Hey what's in your pint glass?
5So.. Im finishing up dinner with a delicious 14th Star Maple Breakfast Stout, and a thought occurred to me. Some of you are beer people, and If I were to travel, where would be good to sample at? I see the home-brew threads and I thought this could be a bit of the What is good near you?
Being in Vermont there's a lot to chose from. I'm not an IPA fan, but Heady topper is great, but pricey. Given that it's Maple season it seems like a lot of locals are doing maple in beer... Maple Breakfast stout by 14th Star is one of my favorites. A) it's a stout. B) it's got maple C) it's not too heavy.
Other recent good to ok Beers have been
Bent hill Imperial Maple Stout
Burlington Beer company Momentary Bliss
Burlington Beer company Crunchy (Peanut Butter Porter, interesting actually)
So Meh, What's in your pint glass? What's good in your area, and what else is good that you've recently tried? What State are they in?
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In my pint glass? Air, until I fill it.
I'm a big fan of Boulevard Brewing Company and I rotate through their offerings from week to week. I also really enjoy Pilsner Urquell and Fischer Biere d' Alsace (primarily because I drank them in college).
@Pavlov so I see that they say they are the largest specialty brewer in the Midwest. Does that effect the quality? I ask cause locally the smaller they are the better beer they seem to make. Please tell me they are better than oh say Magic hat.
I haven't been to Magic hat in a while, it's a pretty cool facility, awesome people. For a while they all knew me. Fresh from the brewery Magic hat is freaking awesome. From cans/bottles I think it's shit. Something happens where it's just so fresh from a tap compared to packaged and retail sold.
Good example of that is meat whistle. Tap was amazing. Let it sit for a day or so and it tasted like a marinade for beef.
@sohmageek No, their exponential growth has had no impact upon quality. USA Today’s For The Win has an “Ultimate Craft Brewery” bracket that seeded Boulevard at No. 5 in the Midwest region. The Washington Post’s Beer Madness 2015 has seen Boulevard’s Tank 7 Farmhouse Ale advance to the Final Four. In the first round, it beat the Hardywood Singel Belgian Abbey-style Blonde Ale out of Richmond, Va. It wasn’t even close: 1,932 votes to 938. The next victim was Allagash Tripel Ale from Portland, Maine. Tank 7 won 409-318. Chicago’s Goose Island Sofie Belgian-Style Farmhouse Ale was blown out in the Elite Eight. Tank 7 won 297-168.
@Pavlov Awesome, Altough I don't know how much I can trust national ones... Vermont ranks pretty high at ratebeer, yet the national ones that say New England beers Skip vermont almost entirely, or if they don't they pick ones that have multiple locations (haropoon) or Magic hat, which quality hasn't been what it used to. Magic hat is till a great experiance and tour, but as for beer, they make more and it still is better than a big national beer company, but It ranks very low for me now.
@Pavlov I've never had a bad beer from Boulevard. I always pick up whatever brewers' sample packs I can when I'm in the area. Boulevard Wheat is my favorite wheat beer, Widmer Bros. is a close second.
@Pavlov my SO's family introduced me to Boulevard, there's never a family gathering without some unfiltered wheat on hand. I've only had bombers of Tank 7 a few times but I really enjoy it. I guess I'll have to make a point of seeing the brewery when I'm out there sometime.
@sohmageek I know you're pretty down on it, but I actually love Magic Hat #9. I haven't had it in quite a while but I was obsessed for a summer I spent in Michigan.
@JonT it's not that it's bad beer per day. Right from the tap is the best. But when given the choice of Sam bud or #9 it's #9 all the way. They like Ben & Jerry's have sold out to larger companies.
Boulevard Brewery’s Tank 7 Farmhouse Ale has finished the season No. 1 in at least one poll. The Washington Post’s Beer Madness bracket had an all-Missouri final: Tank 7 against Schlafly’s Kolsch out of St. Louis. While Schlafly won the popular vote (it sounds suspiciously like our friends across the state stuffed the ballot box), Tank 7 won the important title. A blind-tasting panel of readers and beer experts chose Tank 7 as the best in its competition. “We sell most of our beer within a few hours of the brewery,” Boulevard ambassador brewer Jeremy Danner told the post. “We know we’re making good beer, but it’s good to see other people recognize that, too.” And it’s not just the Washington Post competition. Boulevard was in three competitions this month, and it’s still alive in Draft magazine’s 64-beer bracket. Having dispatched of Deschutes Brewery’s Fresh Squeezed IPA in the Elite Eight, Tank 7 is in the Final Four. It is up against Dale’s Pale Ale out of Lyons, Colo.
