It’s too bad, Banjo, that you didn’t stick around or return for a few more of the beers. The Hanssen’s Mead the Geuze was fantastic as was the Beer Geek Stout as were many others. I found that this was the first year during which the event lived up to its hype and actually demanded more than a single afternoon; 70 tickets between my wife and I were put to good use.

I’m shocked, however, at your opinion of Old Engine Oil. I’ve always found it to be pleasantly roasty but light enough that you can drink plenty of it enjoyable. And of course, the Black Boss is about as perfectly to style a Baltic Porter can be. I’d recommend getting a hold of them at least once more: give ‘em another chance–you may be well rewarded.

“Tart but not complex. Okay, as I drink it, it is–but more subtly than I first appreciated. Smoky notes, some mustiness. Very earthy. Strawberry nearly absent, but like old strawberries, decomposing almost. Sally arrives, notes ‘Smells like compost!’” This beer delighted no one but me, and it did delight me, more and more as I drank it. Unlike anything I’ve tried–so organic tasting that it was one step beyond. But I like it out there in the ultrafunky Belgian wilderness.

You just don’t get that at every brewfest.