Great Taste of the Midwest tickets went on sale this past Sunday at noon, and as has been the norm over the past few years, they sold out lickety-split. I had put off posting this information for purely selfish reasons. After all, why run the risk of alerting the ignorant masses and losing out on tickets? Alas, it was all in vain. For the first time in many years, I was unable to score tickets.

I’ve had luck getting my tickets at the Wine & Hop Shop on Monroe in recent years, so I figured that I’d get ‘em again. Arriving two hours early had worked in last year’s ticket hunt, so I figured that a 9:00 am arrival would be a safe bet. Well, no. Almost, but not quite. The cut-off occurred with just two or three people standing in front of me. While the line around me was filled with groans, curses, and the rending of clothes, I like to think that I responded with a certain amount of dignity and grace.

Not to indulge in excuses, but perhaps the successful ticket holders just wanted it more. The head of the line at the Wine & Hop Shop was occupied by folks who had been there since bar time. I was told that the first person in line at Star Liquor arrived at midnight.

There are other ways to get tickets, of course. Every year, I’ve found it amusing to try to predict just how long until tickets will pop up on eBay (though I’m rather bitter about it this time around). Looks like it only took about four hours this year. Bastard.

The Great Taste will be held on the Saturday, August 11th at Olin-Turville Park. I’ll probably be loitering around somewhere. I’m not sure how, but I’ll find tickets. Not on eBay, though. Screw ‘em.