Boulevard has full or partial distribution in 25 States and was acquired by the Duvel Moortgat Brewery of Belgium in late 2013, but they haven't changed a thing worth mentioning since being purchased.
@JonT Make a reservation online in advance! Pay the $20 for the Smokestack or the Unfiltered tour - WELL WORTH the price of admission.
My current case is a DuClaw Brewing sampler 24 bottle case (8 different varieties, most of which are pretty good).
Two of my all-time favorites are there- Dirty Little Freak & Sweet Baby Jesus!
Other beers I've given four stars or more to:
Innis & Gunn Original Oak Aged Beer
Kostritzer Schwarzbier
Snowdrift Vanilla Porter
Virginia Draft Hard Cider
@dashcloud that sounds great! I love porters, stouts, blonde ales,ciders... I just don't really like the hoppy stuff (which makes heady a bit of an oddity that I like it)
Shed makes a wonderful vanilla porter that I love making beer bread with. It comes out dark like the beer with just a hint of vanilla and a little heavy.
Also not too far from family. I think I smell a road trip at some point.
@sohmageek Saw this on Consumerist and, not surprisingly, it made me think of your beer bread, although it's kind of opposite. http://consumerist.com/2015/04/17/brewer-forges-unholy-alliance-of-bread-booze-with-beer-made-from-leftover-loaves/
@editorkid awesome! Although it says it has a hippy end. I wouldn't like hoppy ends.
@dashcloud DuClaw is often a bit over-the-top for me (though I respect their craziness), but I had the Morgazm grapefruit blonde for the first time this weekend at Brew at the Zoo, and it was fantastic... Great for these increasingly hot days.
@brhfl If you like grapefruit, you have to try Schöfferhofer Grapefruit- it's an amazing grapefruit taste, and I like it better than Morgazm.
@dashcloud I've had the Schöfferhofer, not really my cup of tea. Too sweet for grapefruit, too fruity for beer, more of a shandy or radler... And if it's blisteringly hot out and I want a grapefruit radler, I'm going Stiegl instead. Still has hints of beer to it, and the grapefruit tastes much less artificial. Thank you for the tip, though!
Keystone Light.
Great hop/malt balance. Excellent head retention. Amazing body. The aftertaste is almost miraculous. I don't know why it's rated so low on Beer Advocate. If they got this one wrong, I can't trust any of the ratings.
@phatmass laugh as you may. It's one of my fathers favorites. He tries the craft beers but he's used to very light beer. Usually keystone or coors. What was the deal with the Orange cans anyway?
@phatmass Thoughts on Natural Light?
@phatmass If I have to drink a Coors product, first choice is Killians, second is Keystone.
@phatmass Don't forget, Keystone also has a Specially Lined Can. That just may be the secret to your enjoyment.
@2many2no If I have to drink a Coors product I've been known to not drink beer and ask for a soda - Coors is the only brand of beers (anything they brew) that gives me a headache, I have no idea why. Not hangover headache - it starts after the third or fourth beer kind of headache.
@Pavlov Try the Killians Red. It's pretty good, especially on draught. Hard to believe Coors makes it.
Mexican Coke.
@Headly It's not bad, but it just doesn't compare to Colombian.
Um 50/50 cranberry and grape juice cut again 50% with water. I need a life
@cranky1950 That sounds much better than 1/2 OJ 1/2 Surge. I thought it would bring Caffiene to Orange juice... Instead it's just bad.
I grew up in Anheuser-Busch country, Bud was Grandpa's beer. He would bring home a gallon jug of draught from the roadhouse out on Route 66 on pinochle night, and my brother and I could usually sneak some. I still like the AB products, and they are consistent wherever you go, which is a remarkable achievement for all their brewmasters around the country.
That being said, craft beers are an amazing development, and there can't be too many of them. Some of my favorites are Boulevard, Widmer Bothers, New Belgium, Stone, and Lagunitas.
If you're lucky enough to be in Texas, there are some great breweries all around. Spoetzl in Shiner may be best known, but others to check out include Rahr and Sons (Ft. Worth), Real Ale (Blanco), and St. Arnold (Houston).
