Hunahpu's Release...

Thank you to the Cigar City staff! Long , hot day & everyone was awesome!

Great event!
Can't wait for BA Hunahpu Day!

 

The release was fun, but I have to say I got very tired of waiting in line all day. Beer was great, and johnathan Wakefield stole the show with his line up of sours. Watch out for this guy, he is making some unreal beer! That being said, I much preferred the peg's release on Friday at noon. Much more intimate, and it didn't hurt that I walked out of there with one of the 25 bottles of RareR

 

The event was an absolute shit show. No organization whatsoever. The sold out Hunapu wrist bands and did not even tell the people coming through the gate after noon that they weren't eligible for the bottles. The lines were insane, again with no organization. There was an absurd amount of line jumping coasting those of us who waited appropriately to get insanely screwed out of the rarities we were properly waiting for (I was in the Oak Aged Dark Lord line about an hour before it was tapped, was about 40 people deep at that time, about 10 min before it was tapped the the 40 people somehow morphed to about 100-120 and it was kicked before I got to the front of the line). Nothing was marked, there were no maps, no shade or water stations. Again, an absolute shit show. No way I'd go back next year, I don't care how good the beer was.

 

Also, agreed with the Pegs release comment. Plus Pegs Rare DOS >> Hunaphu.

 

I have 1 bottle for trade.

 

Did you not get the big sheet showing all the taps and a map of where everything was? The ones that were floating around EVERYWHERE?

Ohhh nooo it's too sunny... it's called Florida... get used to it.

Everyone I knew seemed to realize that wristband = Hunahpu, no wristband = no Hunaphu.... kinda an easy concept. If you wanted bottles then you get there early....

Line jumping happens everywhere, you are naive if you thought just because you got in like a hour before that people weren't going to try to skip you.

 

could not disagree with this post more. this was my 3rd brewery only release and easily the best overall experience. The others were DLD 2010 (awful) & 2011 (organized, but too big, not that it's 3F's fault). While there was line jumping, it was not rampant. Things that made this better than DLD, 1) maps with tap list, 2) name tags, 3) food trucks, 4) 4 distinct tap stations, 5) carnival games. The only thing they didn't get right was number of port-a-johns, but that is being nit picky as it wasn't that bad at all.

With all that said, next year has potential to be out of hand. I think for it to be a good event again next year it needs to be a pre-sale ticket event. I know they will make a bigger batch for next year, but the shear number of people will overwhelm.

Had a great time, met some cool people, drank some rare beer, glad I went.

 

Totally wrong on just about everything you said there...

TONS of organization, Several watering stations. My group of about 8-12 people (fluctuated throughout the day) was camped right next to one (I saw at least 4 others). The Oak Aged DL keg was TINY and even with 5 oz pours it was not going to last more than 5min. There was a handy dandy map that showed where EVERYTHING was, and on the back it had a list of EVERYTHING being tapped and the times of the special taps. Everything was clearly marked on the back of the map as well as on the tap stations. You did get one thing right though. Little to no shade, buuuut it is called the SUNSHINE STATE. CCB even posted on their FB page to bring shade/sunscreen/etc...

Was it my dream Hunahpu release day? No, but I don't think they will ever invite me the day before the craziness let me buy as many bottles as I want and taste every beer they are going to be pouring the next day. Until that happens, I think I will be happy with yesterday's festivities.

One thing people forgot to mention was that EVERYONE from the brewery to include volunteers were cool as hell. Joey was stopping to talk to people and not just pay lip service. He stopped to talk shop and say thank you. All the event staff was awesome. I don't think it would be possible to put on a beer event with this tap list releasing THIS beer any better. Lines suck, but just be happy that people are starting to LOVE American beer, and be thankful you got to try what you did.


My d-dag comment: The Oak Aged Dark Lord was AMAZING!

 

Thought the release went about as perfectly as something like this with 5000 people can go. My only suggestion for next year is to have a dedicated area for limited release beers a la Dark Lord, BA Huna, etc, this way the lines for the others wouldn't be impeded. That being said I got 4 bottles and couldn't be happier. I saw so many other brewers supporting CCB it was awesome. Even got to pick Funky Buddha's brewers brain for a good 20 minutes about Berliners.

My favorites:
Funky Buddha Last Snow
Stranahan Hunahpu (this must have been secretly tapped, didn't have to wait and got 4 pours)
Hungarian Oak Peach IPA

 

Got there at 4:30, no wristband, got a few beers on tap including several Hunahpu and got in the 7:30 line at 5:45. I had my brother with me and we took turns leaving line to go grab more beer. Not a big deal. Walked away with two bottles which each is all we wanted to grab in the first place. Not trying to be greedy.

