After a few days we are finally back from an exhausting weekend in Atlantic City and managed to survive the Celebration Of Suds. Over 3,000 beer drinkers came from all over to experience live music, pretzel necklaces and beer from around the country.
We have attended the festival before but that was some years ago and there are a lot more breweries since our last trip in 2010 and I must say it is really awesome to see how this particular festival has grown in the past four years and the amount of beer drinkers that want to get out there and experience something new. Whether it is a local brewery from New Jersey or something they have never had from California or Colorado. Celebration of Suds certainly has something for everyone.
We decided to hit the more low key, Friday night session this year and while this session didn’t sell out there was still an abundance of people there. With the doors opened promptly at 7pm the lines began and the beers were flowing.
We were beyond stoked to try Prism Brewing Company. Residing from outside Philly, they have done quite a good job in South Jersey, and I hope some day they can make their way up North.
Founders Brewing killed it with their massive All Day IPA can. Now if only it was filled with beer.
It’s always cool to see what kind of vendors make it out to these events. Everything from dog treats to hemp pretzels could be found at the fest this year.
Even publications like the Ale Street News and our friends at NJ Brew were on hand to let people know that print media is here to stay.
Since we were in the Jersey section, we couldn’t help but to hit up our friends at Bolero Snort. They were the peoples choice in 2013 and took home 3rd place for best NJ brewery this year. Cheers guys!
Aside from Bolero, we got a chance to sample some of the breweries that are farther down the Jersey shore like Tuckahoe Brewing Company and Cape May Brewing.
Another newer Jersey brewery that just opened their doors was on hand as well. Pinelands Brewing Company out of Little Egg Harbor was excited to be pouring and engaging the thirsty festival goers. Turns out that owner and brewer Jason was a big fan of ours and it was most certainly a pleasure to meet him and the gang.
Another Jersey shore local, Rinn Duin Brewing, was on hand as well serving up their tasty dry irish coffee stout, Porte Café and their staple Sandpiper Brown.
River Horse Brewing was on hand as well pouring up Special Ale and their latest Brewer’s Reserve, a fantastic Pilsner. Hands down one of the best beers in Jersey right now.
Making our way back out towards the front, we paid a visit to Cape Ann Brewery who had a fantastic Double IPA that had to be one of my favorites from the festival. They have big plans for Jersey in the year to come as owner and head brewer, ???? is a Jersey native and wants to make sure he satisfies his home state with some of New Englands best beer.
Taking a break from beer, we decided to pay our friends from The Iron Room(local AC speakeasy) a little visit as they were doing a seminar, teaching beer drinkers how to pair beers with cheese. This is right up our alley and we had to mention it.
Some beer drinkers take their festival goings very seriously. I spotted these Dr. Seuss fans running around living up to what was printed on their shirts.
Our friend Natalie from Weyerbacher was on hand serving up their delicious big beers and my favorite, Last Chance IPA, which they recently added more hops to. A great IPA if you have not experienced it yet and part of the sales go to help animal shelters in the area. Cheers Nat!
Another PA favorite, Lancaster Brewing Company, was pouring up their amazing milk stout and new year round brew, Hop Buggy.
New Jersey Beer Company was on hand pouring their dank LBI IPA which took home second place for best New Jersey brewery at the festival.
Our favorite New Hampshire brewery, Smuttynose, was on hand as well, bumping some serious classic rock and serving some serious beers.
Speaking of music. This is a beer and music festival with some very popular bands hitting the stage. Festival goers were really pumped that Saves The Day graced the stage on Friday night. I am not the biggest fan but it’s nice to see people take a break from the beer and smell the roses if you know what I mean.
Back to beer, we were stoked to see that Victory had brought out one of their sessions, Hop Ticket.
Their weren’t too many casks at the festival but seeing as Yards has one of the best cask programs in the country, you can always expect something awesome from them when it comes to a beer fest. The double dry hopped version of their IPA with Mt. Hood hops was so tasty that I had to have two samples of it to make sure it wasn’t poisonous. Cheers Ron!
Du Claw had some of the best beer at the festival including their new brown ale, Dirty Little Freak and Retribution, a bourbon barrel stout that could rival the hyped up KBS from Founders.
At the end of the night I had an empty glass and way to many pictures to go through but it was all for the greater good. Celebration Of Suds really impressed me for not having been in a few years and it’s great to see how it’s grown. With all this awesome beer from all over the country, it’s safe to say that this festival is here to stay and will continue to grow as the years go on.
We had a blast coming out and look forward to attending the celebration in the years to come. Cheers to Atlantic City for hosting such an event, it is something special and you should be very proud it.