Some random observations from the 26th annual edition of the Great American Beer Festival in Denver:
• As noted previously, the GABF is now very, very big, which I believe makes the next challenge for its organizers one of containment rather than growth. Putting more beers and breweries on the floor next year will only exacerbate the crowding and noise issues that dogged this year’s event, so unless another move is in the works, this could be about as big as the fest can bear.
• The craft beer world is so healthy, so vibrant that the general attitude expressed by the brewers I spoke with was one of confidence almost to the point of cockiness. Practically nobody was talking about the just announced merger of the U.S. operations of Molson Coors and SABMiller, and those who did appeared not in the least bit concerned about it.
• Beware anyone, myself included, who tries to tell you that intentionally soured beers are a legitimate trend. Sure, there were some great examples available for tasting – kudos to Lost Abbey for the amazing blonde soured ale, Cable Car, to Rubicon Brewing for their excellent and gold medal winning High Mountain Cherry Ale, and to Cambridge Brewing for the equally impressive Cerise Cassée – but the grand total of 40 beers entered in the two sour categories make this “trend” more of a niche (sour) within a niche (Belgian-inspired) within a ridiculously small segment of the greater beer market (artisanal craft beer).
• A legitimate trend, on the other hand, is hoppy beers like pale ales, India pale ales and so-called “double” IPAs, with the six pale ale/IPA categories accounting for 421 of the 2,793 beers entered for judging. That’s fifteen percent of the total, for those unwilling to do the math. It will be interesting to see how this holds up in the years to come, as the growing hop shortage makes its presence felt.
• Once again, at least so far as the beers I sampled go, I can report that defects in the world of craft beer are way down. In fact, of the dozens of beers I tasted over the course of the three GABF sessions I attended, only one showed a defect discernible in the one-ounce samples that are the festival standard.
• As a city, Denver continues to impress with its walkability, unexpected food finds – this year’s great treat was Naples-quality pizza at the relatively new Via restaurant in the Lower Downtown landmark building, The Icehouse – and impressive municipal commitment to the arts in general and public art in particular. Notable this year was a significant increase in the number of fine restaurants offering quality beer alongside their wine lists. In this regard, Denver might not yet have hit Portland, Oregon standards, but it is creeping ever-upwards.
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