OH what a festival! I can’t believe we made it ALL 6 HOURS. I don’t think there was a beer left untasted by the time we were done with it.

We arrived at the festival around 11:15am, after a quick drive from Philly. The show opened at noon, but they said they’d start giving out wristbands and checking people in around 11:30am. It was a good thing we got to the Maryland State Fairgrounds (Timonium, MD) when we did, as 20 mins later, the line was halfway around through the horse stables!

With our VIP passes, not only did we get 2 hours of exclusive tastings, but also a free tasting glass (pictured above) and a tshirt. Overwhelmed with options, we didn’t know what to tackle first. 60 beers, 40 bourbons… and it was barely the afternoon… we were in for a LONG day.

We were greeted with the ladies from Heavy Seas as soon as we walked in, so we sampled their beer first. (I’m going to review the actual beers in subsequent posts - so look for those later - don’t worry, I’ll have track-backs). The Clipper City brewing company has a pirate theme to their line of beers, all with a higher alcohol content.

In addition to the plethora of beers stalls, there were also booths selling booze accoutrement: Everything from giant beer pong (also known as “Bear Pong”, pictured above), to Booze-themed apparel.

Another gem was Surprenant’s Berry Farm. Tucked away in the back of the festival, this guy made the sweetest jams I’ve had in a long time… many spiked with booze. There was a delectable raspberry Kahlua jam that was to die for. If that wasn’t enough, the main spread (ha ha) of the tent was actually jellies made out of BEER. That’s right, beer. Not fruit jams flavored with beer, but actual jelly-fied Beer. My favorite was the Ithaca Nut Brown… apparently very good on steaks. I liked them so much I bought a sampler case of 9 flavors (also included are Ommegang, Lake Placid, and He’Brew beers).

Barbecue was abundant, and available for purchase. We asked around, specifically a pair of dudes wearing viking helmets, what the best BBQ was in the place, and the recommended Big Mamma’s Backyard BBQ. We were most definitely NOT disappointed! The pulled pork literally melted in your mouth.

We took our food to a tent to eat… and accidentally stumbled upon a VIP tasting hosted by who else?…. Heavy Seas! Joy! Hosted by the founder of Clipper City Brewing company, Hugh Sisson, and the founder of the festival, Greg Nivens, we knew this was a session not to be missed.

We sampled 4 beers, each paired with a small bite of food.

• Below Decks Barleywine w/Bacon wrapped Dates
• Märzen w/Spicy Sausage
• Loose Cannon w/Pork Loin & Monkey sauce
• Small Craft Warning w/Sage & Mojo Roast Pig
• Jim Beam Mint Infused Bourbon
• Pappy Van Winkle 23 Year Bourbon (This retails for $175-$225 a bottle… truly worth the price. Smooth, sweet, and packs a punch)

The food was incredible…. though the first pairing was definitely the best. One of my friends with me noted that he’d had the barleywine before, and hadn’t liked it, but this pairing of the bacon wrapped date with it TOTALLY changed his mind. It was incredible. And the roast pig?? I can’t even tell you how delicious it was. It was work the extra $10 for the VIP pass just for this.

So far, we’ve discussed 2 of the 3 namesakes of the festival. What about the Bourbon, you ask? Well, here’s the skinny… that is some STRONG stuff! This woman’s not sure she’s cut out to hack it with the big kids in that regard. There’s a reason this is a BEER blog!

That said, Maker’s Mark had a very good booth, as well as a very informative tasting session. At the booth you could get the bottom of your tasting glass coated in the signature Maker’s Mark red wax - very clever marketing!

We stayed for the Maker’s Mark seminar which taught us that Bourbon is defined by 4 things:

A) It’s American. Needs to be made right here in the good ol’ US of A. But not just in Kentucky (though that’s where most of the famous ones are)

B) It’s fermented in white oak Barrels. These barrels are charred on the inside (which is where the caramel color comes from) - but it’s important to note that these barrels can only be used ONCE - after that they have to be sold. So if you see a “boubon barrel beer” - it comes from one of those barrels.

C) It’s made with Corn. At least 51% corn, to be correct.

D) It’s Distilled to be from 80 proof (40% alcohol) to 160 proof (80% alcohol). No more, no less.

I learned a lot! Including the fact that I have a propensity for American Honey Bourbon. Sooo sweet, and so good!

I figured the best way to end the day, was to get in good with the folks over at Dogfish Head brewery. Apparently, he wasn’t supposed to drink from the pitchers… but it does make for a good picture. You can see how much he was in demand - as another attendee couldn’t get a glass of their 60 Min IPA fast enough!

All in all, it was an amazing day… though I don’t remember much of the rest of the night ;) The Beer, Bourbon & BBQ festival has events all over the east coast, so if you missed this one, don’t worry! There’s another one coming up soon! I’ll certainly be going back again.