Comments on: Recap of Firkin Fest 2011 at the Happy Gnome

By: Firkin Fest 2012: A Quick Recap | A Perfect Pint Beer Blog

Firkin Fest 2012: A Quick Recap | A Perfect Pint Beer Blog — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 18:43:57 +0000

[...] Gnome…for the last two years I have had little positive to say about it. My recaps of 2010 and 2011 were full of tales of woe; too many people, too few “facilities”, frightening firkin abuse, and [...]

By: Michael

Michael — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 20:28:42 +0000

We did try to do a pre-emptive strike on the porta-poties, so maybe I just got in before it got too crazy.

And yes, the food was really good. I ate early too, so I didn’t end up waiting in that line either.

By: Joe

Joe — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 18:12:00 +0000

You must have hit the port-a-potties at the right time, I used them twice and had substantial waits each time. I still think more would be in order for next year. We also discussed leaving early because of the crowd, but ended up sticking it out. Might have to get VIP tickets next year.

On the plus side, the salmon plate I had was outstanding, and more firkins meant the beer lasted almost until the end. Maybe that was why there was no firkin abuse this year…

By: Vincent Wins the Chef Challenge and Morning Roundup | The Heavy Table - Minneapolis-St. Paul and Upper Midwest Food Magazine and Blog

Tue, 29 Mar 2011 09:45:23 +0000

[...] rockin’ joints, win a copy of The Minnesota Table (read our review here), Michael Agnew assesses Firkin Fest (better than last year — but still too crowded), a look at what happens when a co-op (in this [...]

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 19:04:52 +0000

I noticed the long lines for food, but I ate right after I arrived. There was no wait at all at that point.

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 19:03:56 +0000

The Rubus Black was very good.
Can’t say anything about the campaigning. No one asked me to vote for anything. but I know Tall Grass was campaigning pretty hard before the event.

By: Jon B

Jon B — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 17:33:26 +0000

Fulton War and Peace was good, but I think they only took the award because they were the only company actively stumping for their beer at the firkin. I was asked to vote for War and Peace twice by them, and no one else mentioned the competition.

I voted for the Blackberry stout that Brau Bros put out. Delicious.

By: Karl

Karl — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 16:37:32 +0000

I once again had a blast. We did get there early so we had a little time before the onslaught hit to drink up and embrace the crowds so I wasn’t too bothered by it. I thought the bathroom situation was much better this year, instead of a 25 min wait it was only 5 or 6 min. The food was good but took a good 20 min wait in line to get anything. I definitely wouldn’t be opposed to a larger tent, I do frown on limiting crowds though, if the demand is there it just doesn’t seem right.

As far as the beers, I’d have to agree with the “tastes like fenugreek and dirt” part of your statement but not with the “in a good way” part regarding the Tall Grass Psych-Oasis beer. That was the worst beer of the fest for me.

By: Wally

Wally — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 16:28:20 +0000

I was really looking forward to Firkin Fest, but I’ve gotta agree with you 100% that the crowd eventually made it unbearable. My wife and I left around 3:00 and spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying some fun pints and banter inside the actual bar. We could hardly move within the tent and the port-a-pottie situation was pretty woeful.

When one of the other refugees I was talking to mentioned there were 1600 tickets sold for the event, I was gobsmacked. It should have been about half that given that it was held in a fairly average sized parking lot. I love a good beer event, but organizers need to start getting much more restrictive on the numbers of tickets sold or much more realistic about the amount of space they need to accommodate demand.