Banjos and booze

We waited for the hottest weekend so far this year to retreat into the woods for a little weekend getaway. This weekend Chester was hosting 'A few brews and a banjo' as a fundraiser for their school music program and with tickets being sold at the door for only $20 it seemed like a perfect excuse to go. To top it off, my co-worker Curtis has a second house in Chester which he was kind enough to let us use for the weekend. We left Saturday morning, arriving early enough to have a couple of hours to relax and have lunch before the festival started.

Admiring the top shelf collection of booze in Curtis' pantry. Once a bartender, always a bartender.
Relaxing and reading magazines in the backyard by the in-ground fire pit.

The event was scheduled from 2-6 pm at the Chester Park downtown, so around 1:30 we headed over to ensure a parking spot and seating in the shade. We found perfect spots under a tree that backed up to the river.
For our entrance fee we got the cutest little 4 oz cups with a banjo sprouting flowers on it and the name of the event. I know, it's hard to see.
They had a local Chico bluegrass group, Mossy Creek, play for about the first hour.



Although there were only about 7-8 tents up for beer tasting, each booth had anywhere from 3-5 beer selections to choose from. And not all samples under one tent were from the same brewery. It looked like some breweries sent some samples to pour, but didn't actually send any staff. So there'd be one worker pouring multiple brands.
This was such a better experience than the Chico brewfest because it was so much more low-key. Chris got 15+ samples, there was a good tri-tip lunch being served and we really enjoyed the music.

Back at the house, the sun and booze took it's toll on the old man and he was quickly out like a light.
I woke him up though after a half an hour so that we could go on a walk around the block. I figured he'd back asleep in no time, but we both ended up staying awake until after midnight because a) the house was too warm, and b) the bed was horribly uncomfortable. But I'm not going to complain too much since it was free.

After breakfast, coffee and some sheet washing, we were back on the road home just in time for 100 degree plus temperatures today in Chico. So far we're at 95 degrees, but the days not over yet!