Also, almost every city has a few breweries that just sell on-site. One of the things that helps to Keep Austin Weird is the hotbed of microbreweries in the area.
Beer is what you need when you have great barbecue and Tex-Mex to drink it with, so we always have a lot.
Beer Is Good.
You can't drink beer all day if you don't start in the morning.
@2many2no I tried to order a Coors in a bar in St Louis in 1989. That did not go over well.
@Headly Until the mid 80's, Coors was not sold east of the Mississippi, but in Missouri, pretty much only in Kansas City. There were fanatics that would drive to get some, but it wasn't that popular.
Flying Dog Brewery, Raging Bitch Belgian IPA. Frederick MD. My favorite summer drink on a hot Baltimore day.
@Sarahsda Whooo, Flying Dog - the one thing I'm proud of in this town (kidding!)... Seeing as you're in the state, try the offerings from Red Shedman if/when you see it. Their IPA is great, and their Honey Rye is mind-blowing. Hop farm & brewery in Mt. Airy.
The New Belgium Lips of Faith series are like Russian Roulette of beer drinking, but their latest Cocoa Mole Stout...amazeballs! I like stouts and porters and have to confess a slight addiction to Noche Dulce Vanilla Porter (Borderlands Brewing). That being said, there are dozens of fantastic brew houses in Phoenix (and Flagstaff and Prescott and Bisbee) making Arizona a great beer drinkers destination!
@smkarizona I'd love to visit Arizona again, I've been told that it's much different than when I lived there 28 years ago... But then again I wouldn't remember much as I was a baby! I have a friend that lived in Flagstaff and then a bit in Prescott too... What prompted this really is my Co-worker is retiring and taking a road trip cross country to her family on the west coast. She's really excited about one of the states she's stopping at due to the beer there. I thought it would be great to do a destination beer vacation. I can't go too overboard however as I have a kiddo now. :)
I know it has exploded in distribution in the last couple years, but Lagunitas is a great brewery with some tasty offerings. Their IPA ice cold on a hot day can't be beat (I know that's not necessarily appropriate for the style, but hey it tastes good!). Their brewery is a fun visit and you can also hit Russian River Brewing too and get a Pliny. Both are pretty close to home here so I consider myself lucky.
Eugene, OR is an awesome beer town with some great tasting rooms and brewpubs; Ninkasi and Steelhead come to mind but there are a bunch up there with some unique offerings.
To answer the thread title, last night my pint glass(es) was filled with an Amber I just finished brewing, my first batch in 14 years and it was worth the wait.
@sohmageek; @belowi - If you get to San Francisco, I recommend Hopwater Distribution http://www.hopwaterdistribution.com/
They have 31 California craft brews on tap, with a rotating selection.
Down in Boston, Trillium makes some pretty good beers. One of my favorite is Fort Point Pale Ale. They also make some farmhouse ales, which aren't really my style.
@Kevin Can you recomend other Boston spots too? Thats a nice trip that isn't too far away!
@sohmageek Sure! The big spot is Harpoon they have tours and a beer hall (not too far from Trillium). Night Shift is a cool spot. Slumbrew in Sommerville, and Mystic River is near by. There's a ton of cool places to visit in Boston. If you want to be chauffeured around take a look at Boston Beer Tours. Also, Harpoon took over the old Catamount brewery in Windsor and they have a pretty cool pub. If you take a tour there, and in the Boston brewery you get a free pint glass or something like that. May as well stop by if you're making the drive from VT.
@sohmageek oh also, Allagash in Portland ME is very cool. They have some really amazing beers they release only at the brewery. Freeport is also near by, so you can stock up on your LL Bean gear as well.
@Kevin thanks. Is harpoon any different than their brewery in vt? I've done the Burlington brew tour that has the same owner as Boston brew tours. I got pretty toasty on that tour. :) we found a guy locally that does tours also that you charter the tour I think he does Boston too. That's an awesome trip.
I love allagash white! They are awesome.
@sohmageek It's fairly different. They have this big beer hall with long tables, and only serve those big bavarian pretzels. They also have tours, the Boston Brewery is much bigger than the Windsor.
@sohmageek Allagash White is truly a phenomenal beer. I'm not sure I've ever seen a Hoegaarden drinker that I haven't stopped to suggest the Allagash.
