Stay Pretty & Drink Real Beer

I just want to prelude this post by saying that we will stay true to our beer on a budget promise as the summer goes on, but we couldn't pass up the opportunity to launch our blog and my first night back to this beautiful city with the American Craft Beer Fest at Seaport World Trade Center. 5,000 people, 550+ types of beer, and fried dough in one room... impossible to pass up. We went into the night prepared for all conditions after a warning from a friend that he had no recollection of his return home. Snacks, umbrella, camera, and flip cam in tow, we patiently awaited 6:00 as it poured down rain on the 5,000 beer lovers (some prepared with ponchos, others refusing to let the rain slow down their skirt lovin' selves).

As soon as I caught the scent rising up from the basement of the convention center, I knew this would be worth the wait and $48.47 ticket price. We made some executive decisions as the festival began, mostly that we would keep track of which beers were our favorite in the provided pamphlet and we would videotape as much of the event as possible. Looking back at these objectives, they seemed reasonable until you've spent about an hour in a room with the challenge of trying every beer in it. Long story short, we lost track with about an hour left, the pamphlet didn't make it back to Brighton, and some of the video may act as a future PSA for the effects of too much beer. One rule that did pan out - don't wait in line if there's a shorter one next to it. Never ever choose to wait five minutes for Sam Adams when Ass Kisser volunteers have the tap ready for you.

ACBF was not only a tutorial on beer drinking, but beer vocabulary as well. Lucky for us, the pamphlet included a long list of terms we had probably heard countless times, but never learned like "Hops" or "Lager".  Walking from vendor to vendor never failed to be entertaining with the number of booty shorts for sale reading "I Heart Hops" on said booty, as well as my personal favorite slogan for Pretty Things Beer: "Stay Pretty & Drink Real Beer" - Words to live by. I was also seriously impressed by Three Heads Brewing - their beers were a lot smokier than the beer I'm used to drinking, but their personality in advertising and general vibe had my attention. I'd much rather drink a beer knowing it came from three guys with character than from a cardboard cut out of Sam Adams.

I'm not a woman with many regrets, but I will never go to a beer festival without a necklace made of pretzels ever again, all that gives you is food envy that results in the consumption of fried dough doused in cinnamon and sugar (I don't hate it).

I can't end this post without noting the absurd people you will inevitably meet at a beer festival. Bachelors, soldiers, people flying solo, and people in groups, either way, you'll never feel alone, and that's the glory of beer-lovin' Bostonians.

Recommendations:
Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project: American Darling
Three Heads Brewing: The Kind IPA (American IPA / 6.8%)
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery: You can't go wrong with anything Dogfish