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Midwest Beerfest: all you can drink buffet of local and worldwide beers
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Derby Brew Club President Lance Irvin chats with Gerald Wyman, Brewmaster of Lb. Brewing Co.
It was an afternoon of beer, beer, and more beer. There was other stuff, too, like a silent auction full of wonderful items and tasty food sold by local vendors. But in the end, the ninth annual Midwest Beerfest was all about the beer. For additional photos of Midwest Beerfest, see the slideshow below.
Prior to opening, participants showed off their high spirits by throwing around small Corona foam footballs. Thankfully, no beer was harmed. Before volunteers opened the doors, an eager crowd formed a long line that snaked around most of Century II. AIWF estimated that there would be over 1,500 beer samplers at the event. When the doors finally opened, thirsty people quickly filled the venue, turning the formerly spacious room into a tightly packed crowd.
It’s inevitable that when glass beer mugs are used for sampling, accidents are going to happen. When the unmistakable sound of shattering glass was heard, the crowd echoed a GABF tradition by loudly booing. You didn’t always hear the broken glass or even see the offender, but you could instantly tell thanks to the festive crowd.
And as for the beer, Kansas microbreweries were well represented in addition to the larger distributors: River City Brewing Co., Lb. Brewing Co., Free State Brewing Co., Hank is Wiser Brewery, Little Apple Brewing Co., and Tallgrass Brewing Co. were all present and pouring samples. Notably, Lb.’s gold medal-winning Liberty Stout was available. Over 350 beers in total were at the fest, making it impossible for anyone to taste them all in the three-hour window, although some tried their best.
In addition to the beer sampling, there was a silent auction and a cooking demonstration. Midwest Beerfest T-shirts were available for purchase, and some of the microbreweries like Little Apple brought their own merchandise to sell.
Luckily, there wasn’t a shortage of good food choices to pair with beer: Old Chicago cooked up personal pizzas, Piccadilly Grill made bierocks, the Anchor sold pretzels, chili, and hot dog sliders, Bubba’s Nekked BBQ had smoked chipotle lime wings, and the German American Association dished out brats with sauerkraut.
The Derby Brew Club also had a table at the fest. Unfortunately, ABC regulations prohibited club members from bringing their own beer samples. That did not deter many people from stopping by to ask questions and chat about their own brewing experiences.
Midwest Beerfest was over all too quickly, and now we’re counting down the days until the next one. Thanks to the hardworking volunteers, sponsors, local beer distributors, participating microbreweries, and of course the AIWF for making this another successful Beerfest. Cheers!
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