Part 3
'Record Row' was in the Grand Ballroom right next to the Marketplace. The photos don't do justice to the sheer size of the ballroom, as there were more records in there than in most record stores.
My audio buddy Doc Leo had a field day in Record Row and was able to score a number of hard to find LPs he had been looking for.
Sagamore Spirit (below) had a tasting table setup for show attendees to sample their line of Signature Rye Whiskies and craft canned cocktails that was popular at the Fest, so a big "Thank you!" to the Sagamore Spirit folks for that cool experience!
The gentleman leading the tasting told us all about how the "Sagamore Spirit Rye Whiskey is a blend of two straight rye mash bills, aged 4 to 6 years in high-char American oak barrels."
There was a cool little display (above) showing a miniature oak barrel (left), and a charred piece of an actual barrel with grooves in it, which provided more surface area to interact with the aging whiskey (right). In the middle of the photo you can see the two different grain mixes used for the blends, one with corn and one without.
The tasting started, left to right, across the 3 featured rye whiskies: the Signature Rye Whiskey, the Double Oak Rye Whisky, and the Cask Strength Rye Whisky. All were mighty tasty!
After tasting the rye whiskies, a tasting tour of the craft canned cocktails was available (below). Each cocktail was made with Sagamore Spirit straight rye whiskey and a mix of natural fruit juices and sweeteners.
From left to right: Pineapple Ryegarita (rye whiskey with lime juice, pineapple juice, agave syrup, and natural chipotle flavor), Orange Crush (rye whiskey paired with orange juice, lemon juice, lime juice, & natural orange flavor), Lemon Tea Fizz (rye whiskey paired with Meyer lemon juice, green tea, and natural yuzu flavor), and Honey Paloma (rye whiskey paired with red grapefruit juice, lime juice, agave, and natural honey flavor).
They were all delicious. My fave was the Pineapple Ryegarita with its hints of lime, pineapple, agave, and chipotle flavors.
I really wanted to go to all the seminars, but was only able to get to one of the scheduled seminars due to getting distracted with all the other things going on.
I attended the speaker design and speaker setup seminar (below), with guest speaker Benno Baun Meldgaard, who designs loudspeakers for Gamut, Radho, and Scansonic.
Benno's discussion was fascinating and provided a lot of illuminating insights.
Many thanks to all those who provided seminars!
Live music for Fest attendees started at 7:00PM in Maxi's Nightclub at the top of the DoubleTree on Friday and Saturday nights. Maxi's lounge offers elevated views from its 14th-floor windows, and the sunset on Saturday night was spectacular!
The live music events were amazing, so a big "Thank you!" Genesis for sponsoring the Paul Sawtelle and the King of Swing big band concert, which was back by popular demand.
You can learn more about the 17 piece big and of Paul Sawtelle with the Kings of Swing at the link.
Big bands are amazing to hear in a live performance. The power of a big band is visceral, and even at my distant seating position of about 30 feet they were generating SPLs of 94dB.
I noticed that Genesis was recording the performance on R2R, so I expect there will be a treat to hear in the Genesis room at PAF 2024.
On Saturday night the powerhouse Baby Cakes band's concert was impressive.
Doc Leo was in the elevator with part of the band, and they told him because they were playing an event for audiophiles they were going to work in some Steely Dan numbers, but alas they were just teasing, but they did blow us all away with their joyride through the golden age of American Soul, funk, and R&B classics, which was a blast. Keep an eye on this band, they are rising stars in the Seattle music scene.
One of the Baby Cakes guitarists took a break for a beer, and came back and chatted with me for a bit while listening to the band play. He told me, "Wow! This really sounds good back here!" He was right. Lou Hinkley, when he's not building loudspeakers for audiophiles, also builds pro audio loudspeakers for sound reenforcement at live music events. Lou had Maxi's Lounge dialed in perfectly, and the sound was indeed impressive. Kudos to Lou!
Many thanks to Snake River Audio who sponsored Baby Cakes for the Fest!
After the concerts it was time to go out for dinner. Last year I tried the Mango Thai Cuisine & Bar, which was excellent (and easy to get to being right across the street from the Fest).
This year I tried Sharps Roasthouse, which was also right across the street from the Fest. I tried the "Smoked BBQ Bacon & Pulled Brisket Sandwich" (below) and ordered a cocktail to go with it. The sandwich was very tasty, but the cocktail was marginal (I should have ordered a beer).
While at the fest I also tried the 13 Coins restaurant, which was a 2 block walk from the Fest, and was recommended by the concierge as a "classic Seattle restaurant" dining experience.
13 Coins was a classic American 'comfort food' restaurant, with a legit bar, and live music. They were open until 2AM which made them handy for dinner after attending the concerts.
I tried the 'Breast of Chicken Parmigiana' featuring breaded chicken, cream sauce, melted mozzarella, and parmesan cheeses that the waitress recommended. Very tasty! I also had a cocktail, and it was the real deal!
So the moral of the story for Part 3 is to be sure to take in all that the Fest has to offer: the various beer and whiskey tasting events, the seminars, the live music concerts, and I hope you'll find the restaurant mentions helpful for PAF 2024!
