San Antonio Beer Festival

Let me preface by saying that this is the 3^rd year I have attended this festival and I was able get to score complimentary tickets. Nonetheless I will still review this event based on its own merits. It should be viewed as a work still in progress.
1.) Location: I think having it at Hemisphere Park in the past, while chaotic provided some space and you could peacefully drink. At Maverick Park it is a considerably smaller venue to throw an event of this magnitude. It can no longer accommodate the hellish crowds that’s insatiable thirst for beer grows stronger each year. It must find a space on a much grander scale or limit the tickets that are sold.
2.) Parking: Parking is tricky and at best, nonexistent. This should be viewed in the context of its location. Since it is an area notoriously limited for space to begin with you should at least go an hour before it starts. Or consider having someone drop you off so you can wait in line. Otherwise expect to pay big for parking anywhere.
3.) Beer samples: Beer samples have been reconfigured differently this year. TABC laws (supposedly) have restricted the amount of drinks they can serve you at one time. The result is now a small snifter glass with a card that allows you twelve 2oz. samples. The caveat is that once you are finished with your card you can purchase additional sample tickets for a nominal fee, for extra drinks.

I have a few questions while on this subject. If the event is prohibited by law to sell «X» amount of drinks to you at one time how can it sell you any additional drinks thereafter? If you have already paid $ 40 to get inside doesn’t buying anymore drinks on top of the samples defeat the whole purpose of the festival in the 1^st place? Isn’t that like paying a $ 40 cover to drink more beer?
3.) Beer Selection: It was not or nowhere near as good as last year. For example dark beers such as stouts and porters were MIA. In its place IPA’s, pilsner, lagers lighter beers reigned supreme. In years past there seemed to be a healthy variety of every style of beer. Instead most of the beer selection seemed safe and nothing was out of the ordinary. Even after careful deliberation on my «beers to try» list most of them were either absent or had been already tapped out.
4.) Venue Layout: Again the smaller venue presented many logistical issues; namely that local and national breweries were placed in two separate areas. As a result booths seemed clustered awkwardly or collided with one another. I couldn’t tell where one tap placement began or another ended. In the midst of the confusion I wandered alongside patrons like an alcohol induced zombie from booth to booth.
5.) Weather: I know October is the optimal time to throw festivals and events. However, the sun does not recognize that here. In my opinion hot weather and drinking are not a good mix and the potential for danger imminent. I saw people scrambling the whole time for shade. Who wants to drink a beer uncomfortably numb, as the sun is barreling down on them? They should reconsider moving it to late October or early November when the weather is much cooler; thus more ideal for a beer festival.
Taking all these things into consideration:
1.) I’d like to see this festival moved to a bigger venue. Half the issues would be best resolved by location.
2.) Whoever secures the breweries and brewers each year must attack it more aggressively. They really need to attract immerging national breweries with buzz surrounding them. With the right push it has the potential to become a prestigious event.
3.) It would be helpful to create an app specifically for that day, to locate booths instead of the paper guide.
In addition why not have patrons vote on their favorite beer or drink and hand out awards that afternoon? Competition has the unintended effect of bringing out the best. Create excitement so when people purchase that ticket they feel it is money well spent. Even the most discerning beer snob or nerd would appreciate that.
Will I go next year? I’m not sure. If they offer a promotional deal like they did this year I might. But then again, «Never Say Never» seems to be my motto for the year and as of late.

This is such a great event put on by the San Antonio Current, and most of the local breweries.
There is a large selection of beers to try. But you do have to go early to get the best beers, as the local guys will run out of stuff, or will bring out special cask editions.
I am a bit disappointed that a majority of the sponsorship comes from one of the largest breweries in the world, and therefore they’re pouring a lot of that brewery’s beers, that are more like «crafty» beers, and not craft beers. They’re not small local businesses, they’re just marketing campaigns from the macro brewers.
It’s always a fun event to check out, and I recommend going. You’ve got to get out and try the local brewers and see what’s going on in the brewing industry! The guys pouring the beer are usually people who have a direct role in the brewing, and can answer all your questions.
The event has been moved to the north side of downtown, so there’s more parking, and it’s still easy to get to by bus.

