The Bar Towel

I was told They were taking info in case of cancellations, and were trying to fit people in who arrived too late as in several people getting in past 1215

as mentioned, the event is sold out. sessions 1+2 were gone by about noon, and session 3 shortly after that. hopefully everybody managed to get tickets to one or another.

talked with ralph, and he is planning to stagger the casks a little. he didn't want to see sunday come along and have all the good stuff gone, so he'll be swapping new stuff in for each session. everybody will get to try some new and exciting beer in each session.

definitely looking forward to this. see you all there.

Nevermind. Nothing to see here...

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grub wrote: talked with ralph, and he is planning to stagger the casks a little. he didn't want to see sunday come along and have all the good stuff gone, so he'll be swapping new stuff in for each session. everybody will get to try some new and exciting beer in each session.

don't know how well that'll go over with the people who bought tix for the $45 preview session. personally, i'd be pretty pissed if i paid extra and didn't have a shot at everything.

tuqueboy wrote:don't know how well that'll go over with the people who bought tix for the $45 preview session. personally, i'd be pretty pissed if i paid extra and didn't have a shot at everything.

not sure if he has any special plans for the preview. i'd always thought the benefit of that was was more in the 'breakfast with the brewers' aspect, and avoiding the crowds for the first hour. with something like 30 casks i don't think i'd be disappointed if i only saw 20 in any given session, even the preview. it's not like you can realistically sample them all (or even the ones that won't be shown in session 1) during that first hour.

grub wrote:

tuqueboy wrote:don't know how well that'll go over with the people who bought tix for the $45 preview session. personally, i'd be pretty pissed if i paid extra and didn't have a shot at everything.

not sure if he has any special plans for the preview. i'd always thought the benefit of that was was more in the 'breakfast with the brewers' aspect, and avoiding the crowds for the first hour. with something like 30 casks i don't think i'd be disappointed if i only saw 20 in any given session, even the preview. it's not like you can realistically sample them all (or even the ones that won't be shown in session 1) during that first hour.

didn't mean to suggest i'd want to have all 30 casks. i'd just want to be able to choose from everything...

Like many of you it was completely impossible for me to make it to Volo during the brief window for purchasing event tickets today. Turns out even those who did make it didn't necessarily walk away with tickets. The entire event sold out in an hour and a half.

First let me say, I'm happy for Ralph and all those at Volo who have made this event such a success. It is a unique festival in this province (dare I say country) and it's of such amazing quality that it continues to impress all who experience it year to year...Having said that I'm really unhappy that I was unable to secure tickets in light of my inability to be there during the brief sales period. I'm on a waiting list. Hopefully something magical happens and I secure a ticket...it would be deeply sad to miss my first such event.

But it does raise questions for me. Was there any restriction on numbers of tickets that individuals who DID make it today could buy? If there wasn't there should have been. Has the event outgrown the venue? Perhaps it's time to consider moving it to a larger venue. Was this the best and only way to sell tickets? It's a very concert like way of sales but...I'm feeling a little short changed.

Ralph sounded harried when I spoke to him today. No doubt planning and executing this event causes a lot of headaches. I want to again applaud him for the hard work. I just hope that maybe next year (assuming there is a next year) a focus group (or something like it) can help him streamline and perhaps expand the event to be a little more inclusive and accessible. I hope it all goes well ths year...and please, if anyone has an extra ticket OR finds out last minute they cannot make it, please let me know.

Jon Walker wrote:
Was there any restriction on numbers of tickets that individuals who DID make it today could buy? If there wasn't there should have been. Has the event outgrown the venue? Perhaps it's time to consider moving it to a larger venue.

My understanding was that there was a six-ticket limit per person.
I was also a little surprised that it wasn't moved off-site. Ralph had been talking about it after last year's was so freakin' crowded. That said, where could he move it that would be A: the right size (how do you guage that, anyway?) and B: have the right set-up to store the casks properly. Not being sarcastic here -- i actually think it should be moved offsite...

If anyone has any ideas of where Cask Days 2008 can be held, I'm sure Ralph would welcome them. Keep in mind that if it ever moves from Volo, the cost of tickets will have to increase due to the rental of said new place, and your free beer tickets would probably cease. It's not a charity event after all!!! I for one hope it doesn't move from the Volo as it's a perfect place for a festival and keeps it very manageable and friendly. Ralph has also had less tickets on sale this year due to the crowded nature of last year.

And these people complaining about the tickets being on sale for one day only. We've all known for about 5 weeks that today was the day and the only day. We all know how popular the event is, yet people still arrive 5 minutes before open time and expect to be at the head of the line. Use a bit of common sense people, eh?????

Jon Walker wrote:Was there any restriction on numbers of tickets that individuals who DID make it today could buy?

Six per person. Did people who really only wanted a pair purchase the full six? You betcha.

Has the event outgrown the venue?

I don't think so -- half of the charm of the event is that it takes place at Volo, and so has a nice intimate feel.

Was this the best and only way to sell tickets?

Given that this isn't the way tickets have been sold in the past, clearly Ralph had other options open to him. That said, why should he want to have ticket sales drag on and on and on and on...? I suspect today's sale was an ideal way for him to deal with things.

I'm feeling a little short changed.

Now you know how I feel when certain people hit my local 'BO and clear out the seasonals I'm most interested in.

Torontoblue wrote: And these people complaining about the tickets being on sale for one day only. We've all known for about 5 weeks that today was the day and the only day. We all know how popular the event is, yet people still arrive 5 minutes before open time and expect to be at the head of the line. Use a bit of common sense people, eh?????

some people couldn't actually make it because of jobs and family stuff. you know, the other things in life besides beer

skaghevn wrote:

I'm feeling a little short changed.

Now you know how I feel when certain people hit my local 'BO and clear out the seasonals I'm most interested in.

Touche!!!!!!

tuqueboy wrote: some people couldn't actually make it because of jobs and family stuff. you know, the other things in life besides beer

Are we really that busy that we can't take 2 hours out of our lives to get something we desire to go to? Don't bitch if you are (and that's the Greater You, not you personally)

Jon Walker wrote:But it does raise questions for me. Was there any restriction on numbers of tickets that individuals who DID make it today could buy? If there wasn't there should have been. Has the event outgrown the venue? Perhaps it's time to consider moving it to a larger venue. Was this the best and only way to sell tickets? It's a very concert like way of sales but...I'm feeling a little short changed.

As mentioned, there was a six-ticket-per-person limit. One could quibble with the number, but this seems reasonable. Although, I wouldn't be too upset if the limit for future events like this was reduced to two, or even one.

Cask beer is an inherently local product. This event especially showcases the creativity of our local (mostly) brewers. Selling tickets this way (in person, limited sales) does something to ensure that the people who come to the event are in fact locals themselves. The limited advertising helps too.

As far as location is concerned, I see no reason we can't have a larger cask event elsewhere in addition to Ralph's event, which has so far been a great small event, with all the positive aspects that a smaller event can have.

-Josh