Not a beer person
Iced cold brew coffee :)
Now, I've had decent beer by my standards, it's just rare. Had Brandywine once. Yes, it's really a 'beer' type beverage, not a wine. It was nice.
So I stopped by burlington beer company to update my beer collection and pick up my Tea brew... Be Excellent to each other it's a rooibos bush tea pale ale, it's awesome!
While I was there I also got Folk Metal, Oatmeal Stout.
The only risk I have now is I'm traveling soon and have to drink it down before we leave...
It comes in pints?!?
As requested: Natural Light
A beer I thought I'd never get to try. 12 oz can poured into a snifter.
Appearance - Pee yellow with a small white head. A few wisps on the surface and a thin collar.
Smell - Pee. No hops. No caramel malt, smells like cheap corn syrup.
Taste - Tastes like pee. The cold pee of an eskimo who just drank a 12 pack.
Mouthfeel - Medium carbonation. No body. Almost like carbonated pee.
Overall - Glad I got to try it. I do think it tastes better than many other drinks, such as the Terrible Drinking with Meh drinks.
@phatmass What the hell do you drink normally that a pee-color & smelling drink is better than a lot of other things?
@phatmass It concerns me that you seem to know what pee tastes like. I guess everyone has their kinks.
@eyewerks oh don't try and tell me that you never accidentally got pee in your mouth. Everybody has.
@phatmass true dat.
Now that things have started warming up a bit I'm stocking my half-liter (wtf is a pint?) with Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin. You know, because my IPA needs to taste more like grapefruit (I like Deschutes Fresh-Squeezed as well).
@NigelF Just had this the other day. Yummy!
Being a KC native I must rep my favorite Boulevard Brewing Co. Otherwise I regularly grab a six pack of Blue Moon, or Shock Top, or Guinness. All three of those are easy drinking. Fat Tire is a house favorite as well.
You guys want to exchange Untappd usernames?
@phatmass sounds great. Same as my forum name here :)
@sohmageek @phatmass My Untappd name is bobinchicago. And I'd probably use the app more if I had more than two coworkers hooked in.
(Then again, I'm probably not a trailblazer and Untappd doesn't really accommodate homebrew.)
There are so many great local breweries around now that I rarely drink anything I don't love. My go-to is Big Boss Brewing Company in my hometown of Raleigh, NC. Bad Penny (Brown Ale) is my year round favorite but the seasonal Aces and Ates (Coffee Stout) is my all time favorite winter brew. Truth be told, everything they make is fantastic, they're the only brewery in the area that can open a cask and see it gone in a single night (and there is no food served there except for the occasional food truck outside).
Other awesome breweries are Natty Greene's, Aviator Brewing Company, Carolina Brewing Company, and Foothills Brewing Company. Front Street Brewery in Wilmington is also nice. Charlotte and Asheville have lots of great beer as well I just don't live there to drink it very often.
@RedHot Big Boss sells everything they make in bottles now so even at home I can have great beer!
Water.
I am fortunate enough to live in one of the craft capitals, Seattle. If you ever visit Seattle, you'll probably have a tough time visiting all the breweries (I'm sure it's partly due to cheap hops, since WA produces 77% of the US hop crop, and partly due to the very cheap $100 state brewery license). There are 39 in the city. Portland is similarly full of breweries.
If you like coffee, one of my favorite brews, by Oakshire Brewing (in Eugene, OR), is their Overcast Espresso Stout.
I recently visited Denver and enjoyed Vine St brews as well as Breckenridge. I had a few others but can't recall. Here in Seattle/PNW I am truly bummed that ABInbev has purchased Elysian and hope their beer will still be good. I really enjoy Black Raven, Mack and Jacks is in almost every bar, Red Hook's ales. There are many tiny breweries I have yet to go explore. I am not a fan of Pyramid, but Deschute's Black Butte is a favourite. For a light day, I can't go wrong with a Widmer hefe.
I have a place nearby called Chuck's Hop Shop where I get to sample hundreds of local beers as well as almost anything you can think of from the US or Europe.
Happy national beer day!
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Beer_Day_%28United_States%29
I just moved to the DC area, my favorite local brew is DC Brau's On the Wings of Armageddon (DIPA). There's also Blue Jacket that I haven't had a chance to visit yet.
Some of the stuff I've been drinking in the last few weeks..
