De Garde Quarterly Release

Very well run, amazing beers all around and good cheer on the part of staff and partygoers. Thank you, everyone! Can't wait for the next one.

 

Yup, great event. I showed up around 1pm and only waited 30 minutes to get my bottles. By the time 2pm rolled around, I'd say I was at the middle of the line.

On the reference to the Anniversary party, there were not nearly as many people in attendance this time so that made the draft lines go quick . And the bottles line for anniversary only went so slowly because there were 10 bottles being released.

 

There were two poor women (my wife being one of them) working the bottle sales line at the anniversary party. They were cramped, there were more bottles, and no extra boxes to pack up orders. Don't worry, they were as miserable as the people in line! Yesterday, there were five people working bottle sales out of the back garage door. They had pre-packed many 6+6 combos and had extra boxes ready to go. There were a solid 60 to maybe even 75 people in line at 9:00 and the last person in line at the time (with a wristband) came through the front door in just under an hour. That's averaging at least one person every minute, which doesn't seem bad. And a huge improvement over prior releases. Kudos to Trevor and Lins for making many adjustments over the past couple releases to make things run smoother.

 

Things went swimmingly this time around.

TLDR: Get more people to help than you think you need.

 

My first time out to the brewery since they annexed the space next to the original. Tons more room, and two times the number of bathrooms made for a much more enjoyable experience. Not that I don't enjoy being squeezed between barrels and beer nerds, but being able to move around freely was a huge plus.

 

Be even nicer once the new paint smell dissipates! Had to move to the back with my tasty Framboise White pour, fumes ruined it. At least it should only be a problem for a couple more days.

 

Just chiming in to agree with the previous sentiments: super smoothly run, great beers, much more mellow than the last round.

To add some details. I got there pretty much right at 2 and made it through the bottle line in about 45 minutes with a full allocation. Excellent. Much better than having to get there 2 hours early. The 4 beers released, sans keepers beers which I haven't tried yet, were uniformly stellar. Last release I thought there were some phenomenal beers (I'm lookin' at you Fleur Desay and Side Project Chardonnay) but some fell a touch short of the admittedly high bar I set for De Garde beers ... or, rather, the high bar that De Garde has set for themselves by producing stuff like Imperial Boysenberry Bu / Archer / etc. The mellower vibe was a real surprise ... and it's one that I think will create mixed reactions. Many locals, I think, will appreciate it - a chance to chill out, drink all the killer stuff on tap - a celebration of the awesome local brewers and likeminded compatriots around the country, talk with friends, etc. I share this sentiment. The out of town folks that drive / fly in will, I think, feel it's a let down - i.e. WHERE'S THE EPIC BOTTLE SHARE!!!! I heard a few grumblings along these lines at the event. There were still bottles opened, but it wasn't a primary focus ... or even a secondary focus. I'm curious if the next event, being in fall, will again command a bigger crowd. Summer disperses focus. Regardless, I'm sure Trevor/Linsey and co will find a way to tweak / improve the event yet again for the next iteration, giving those that want more of a walez-share a boat and a harpoon upon entry for example.

 

I truly don't understand the mentality where every event needs to be an EPIC BOTTLE SHARE!!! We can't just be happy with that tap list? And people are asking the same thing about Zwanze Day... will there be a bottle share? FFS people... drink the damn Cantillon and be happy.

 

Preaching to the choir - when there are 10+ amazing beers on tap and Trevor's plucking bottles from the cellar ... THAT'S when you want to open that cherished bottle?

Coals to Newcastle.

 

If people want a nicer bottle share, then bring nicer bottles. Just saying....

 

I've never understood this mentality, either.

 

Good, then maybe less people will fly in and leave more for us locals. Seems interesting though that people who come in out of the state would complain about "bottle shares" since aren't they coming in for the event? Not sure if I follow the logic on going to an event only to be expecting a big bottle share at the said event. Now if someone who is coming out of town wants a bottle share than I would assume they would make a thread about it. If memory serves we had one hell of an epic share from a out of towner that did just that.

...though what bottles where opened and being shared I in no way would grumble about that, had some awesome ones!

 

man, i thought some of the bottles shared were pretty fuckin epic. some already mentioned by myself and others.

 

Seems to be more of an Oregon thing. Up here in Washington were very much satisfied with the tap list for events.

 

If people want a walez-share they can get their own goddamn boat and a harpoon. That isn't de Garde's job. I'd rather Trevor and Linsey (and Will) concentrated on their own beer. (Which, incidentally, is more than worth the trip to Tillamook.)

 

The anniversary party/bottle share at de Garde in May was about as epic as it gets, and there were still people having a bottle share back at the hotel after that! Is it ever enough?

 

This was a great event. Trevor and Linsey really knocked it out of the park this time round. Fast lines? Check. Space large enough to accommodate everyone comfortably? Check. Awesome beers? Check. Couldn't ask for more really. Oh and there were people there to help you carry your boxes to the car!

I look forward to the next one.

 

I didn't here anybody bitching about the bottles share, so I hope there wasn't alot of people that felt negatively about it. Shout out to the dudes that brought some baller ass stuff. The only persons name I got was Tommy and he brought the DBH. I personally thought the bottleshare was awesome. LiL, CFH, KH, Cask Cherry, Cask Strawberry, Maiden Fields, and a bunch of other stuff that I can't recall.