I was quite fortunate to score a pair of tickets to the sold-out Chico Microbrew Fest on Saturday. That was a boon to be around the office Friday night -- being new to the area, I didn't realize that the event sells out.

There were 35 breweries and a winery there. There were the "greats" including Sierra Nevada, Stone, Gordon Bierch. There were some local brewmasters there that I didn't know existed. A ton of food was on hand for sampling too. All for the price of a $30 ticket that I got gratis (I gave the other ticket to a co-worker to give to a friend).

It was nice sampling all the different beers (I made it to about 17 of the total 36). I definitely liked the reds and pilsners that were being offered. I definitely enjoyed the pear cider from Fox Barrel.

I paced myself through the afternoon, taking a break for food or diet cola after every four or five samples. In the end, it worked out and I cruised to the bowling alley knock down some pins.

During the clean-up drawing to give away the prizes that hadn't been picked up, I heard my number being called for the ultimate prize -- 3-day use of a dumpster from Waste Management. Woot!

Well, all the event proceeds go to the Soroptimists so it's a worthy cause.