KC Beer Fest 2018 Review

When: Saturday September 15th 2018 from 2:00 (VIP admission) until 6:00
Where: KC Power and Light
What: Beer, Food, and Crafts.
Why: To benefit “Drink Local, Think Global” to provide safe drinking water to people in developing nations.

I attended this years fest with a VIP ticket in hand and couldn't have been more pumped about seeing that acronym on my ticket. I am a GA type of guy. I sit up high at Kauffman and Arrowhead and typically have to squint at concerts. The VIP treatment provided guests with water, food, special tappings, a t-shirt, and early access to the event. Out of those perks the best was definitely getting early access to the the festival. This cut down not only on the lines at each tent but allowed me to ask the local brewers questions about their beer (more on that in a post later this week).

There was live music for people to enjoy as well.

When I attend a brew fest I always look forward to meeting the people behind the beer and trying new beers.

I enjoy listening to their stories of how they landed on a recipe, their inspiration behind the craft, and what they are excited about pursuing in the future. This festival brought together the many of my local favorites and allowed me to meet them and try some new beers.

From Michael Crane of Crane Brewing giving me a lesson on the difference between kettle souring and souring through fermentation (I couldn't keep notes fast enough). To Rafi Chaudry from Torn Label talking to me about how their beer is influenced from places around the world. Meeting the brewers and hearing their stories is truly special.

Crane was fantastic!

Now, on to the beers.

New beers that I enjoyed:

Crane Brewing: Raytown Common (simple, clean, and very enjoyable)
Ska Brewing: Mod Project Pink Vapor Stew (great sour and a beautiful beer, bonus points from the server coming in from Durango, CO.)

Beautiful Downtown KC

Torn Label: Shake Hands with Danger (my favorite of the day, love the Thou Mayast Coffee in the beer)
Casual Animal: Honey Wheat and Lickety Split Cherry Limeade Ale (my first true love is a good wheat beer and this is up there, the Cherry Limeade was perfect for the warm afternoon)
Strange Days: Australian Gold and Sir Real Real (I keep coming back the the Australian Gold and really enjoyed the double IPA Sir Real Real)
Double Shift: Literally Can't Even and Beach Shredder (literally was a nice dry IPA and Beach hit the spot as I finished up my afternoon)
Left Hand: Juicy Goodness (not a local brew but a wonderful juicy golden ale)
Martin City: City Saison (fruity and crisp, just a great saison)
Boulevard: Bob's '47 Oktoberfest (revisiting an old favorite just at the right time)
Free State: Octoberfest (personal favorite, my thoughts are here)

The lines for the festival were always very manageable and the brewers never acted like they were too busy or rushed. The weather was a little warm but it never felt uncomfortable. I did pay $6 for parking a couple blocks away and I thought that was a great deal.

The festival ran from 3:00pm -6:00pm. This felt like a great time to have it in KC. One could hit the farmers market in the morning, take the KC streetcar to the festival and then hit up a restaurant afterwards.

Not entirely sure how the Cardinals fan made it past security.