I have now gone to 4 of the 5 Anni Parties that have been held since the first one for the 10th year. Short’s was the first brewery I went to when I turned 21, and so it always holds a special place in my heart. I’ve grown up with it and have watched it expand and become the successful craft beer provider it is today. I’m so proud to have been a part of and witnessed its growth from a small local pub to the huge entity it is now.

Once a year since the 10th anniversary party, Short’s closes down the streets of downtown Bellaire and it becomes a fantastic beer festival. It’s to celebrate his roots and the town of Bellaire for supporting him as he grew the company. It’s always a fantastic time and the beer is top notch.

This year I managed to snag a VIP ticket, so I could get in early and get some swag. Last year Lindsay and Will got it, and I was in China and didn’t buy my ticket early enough so they sold out. I made sure not to make that mistake again. It was a good chance to walk around and talk to the food truck people and figure out what beers I was going to want to try. I also got a chance to talk to the local stores that had shops set up on the fringes of the party to peddle their wares.

This year Dayna, Kevin, Jay, Jen, and some of their friends joined me again. Unfortunately Lindsay and Will were unable to make it. My parents and some family friends also made it out, so that was a lot of fun to spend the day with them.

Having had a house up here for over ten years now, my family has made some friends with the local merchants and our golf community. I’m never exactly sure who I’ll meet at the party, but it’s always great to see everyone!

Short’s always finds some delicious food to accompany their beer selection. This year was no exception. The paella truck was back! I was extremely excited about it. I got to talk to them a little bit about cooking which is always fun.

Music is something that I feel has been very important to the brewery. Every weekend they have a live performer at the pub, and for the Anni Party they’ve always had live music the whole time. Prior to the party, Short’s has a battle of the bands competition. The winner gets to be the first headliner at the party.

This year’s winner of the 2nd Battle of the Bands competition was: E.Z. Duhzit & the Soul Jar

After they played, Joe Shorts usually speaks to the attendees and this year he did it in a very creative way. He played guitar with friends? bandmates? Then emerged later Evel Knievel style and biked from the top of the keg trailer to the stage. It was awesome.

Following this was Lindsay Lou, who I unfortunately did not get a chance to see. But I did hear her as I meandered around talking to friends and imbibing delicious bourbon barrel aged beer.

I always went back to the same pourer, James, and he was lovely. Hopefully I’ll get to see him at the next party.

As I wandered around I maanged to catch the Detroit Party Marching Band at one point:

The final musical guest of the night was Steppin In It. They’ve been at the Anni Party before so it was great to see them back again.

It’s become somewhat of a tradition now to for me to get a picture with Leah and Scott. I’ve seen Leah at the pub since their early days, and so at the first Anni Party I made it a point to get a picture with her. Since then, I’ve always gone looking for her to get a picture together.

Scott and I met when I went to Ashley’s for a beer throwdown between Short’s and another brewery. I had to go support Short’s so while I was there we met Scott who was representing Short’s. We had a lovely chat, and for a while I had one of the few pictures of him floating around. Since then I’ve tried to snap a shot with him whenever I see him. He’s the face of the Magician!

And how could we forget about the beer! I bought so much beer. I tasted a lot of it, and then bought 500mL bottles of it so I could enjoy it again downstate. My favorite was the Hammerjack, but that’s because I’m very partial to Scotch Ales. One of the other beers I tried that I really liked a lot was the Hooper in a Cage. Strong but a nice summer drink, if you’re not careful it’ll put you on your ass. I tried a lot of beers, they were all delicious but those two were my favorite.

I can’t wait to see what the brewers cook up next year.

-Evilmanta