The Isthmus Beer &
Cheese Festival rolled round again in 2018 and we were more than happy to
sample it for our very first taste. This annual festival is now into its 9th
year and is continually selling out tickets, days in advance of the actual
event. It offers VIP and general admission tickets, the main perk to VIP is the
extra time of 2 hours entry before anyone else to try the samples and
experience the taste, crowd free. Being festival virgins we played it safe and
selected for general admission tickets, in hindsight it was every dime.
We arrived 45 minutes
before the doors were due to open; thanks to a free bus shuttle service ran by
the festival. This service is great and allows for safe roads around the event
to prevent drink drivers. The queue’s for the festival grow in size pretty
quick and extend out across the whole outer walk way, so make sure to get there
early. The bus we arrived on even set off 10 minutes earlier than it was
supposed to, making it a quick experience. Once we the doors were opened,
tickets were checked and we each got a bag, programme (with map) and tasting
glass.
To the beer! As
everyone spilled into the barley full event space we made our way down our
first isle to sample our favorite beer, ‘Leinenkugel's’. After sampling a
light beer, we crazily started just sampling port and stout beers; one of these
was a beautiful yet full on peanut butter and chocolate milk “stoutz” from,
‘The Brewing Projekt’. However, this along with the other ales quickly became
very heavy on the stomach, so we sought out the nearest water fountain and cheese
stand. There were a good number of cheese and food stands around the event and
they were easily found as the lines for these were bigger than any brewery that
day. The best cheese we sampled was from the ‘Metcalfes’ cheese boards.
As we walked around
the stands in a meteorological manner, we picked up as many beer bottle caps as
we could for our beer board. The boards we have are in the shape of WI State
and the USA. They are awesome at representing the local and national breweries
that are available to check out again or for the first time. Back to the beer
of the moment, the best beers for both me and my wife was the “breakfast beer”
and “17 up” beers, both from ‘Pearl Street Brewing Company’. There were so many
different styles and exclusives at this festival which would normally cost you
$5 plus per bottle. Therefore, the $50 ticket fee was more than justified this year
round.
With the year just
beginning so are the festivals, we look forward to checking out more this year
but it will have to be great to meet the high standard we witnessed at, The
Isthmus Beer & Cheese Festival 2018.
