Here's the release, from Brewfest beer honcho Jeff Norman:
The board of Historic Kennett Square, along with the Kennett Brewfest committee enthusiastically approved the concept of the Kennett Conn-o-session serving all 4.5% (or close) or less session beers during this years Connoisseur tasting. We are thrilled to follow the lead of “the year of session beer” and look forward to unique offerings from local, regional, national, and international brewers. This is a 180 degree departure from previous Connoisseur tastings at Kennett but no less exciting. We constantly strive to make this event unique with respect to brewfests. I already have commitments from 8 breweries and all have been very enthusiastic.Sorry about getting carried with my usual enthusiastic bolding, but I was pretty excited. Jeff and I have been back and forth on this for about a week, wondering about how to best do this, whether it would be well-received, whether it would even be possible. But Jeff took the bull by the horns, presented it to the Committee, and made it happen.
As Uncle Jack has already noted (Jeff sent the release to both of us, Session Guy and Favorite Son, at the same time, but I was at rehearsal), this may cause some wailing and gnashing of teeth amongst the geekerie. They're used to getting their big fat double everythings with extra helpings of hops and brett. It's risky to piss these folks off, but if they don't want to buy the Conn-o-Session tickets, maybe someone else will get a chance to go!
I've also got word of another session beer festival forming up in California. And the year's just beginning. I'm telling you, folks: this is The Year of Session Beer!
Now all the Fest needs is to have Scott Morrison back...with...you know...those 4 idiots who helped collaborate on Fest beers with him.
ReplyDeleteAwesome news this is. Good work ksqdomer!
Cheers!
Loren
Hey, hey, no reason to hate on Brett now! Sours and wilds can be session beers too! At a Goose Island event early this year, there were three session saisons, each done up with a different wild yeast (2 versions of Brett, and one with Lacto). Lightly funky/sour, but very sessionable, and a very nice diversion.
ReplyDeleteAlso, if you can swing it, you should try and get Southampton to bring their Abbey Single - at 4.5% abv, it's one of my favorite offerings from them. Absolutely delicious.
Hey, no hate for brett, any more than I'm hating on hops: the American Bitter at 21st Amendment is a real nice session beer with great hop flavor. It's the over the top stuff I'm talking about...and I think that should have been clear! No need to stir things up. Plenty of room for every kind of flavor under the session tent...except maybe them higher alcohols.
ReplyDeleteTrue, true. I misinterpreted, and should have known better than to assume otherwise. some of my favorite sessionable beers have been sours and wild ales, so forgive me if I was a bit defensive.
ReplyDeleteAs startlingly creative as American craft brewers have proven themselves over the last 20+ years, I'm looking forward to seeing what they can do with a "less is more" philosophy.
No offense taken! But yeah, I feel exactly the same way. I said quite a few years ago that the last frontier in American craft brewing is yeast, that we'd hardly begun to flex that. It's coming.
ReplyDeleteI was at the Kennett Brewfest last year and it seemed to me that everyone was offering the higher alcohol brews. Going from station to station drinking such strong beer gets a little old after the first ten or so! A few friends had similar opinions especially if you started early with the connoisseur session. Give me some good tasting 4% beer any day. If people want strong brews let them drink Mickey's or Old English!
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