What's the best beer you've had the privilege of tasting at a special event?

Baladin Xyuayu was the best I have had and also had that port taste!

 

Duck Rabbit BA Baltic Porter at Peabody's!!

 

Black Tuesday
Grey Monday
Heady Topper
PtE

 

Bourbon Barrel Vanilla Bean Dark Lord at the Firestone Walker International Beer Fest last year.

 

Zwanze and Fou Foune on draft @ Zwanze day 2012!

 

BCBVS and PVW Dark Lord at Borefts. Needless to say, things got a little silly.

 

I'm not sure if this really counts, but...Buffalo, WY, a small town about 45 minutes away from my small town had a homebrew competition brewfest. Homebrewers from around the region brought 5 gallons of any of their beers, and you got to wander around sampling. Hands down my favorite beer of the day (and I still hold it in high regard, even against the pros), was a Belgian wit. It had been an all grain brew, and the guy had come up with the recipe himself. It was awesome. I'd absolutely buy a case or a growler or whatever else of it if it had come from a brewery. The whole event was pretty neat, but that was the stand out for sure.

 

Nothing special, but for me it was Victory headwaters PA. I was at victory talking with their catering rep Diane about my wedding in the same room as some release event for the victory higher ups and friends. The guy running the event took a glass over to my fiancée and I and said we must be friends of the company and deserved to get a sneak peak at their new beer. Ended up picking it as one of the two beers to serve at our reception :-)

 

I'll have to go with a 7 year old Westy 12 standing in line on KBS day. Amazing!

 

I had never heard of Ninkasi before they tapped a keg of Tricerahops at Hop Juice Festival at Two Brother's Roundhouse last summer. I've now got a buddy in the Sacramento area buying me some to ship my way back here in Illinois. I've had a lot of great draft only stuff from Bell's, 3 Floyd's and even 2 Brother's at the breweries that you can't get elsewhere, but trying Ninkasi for the first time was my only festival home run. That same event I tasted Surly 5. I learned that as much as I love Surly, I certainly do not like sour/wild ales one bit.

 

the best? I went to a De Dolle tasting that blew me away. The 00 and 05 reservas were fantastic.

 

BA Batch 9000 followed by BBPt5, BA Cherry Stout and a slew of one-off's from Greenbush just for the Winter beer festival in the D last November.

 

Well so far thanks to the tasting group weve assembled, Ive had Cherry Rye (meh, too sweet) , BCBCS (yes), RareR DOS (ive actually acquired a growler since then), 11 BA Plead the 5th (much, much better than fresh), HF Anna (a great honey saison, but not as good as Vera Mae), 09 Lou Pepe Kriek, Eclipse 4 roses, Melange No. 3.

The winners of best beer at a tasting Ive had were clearly CCB Moat Water and Leon. holy hell.

 

Wooden Hell

 

Go to a three floyds event with a few beers to share and you can pretty much sample anything you could possibly dream of. The most epic graveyards I've ever seen.

 

Both Cantillon Zwanze at 2011 and 2012... although I would take Fou Foune over them any day...

2011


2012

 

Thanks for hosting! That tasting was epic!

 

and you brought the heat, sir! I cant believe i forgot Cognac Sweet Stout!

 

After the line-up we had, understandable. However, the sweet stout was phenomenal to me