Pretty much just like we expected, Stone Brewing Company’s Total Tap Tower Takeover Two Thousand Ten was an epic event at Churchkey this past Monday. 40 taps, many of them incredibly rare, and a very thirsty DC craft beer populace, made for an event that was chaotic at times and very crowded for almost the duration of the event. The pre-event meet and greet started at 3:30 and prior to that beer fans were lined up outside of Churchkey. Why is that you ask?
Well, the tap list, as you probably read, was nothing short of astonishing, and the fact that Stone Brewing CEO Greg Koch was also on-hand also certainly drove people to the Logan Circle craft beer mecca.
I spoke briefly with Greg Koch during the pre-event reception, and he looked to be holding up remarkably well for a man on the fourth straight night, in the fourth different city, of craft beer events. The Total Tap Tower Takeover ran for seven consecutive nights, and tomorrow it will conclude in southern California. Greg was amicable the entire night and entertained fans’ requests for getting a picture with him and making the “Greg Face” (a scream, of course, that Koch could probably make a case for copyrighting). He also was signing Stone DVDs and other assorted Stone items!
At one point, Koch climbed the ladder leading up to Churchkey’s keg loft and addressed the crowd and made a toast. If I can find video of said speech, I will definitely put it up for you, but it culminated in, “…we don’t need your fizzy yellow beer!” which elicited a hallelujah and a ton of cheering from the sympathetic crowd.
In any event, the night went pretty well, though scattered reports indicated that table service was a little lagged and inefficient. I witnessed the eight or so bartenders being completely slammed for much of the evening, but I think they did an admirable job in the face of folks handing them lists with 4-8 tasters of different Stone brews. I think the Churchkey staff definitely made the best of a situation that was bound to be hectic no matter how many people they had on staff. Kudos to Greg Engert, Nahem Simon, and the rest of the folks over there!
Overall a tremendous time that was as advertised: a testament to the incredible beers that Stone puts out and a chance to try all kinds of rare taps that many of us may never see again. Were you at the event? Did you have a good time? What were your favorites? Personally I loved the Stone 12th Anniversary Ale Bitter Chocolate Oatmeal Stout (aged in bourbon barrels), Stone Double Dry-Hopped IPA, and both kinds of Vertical Epic 07.07.07. Delicious!
Cheers to Greg Koch, thanks for coming to DC, and be sure to come back soon! Thanks to Churchkey and to our Mid Atlantic Stone Rep Lee Marren for hosting a great event!
