Darklord Day 2017

From what I have heard good food, meh beer.

18th St Brewing is about 10-15 minutes from there and would be a better choice for beer.

They don't really tell us how they value it, we are just guessing based on past pricing really. If you use a $40 entry price and $50 variant then DL bottles are $22.50 each. Or if we use $20 DL bottles then the entry fee is $50. Hard to say exactly what they have in mind.

 

Food at Byway is good, but for beers I would head back to hotel for bottle shares.

As far as 18th Street, that's usually the Barrel Massacre night. Ticketed event that a lot of people felt was overpriced last year.

 

Are they going to piggy back off of DLD again or will they keep the last Friday in April? FFF did move their date so it will look like a pathetic attempt at being a hangers-on if 18th moves their date to coincide with DLD.

 

It will be interesting to see. I can't blame them as a business decision to make it coincide but it wasn't well received last year.

 

I asked one of the brewery folks this exact question at Huna Day and they did not provide a substantive response. Last year they announced their date the first week of April for the end of April Massacre. I guess we should know in about a week.

 

I thought the reg DL, variant and admission is free, but the tote bag is the $180 charge.

 

This tote bag joke will never get old. I laugh hysterically every time. I'm seriously wiping tears of laughter out of my eyes.

 

Glad to bring brightness to your day.

 

The Dark Lord Fortune 1648

Souls that entrust the tote soon give ants diabetes.

 

What about us poor Schleps in Group D? Soy Souce DL?

 

2 Vintage DL

 

So I'm guessing the first 5 variants gone last year were

Handjee
Militia
Ronaldo
Bourbon
Muerte

Did any of those survive til D? I just want any barrel that isn't wine

 

I tried each variant last year. The wine ones are alright. It's the Temeculan or similar variant you want to steer clear of.

 

Last year is not a very good representation of things lasting until D. I was group D and went over a bit before my designated time and they were already letting in group E. I ended up with Dwarven Power Bottom but someone grabbed the last Muerte just before me.

 

Outside of the vanillas, favorites?

 

I was Group D and got Muerte '16 ('15 was available as well). Rest on your list were not options for me.

 

I was B and everything except for Handjee, Militia and Ronaldo was available so I got the bourbon barrel aged dark lord. I actually cracked it open last weekend and it was pretty awesome.

 

I'm an idiot for getting Temeculan in B last year. Although, the old lady did love it--she got completely fucking hammered drinking my share of it!

We picked up a Ronaldo, and then saw that FMV was gone. Being half drunk and pumped full of adrenaline trying to see what all was available and not taking my time, I saw the Temeculan and grabbed it out of novelty and hopes it wasn't Biggleswade 2.0...dumb move. Should have gotten the regular BA or Muerte.

 

It still puzzles me why Ronaldo went so quickly. Had they done a variant like that before, or was last year the first time? I looked at ratings across different sites, and Bourbon DL seems to be rated higher than it across all of them. Was it due to bottle count possibly (i.e. more Bourbon DL, less Ronaldo)?

 

I can't say why others went for it, but I can speak for myself.

Sometimes I get a chocolate covered cherry flavor from regular Dark Lord, so to add actual tart cherries to it sounded really delicious to me. Also, Madeira is an amazingly complex wine. I've had maybe only one other beer aged in Madeira barrels (I assume they aren't cheap or easy to come by), and it is one of my favorite barleywines of all time.

That being said, Ronaldo wasn't drastically punchy with new flavors like I'd expected it to be and it was almost too similar to Dwarven Power Bottom, which I liked even less. I mean I loved them both but...I actually like regular DL more, comparatively.