Darklord Day 2017

Another first timer for DLD here. For someone really interested in the bottle share, what would be the appropriate number of bottles to bring with me?

 

QFT.

Last year was my first year and I was really looking forward to seeing Skeletonwitch since they're awesome and the drummer is a friend of mine, but for two hours in the south line I didn't decline a single thing... if someone offered something and I still had anything in my taster, I chugged it and graciously accepted the new pour. Needless to say I was already feeling pretty good right when I entered the fest, then the first tap station I went to had Dark Lord, so of course I had to try it......

Let's just say I didn't quite make it to Skeletonwitch.

 

The share continues inside the event as well but definitely dies down later. If it's not raining the tables under the tent will be packed earlier in the day but will be a bottle graveyard and a ghost town later in the afternoon. I usually can still find a group or two under the tent later in the day but they're usually done sharing.

 

My take on the sharing is pretty simple.

Don't go with any expectations. Show up with some of your local favorites and be willing share. Don't be a douche.

 

There isn't any formula for what/how many to bring. Best practice would be to bring some local favorites to share with people from all over the country that they may or may not have heard of. Over the years I have tried tons of great beers from breweries I've never heard of. I prefer that much more over worrying about what I being. As others have already said, bring good beers and make friends.

 

I'd say slightly more than you plan on drinking from other people. If all sharing occurred equally that'd work out (not that it does or should). I typically bring 4-5 bottles (mostly bombers) for the two of us and seldom go through them all. If I got there earlier and shared in the line before open I'd probably bring more. I also hit up the taps more often than other people though so your mileage may vary. People hate on the taps more than I understand (I didn't find last year bad like most people).

Don't forget you have to lug the bottles around, plus your DL. It gets heavy. If you're hanging out in line ahead of time and going to drink them before the festival starts that's a bit different though.

Also, I'm never going to set up a trade at DLD again just due to having to lug bottles around. Last year I mentally thought it wouldn't be that bad because I was trading a 4 pack for a bomber so the weight would decrease....unfortunately the dude flaked and I carried it around all day for no good reason.

 

That's totally up to you, but quality over quantity IMO. Last year I brought like 4 bombers and 5 or 6 smaller bottles/cans since I went early and planned to share in line. Turned out that was probably more than I needed to since I was also interested in hitting the guest taps. As it turned out, there were enough people sharing that I only got to the taps a couple times and still got hammered - I ended up with two or three bottles left in my bag that didn't get opened.

As for what to bring... I like to bring a mix of cool local beer than nobody outside of my town has likely tried as well as some bigger whales that people may not have been able to try before. Dark Lord Day is one of only a few places I'm guaranteed to have tons of people around who will actually appreciate what some of these things are, so I'm down to break out the big guns.

 

Half Acre beers generally tend to be a hit with people in line, if we are discussing Chicago beers.

 

Speaking of which, if I recall correctly, hasn't someone set up a DLD trade spreadsheet in the past for in person trades at the fest? Less than 2 months out and we know who is attending....

 

Also, the proliferation of breweries means you can bring good local stuff and still amaze people. I don't get out to the burbs much so though not a whale fest, sharing Noon Whistle NE IPAs or StB RAM or Mikerphone stuff is appealing.

 

So much of this. Last year I had to turn down pours of probably 20 beers that most people would bend over backwards to trade for. It really is an embarrassment of riches. Just perusing the discarded bottles on the ground is comical -- there's so much great beer that gets shared. Everyone I ran into went out of their way to be generous.

 

Turning down great beer is a high class problem! For me, drinking throughout the day is not a marathon... Not wrecking my palate at 11:00 am on BA Adjunct Stouts is the marathon...

 

something with a handle is a very good idea...

 

The worst is when you have to pee and get offered great beers left and right... it burns so good.

 

The Dark Lord Fortune #1028
When relieving yourself from Dark Lord beware those who would relieve you of Dark Lord.

 

I'm enjoying these Dark Lord Fortunes. Keep 'em coming!

 

Haha my 1st DLD I did that. Oh heady too

 

The sharing definitely slows down in the afternoon. I would say the sweet spot is from 9am in line to 3 or 4pm. After that, the majority of the crowd is flat out wasted. It still goes on until group E has to be in line though.

However, you'll also have people that will just be throwing beer at you because they can't drink it.

I usually bring about 5-6 bombers and a couple smaller bottles, I plan on going through them all. Usually 2-3 bottles that I've been saving and want to drink myself and share with friends, and 2-3 that I'm ok with popping and sharing with other people that may enjoy them, even if I only have a sip or so.

 

I was waiting in line for the pisser and some guy offered my BC Templeton Rye. It was outstanding.

 

That was the worst part for me last year: taking my big-ass backpack with me to take a piss. I didn't want to just leave it there. Even ignoring thieves, I might have been too drunk to find it again.