Personal Notes From my Swedish Beer Weekend

• Avenue Pub management had a great method to help customers order the beers and the bartenders to understand them- they put the list and tasting notes together pairing each beer with a number, so you could just go up and order a Number Nine or Seven, or whatnot. Brilliant! (especially as the day/night went on)
• Funny story on Friday night- I wanted to order a bitter and a stout, but Eileen heard it as a bitter and a SOUR, so I got the Bedarö Bitter and the Cantillon Mamouche. I laughed and asked her to also pour me a stout. I'd wanted to drink the bitter while letting the Nynäshamns Sotholmen Extra Stout come up to temp, but I ended up drinking the bitter and the Mamouche. Stout was excellent by the time I got to it though.
• I cannot say enough good things about the Nynäshamns Bötet Barley Wine. It truly was the best barleywine I've ever had. It was a serious revelation. I loved the Nynäshamns Bedarö Bitter and the Oppigårds Amarillo Spring Ale like crazy too. Tom loved, as I suspected he would, the Bedarö Bitter and the Nils Oscar Kalasöl. 
• Got to chat a little bit with Vanessa from the Barley Oak in Mandeville - they're working on a brewpub set to open in another location (still across the lake) in June.  She invited me up for a walk through of the space, so I'll take her up on that, maybe after Mardi Gras. PS, Vanessa is awesome.
• Polly (owner of the Avenue Pub) calculated conservatively and while tickets for the event sold out, no kegs ran out yesterday so everyone who came by yesterday had the opportunity to try whatever they wanted. They have pint specials on for almost all the remaining Swedish beers, at very reasonable prices (between $6.00 and $7.50)
• Enjoyed the company of a charming Austin couple who I first met on New Year's Eve eve. They made the pilgrimage, and they were a whole lot of fun to hang out with.
• The vibe was so awesome- everyone was having a great time, there was no stress or weirdness.  Great beer folks drinking GREAT beer. Weather couldn't have been nicer, either.
• Non-Swedish beer news- I got to try the new Flambeaux Red at NOLA Brewing the other day and it is delicious! A bit more balanced than last year, but still hoppy and easy drinking.

Tomorrow is the Swedish Beer Dinner at Boucherie- can't wait!