Receta Hartford Sängerbund Bierfest: A Little Taste of Germany
Last Sunday, The Husband and I attend the Hartford Sängerbund Bierfest in Newington. While this was the first we'd heard of the event, it's been going on since 1984 ... which meant it must be good. And it was!
Admission was $10 per adult and food tickets were $1 each. We bought $30 worth of tickets, which allowed us to buy various Würste and Leberkäse, water, and ice cream (we were one ticket short for the ice cream, but that was the one stand that actually accepted tickets and dollars). Each food group was sold from its own tent, so there was a wurst line (heh), potato pancake line, and beer line ... but the lines quickly moved along as the Sängerbund folk clearly know what they're about.
Leberkäse with sauerkraut, tangy potato salad, sliced tomatoes, and spicy mustard.Currywurst. A little disappointing as it was only steamed (should be steamed, then fried for extra awesome).
The Kaffeestube, tucked away in a corner on the way to the toilets, sold cakes and coffee (obviously), but none were to The Husband's liking as they all contained "horrible" ingredients like apples or coconut or poppy seeds. He did enjoy the ice cream, however, and even admitted my lager-flavored selection was "pretty good, if you like beer." Made with Sam Adams Boston Lager, it was well worth four tickets.O, delicious lager ice cream!
There was plenty of seating, both inside and outside the music tent, which was a very good thing as the music was too loud for my delicate ears and we ended up enjoying our ice cream outside in the shade were there was a gentle breeze to cool us and the music was at the "correct" volume. Music was provided by the Hornberg Musikanten, a Bavarian brass band from the German Federal State of Baden-Württemberg. They certainly played with gusto and the couples on the dance floor seemed quite enthusiastic, too. My dad's mom loved to dance and I think she would have loved the band. Definitely her scene!Flags of some of the sixteen German Länder.
The Hartford Sängerbund Bierfest is a biennial event so, unfortunately, we won't see it's like again until 2016. However, the Hartford Sängerbund offers regularly scheduled events throughout the year, including a Schlachtfest on 1 November. There will be a variety of wurst, including Blutwurst (blood sausage). I really enjoy black pudding and thus am quite excited to try Blutwurst. The Schlachtfest is a mere four days before my birthday, so it seems a perfect early birthday present!