Such a great experience at SAVOR this weekend. Possibly my favorite favorite beer festival of all time. Top notch beer selection, impeccable food pairings, and tons of the craft beer celebs and elite. No lines (except for the men’s bathroom), no amateurs wearing pretzels necklaces, no bros, no breweries phoning it in. Everyone involved brought their A game. Anyways, took a ton of pics to break in the new camera. Check em out!

Haven’t had too many things from Crooked Stave but love what I’ve been able to try. Is a Cellar Reserve membership in my future? Perhaps.

We pretty much bee lined it to Lost Abbey to see what they were offering that night. No sours, but I wouldn’t kick Saint’s Devotion or Deliverance out of bed, either.

My first time with anything from Crux. Love their labels and design. Tough Love was also an extremely solid RIS, especially for being their first barrel aged beer.

Happy to try this year’s Firestone Walker Parabola. Just means I get to wait to open my bottle for a special occasion.

The Bruery had both Sans Pagaie and their latest anniversary ale, Bourbon Barrel Aged Bois in the house. I think I actually preferred the 25% Barrel Aged Fruet to this, as the bourbon was more balanced. We went back for several refills of The Bruery’s Sans Pagaie, though.

Avery’s Twenty was a very good DIPA, but their Odio Equums was just outstanding.

Yes these were glorified rice krispie treats.

Star Hill’s bottles reminds me of a wine label more than a beer one. Classy.

Blackberry Farm Brewery had the best beer name of the night.

My first time with Founders Rübæus. Man, was this some intense Raspberry to your dome.

Yazoo brought some very interesting beers with them that night. The Wild Child had so much going on with it. It starts with their smoked porter, Sue, then it’s barrel aged and funkified with brett and dark sour cherries. Cray cray.

Brewer Chad Yakobson from Crooked Stave looking honestly debonaire as fuck.

NJ beer peeps in da house!

Howdy.

Great bunch of guys from Bull & Bush. Fun brewery and beers.

Excellent lineup from Bell’s Brewing.

Raspberry Wild One was absolutely insane.

A wild Todd Alström appears!

Justin Clark and crew representing Cigar City.

Luckily I got some Three Floyds before they ran out. I hear Saturday’s session it lasted even less time.

Had a great time chatting with Greg and the rest of the guys from Stone.

This iteration of Enjoy By isn’t going to make it around these parts so I definitely took the chance to grab some while it was at SAVOR.

One last shot before the camera died. Whomp whoooomp. Some extremely tasty chocolate from Green and Black’s.

Sam Calagione pouring a beer for a die-hard Dogfish Head fan.

Crappy, kinda drunken cellphone pic of Emily, myself and Elise to end the night.

And the gifts that were given to guests as we exited. A nice touch.

Overall SAVOR was a great experience, one that I think I will try to attend again even when it moves back down to DC. The tickets are definitely pricey ($175-$200 which thankfully I did not have to pay, thanks George!) but at that price point it keeps out the riff raff.

The real question is, at $350-$400 a couple is it worth the price? Yes and no. With that kind of money, a night in Waterbury with dinner at Hen of the Wood and some popping back and forth between the Prohibition Pig, Blackback Pub, and the Reservoir is going to land you some incredible food, and great beer from Hill Farmstead, The Alchemist, Lawson’s, some Shelton Brothers beers like Cantillon, including some great wine and cocktails if that’s your thing. And I’m sure that experience could be had in other great beer cities like Portland (both of them), Denver, San Diego, Philly, Chi-Town, etc.

Personally, that would be just as great of an experience for the money. But, unless you knew a guy who knew a guy who had an in at a place with a really awesome private beer cellar, I don’t think you could get the variety of beers available that you could at SAVOR, and you certainly couldn’t rub elbows with not just brewery staff but as many actual brewmasters as you had the opportunity to at SAVOR. To me, that alone is worth the price of admission.