[Event] Toronto Festival of Beer 2013

Last weekend I had the pleasure of once again attending the Toronto Festival of Beer (@TOBeerFestival). Despite it being the 19th annual TFOB, this would only be my second time in attendance. And with all the lessons I managed to learn from my first beer festival visit last year (see here), I think it's safe to say I was able to enjoy it this time around even more!

The Preparation

First order of business was to (a) buy tokens (no tokens, no beer!) and (b) to hang out a bit in the media lounge. It's a nice refuge from all the walking and standing around, and it also doesn't hurt that there are an endless supply of Neal Brothers (@NealBrothers) chips and LOL Candy trees (@LOLcandyco)to snack off of! :)

Official Beer Festival Currency

Media Tent

Sofie and Matilda beers from Goose Island (@GooseIsland)

Neal Brother BBQ Chips & LOL Candy Tree

Neal Brothers BBQ Chips

I absolutely could not stop eating these chips. A Kettle-style chip with an amazing combination of sweet and savory. These may very well be the best barbecue chips I have ever tasted. Don't believe me? Go get some and try for yourself!

Into the Festival

After the media tent, it was off into the bustling fairgrounds we go. One thing I noticed is that there were A LOT more sitting areas compared to last year. Makes for a more laid back environment to just chill out, sample on some food, and have some beers with your friends!

Smirnoff campsite

Budweiser sofas

Budweiser

Molson Canadian Beer Tent

The 3 Brasseurs (@Les3BrasseursCa)

A great selection of local beers too!

Kensington Brewing Company's Watermelon Wheat Ale (@DrinkGoodBeer)

Drink Good Beer.

Flying Monkeys (@FlyingMonkeys)

City and Colour Imperial Maple Wheat & Orangemungus

Flying Monkeys beer is Out of This World!

Jungling knives

Live Music

Steam Whistle (@SteamWhistle)

Red Stripe (@RedStripe) - "Hurray Beer!"

Foundry Golden Cider

Festival Eats

Somewhere amongst the bubbly brews, we decided to go get some food and landed on these two greasy but amazing eats. An oily stomach helps you drink more, right?

Rashers Sign

First up is Rashers (@RashersTO). North America's only bacon sandwich shop? I'm in.

Rashers Popup Tent

Rashers Popup Tent

Oily bacon goodness on a grill.

Peameal Bacon on a Bun ($6) - add mozzarella cheese for $1

In hindsight I shouldn't have asked for the cheese, because the sandwich was good enough on its own. The bacon is cooked to a crispy perfection, yet still being able to keep a nice meaty chewiness that you want in bacon.

Fries

An extra large portion of fries and ketchup. Beer snacks don't get any more classic than this!

Shipping container

While I didn't order any food from here, I was happy to see that one of the Harbourfront Shipping container popups Blue Goose, made an appearance. Glad more people can now try their delicious burger. (See here)

Nightfall

One thing I love about coming to Day 1 of the beer festival, is that it goes into the late hours of 11pm. Once night time falls, the beer festival is illuminated at every corner, accompanied by loud and upbeat music. Last year I went to the music hall to rock out to a live music performance, but this year I decided to sway with the crowds on the BudLight dance floor. The DJ was awesome!

BudLight DJ

And of course even at night fall, the beer keeps on flowing!

Tsing Tao

Tempted booth

One of my favourites this year was the Tempted No. 9 booth. I didn't stumble across this booth until late in the evening in attempt to finish off those last few beer tokens.

Tempted beer

They didn't have taps, instead chilled cans of Tempted No. 9 Apple Cider. this particular one was their Strawberry and Lime version. Very fragrant and flavourful cider. The masked lady at the counter told me that LCBO just recently started to carry their ciders, but they are all sold out every! Will definitely be keeping a look out for this one.

Once again, Toronto Festival of Beer manages to put out a great experience for all types of beer enthusiasts. The countdown to the 20th Toronto Festival of Beer begins!