Why did you raise ticket prices? It was already too expensive!

Because if we didn’t, the event would lose money and then there wouldn’t an event at all. Believe it or not, the expenses that go into this event is almost $200,000. No joke.

On July 29th, we reached out to all our past ticket buyers with a 3 day presale where VID tickets were only $100 pre-tax/Eventbrite fee (a $5 increase from last year), as a show of appreciation for supporting the event. We kept GA prices as they were, plus the presale also had those ticket for just $55, which is lower than it ever was last year.

This all said, we asked for your feedback on what we can do to improve the event in the future, and we listened. You want more vendors, exclusive samples, better crowd management, and the whole cheese situation needs to be reworked - just to name a few notable requests. We have heard you, we working on it, and we have full confidence that the positive changes we are going to make will be worth the extra $5-15.

Okay, but why did you shorten the VID head start? That was the best part!

Because the vendors asked for it. We surveyed them as well, and 6 hours is too long for a lot of them to be excited about. You wanted more/better vendors. In order to make that happen we had to find middle ground by still giving VID early access and making the time commitment a little more manageable for the vendors. Four to five hours is the industry standard for unlimited sampling festivals. Even the Great Taste of the Midwest is only five hours (1-6 PM, just like us).

Well what positive changes are you making?

We’re still working on that. Unfortunately, the things we had to figure out quickly (entry time and pricing) are some of the first things that need to be locked in when you launch an event. Fun and exciting things like new cheese elements, competitions, merchandise, and beer vendor offerings take a little more time. Logistical improvements like crowd management and sampling efficiency protocol are neither sexy nor easy to showcase ahead of the event, but we know it’s something you want to see. It’s all coming.

It’s easy to be upset about the price and timing, they are concrete and easy to understand how that impacts you. We just ask that you give us a shot, and if we truly drop the ball, then we totally get it if we don’t see you again. The thing is, we know we’re going to knock it out of the park, and we will be seeing you for a long, long time.

Who even are you?

We’re Brothers Molloy Events, located right here in Madison. If you’ve been to the Madison Night Market, Art Fair on the Square, or Uncork Me Wisconsin, you’ve attended an event we helped make happen.

That’s just some of the local events we help execute. Specifically beer festivals, we are the logistical power behind The Vermont Brewers Festival, the Great Vegas Festival of Beer, the Las Vegas Downtown Brew Festival, and New Hampshire Bacon & Beer Festival, among others.

More than that, we’re also long-time fans and supporters of Beer & Cheese Fest, and we hope you will be too.

I get it, thanks for sharing all that.

Thanks for your understanding, it means a lot. If you’re feeling better about supporting the event, we will leave the ticket link here for you, but no pressure.

I’m still mad. Let me talk to the manager.

Are you sure? Okay, our contact information is info@brothersmolloyevents.com.