It's a good day when the debate about what was best becomes a question of was it the beer or the music? That pretty much sums up OBX BrewFest 2016
It also didn't hurt that the weather was wonderful with a nice breeze off Roanoke Sound—ok, it was a wind— and lots of sunshine.
Since it was a beer fest the question of how much beer was it is important. The short answer is a lot. We counted 55 breweries on hand and since almost everyone was pouring two or three beers, it certainly fell under the heading of so much beer and so little time.
And the music . . . wow!
The last two groups to take the stage in particular were amazing.
Keller and the Keels were playing guitar, mandola—that's a larger version of a mandolin that plays in the alto/tenor range—and standup bass. Those are classic bluegrass instruments, but their sound goes way beyond bluegrass. Their last song was a medley of tunes ending with Pink Floyd's "Brick in the Wall" —not a typical bluegrass sound.
Soja out of DC is so good. Combing rock, jazz, reggae, Latin and hiphop, their sound is full with horns, a percussion section, keyboard and sax. A tight driving beat and a lot of original material.
Kudos to Crystal Swain of Zen Pops for her Chocolate Stout popsicle. Couldn't serve it to kids, but it sure was good.
