Sipping from tiny cups at Sigel’s Brewfest in Dallas

by John P. Meyer

So I got this invitation to an event called Brewfest at Sigel's Elite (the "Elite" designator referring -- one supposes -- to a superstore or flagship). This was the skinny, as deduced from the preferred customer email:

I would RSVP, then show up on Sat., Aug. 1 at 5757 Greenville Ave., identifying myself as a Brewfest participant -- whereupon I would be provided with a Beerfest Passport (see illustration), which I would then carry around to various beer tasting stations manned by brewery representatives. Upon sampling their wares, my passport would be stamped -- in order to a) remind me, the brew maven, which beers amongst the 25 on the sampling list I'd actually sampled, and b) to prevent me from endlessly circling around sampling beer like some kind of foam-crazed moth about a flame.

And so it came to pass that on the appointed afternoon, I arrived at said establishment prepared to sample a range of imported and domestic lagers, ales, stouts, hefewiezens, IPOs, dunkelbräus, and barley wines. And I was far from alone.

Word (and/or emails) had gotten out, and the Sigel's folks found themselves swamped with beer tasters. I'm estimating that, by the time the pouring was in full swing, there must have been a hundred or so enthusiastic sippers queuing up at the dozen some-odd tables behind which smiling reps were anxious to hold forth on the subject of their brews, and then pour forth the brews themselves into tiny plastic cups (of the sort that might otherwise be used to collect urine samples) for the consideration of us -- the most fortunate hop-heads in town.

Food pairings were provided by some of the brewers, including such standards as pretzels, hearty breads, and sausage & cheese à la toothpick; while others -- such as good old Sam Adams -- depended entirely upon the cachet of their actual beer to infuse the palate. (Which seemed to work just fine, thanks very much.)

This is a list of the lucky 13 beers I actually got around to tasting:

Asahi Super Dry

Ayinger Urweisse

Malheur 10

Petrus Golden Triple

Gulden Draak

Stella Artois

Samuel Adams Boston Lager

Boulevard Saison

New Belgium Fat Tire

Abita Andygator

Santa Fe Chicken Killer Barley Wine

Stone Ruination IPA

Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale

While it was my fear that, after two or three (or half a dozen) tiny cupsfull, I would begin discerning less and less nuance in the various offerings (e.g., "strong flavors of beer with beer undertones, and a subtle hint of beer on the nose"), in fact each variety maintained its distinct personality and flavor profile. Particularly the heavier ones. However, I succeeded in proving to myself that I am not a person of particular discernment when it comes to brews, because I failed to sip a single beer I didn't like.

There were several other beers on hand I somehow managed to miss, either by being shifted out of contention via the press of the crowd, or by having simply reached the end of my sampling stamina (which I in fact did after my brewer's dozen). Brooklyn Local #1 ended up being paramount on my "regretfully untasted" list, since I had heard from several beerhounds in the course of my summer suds piece that it was outstanding. Somehow, I simply missed it while making the circuit.

As for the familiar Sam Adams and Fat Tire: Yeah, I could have foregone their sampling entirely in favor of more exotic choices -- but it's nice to find a couple of old favorites on hand for purposes of experimental controls.

Having sipped mere snippets of a wide range of brewskis without having been afforded a chance to actually quaff an entire flagon, I decamped to the back of the store to select a six pack from the cooler. Being an iconoclast, a free thinker, and generally an arrogant bastard, I passed up the opportunity to purchase one of my newfound favorites (the Abita Andygator being particularly memorable), instead opting for the Rahr Blonde Lager. This I enjoyed in the shade of my backyard while partaking of a cigar.

Hey, it's the weekend, right?

There are several wine tasting soirees coming up at Sigel's -- put yourself on their mailing list to be informed of all future events.

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