Hey guys, I've been to plenty of beer fests but this weekend I'm going to Stone's Oakquinox. It features an awesome lineup of wood aged beers with everything from Imperial Stouts to Sours. I've been trying to figure out my strategy for tasting order. My knee jerk reaction is to go: sours, old ales/barleywines, imperial stouts but I'm a little worried the sours will mess with my palette early on. All of the offerings will obviously have very strong flavors so I'd like to hear others thoughts. Also, I've had a few of the brews on the tap/bottle list and definitely have a loose list planned out but I'd be interested to hear if any of these absolutely blew anyone away. Supplication and Consecration were two of the beers that got me into sours so I'm itching to try Temptation. I've tried Double DBA but am eager to try Sucaba. Looks to me like you can't go wrong but with a limited number of samples I'm curious what other BAs have to say. Lastly, how much would you prioritize draft over bottles? I trust that Stone has taken care of the bottle, but it's hard not to wonder how big a difference it might make. Regardless, the fact that some are in bottles won't stop me from trying certain beers but it might tilt the scales in certain situations. Thanks in advance for the ideas/thoughts! http://www.stoneworldbistro.com/oakquinox/
Acid is a palette cleanser – I’ve always found the best way to deal with large amounts of tasters is to switch between opposite ends of the spectrum (e.g., stout → sour → old ale → sour → stout)
I hadn't thought of that but I think it makes sense. Too much of the same flavors in a row does seems to dampen the later beers. I've had my eye on Tartare as well, has great rating and I really love berliner weisses that are done well.
having been to Oakquinox and the other Stone fests, the first priority is getting a table in the shade. Set your stuff down, have somebody hold down the fort, and then grab a beer
Tartare is amazing, but did anyone have Craftsman's Angeleno Weisse? It was incredible. Even better than Tartare, IMHO.
I have had the Angelino Weisse and loved it. Have you had the Stonefruit Sour? That's on the tap list and I'm debating giving it a try.
Eat a solid breakfast before the 10am start. Drink lots of water the night before. If your the analytical type (me) I check the beeradvocate ratings for 95+ beers, then x out everything I have tasted before, then look at rarity/availability. A make a list of A and B beers. Taste all your A list, then move to B list unless you see extra short lines and can jump on something. Tasting beers of the same style very close together heightens the subtle differences. The acid/sour as palate cleanser works also. Example: 2-3 barleywines > sour > 2-3 heavy stouts > 1-2 sours... rinse/repeat Suggest a pen and your A list beers so you can maximize the opportunities early. Overanallyzing? ... perhaps. I have been to crappy beer fests where I had to wait 30 minutes in line for each taster. I have also seen rare beers run out. Having a rough priority list helps you get the good stuff early. I am also attending Oakquinox... prob wearing an LA Kings cap. Cheers!
I got pretty Hammer Time last Oakquinox and my buddy ended up throwing up all over the car. This is what ill be doing in preparation this time. There wasn't a ton of food available so I'm pretty sure it was lack of food and hydration in between beers. We will be grabbing some breakfast close to stone to make sure the food is still in our stomachs. Anyone have a good suggestion near by? I personally just marked the main beers i want to try and then im gunna wing the rest of them. Plenty of beers ive never had before so that's what works for me.
Depends on where your coming from but Cotijas in Rancho Bernardo is amazing and pretty close to the 15. Otherwise I'd look for a hole in the wall taco shop as those tend to be the best. My buddy had a similar experience at pour it black but as long as you actually eat a good amount I think you should be fine. Thanks for the advice Andyone, I made a similar cheat sheet and will be going off that/winging it based on where the lines are long ad what I'm feeling. I'll most likely be wearing a Mother Earth Brewing T-Shirt if anyone wants to talk beer! Cheers my friends!
agree on mixing the sours in, they will be refreshing. I have a hard time drinking lots of sours in a row also.
The trick is to bring a DD that can get lost all day people watching. then have them run over the rocks/stream in the back of the gardens and lay claim to the lawn chairs there that sit under the tree and have shade ALL DAY LONG! Oakquinox was quite tasty this year. You might have seen me, I was the white guy wearing a beer shirt.
