The sun rises on the slumbering city, dew glistens on the leaves, and at old Historic Fort York tents have been erected. Kegs of beer are being unloaded from trucks and I'm just waking up with a hang over. Every year about this time a virtual buffet of beer is presented for your sampling pleasures. I'm not sure how long this festival has been going on, but I've been going for about 5 years.
Fort York is one of those historic military compounds that has now been turned into more of a tourist attraction than anything else. But for a few hot days in August it is the zenith for all things frothy. Every and I mean every brewery in the Ontario region loads up their precious liquid gold and brings it here hoping to gain a few new customers.
The festival I believe starts Friday night, but the day I have always, and will continue to go on is Saturday. My friends and I gather before hand at our usual location, lather up with sunscreen, grab our bottles of water and make our way across the city to the Fort.
Upon entry you are given the tiniest of glasses that you will use to drink from. I remember the first time we went we actually thought we wouldn't get drunk from such a small glass. You are also given tickets, you then take these tickets to the various tents and trade them for a sample of beer. What a fantastic concept! The sheer number of breweries is awesome, you can taste a raspberry beer grown in northern Ontario, or you can taste a hemp beer from a few cities over.
There is a stage in the middle of the fort that various bands perform on, but I don't think I've ever really watched any of them. The reason I am there, and most of the other people are there is to taste the nectar of the gods. The concept is just unbelievable to me, I mean sure the companies are getting a bit of compensation but I just love the idea that this thing exists.
Sure there are wine and cheese events that are similar to this but come on, this is a fuckin party. By around 6:00 pm the days events are winding down. The light weights have already left drunker then they ever thought possible, and my friends and I are about to enter into phase 2 of the Beer Fest party. We all hop in cabs and go back across the city to my place. There we throw some old fashioned meat on the BBQ and continue to drink more beer. Everyone is usually pretty tired so we talk and listen to tunes into the wee hours of the morning.
There are very few things that make me happy, in fact there are hardly any that include being out in public but this gentle readers is like a religious experience for me. The event is always well executed, there are never really any problems with violence or fights, just good clean (ok semi clean) fun.
So my friends go forth and drink the elixir from
the plastic cup and prosper.
Long Live Beer!
Downs
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