The Ale-ing Fest, Hayling's very own beer festival, ran out of beer and cider on the Saturday night of October 7 - a first in 11 years, so we were obviously victims of our own success!
We think the overwhelming increase in numbers was due to the change from August to October, plus superior publicity. The weather also helped.
Advance ticket sales had not indicated that more than 300 would turn up on Saturday night (and be so thirst
y!). Last year, we had a total of only 250 over the Friday and Saturday night sessions.
All our past experience has told us that the average consumption per person at festivals is 3.2 pints, but this year was an exception. The positioning of the barrels, the beer tent and the decoration of the hall, making it much more welcoming, may also have helped. At least we didn't have to dispose of the eight barrels-worth left over last year (nor did we get to have an opportunity to drink any on our clear up!).
We shall have more beer and cider next year and hope that numbers remain similar i.e. no backlash for running out of beer at 9.30!Fest-goers were able to use their beer tokens at the Community Centre bar to buy beer and cider. This resulted in £380 of extra takings on draught beer alone at the bar, plus all the other drinks, so a big bonus for the Community Centre, to boost their funds, which are for the benefit of the community.
The landlord of the West Town Hotel even complained, although in good humour, about the invasion of beer-drinkers after our beer ran out, changing their normal peaceful Saturday night to a rather busy one!
We were entertained on the Friday night by Agglestone, an accomplished Irish music trio and on Saturday afternoon we were treated to the beautiful voice of Jennifer Ellen Frost, singing Country and R&B songs, to the guitar accompaniment of Paul Bryant. Saturday evening featured the big band sound of 10-piece 'Big Al and the Fireflys' with their repertoire of swing and jive-rock numbers, really testing out the improved acoustics at the Community Centre!
The smart green Ale-ing Fest aprons worn by serving staff were a great success, as were the monogrammed commemorative mugs and T-Shirts. Paul Denman, of Alan Rae's Butchers, did a great job with the barbecued beef and pork rolls in the evenings. Wally and Grace and the staff and volunteers at the Community Centre, as well as the army of Ale-ing Fest serving staff, all deserve a special mention for their efforts, making this a memorable event.
We wish to thank a great many people who gave of that very precious commodity - their own time - making the Ale-ing Fest a reality. The Ale-ing Fest relies on the support of not only our 'Barrel Sponsors' but also other groups, principally the Twinning Association, sponsors of the event. We are also very grateful to all the pubs and other outlets who contributed greatly to our sale of tickets.
Barrel sponsors were: Alan S. Rae Traditional Foods; Angel Radio; Beach Road Garage; Burras Ltd; Chandler Hawkins; CJH Tyres; Emco Education Ltd; Emerson Chase; Funland; Gable UK; The Hayling Billy; Hayling Window Centre; Hayling.co.uk; Heidi's Swiss Patisserie; Herons Autos; Hayling Property Management (HPM); Hugh Hickman & Son; Inn on the Beach; Island Cars; Island Tiles; The Lifeboat Inn; Motorcare Centre; Peter & Maryon McQuade (Cider); Onsite Insights; Ramsbottoms; Raven Estates; R.J. Morris Jewellers; Smith & Austin; Sovereign Carpets.
Now we are looking forward to planning next year, which will be on Friday, October 26, and Saturday October 27, once again at the Community Centre, where we will have the benefit of the Bowling Club Terrace for the BBQ and fresh air, rather than at the front of the building, where we feel that some managed to sneak in, without paying the entrance fee!
