Holiday Ale Fest Video and Random Thoughts
Jeff Alworth has posted a 2 minute "taster" of the fest. You can watch local beer god Fred Eckhardt work the room, marvel at Hair of The Dog's ability to draw a crowd, and maybe even catch a glimpse of yourself.
As much as I love this fest, I think it's become a victim of it's own popularity. Even on opening day there were shoulder to shoulder crowds and though I wasn't crazy enough to go on Saturday afternoon I heard it was considerably worse then. I have to give them credit for rationing out the kegs, guaranteeing that they'd at least start the day with beer flowing out of every tap, but it detracts from the enjoyment a little bit if you have to fight through densely-packed throngs and wait 25-30 minutes for each sample.
A wise person once said, "Don't complain about something unless you have an idea or solution to the problem." So, what to do about the ridiculous crowds? Other than expanding to a larger space with more tents, the only option I see is to somehow limit ticket sales or cap the number of people who can be inside at one time. The Alstrom Brothers, owners of Beeradvocate.com and organizers of numerous fests, seem to have gotten attendance issues down to a science. For their most recent fest they had a VIP session before the event when those who were willing to pay a little more were pretty much guaranteed to have every beer available and considerably smaller crowds to deal with. They then break each day of the fest into two sessions (like the GABF) and offer a limited number of tickets to each 4-5 hour session. This spreads out the crowds and I'm sure it provides more stable attendance numbers throughout the weekend.
I think this approach would greatly reduce many of the frustrations people experienced during the recent H.A.F. regarding extreme crowds and "buzz beers" running out too soon. It could also be an effective means of boosting attendance during the slower times like Saturday and Sunday morning.
One last thought; limit the truly rare beers, like HOTD Jim, to a taster sized sample for everyone so that the kegs don't blow in 15 minutes and more participants have an opportunity to try them.
So here's my plea to Preston and the rest of the Holiday Ale Fest crew: Please continue the incredible job of bringing in rare and exciting beer, build upon the success you've had, and try to work out the few remaining kinks next year.
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posted by Chris @ 10:03 AM
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8 Comments:
I wholeheartedly agree with limiting the crowds at Holiday Ale Fest. It's great to have it located in downtown at Pioneer Square, but that limited-sized space makes the masses of people a huge issue.
I was happy to work two shifts this year (I was the guy pouring HOTD Jim, Fearless, Ninkasi, Laurelwood, HO Ho Homo Erectus etc. on Thursday midday and early on Saturday). Both days, the crowd sizes blew me away - wall to wall people by 1pm on Saturday. I know several co-workers and friends who turned around and left after either standing outside in line for an hour or getting inside only to be confronted with blown kegs and 30 minute waits for beers.
Preston et al, PLEASE listen to the wisdom of having multiple sessions, limiting ticket sales, VIP tastings etc. I think it will only help the festival in the long run.
My 2 cents.
Cheers, Brian
PS: Cool video!
Hey, I think I know where that vid came from. ;-)
My suggestion is to axe everything except taps and a few food sites, and then spread the taps out around the fringe of the tent, leaving the center open for drinking. A big part of the problem is that they still have booths selling (admittedly cool) pottery; there's just not enough space left for that.
Getting a bit more beer would be good, and they might also adopt the International fest's system of charging more for beer they have less of (like Jim). Given that the taster is a buck and a good portion of these beers were going into the double digits on alcohol, this was BY FAR the cheapest fest per beer if measured by alcohol percentage. Raising the price wouldn't bother me.
I went in with a $20 bill and had a slice of pizza and still left with a few bucks.
Anyway...
Hey Jeff!
I was wondering where the video came from, I'm not surprised that it was yours.
Blogger is acting funny right now (or maybe it's out ISP), either way I can't update at the moment, but I'll fix the post and give you credit for the video ASAP.
w.r.t. the vendors: As a person who goes to beer fests to drink beer I find things like this to be rather superfluous. But as someone who usually brings my (easily bored) girlfriend along to drive my drunk ass home I can appreciate the need to have some "non-beer" related stuff to entertain people.
I think it would have been decent to offer water to the crowd. Especially considering the strength of the beers. Overall, I think the festival was awesome. The things that weren't awesome, I feel were perhaps symptoms of so many people wanting in on the awesome. Great job to Preston and the crew who made it all happen!
A suggestion to Preston to limit attendance at the Holiday Ale Fest is tantamount to the public asking Belmont Station to limit customers during the holiday season. The fire marshall sets the rules on that, at any rate. So...no can do, kids. Preston is running a business just like we're trying to do here at Belmont Station.
I agree with the first four posters about limiting the number of people at one time.
JC: I'm sure people are aware of the fire codes, but just like Belmont Station during the holidays there comes a point where too many people is a bad thing. I've gone there a few times and there's been so many customers I could hardly see the wall of beer, much less get to the counter to actually buy something. I think this is the same frustration the other posters are expressing in regards to the festival.
When people at a beer festival have to wait more than 20 minutes to get a beer I think thats evidence of a problem...
Your suggestions for improving the festival are right on.
I won't even go to the festival anymore, and know a lot of people who feel the same way. It is too much of a mess to be fun. Who wants to stand in line 30 minutes for a 2 ounce taster? You've got to me a masochist.
I am afraid that the typical mindset of the Portland beer culture, which is so against improvement or innovation, will cause this festival to stay mediocre when it really could be truly world class.
As with any fest I've attended there is crowds at certain times during the day. I know this and everyone else should know this as well. On Saturday I arrived at 11:30 am and sampled 6 beers with no waits, including Jim and Hoho homo erectus. I got in tried a few that I wanted and left before the crowd got to crazy.
I think the over crowding issue does need to be addressed. Yes, they are trying to make money and usually more people = more money. But if you create a unfavorbale environment (over crowded) you are inevably going to lose the customers you want to attend and eventually lose money as well. Creating a favorable environment by limiting the number of people who can attend and having multiple sessions is a great start. They don't sell unlimited amounts of tickets to Concerts, Sporting Events, or the Opera and this should be no different. I don't know about the VIP ticket idea because that means people on a budget (like my self) could miss out.
I agree with Chris, certain beers should be limited to tastings only, if not all beers (in fact it is a better "value" in most cases). To me the idea of this type of beer fest is to try beers that I haven't had before, not to get wasted (I can go to Horse Brass any night to do that).
I'll continue to go to the festival if they change it or not, what can I say I'm a sucker for new beer :)
Kyle
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