How Bad are the lines at the GABF?

[Bad Goat Brewing]

The wife said she might want to go to the GABF this year. After a little bit of reading I have a couple questions:

1) How bad are the lines?
For me beer festivals aren't fun if i have to wait in long lines just to get a small pour. I always take a couple days off work for the oregon brewers festivals so i can go during the week.

2) Is having a AHA membership the best way to score tickets?

[BadRock]

1. Lines can be bad from time to time. This is dependent on the brewery. Breweries like Dog Fish or Russian River can see lines of 20+ minutes. With 5 hour sessions this can take a little wind out of your sail. Try to target specific regions or styles, avoid breweries you can get at home and unless you really want something from a high profile brewery, avoid them.

2. It defiantly helps, AHA member have a "members only session" on Saturday at noon. This is typically a more beer focused crowd. I still prefer Thursday night's session as everyone and everything is fresh and exciting.

Hope it helps!

[maxwell]

The lines are not bad. Go earlier in the festival if you can or for the members only session. Many of the best beers are gone by the weekend as not all of the breweries ration their kegs.

[Bad Goat Brewing]

Thanks for info. It looks the GABF is the plan for the wifes birthday celebration.

[BadRock]

Thanks for info. It looks the GABF is the plan for the wifes birthday celebration.

Be sure to swing by the BN booth and say hello! GABF is a great time, especially if the wife loves beer.

[Ozwald]

Then there are the lines to get in the door....

Show up early. Very early. I always got a program beforehand & figured out where I wanted to be. If Russian River or New Glarus were pouring something special & I was towards the front of the line, I just made a beeline for it. Otherwise those lines will suck the time out of the session pretty quickly. If you can't get a program before your first session, save Thursdays & on Friday morning you can map out the things you just can't miss. It's a lot of flipping around, but there's a map of where all the booths are & also a listing of what everyone's pouring.

[Bokonon]

Then there are the lines to get in the door....

Don't forget about the lines to the indoor restrooms, fortunately there are plenty of port-a-johns outside on the dock.

[Ozwald]

Then there are the lines to get in the door....

Don't forget about the lines to the indoor restrooms, fortunately there are plenty of port-a-johns outside on the dock.

Yeah, the portajohns are usually no more than a 3 or 4 person wait - but if you don't like cigarette smoke, you're better off waiting in the regular bathroom line. It gets real thick out on the dock.