Taste of Brews

I hope that heaven will be something like this place. Unlimited free beer samplings from some of the elite breweries in California. Plus BBQ food tents adjacent to the event! Let’s just say I took full advantage of both and was happy that my GFs in laws were gracious enough to pick us up due to our hefty amount of tasting.

Thanks Ryan C and Unilocal for the tickets to Taste of Brews!
Compared to last year, this year’s Taste of Brews didn’t have as many breweries. The boyfriend and I still had a lot of fun and tried a lot of beers.
We parked at Dana Hills High School and took the shuttle (a school bus) over to the park that the Taste of Brews had been held.
I didn’t like that the TOB was connected to the BBQ fest that was going on. The food at the BBQ fest was overpriced. I wish there was a food tent or something in the actual beer area so we wouldn’t have to leave the area.
It was a beer-​filled day for us. We tried every tent and right at 4:00pm, they stopped pouring and it was time to start drinking water. I think if a few changes are made, next year’s event will be awesome.

Unlike its Long Beach counterpart, the Dana Point Taste of Brews was a bit disappointing. With less breweries represented, there were pours from well known breweries as well as small local ones, but several left after just an hour or so.
Parking was awful and required quite a hike. The parking lot down the street that had a shuttle to the festival was full and the streets were very crowded. I don’t mind a walk or hike, but would prefer not to have to walk uphill on a hot, sunny day after drinking beer.
There were tables with umbrellas, but they provided minimal shade and were occupied the whole time. The event wasn’t crowded and the lines for beer were very short, but I would have preferred longer lines, more shade and better variety.
Some cool things were the Unilocal booth with giant Jenga (more fun to watch as people get more drunk), little bottles of water to keep hydrated, and the cute tasting mugs.
Next year, I’ll stick to the LB event.

free beer on a nice, sunny afternoon in Dana Point but other than that, i wasnt that impressed… for $ 40 a pop, ticket prices seemed pretty steep considering what was actually available at the event. Check-​in was super easy although finding parking was not haha. Luckily a security guard steered us in the right direction and we just parked at the neighboring park for free and walked to the taste. The event itself was not overcrowded so there were no real lines or anything to get actual beer tastes. Although I wasn’t too impressed with the range of breweries at the event. I mean I know what a sam adams or sierra pale ale tastes like haha. Not as many local breweries as I would have liked to have seen. a few tables with umbrellas were set up but definitely not enough seating for everyone to get a chair. i found myself just plopping down on the grass to drink my beer and get some rest haha. luckily i had eaten lunch beforehand since food was a separate fee and the only choices were some bbq from the festival happening nearby at the same park. water was free and readily available which i thought was a nice touch esp on a warm afternoon. overall it was a nice afternoon out but i would say not worth $ 40…
great to see the Unilocal booth though and glad to have had a chance to say hi to Ryan C!

I love beer. Period.
I love slow smoked BBQ. Exclaimation Mark.
Taste of Brews had both. Unilocal!Orgasm?!
Not quite.
More like a just a teast. Damn it.
First of all, I have to say, the same event from last year was way better, like 1000% percent better. This year, it was at Sea Terrace Community Park. It never said anything on the website in regards to parking. But as soon as I got there, it was difficult to find parking unless you know the area well. Or unless you were lucky enough to just park at the library next door. (which you weren’t supposed to)
I just checked the website today, I see updated parking info. This is what it states:
«Parking available at Salt Creek Beach (across the street from the park) or at Dana Hills High School (33 333 Golden Lantern Dana Point) with free shuttle buses to the park.»
I never noticed this the day before the event.
Now, a few words on the beers. There also wasn’t nearly as much as beer as last year. A few of my favorites were there to make my day bearable.
Left Coast.-Hop juice, love it.
Sierra Nevada-​Summer brew, refreshing.
Hanger 24
Firestone-​Black Rye IPA, what the heck was that? But it was one of my favorite.
Craft Brewing-​Warlock Stout, that’s tasted like coffee, chocolate together!
North Coast
Lagunitas –I wasn’t able to get some of it.
Most everyone had two beers to try. When it was 4pm, the whistle blew and that was it. It was kind of sad for me because I got there a little after 3pm. I wasted some time because I didn’t really have breakfast nor lunch and I had to get tickets to buy the BBQ that was outside the drinking area.
BTW, the BBQ people all operated under one license so they all had to serve the food the same way. In that CHILD size cup for $ 2. A little rediculous but I’ve had some of the best BBQ there west of the Mississippi. No joke.
I also got to meet Andrea and Caronline who were my drinking buddies for 10 minutes. I got to meet Dean from Glisten and these sound guys were really cool. I chilled with them a bit but I had to go. It had been a long day for me. Trying to drinking 30 plus ounces in less than 30 minutes is usually not a problem for me but since I don’t live by and I had to drive, I had to make sure I was okay.
A word to Mike the event coordinator, I like your event. I always have, but I did wish the parking situation was better, more craft beer selection was available, and perhaps more snack vendors were available inclusive for the price. Please help make it happen for next year.
Note: I did meet a Unilocal guy here and his girlfriend? Thanks again for the E.T.

Beer is good! In comparison to the LB Taste of Brews, this was A-​OK.
At least there’s a small area to sit, but no shade: (.
I was hoping there would be more cider choices, but at least there was one available.
The Dana Point BBQ competition is nearby so that definitely camouflages the true size of this event.
Parking was a bit of a nightmare, but it was free.
Someone was smart enough to make little personal Taste of Brews coozies. Cool.
Thanks Unilocal and Ryan C!