Everyone fighting over the benches, it would have been perfect if there was a portable chair vendor, HELLO! There was a vendor for everything else. They would have made a killing. Oh yeah the beer was good too.

please please PLEASE LISTEN TO YOUR CLIENTS AND beer drinkers that have been going to your event for 2 years +!!! We are the people that come and drink and end up supporting the brewers that you showcase at your festival. DO NOT MAKE THIS A SOUR event to where people become unhappy, unpleasant, upset, and unsatisfied.
Here I present to you, respectively, some suggestions for this years Beer Festival, all from a lady who stage manages and manages big events & festivals outside of San Antonio (hire me, I can help!) :
1. MORE TOILETS — my bladder is crying just thinking about the portapotty fiasco after drinking 3 small ten ounce beers within the first hour of being at the event. Good thing I am a seasoned drinker & festival go-​er because I had plenty of toilet paper but no where to go or use it right away! Drunk people or buzzed people waiting in lines for a stinky toilet does not make for a nice good time.
2. BREWERS NEED ROOM — they really do! Spread them out and utlize all the nooks and crannies found at Hemisphere Park. The Hemisphere Park is an excellent venue but with a little more planning on what brewers or beers are the most popular you need to give them some more room.
3. RECYCLE! Please continue to place recycling trash bins around the park. I know there is a lot of trash that gets thrown out but recycling the plastic cups you give us is a good idea.
4. DON’T END EARLIER than what we have paid for. It take some time to drink all of these beers and one thing I disliked both years in going to the festival was how soon everything closed down. It seems to me that SAPD have the upper hand (rightfully so) in telling brewers when to stop their taps. Please don’t let them cut us off 15 – 25 minutes early. It’s barely 5pm, SAPD! The event just started 4 hours ago and when you are a traveling tourist that comes in from another Texas city to stay and have fun in San Antonio specifically for the beer fest, well, you won’t have me leaving happy. They should be mindful of the event times/​rental times and allow us to drink in peace.
5. DON’T BOOK BANDS IF WE AIN’T GOT TIME TO GET ANOTHER BEER LET ALONE SEE MY FRIENDS PLAY WITH THEIR BAND ON A NICE STAGE — let’s do something about the line situation. Perhaps selling a ticket that is $ 50 to have one hour exclusively for beer tastings then an hour later open up to General Admission ($ 30)? You will get the serious drinkers early enough and then make some money to pay back each SAPD officer you have at every tap, tent, and permits needed to put this festival up. I was so sad to have missed ALL of the bands this last year because I had to get one beer then slide over to the next beer tent/​tasting I wanted. SO MANY PEOPLE IS A GOOD THING — just organize it to where lines are not being wrapped around sidewalks where people are moving, dancing, or walking.
I love you San Antonio and all the beer you have to offer. Let’s just get up there with quality festivals and providing the best experience you can give to people who are paying $ 30+ a ticket to enjoy some beers underneath the shadow of the Tower of Americas.

I love you SA. I love your interest in craft beer, and the re-​urbanization of downtown. What I don’t like about you is that you lag when it comes to evolving festivals that have outgrown their venue. I’ve been going to this festival since the beginning… I mean back when there were 5 – 6 white tents that poured what ever GLI, Bud, & Miller could bring in. Back when Maredsous 8 & 10 was considered the most awesome beer your lips could touch.
So how many years has it been old friend? Long enough… So this year due unforseeable events I got here later than I wanted to and paid the price. The lines were super long and the beer was running low. Either the venue needs to be moved to a larger area or Hemisphere park has to give you more room. I like that you had more little guys this year, but I didn’t like they were all corralled in the corner like orphaned children. My last complaint of all beer events, more bathroom accessibility. So for all of those planning on attending next years event.
1. Bring a blanket, chair or something to sit on if you plan on going as a large group
2. Bring spare TP and sanitizer, or forgo all it and wear adult diapers.
3. GET THERE EARLY, AS SOON AS THE GATES OPEN.
4. THE MOST IMPORTANT ONE: Bring a friend or friends and don’t let them drink the same beer you are having, the purpose is to try beers you wouldn’t normally order. Open your mind to the beer world… and if it sucks everyone has that one guy/​girl who’ll drink anything with alcohol.
BTW: use the buddy system, wait in line for beer… get said beer. Go to line to restroom, have buddy get you another beer while in line. Make sure you rotate who is the beer gopher.

