Last Saturday, September 5th, I attended the 3rd Annual Ithaca Brew Fest and it turned out to be the most fun I have ever had in Ithaca. The sun was shining and the beautiful blue sky and picturesque Cayuga Lake were accentuated by the extensive variety of offered food and drink. The event took place at the Big Pavilion at Stewart Park, which was packed to the brim with thirsty tasters. Upon entering at 3PM, the staff gave my friends and me 20 drink tickets, a 2 ounce tasting glass, and a tasting guide.

tickets

First I had to eat and luckily there were a multitude of options available. The first table I saw was Wegman’s bratwurst and mild Italian sausage. This came with peppers and sweet caramelized Vidalia onions and the sides were potato salad and cole slaw. It was very tasty and the onions were incredibly sweet. They made the dish.

bratwurst, potato salad, and slaw

Next came the beers, the first of which I had was Middle Ages’ Wailing Wench. It was hoppy and tasty, but not incredibly memorable.

Middle Ages’ Wailing Wench

The next was Sly Fox’s O’Reilly’s Stout. It had great body and a very smooth finish. Its head was magnificent, as you can see, and it left an aftertaste of coffee.

Sly Fox’s O’Reilly’s Stout

Then came Butternuts’ Snapperhead IPA. This was a little sweet, then bitter, but altogether not very tasty or memorable. I didn’t like it too much.

Butternuts’ Snapperhead IPA

Captain Lawrence’s Smoked Porter was incredible. I could drink this one all day. It was complex, rich, and oh so flavorful. I assume that they got the smokiness from a charred barrel, but I really have no idea. See the browned head on top and you can almost taste how smoky it was. This was probably my favorite beer at Brew Fest.

Captain Lawrence’s Smoked Porter

Empire’s American Strong Ale was hearty, strong, and tasty. At 9.0% ABV, its name was truly indicative of its strength.

Empire’s American Strong Ale

Then I took a break to eat more. I had a few bites of Razorback’s pulled pork before throwing the dried and flavorless mess in the garbage. Half of why I threw it away was because I was full, the other half was that it was just too nasty to consume.

Razorback’s pulled pork

The gluttony continued as I sampled McSorley’s Irish Black Lager. It was the smoothest dark beer I have ever tasted. I guess it should be expected that such skill comes from such an old brewery. My friend told me that it’s the oldest in NYC and that it began in 1854.

McSorley’s Irish Black Lager

This might have been my third favorite beer. Leinenkugel’s Sunset Wheat was a smooth and tasty hefe-style brew that tasted like someone squeezed a whole orange into the beer. My Midwestern family loves Leinenkugels, but before I tried the Sunset Wheat, I was a bit weary of the brand whose sales rival Budweiser out there. Maybe it got the flavor from the coriander that it’s brewed with, but that sounds a bit fishy to me. Even if they’re lying about what goes in, it was a magnificent brew.

Leinenkugel’s Sunset Wheat

McSorley’s last beer was so tasty I had to go back to try their Irish Pale Ale. It was very smooth. Now I’ll have to make a trip to that brewery at some point.

McSorley’s Irish Pale Ale

I went into the Pavilion to try a few samples. Nothing was worth noting except Wegman’s macaroni and cheese. They made it with Ithaca Nut Brown Ale and it was delicious. The cheddar and ale swam in my mouth and danced on my tongue. If I weren’t so full, I would have gotten a whole portion instead of just a sample.

Wegman’s macaroni and cheese

Wolaver’s is a certified organic brewery and I tried their Oatmeal Stout. It was crisp and sweet, but the oatmeal flavor was a bit muted.

Wolaver’s Oatmeal Stout

The Blue Moon Belgian White is a nice classic wheat beer. It’s not the most complex, but a good value and your best bet if you want a cheap wheat beer.

Blue Moon Belgian White

New York brewery is not listed in the tasting guide, but they still made their appearance. Though the bottles were tacky and the lines short, their lager was very smooth. It wasn’t amazing, but much better than I expected from the way they presented themselves.

New York brewery lager

Spaten’s Optimator was very alcoholic, but also very palatable.

Spaten’s Optimator

Another of Spaten’s is one of my favorite beers and I was surprised that the Munich brewery was here at all, but I guess they want to start establishing an American presence. This beer is Franziskaner Weissbier and its smooth rich flavor makes it one of the best wheat beers I know.

Spaten’s Franziskaner Weissbier

Wagner Valley’s Oatmeal Stout was the way an oatmeal stout should taste. It was very dark, rich, and oaty. This was definitely in my top 5 for the day and the long line for it proved that others thought the same.

Wagner Valley’s Oatmeal Stout

Next was Excelsior by Ithaca. The name suggests something orgasmic, but all I got from it was hops. It was a bit disappointing.

Excelsior by Ithaca

Rooster Fish was the next brewery I visited and I tried their Hop Warrior. This was accurately named. It was very hoppy, but with very interesting fruity undertones as well.

Rooster Fish's Hop Warrior

Then I tried Southern Tier’s Imperial Mokah. It was strong, smooth, and sweet with a very distinct coffee flavor.

Southern Tier’s Imperial Mokah

Saranac’s Imperial IPA was full bodied and hoppy with a fruity taste. This was also in my top 5.

Saranac’s Imperial IPA

The Horsehead’s Pumpkin Ale tasted like biting into a slice of fresh pumpkin pie. It was the best pumpkin ale I had ever tasted.

Horsehead’s Pumpkin Ale

A crowd favorite was one of my least favorites. The Hot-Jala-Heim by Horseheads Brewing was brewed with hot peppers and is aptly described as a “Chili beer”. I don’t like spice in my beer though, so I hated this one despite its originality.

Hot-Jala-Heim by Horseheads Brewing

Bellwether makes hard cider and I tried their Liberty Spy. It tasted mossy and almost rotten, like an apple past its prime.

Bellwether' Liberty Spy

OMMEGANG’s beer was rich, flavorful, and peachy. Unfortunately, I didn’t get the name of this one.

OMMEGANG’s beer

After taking a break to admire the lake, I tried Yuengling’s Porter, which was pleasantly dark and heavy, but still crisp and smooth.

Yuengling’s Porter

I went back to Rooster Fish to try the Firehouse Blonde. It was a very refreshing beer.

Rooster Fish Firehouse Blonde

The festival drew to a close as the clock reached 7PM and all the kegs were tapped, so I tried some of the pizza that everyone had been raving about. The people who made it brought a huge oven with them to make these thin hand-made-on-the-spot pizzas. I got the garlic, herb oil and asiago pizza. It was cheesy and oily, with just the perfect blend of seasoning.

garlic and herb oil and asiago pizza

My friends and I then made a trip to the breathalyzer to compare scores before calling a multitude of people to find someone sober to drive us. It was a magical day and if there’s anything that will bring me back to Ithaca after I graduate, it will be Brew Fest.