- Stone Enjoy By
- Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin (the gf loves this)
- Dogfish Head 90 Minute
- Bell's Two Hearted
- Sixpoint Abigale
- Trillium Congress Street IPA
- Bear Republic Racer5
Currently storing/aging: Goose Island BCBS (2014), Stone IRS (2015), Black Butte XXVI (best after date is June 2015), and a Firestone Walker Parabola that probably won't be stored very long since I have yet to try this.
@hashybrown I finally got to try OtWoA, it is everything I had hoped it would be… especially since DC Brau's other offerings are, to me… well, not bad, but a bit meh.
Water. Most likely water.
I miss beer. I really miss it. Stupid stomach.
@lisaviolet Do you have a gluten allergy? Hard cider is naturally gluten free.
@Kevin No, it's a carbonation thing. And alcohol thing. I can't seem to drink anything anymore without my stomach rebelling. It started with the removal of my gallbladder.
@lisaviolet ha ha -- you can't store bile. :) But seriously, that sucks, you are probably on a strict diet?
@Kevin Not yet. Saving up for medical co-pay. And it really does suck.
Not a bad haul today.
Guess I missed this thread first time around. In DC, my biggest recommendation is Three Stars - the Peppercorn Saison is delicious. My latest love affair in MD is any of the offerings from Red Shedman in Mt. Airy, but especially the Honey Rye. Monocacy Brewing in Frederick does a great coffee porter year-round, with beans roasted right across the street at a favorite coffee shop of mine. On the VA front, Crooked Run in Leesburg always has some interesting stuff on tap (taps only - they don't bottle - bring a growler!). Adroit Theory in Purcellville does a smoked serrano porter that actually has a nice heat to it, unlike most chili beers I've had.
@brhfl There is at least one Brewery over here that does Crowlers (cans that are 32 oz.)
@brhfl Also I'm ok with Growlers... I have a few nice metal ones that not everyone locally fills.. which is annoying.
@sohmageek Never seen a crowler, interesting! I do often go for grumbler fills (32oz) though vs. growlers, if the brewery is up to it.
Drinking Taproom 21 Shebeen Shandy today.
It was a gift. I do not recommend it.
My wife is using it to root begonias.
CBC Bodhi
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/341/53187/
I recently had a Prairie Bomb. clicky, clicky
There's a whole lot going on and all of it was good.
Had some Magic Hat #9 over the weekend, despite @sohmageek's complaints. ;)
I feel like I've been in a bit of a beer rut, I have my go-to favorites: Temptress, Velvet Hammer, Dale's Pale Ale, Old Chubb...but I've been wanting something new.
I think I need an extended trip to Flying Saucer to try out some new stuff.
@JonT Mehricans send you several delicious homebrews and you declare yourself in a "bit of a beer rut"?! @Kevin, @marklog: join me in the shaking of our heads.
@grum @Kevin @marklog The problem is I can't go to the store and buy a 6 pack of Dog Finger Hef :) I'm only in a rut in that I keep ordering the same stuff around here without trying something new (that I can then buy again later).
Ithaca Brewery 'Flower Power' is outstanding, with a 96 rating on BeerAdvocate. Recommend. Also love the Ballast Point Sculpin IPA -- the regular and grapefruit are equally delicious.
@ACraigL I was going to pick up some Ballast Point Sculpin until I realized it was $14 for a 6 pack...
@JonT Here in PA we're relegated to purchase a case (or sometime half a case) at a time. I can find a case of this for about $45 dollars, but yes, the finer things in life are, well, finer.
how about Fireball in a whiskey glass
Any Mehricans going to the MD Craft Beer Festival this weekend? Just found out about this one, and I can walk to it so… kind of a no-brainer.
@brhfl I'll be at the American Craft Beer Fest in Boston this weekend
@Kevin Sounds awesome, if not a bit overwhelming…!
Anybody here use Untappd?
https://untappd.com/user/grahamb5
@grum I really feel like I should. Should I?
@grum I like the idea of that site, but it's really just a "look at me, i'm cool" website. Someone really should build more of an educational website to help out smaller breweries market themselves.
@grum yup. I'm sohmageek on that too!
I'm digging up old shit again! ;) http://www.burlingtonbeercompany.com/event/juxtaposition-light-in-the-window-can-release/?age-verified=848f3fbed9 Is what is in my Glass. Juxtaposition. AMAZING AMAZING beer! :)
Wolf Creek Brewery winter wonderland brown/red ale.