing blew me off of my feet and made me linger at the table for a few more tastes. The carmel and vanilla notes in this one definitely make it a dessert beer without being sickly sweet like some Lambics and pumpkin ales can be. 

While I generally won't turn my nose up at brews there was one offender at the event that I have to mention. Stoudt's Scarlet Lady Ale was not a good one for me. In searching the web I have found several favorable reviews but the only way I could describe the taste it left on my palatte was "Off." I'm not really sure what they were trying to do with this one but if I see it at another festival I will steer clear.

I hope you all had as good of time as we did. And I hope you all gained some new favorite brews for your future package and growler store excursions.

Cheers!