I was really looking forward to this event because I happened to be in SA for it and, hey, I love me some craft beer. However, we showed up around 2p (it started at 1p) and some of the booths had already run out of beer! WTH?
The beer lines were out of control. There were AT LEAST 20 minute lines for every single booth, which is ok if you’re a huge festival and you can draw the best beer makers from all over the country, but these were just local-​ish brews that were hit-​or-​miss. So, you ended up waiting half an hour for a beer that you may or may not throw out. And, since the lines were so long, you may as well fill up your cup and go stand in another line… do people actually think this is fun? I wanted to relax and enjoy a few beers, not make believe that I’m at the DMV.
The bathroom lines were even more out of control than the beer lines. There must have been one bathroom for every 100 people that were there. Simply unbelievable.
So, after waiting in about five 20 – 30 minute lines for beer and two 30 minute lines to use the restroom, we decided to cut our losses and leave. If they got more real estate at Hemisfair, tripled the number of restrooms and limited admission I would go back but until they can promise that… no thank you.

This was an amazing event. sadly, WAS says a lot.
In the past, if you loved craft brews and just beer in general then this was great. Now, Honestly it seems like the people throwing this just got greedy.
Some of the reasons this was not your best year and ways to improve:
1) Too Crowded — We arrived at 1330 and by 1400 the lines were already about a 30 minute wait. To add to the fun, some of the breweries were already out of some beers by 1430. I would have happily paid $ 50 and then limit the amount of people allowed in instead of the $ 30.
2) Larger Venue — Spread out the beer tents more or move it to a bigger place. Having lines so long that they snake through other brewers lines was unacceptable.
3) Lines — Just leaving a 3ft gap between tents so people can leave after getting their beer instead of having to push back through the line you just came from, would be a vast improvement over this years mess.
4) Informed Servers. — The breweries were not impressing anyone by having servers that were only there because of breasts instead of basic beer knowledge or serving ability.

5) More Toilets — We went twice while there and both times it took over 20 minutes of waiting, just to piss.

I wouldn’t wait 30 – 45 minutes for a beer in a bar, let alone a bar I paid $ 30 to get into.

Well, I know where I will be every October for the remainder of my life…
The $ 30 entrance fee is a bargain. It gets you 10 drink tickets and a pass into a beer lovers mini paradise. This is a festival for all levels of beer drinkers. Represented this year were a number of great TX Craft Breweries, some national Craft beers, and even the big international brands.
Great selections from Adelbert’s, Circle, Independence, and and Abita to name just a few. Food vendors were serving up everything from tacos, gourmet hot dogs, and fantastic smoked turkey legs!
The festival takes place in Hemisphere Park and is designed well. Through the main gates, one is greeted with about 40 taps and a large grassy space butting up to a stage. Continue walking and toward the back of the festival is a DJ spinning tunes as well. None of the lines were excessive and the festival was kept clean by a brigade of custodial workers.
There is plenty of shaded space and many brought chairs, which is a brilliant idea for next year. I even saw a couple pups running around.
Beer, smoked turkey legs, and dog friendly??? In my book, that makes for a perfect day… I’ll see you there next October.

Amazing! That simple. It was my first year to attend and I cannot wait until next. Genius and obviously experienced beer drinkers brought their own chairs and claimed coveted shady areas. Some of us didn’t mind getting down with our environmental sides and got to know the grass a little better.
Great music, great food and so many beer choices your head might spin. The folks at The Current did it right. Thank you for a great event!

I was so happy with the new and improved Beer Festival this year!
I’ll admit I was part of the group that attended two years ago and decided not to go back last year. But after hearing about all the changes made and improvements pending for this year, I decided to give it another shot and I’m so glad I did!
From beginning to end, everything was organized. The line to get in moved quickly and the tickets included 10 drink tickets. I heard some people complaint that last year they were given 15 and they were upset to not have 15 this year. I think that is one of the best changes because people were drinking to enjoy the beer, not get wasted out of their minds. So, the crowd was cool and under control the whole time, which is always a plus at a beer festival!
They had many of my local favorites around and I even got to taste some new brews I’d never had before. Always a plus.
All in all, I’m so happy this festival is back with a vengeance and I can’t wait for next time!