Great American Beer Festival

Too many choices...too much fun.
We showed up to collect the tickets that I had arranged for. We wanted to get tickets from the Bull, but everyone becomes their "friends" during this time and so we didn't want to burden them. Plus, I still have relatively good contacts within the brewing community and so it isn't a stretch to seek out other avenues. Plus, bottom line--we got tickets and we didn't have to owe the Bull anything to get them.
We met Tiffany and Josh at Bubba Gump's Shrimp Restaurant and I saw my cousin, Beau. That was definitely a highlight of my night. He looked great and as always, he was pleasant. Afterwards, about 6:15, we headed to the festival. Wow--there were so many people in line. We got into the convention center at 6:50 pm. Apparently, the first people in line waited an hour and a half. It was crazy. Normally, Thursday is the casual night.
Right away, I headed to the New Glarus booth. The line was large, but I was determined to get their beer. I met up with my friend, Kat, from Phoenix and the night was fantastic from then on. I sampled beers from Elysian Fields, Four Peaks, Free State, Ommegang, Deschutes, Rogue and others. The only other line that was formidable was Russian River. Initially, my friends refused to wait in line. I was separated from them and so I stood in line for 20 minutes and it was worth the wait. Their beers are awesome!
I ran into my doctor which was comical since he didn't want to see his patients. Afterwards, I met up with Jimmy and we took a rickshaw to the Falling Rock. We arrived there at 9:15. We knew what was coming and so we hopped in a cab and went to Elway's for supper. I love the Falling Rock, but I do not like the craziness of the beer festival. People are everywhere and it is difficult to find a place to stand or get a beverage. I saw Mark from the Map Room, which was awesome, and John from Horse Brass and exhanged a few words with them, before departing.
I think I am beered out though for a few days. If you have time or any inclination, you should check out the beer festival.