Starting a new thread since I haven’t yet seen anything regarding this year’s Zwanze Day at Schera’s Restaurant in Elkader, IA. This will be my first time attending a Zwanze event. Does anyone have experience with how the operation works at Schera’s? I already have my ticket which guarantees a pour of Zwanze. But how does it work with the other beers on tap? I’m assuming that is all first come, first served. I’ve experienced other festivals where most of my time is spent waiting in lines and less time drinking. I’m hoping to avoid that scenario here. The place seems pretty small so I’m wondering how well they accommodate the large crowds. I’ll be driving in from Minnesota that morning so if anyone has advice on what I should do to get the most out of my experience, I’d really appreciate it.
They divide up where the beers are pouring around their facility, so waiting in line isn't a big deal - at least it wasn't last year. Bottle line is usually the biggest line. They're changing that up a bit this year. They do a fantastic job with the event, you'll have a great time in Elkader. Hopefully the weather is nice, because their back patio is a nice area and a great representation of small town rural NE Iowa. No bottle share this year is a big bummer. I understand why the shares at releases are going away, but that was a nice draw.
Last year they gave you a ticket book and only a few of the tickets were for cantillon pours. Most of them were for pretty bad or outdated beer (one was an old ipa poured from bottles). My glass of zwanze was maybe 2 oz and my 2 other cantillon pours were small. They advertised 4 oz pours, but people were getting small pours. There were other kegs of cantillon that you could buy by the glass. Those were priced decent, but it still didn't sit well with me. They basically off loaded a bunch of beer they couldn't sell at the bar and made you pay extra for the beers you came for. None of the cantillon kegs kicked right away so you could get pours of the stuff you wanted to drink. Be prepared to stand in line for a while for these, however. They were all at the main bar so everyone was in that line. In regards to the bottle list... they will say don't line up before the sale starts as they have many bottles, but people will line up an hour early. So if you listen to the organizers, you will likely miss out. They normally have things like mamouche, other seasonals, LP etc. They are for onsite but priced well. Be prepared to spend a decent time in the bottle line as well as they do sales one at a time and have to uncork the bottles. I will not be attending this year for reasons listed above as well as other reasons, but I hope you have a good time. Maybe they will have made adjustments.
Appreciate the reply. I've never been to Elkader (or spent much time in any small rural town in Iowa for that matter) so I'm interested to experience it. What is the parking like? Is it hard to find parking with the limited space or fairly easy just parking on the street?
Appreciate the information. That is disappointing regarding the bottle sales. I had no idea the bottles had to be consumed onsite. Their website notes that bottles will be made available to buy online prior to the event to avoid to hassle with lines but it doesn't say anything regarding onsite consumption. I was planning to bring bottles home so I hope they aren't uncorked when I pick them up.
Their main street where Schera's is has parking all up and down it, you should be able to find a spot without too much trouble. You might have to walk a few blocks potentially, but no worries there.
Most bottles you will be able to take home, you will pre order them before event and pick them up that day. They did have a few rarer bottles that had to be consumed on site.
Some of the less rare bottles are available to go. The prices on them were fair and they had some fun options. Any of the rare loons will be onsite only if they have them.
I’d also note that some of the beers they’ve advertised being part of this event, like A&G Drie Fonteinen, have recently hit distribution in other states. It’s cool that they’re part of this event, but is this just largely stuff they’ve held back from shelves?
I got an email from Schera's / Midwest Ale House today stating that there were still tickets available. Ticket sales end at 5 p.m. CDT on Monday, Sept. 17. See you there!