 

Was Heaven Hills DL, have a pic of the keg after it tapped. Was a sizer and they were pouring from both sides. Waiting hour and a half and was ten deep.

 

Just wanted to say that it was an absolute blast yesterday. My group and I got there a little after 11:30 AM and were still able to get wrist bands and got a chance to try a lot of the rarer taps. I think CCB did a wonderful job of keeping the event well organized, though I do wish there were more shaded areas to rest as the sun was pretty killer through the day. Either way, I got my Hunahpu's and I'm a happy camper!

 

We also had a good time. Thankfully, my wife and I are natives so we're used to the sun. The little spot of land we found next to the trees also helped. Had it not rained the night before we would have even had a complimentary couch to enjoy. We got there at 12:15 and got our Hunahpu bands. Some co-workers showed up at about 12:25 and got the sorry-we-ran-out-of-Hunahpu-bands-but-here's-a-band-with-happy-faces-so-you-can-buy-your-beer bands. Another set of co-workers arrived at about 12:45 and had to rely on the kindness of strangers (and sexual favors... I mean beer trades) to secure bands. The beer lines were a pain in the ass, but with so much awesome beer around I don't see much reason to complain. My highlights were Granny's Candies, Ballast Point Sour Wench, and a homebrew Raspberry Berliner from the Special Hops homebrew guys. The only beers I was really sad I missed were Wine Vuja De and the Wakefield sours. The food trucks were a great idea as well. Prime Rib sandwich with a side of fried pickles? Fuck yeah!

I would also like to thank the small groups that were hanging out next to us. There was a bit of bottle sharing between the groups and I'm grateful for the samples of Raison d'Extra and home made cherry mead. This is what makes these events awesome.

 

Great event. Everything went about as smoothly as it could with the sheer volume of people in attendance. Wakefield's berliners were sickeningly good and he was a very friendly and gracious guy. Joey and the guys are pretty much always very approachable and down to earth. LOVED the addition of the carnival games!

The Funky Buddha Last Snow Porter was amazing as were about 75% of the beers tapped. I agree that the Special Hoperations Raspberry Berliner could have easily been served (meaning SOLD since the homebrewers were giving their beers away) as a CCB guest tap.

Well done guys. Now once my liver start to heal I'll start looking forward to next years release. Thanks Joey, Justin, Geiger, Travis, Tony and everyone else for putting on a great release!

 

Just want to go on record that this is my first time drinking Hunahpu and it has given me some of the worst beer farts/shits I've ever had. As bad if not worse than a night of drinking Old Rasputin. Do not mistake this for complaining!

 

Amazing event. Well done CCB I had a blast....got to try a lot of awesome beers from the taps and some super generous people that were there. Angel share and the rum huna stole the show for me!! Even my wife who hates beer indulged in a strawberry lager and the Wakefield Miami madness and loved them both. Good times....hope there is another event in the near future.

 

I had a BLAST at Hunahpu Day! Unfortunately I missed every BA Hunahpu tap release but still had an epic time. I'm glad so many people enjoyed the TBC samples I handed out. The honey rye was a hit. Also the Gnarley Barley and Julio's Hefeweizen. The food was great! Pulled pork sandwich and marinated meatballs were delicious. Also won a 2011 Hunahpu for dunking the guy in the dunk tank! the organization and set-up was awesome. Especially compared to last years. The only thing about the event that upset me was someones case of Huna got stolen. I was helping people by keeping an eye on their huna. There's always that piece of shit out there though. Karma is a bitch. All in all I had a lot of rare, new and all around fantastic beer. About 35 different kinds . Cheers and see you next year.

 

Had a fantastic time at Hunahpu Day! Everyone was personable and showed their love of beer in myriad ways, from the dude in front of me in the line for Palm Ridge Hunahpu sharing a sample of a beer I had never heard of, to the guy offering me a sample out of a bottle that I complemented him on earlier on in the day, to the CCB worker who gave me a double portion of Hunahpu for my last drink ticket for no reason whatsoever. I'll definitely be going back next year, hopefully with beers to share/trade!

 

not sure why anyone would say there was "no organization whatsoever." i think the weeks we spent organizing suggests otherwise. sorry it didn't go swimmingly for some folks, but when 5000 people get together in a small area, things can sometimes go array. all things considered, it was a pretty awesome event