Knocking It Out of the Park; A Home Run of Beer & Bacon

All puns aside, this weekend’s Bacon and Beer Classic at Victory Field was an event blessed with the essentials of a high quality outdoor event: perfect weather, delicious beer, and excellent food choices. While organizers can only *hope* for decent weather, the other two main essentials were spot-on with an abundance of creativity and innovation.

The Bacon

Any festival which calls itself a “Bacon and Beer Classic” has to put its own emphasis on the bacon to be served. What was both energizing and intriguing was the plethora of bacon-themed foods available from the standard strip of deliciously cooked bacon from the Pint Room in Carmel to the Happy Hour on a Stick from 240 Sweet, and so very much in-between. The creative talents displayed by the vendors at the Beer and Bacon Classic should be applauded for appealing to every taste sensation, and if the organizers emphasized creativity, they more than received it in spades. My personal favorite was the Waffle Crusted Candied Bacon with Maple Pomegranate Glaze from Oakley’s Bistro – in telling a friend about this delight, I may have mentioned passing on a moderately pleasurable activity in order to receive another helping of this melt-in-your-mouth goodness. Although Oakley’s did not score in the winning categories, they were my personal favorite.

The Beer

Some of the best moments of a beer-related festival are the one-offs, the showcases, the “brewed just for this” beers that just can’t be found anywhere else. I had expected some bacon-related beers, and, to be honest, in the past I’ve found them a little meh – okay, but not great. That said, the offering from Grand Junction Brewing in Westfield, a Maple Bacon Dark Road Porter, was firing on all cylinders – the smokiness of the porter was a perfect foil for the sweet goodness of the Indiana-sourced bacon and maple syrup. It was the best of both worlds, in its commitment to both its ingredients and its name. I would definitely drink this again and be ever so happy to do so. Congratulations, Grand Junction, another job well done.

My overall favorite beer of the day was the Damascene Apricot Sour from Tin Man Brewing, which was also a crowd-favorite in the Summery Sud category. This beer was just the right balance of sour and refreshing – with that bold apricot flavor. I will make a point to get my hands on some of this next time I am in the Indy area, as I can see this being my go-to beer for a warm summer afternoon.

Overall, the beers available were widely divergent in character, color, flavor, and style, providing ample opportunity to try an assortment of beer. From barley wines to sours, and every variety in-between, attendees were treated to a festival just as devoted to beer as it was bacon.