Since people have been mentioning it, I figured we should discuss.

I've gone the past 3 years and it's my favorite day of the summer. I always take off on Friday and go, because I don't want to hassle with the Saturday/Sunday crowds. Plus, cheaper beer 2-5 during Happy Hour, if you're into that. I usually have one or two beers at the most, so I go for the food.

Last year, Hogapalooza had the best ribs, in my opinion. This year, I went straight to them when I got there and again the ribs did not disappoint. I wanted to tell the pitmaster this, so they ushered me and my buddy around and we praised him. He brought the rest of our group around and we hung out with them, eating and drinking some more. They're really good dudes, and I think that's probably par for the course with a lot of these places. They're from Wynne, Arkansas, just outside of Memphis, but only cater.

Look for them next year - You won't regret it.

I'm glad they came back strong with two dessert options, because last year, the ice cream melted. They brought in some people from New York and their truck broke down. It was a shame, because three years ago, they had doughnuts that were spectacular, finishing off the BBQ.

I think the wristband payment system slowed things down, especially the drinks, but I also heard they let people in without tickets at the end. It was a shit show by the headliner. Way too many people. Somebody screwed that up big time.

Otherwise, it was a blast as usual.

Got to the fest around 1:30. Perfect amount of people to navigate the festival and see all the beer/food/music.

Left around 5:45 as it was just too crowded. You couldn't move. Plus we were done paying $10 for beer. We ended up selling our wristbands to people outside for $20. I guess they really wanted to see Eli Young Band and Kip Moore. Midland was solid but sound quality wasn't good and they're more of a small venue band.

Food:
3 Pappy's ribs my friend couldn't finish - they're were decent.
Smoque Brisket - it was fine. Ended up going simply b/c we were hungry and had no line.
Cookie Dough - it was cookie dough.


They need to expand the festival grounds. The beer/food tents toward the main stage get all messed up with people standing to watch the musicians.

The festival bottlenecks under the bridge with beer and food lines.

Right, we were saying they should have the BBQ on the opposite side of the main stage. Way too much commotion, especially later.

Never even heard of this, looks pretty cool since I'm a fan of BBQ and country music. At least 7-8 bands I've heard of and know a few of their songs. Maybe I'll check it out next year, but not a big fan of crowds so will probably just stay away.

But, the chance to try 17th street BBQ might be enough to get me to do it.

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The sound quality was trash.

The fest appears to have grown quickly in popularity. The organizers need to scale up and realize they've outgrown the space.

I had the "Tangy Beans" from 17th Street BBQ this year. They were good, but odd. Not your classic BBQ beans, but rather assorted beans in a tangy sauce.

I'd recommend Friday and getting there right when it opens if possible. You can definitely have your rule of the roost before it gets crowded. We talked about either getting there right when it opens again and just leaving early if we don't care for the headliner, or possibly splurging for the VIP. My friends will like the shorter beer lines, but I'll be annoyed, because I don't drink much. I hope I can talk them down into just leaving early. But as Kirkwood said, they need to put a clamp down on admission or figure out the logistics better.