ApCal Summer season has officially started with the 3rd annual Craft Beer Fest this past sunny Saturday.
Being an ApCal rookie I made some glaring 1st timer mistakes that I can hopefully spare you from if you have been wanting to check it out and have not made it across the river to Ave 7 yet.
Now I said I was an ApCal rookie and that’s mostly true. See I’ve been to some small tasting events inside before and that was the image in my head but on a larger scale for an outdoor event. Boy was I ever wrong!
My first clue was as I drove in on the dirt road and saw the parking lot packed. The next big clue was the line of almost 100 yards long and several people wide. This was not what I had expected and the day only got better and better as it went on.
I quickly made it inside the gates, grabbed my glass and tried a few samples from as light as you can imagine to the darkest dark. As I milled around meeting people and saying hi to many friends of FresYes I ran into my twin cousins who were working the event. If anyone knows my Parker family you know we had a lot of fun from the moment we saw each other until it was time to hit the road.
ApCal Rookie moves 101 and how to avoid them.
First, dont wear a black Harley shirt! Something light colored and free flowing is a much better choice, shorts and sandals would have been a good call also.
Second, wear a hat. Being the bald man in the group I’m always the first to know when its cloudy, rainy or in this case sunny. Very sunny.
Third, Bring a chair. While it wasn’t an issue for me if you wanted to hang out with friends and enjoy the band before the dancing got started your own chair was the hot ticket. ApCal has plenty of seating but when 1500 Craft Beer lovers and their designated drivers are all looking for a place to sit I think you can get the idea.
The most memorable part of the event for me wasn’t the beer or the music.
The best part was all the people out enjoying each other, making friends, dancing and having fun with the young and old all making this event nothing short of amazing.
I myself met a lot of you, some came up and said Hi, some asked questions about whats coming up in the future. I enjoyed you all. Its not often you can be dancing on the grass, laughing and having fun with 1500 other people and not have one single issue the whole day. The crowd was there for fun, lots of it and ApCal served it up in abundance.
This writer knows one thing, I’ll be back all summer and the next if I’m lucky.
For more information on ApCal events you can find them on Apcal on Facebook or at www.apcalwine.com
- Invitation to the Ball - November 6, 2015
- Sportsman’s Warehouse, the New Kid In Town - July 20, 2015
- The Freewheel Project - July 13, 2015
Thanks for the kind words Mark! We know there are improvements to make on the ApCal side — and we will make them! You said it best (to paraphrase) — “Where can you go in the Central Valley and have 1500 people drinking and NOT have any problems?” ONLY at ApCal! Thanks for joining us – glad you had a good time! ApCal is a unique place in deed! 🙂