Hands down the best beer festival on the West Coast! If you love craft beer and haven't been, you NEED to make an effort to get tickets! $90 gets you 5-hour access into the grounds where you'll be subject to the enticement of the best craft beer from legendary breweries all across America. Not only that, but Firestone also invites premier restaurants to serve up their top food offerings. Excellent beer and food in one place and all of it is UNLIMITED! Such a panty dropper this fest! :D
Now, getting tickets isn't simple. You best have your finger locked and loaded before the ticket sale hour because the second it turns, thousands of other individuals are clicking away. Tickets sold out in like a second for the 2016 fest, so if you're not fast enough, pray that you can find someone that is reselling them. I'm not sure how easy this feat is...
This year had one phenomenal lineup. A few breweries worth mentioning are 3 Floyds, Boneyard, Kern River, Cigar City, Garage Project (from New Zealand), Creature Comforts, Jester King, Crooked Stave, and last but certainly not least Side Project. All breweries brought the best of the best. Quite a few had random tappings with Side Project knocking it out of the park with the multitude of beers they served throughout the day.
SO much food was had as well. I fell in love with the Poke tacos offered at Pier 46 Seafood, but Fish Gaucho rightfully won that Best Restaurant award as those tacos with that sauce were glorious. But the Sugar Lips Mini Donuts had me going back for more. Constant trips were made for those piping hot sweet nothings until they were sold out.
A few tips to have a good time:
-Bring sunscreen, a hat, and sunglasses. Paso Robles in June is sweltering! Thankfully, Firestone also helps you to stay cool as there's plenty of shade, cooling fans, and water everywhere.
-Eat THERE! Skip breakfast and save room for all the great food at the fest.
-Eat throughout the day! It's no fun being drunk in 90 degree weather. Soak up all the alcohol with delicious food. Then, you can remember what you drank and how wonderful it all was!
-Download the app and VOTE! Not only did it offer a list of all the participating breweries and restaurants, but there was an interactive map detailing their location. The grounds are huge and you want to know where to go to get the best beer because once they run out, they're gone for the rest of the event. I might add that there was a desperate scramble at the beginning of the fest probably for Side Project, but I imagine Russian River, Creature Comforts, and Surly too. I sadly did not get Darkness from them as they tapped out!
Lastly, you want to VOTE for the best brewery and restaurant. You'll be entered into a drawing to win tickets to next year's fest. I voted moments before the polls closed and I FREAKING WON! That's right, I feel like no one votes because I am NEVER lucky! So, take advantage and you may get lucky too.
See you next year Firestone! I can't wait. read more