OT- Training Night For Epic Beer Weekend

Disclaimer: My tastes lean heavily towards IPAs/Double IPAs/Imperial Stouts

Three Floyd's Dreadnaught is one of the top Double IPAs, and I personally think it's pretty similar to Pliny the Elder (though my tastings of each have always been separated by at least a year). If Three Floyd's has Dark Lord (especially if it's a variant), that's a must have. I'm not crazy about Zombie Dust (if they bring it). I think it still has a lot of hype from back when citra hops were new and rare, and I've found that most beers brewed with citra are dominated by the same hop flavor. Also not a fan of Tree Shaker, doesn't seem like the peach flavor is strong enough to match up with the IPA. Which kind of makes sense, because the reviews I've heard for peach wheat beers said the peach flavor was overpowering, and the Epic Brainless on Peaches I had last week (belgian style) seemed pretty well balanced. Surly is sadly only bringing Bitter Brewer and Schadenfreude, which are both very good seasonals for their respective styles, but neither do much for me. Short of a mystery keg of Darkness, I don't know what else they would be bringing that they wouldn't have just announced with the other two.

In terms of California beer, I had a System of a Stout from Beachwood last week, and it was a really good coffee stout. Ruination Tropical Heat and Habanero Sculpin both sound interesting, though I think I've only had habanero in a lager before (Fiery Hell from Surly). An IPA should do a better job at cutting the heat. If I were there, I'd also be scouting out the BA Speedway Stout, Keene Idea, Cigar City Brandy BA Hunahpu's Imperial Stout, Silva Stout, Kern Citra DIPA.

Alright man, I'm going to take a stab at this.  I'm assuming you have access to most of the awesome CA stuff (Alpine, Kern River, etc) on a regular basis, so don't worry about those.  Also, not sure how much you get to festivals like this, but if you're really into trying a lot of different beers, don't be afraid to ask for less in your glass so you can try more before getting blasted.  (also, eat a lot)

I'm a huge Bell's homer and do like Roundhouse quite a bit.  I've only seen it at the pub in k'zoo, so if you can, get a bit of that.  My sis also lives in Tampa, so I've had a fair amount of Cigar City - all their stuff is great, so be sure to get those.  (my reco is if you're going with someone else, have them get the opposite beer you do, so you can try both without waiting in line again).

I also love Dogfish Head generally, but 61 and Noble Rot aren't my favs- they're both solid beers made with grape must, so if you're into wine, I'd suggest getting after those so you can see what they taste like.   

We get some Mikeller here in Chicago, but I've not had either of these - they make great stuff though, so I'd wait in line for those.

Odell!  Yes.

The beers from Revolution in Chicago are awesome, I'd say try to get to those early to make sure you get some.  They make a killer IPA (Anti-Hero) so between their expertise and FW's I have to imagine that collab will be spectacular.

Ditto the above posters thoughts on Surly - they mostly stay only in Minnesota, so now's your chance.  Dreadnaught is a good beer from 3 Floyds, but not my favorite.  If you have the time and your liver remains intact, go ahead and get some, but I wouldn't shove anyone out of the way for it.  If they DO end up brining DL and Zombie Dust, go ahead and push down that old lady - she'll understand.

Have an awesome time!  I'd love to see what you end up trying/liking.