The Bar Towel

This year's Ontario Craft Beer Week was June 10-18. It came and went without any of us having anything to say about it. I didn't encounter a single OCB event posting on here, and I don't recall any Bar Towellers even mentioning the week or its events. Is this a sign that OCB Week has become irrelevant, or simply an indication that the week doesn't cater to beer nerds and is more about engaging the beer curious? I remember Session being a big to-do only a couple of years ago (among beer geeks and newbies alike), but this year it didn't even cross my mind. Thoughts?

I haven't been to an OCB week event in years. None of the events have appealed to me. Honestly, they don't seem any better than random events that pop up all over the city pretty much every weekend.

Sessions is fun and all, I really like the Dundas Square location. But that style of festival doesn't do much for me any more unless it's Cask Days or something really special.

Was there a specific OCB week beer in the LCBO this year? There was a barrel aged porter last year or the year before that was pretty damn good.

ry_kinney wrote:Was there a specific OCB week beer in the LCBO this year? There was a barrel aged porter last year or the year before that was pretty damn good.

I don't believe there was, as I too was looking for something.

If there were events, it shows how well (or not) they were marketed.

ry_kinney wrote:Was there a specific OCB week beer in the LCBO this year? There was a barrel aged porter last year or the year before that was pretty damn good.

I believe that was for Toronto Beer Week, which is in September.

I did give OCB a quick thought, but was out of town anyway.

Frankly (and those people who know me will think this is a totally crazy thing to say) I just can't drink enough to justify the cost and hassle of going to things like Sessions or even Cask Days. Been there, done that.

I much prefer smaller focused gatherings or the more casual Brewers Backyard type things, where you don't have to wait through massive crowds or do a mission plan to figure out what you want to try.

Tap takeovers can still be fun and I probably would have gone to at least one if I had been around. It's still nice to meet some of the brewery folks and get a sense of how they like to present their products.