A Visit to Bell’s Funvitational

Bell’s is my hometown brewery, so, aside from making awesome beer, Bell’s holds a special place in my beer-drinkin’ heart. So, when I heard about their 30th birthday beer festival I had to look into it, even though I live 600 miles away in DC. I was fortunate enough to procure tickets so my Dad (who introduced me to Bell’s in the first place) could go too.

I’ve been to an uncountable number of beer festivals, and this was the best, bar none. I’ll start by saying the logistics of the event were top notch. People were allowed to pick up wristbands, tasting glasses, and maps up to four hours in advance. So, if you went early, you could forego the line and just walk in. The “fun” part of Funvitational was also evident as soon as the gates opened when a marching band led the way in. This struck me for a few reasons – first, a funky marching band is cool as hell. Second, it’s an awesome way to control the influx of folks running in and puts you in the proper mindset, and even though the lin