The 18th Street Arts Center » BAM Fest 2012 brought its renowned BAM Fest (Beer, Art and Music Festival) to the Westside of L.A on October 6th. Held in the heart of Santa Monica, BAM Fest celebrated the best of locally produced art and music in conjunction with a variety of delicious craft beers. With 35-plus breweries, 4 bands, 3 galleries, open artist studios, an artist market, and gourmet food trucks, BAM Fest drew a record-breaking crowds in its third year as one of the Westsides’ most anticipated festivals.—-For news and updates, like us on Facebook!—_____
VENICE PAPARAZZI’S BEER CONNOISSEUR JOSH BLACK WAS ON THE SCENE TO CHECK OUT THIS YEAR’S BAM FEST!Read what Josh has to say about this annual event.—October there are so many amazing activities locally to choose from. This weekend VP attended the 3rd annual BAM Fest in Santa Monica. The event is a fusion of art/artists, music and beer united to celebrate a trio that goes so well together. The one day event brought together an eclectic mix of artist studio exhibitons, food trucks, craft booths, local live music and a beer lover’s paradise nicely packaged together. The organization behind BAM Fest is the 18th Street Art Center. The non profit was founded in 1988.The mission is to bring together the community and artistry. The center has served as a workspace for over 700 artists from 4 continents. 18th Street supports an international artist exchange, one of a few in Los Angeles. For more information regarding involvement with the Art Center, search opportunities under the “get involved” tab http://18thstreet.org/.The performers included a diverse selection of musicians. The Americans, a rock n’ roll/roots/Americana fusion. Lysa Flores and the East L.A. Taiko, bringing together a uniquely L.A. Sound, merging Asian and Latin musical styles. American Bloomers, a pop/modern rock trio and The Dustbowl Revival mixing an updated honky tonk sound with a throwback dance/swing feel.
The breweries represented provided one of the best samplings of So Cal’s best labels as well as some amazing brewers from parts near and far in North America and Europe. Some of the tents housed beers showcased in past “VP beer columns” and some newer brews just being introduced.
Before we get into the beer geekery, there were a few elements of the festival that were a pleasant surprise. The organizers put together a great raffle. The prizes ranged from a complimentary art course from the OTIS school of Design (in Westchester), a two night hotel stay and plenty of beer swag. Two local beer clubs, Pacific Gravity (Culver City) and The Strand Brewer’s Club (rotates locations in the South Bay) were in attendence to promote their clubs and share their wisdom and passion for the art of beermaking; hence it’s close relation to artmaking and music. Since the clubs do not have the proper licensing to share their creations, they brewed some very unique sodas. Your correspondent enjoyed a refreshing cherry ginger soda. The 18th Street group also had a water station, GREAT IDEA! Last and equally as impressive, the organizers provided a bicycle valet and offered free parking.
Your beer correspondent and his beer tasting compadre were in hops heaven with the selection. We sampled about 10 of the breweries (it’s hard work, someone’s got to do it)! Some were familiar, others were new to us whether it was a new to us brewery or a familiar one with a style neither of us had sampled. A couple of the the brews have already been highlighed on the VP website, Cismontane; however this time we tried the Oktoberfest. The malt and rich amber proved a solid well-rounded offering from a terrific south O.C beermaker. And the always amazing Belgian Duvel was one of the few non Americans represented. It’s a true classic. It was a pleasant surprise in the mix. Some of the standouts, the Beechwood Brewery (Long Beach) offered their “Hop Ninja”, a 100+ IBU brew. Like the name, it is a big kick of hops; although it is not overwhelming or overdone. The biggest surprise of the day and the beer of the day, hands down went to Anchor Brewing, one of the legendary micro breweries. My friend and I almost decided to skip their tent based on the strong familiarity with Anchor Steam, one of my favorites. Fortunately our curiousity led us to just take a look to see if Anchor was sampling something new. Indeed they were.
Zymaster Series #2: Mark’s Mild. It is a master brewer’s tribute to an English dark mild. It’s a mouthful. A spot on dark mild. The nose hints of malt, low carbonation, thick lathery head and smooth almost sweet on the palate. Nothing fancy, a classic dark ale most any beer drinker would appreciate. So now the question is, where do we find this amazing creation? That’s the tough part. We talked with the local Anchor rep. She shared with us there were only 12 kegs allocated to the Los Angeles area, and there are 5 more to be distributed. Watch for further news on where one can order a pint. If there is a way to encourage at least one of these barrels to find a home in Venice, you can be sure it will be announced.
The creative award goes to Pizza Port (they also make amazing, award winning beer as well) from San Diego. Their ultra friendly tappers were there to make sure you were not only trying some of their great brews, also having a laugh as well. A fun play on words, their double IPA, “Get to the Hopper!”, references one of the best actions movies from the ’80’s. Take a guess, answer below.
My fellow beer fan was also impressed by the Siera Nevada Kellerweis. A feature on this Nor Cal brewer’s take on a classic German beer is in the works. Also on the lighter side of the beer spectrum, the Ballast Point Pescadero Pilsner was a great choice in the hot, people saturated venue. Some we did not have the time to sample, as result of a familarity, El Segundo Brewing Company (ESBC) offered their stout. A smart choice even on a hot day, paired with something sweet from one of the food trucks. For those who venture to the South Bay, the taproom is open for tastings. See their schedule for hours: http://www.elsegundobrewing.com/events.htm. Thursday is taco night at ESBC. Another personal favorite is Lagunitas. We agreed it would be a shame not have a quick pour of their IPA. Be on the lookout for a future spotlight of one of the Nor Cal beermakers highlighed in VP.
In Summary, the event exceeded expectations. Not only is the BAM Fest a great way to help promote and support local artmaking, it brings us together to share a common intrest and likely find a new inspiration. VP looks forward to BAM Fest IV…
Answer to the ’80’s movie reference: “Get to the chopper” – Predator
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FOR MORE INFO ON BAM (BEER, ART AND MUSIC) FEST…
BAM Fest.com I Facebook I Twitter: @BAMFestSM
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