I may have been holding the same Utopias bottle - and I have tried it before at numerous PFTS - I put it back because I wanted to ask my cast member friend if he would get a discount if he bought it. The bottle disappeared before I could talk to him.
Knowing what I know about when you were there and when Brenda arrived, it's quite possible. Or perhaps the festival center put out one bottle per day. The strange part was that I didn't set foot in the welcome center the ENTIRE time, and I had a heckuva long trip. If I would have seen the Utopias, I would have bought it.
Oh and Brenda, there used to be an event every year in England, it was an International Beer dinner. They had them every week, and would alternate one week as Int'l in England, and the other week would be in the American Pavillion w/Sam Adams beers. I think 3 F&WF's ago was the last time they did one. We LOVED them, and they were a pretty good bargain too IIRC. The food they served in England wasn't too shabby either, we had excellent crab cakes one year, and I remember an abundance of stinky Stilton another time.
Actually, the year prior to that, it was just the International Beer dinner at Rose and Crown. All the usual stuff you could get at the pub (Boddington's, Stella Artois, etc) were paired with food. For $55, it was well worth the dinner! And we got a souviner beer glass to take with us. I attended the first one with TDC Nala, and I enjoyed it enough to do the event the following year, when my week was the Sam Adams week. The different Sam Adams beers were paired with a buffet, served in the American Adventure VIP area on the top floor. I think it might have been $60 that year, but still worth it. The following year, it turned into a Jim Kock Lovefest, and people paid $150 for a one-night event. I really miss those beer pairing dinners.
What's my plan for 2008?
I know that my plans this year will include PFTS, as that's an event that has become a staple of the festival. I will also try to get the Sunday night Signature dinner, as that seems to be a regular event, as well. I just won't know which resort restaurant will host it, but I've enjoyed the two I've done.
I like the food and wine pairings, and so I'll probably try for a Coral Reef and a sushi one in Japan. I liked the LeCellier ones I had been to, but I think it was under a different chef than they currently have. I don't know if the stress of trying to get that is worth it. I'll keep my options open. I will forego Sweet Sundays this year, but mostly so I could have money available for other events.
And the idea of a tequila pairing sounds awesome.
