The Beer Thread!

[ghostjuggernaut]

First time trying The Calling, but damn is it good.

[drewba]

Good stuff right here

[Sed8op8]

Living in Vermont I have been very spoiled as there have been micro brews here before micro brews were even cool. Magic Hat,Long Trail,Otter Creek,Catamount,Rock Art,harpoon,switchback and the list goes on. One of my favorites for the past 2 years is Heady Topper I urge anyone to try this although it is hard to find outside of Vermont but it has become a holy grail of sorts for beer connoisseurs and it is not unusual to find local stores sold out 2-3 hours on Tuesdays after its delivered.

[ghostjuggernaut]

Living in Vermont I have been very spoiled as there have been micro brews here before micro brews were even cool. Magic Hat,Long Trail,Otter Creek,Catamount,Rock Art,harpoon,switchback and the list goes on. One of my favorites for the past 2 years is Heady Topper I urge anyone to try this although it is hard to find outside of Vermont but it has become a holy grail of sorts for beer connoisseurs and it is not unusual to find local stores sold out 2-3 hours on Tuesdays after its delivered.

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Ohhh man. Wanna mail me some?

[tribade]

Living in Vermont I have been very spoiled as there have been micro brews here before micro brews were even cool. Magic Hat,Long Trail,Otter Creek,Catamount,Rock Art,harpoon,switchback and the list goes on. One of my favorites for the past 2 years is Heady Topper I urge anyone to try this although it is hard to find outside of Vermont but it has become a holy grail of sorts for beer connoisseurs and it is not unusual to find local stores sold out 2-3 hours on Tuesdays after its delivered.

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Ohhh man. Wanna mail me some?

Stole the words right out of my mouth  :))

[jwaz]

Living in Vermont I have been very spoiled as there have been micro brews here before micro brews were even cool. Magic Hat,Long Trail,Otter Creek,Catamount,Rock Art,harpoon,switchback and the list goes on. One of my favorites for the past 2 years is Heady Topper I urge anyone to try this although it is hard to find outside of Vermont but it has become a holy grail of sorts for beer connoisseurs and it is not unusual to find local stores sold out 2-3 hours on Tuesdays after its delivered.

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Heady there is like Pliny out here. People mainly use it for trade bait so it's easy to get but the hype level is unreal. I will say I like Heady over Pliny, it's delicious. What about Hill Farmstead? They're another one of my favorites.

[drewba]

Living in Vermont I have been very spoiled as there have been micro brews here before micro brews were even cool. Magic Hat,Long Trail,Otter Creek,Catamount,Rock Art,harpoon,switchback and the list goes on. One of my favorites for the past 2 years is Heady Topper I urge anyone to try this although it is hard to find outside of Vermont but it has become a holy grail of sorts for beer connoisseurs and it is not unusual to find local stores sold out 2-3 hours on Tuesdays after its delivered.

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Heady there is like Pliny out here. People mainly use it for trade bait so it's easy to get but the hype level is unreal. I will say I like Heady over Pliny, it's delicious. What about Hill Farmstead? They're another one of my favorites.

I'm not the hugest fan of Heady (I recognize that I'm the minority here), but love it because it took a little bit of attention off of Lawson's Finest. Hill Farmstead is still a monster and blowing up. I got really lucky last week, my mom called me that she was "dropping by Hill Farmstead" so I was able to score a bunch of Arthur & a Civil Disobedience 11!

[paicrai]

More

what it feels like to eat beer

[Sed8op8]

Living in Vermont I have been very spoiled as there have been micro brews here before micro brews were even cool. Magic Hat,Long Trail,Otter Creek,Catamount,Rock Art,harpoon,switchback and the list goes on. One of my favorites for the past 2 years is Heady Topper I urge anyone to try this although it is hard to find outside of Vermont but it has become a holy grail of sorts for beer connoisseurs and it is not unusual to find local stores sold out 2-3 hours on Tuesdays after its delivered.

Show Image

Heady there is like Pliny out here. People mainly use it for trade bait so it's easy to get but the hype level is unreal. I will say I like Heady over Pliny, it's delicious. What about Hill Farmstead? They're another one of my favorites.

I'm not the hugest fan of Heady (I recognize that I'm the minority here), but love it because it took a little bit of attention off of Lawson's Finest. Hill Farmstead is still a monster and blowing up. I got really lucky last week, my mom called me that she was "dropping by Hill Farmstead" so I was able to score a bunch of Arthur & a Civil Disobedience 11!

Wow you got an awesome mom :thumb: the last time I was down there I was in line for over an hour to get my growlers. Don't get me wrong the beer is fantastic but I'm hoping they expand a little to accommodate the growing demand.

[drewba]

Living in Vermont I have been very spoiled as there have been micro brews here before micro brews were even cool. Magic Hat,Long Trail,Otter Creek,Catamount,Rock Art,harpoon,switchback and the list goes on. One of my favorites for the past 2 years is Heady Topper I urge anyone to try this although it is hard to find outside of Vermont but it has become a holy grail of sorts for beer connoisseurs and it is not unusual to find local stores sold out 2-3 hours on Tuesdays after its delivered.

Show Image

Heady there is like Pliny out here. People mainly use it for trade bait so it's easy to get but the hype level is unreal. I will say I like Heady over Pliny, it's delicious. What about Hill Farmstead? They're another one of my favorites.

I'm not the hugest fan of Heady (I recognize that I'm the minority here), but love it because it took a little bit of attention off of Lawson's Finest. Hill Farmstead is still a monster and blowing up. I got really lucky last week, my mom called me that she was "dropping by Hill Farmstead" so I was able to score a bunch of Arthur & a Civil Disobedience 11!

Wow you got an awesome mom :thumb: the last time I was down there I was in line for over an hour to get my growlers. Don't get me wrong the beer is fantastic but I'm hoping they expand a little to accommodate the growing demand.

No doubt. But considering how small their operation used to be, they have expanded their system & retail store quite a bit. Demand is just so high (and growing) that the lines will be an issue for awhile. Luckily Shaun has the room to expand when/if he decides to.

[theycallmedenny]

Just finished off the rest of my Elliot Ness from Great Lakes last night. Fantastic stuff!

[iri]

[HoffmanMyster]

Blueberry beer from Fox River Brewing Co.

Pretty good. 

[smknjoe]

You are in nice beer country up there. Are Minnesotians smuggling that stuff too?

[HoffmanMyster]

You are in nice beer country up there. Are Minnesotians smuggling that stuff too?

Haha, I don't think this one is available outside of the Fox Valley, so I don't think so. Mostly just New Glarus! 

[redbanshee]

probably my favorite:

[fohat.digs]

I may not have posted this recently:

[ghostjuggernaut]

Better late than never.

[Sed8op8]

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Better late than never.

hahaha
That's awesome awesome ghost!

Another amazing Vermont beer !

[zombimuncha]

It's so nice to see all these amazing IPAs here in this thread. You guys are making me thirsty!
I don't think IPAs have quite caught on yet here in the UK the way they have across the ditch, but of the ones that are easy to find over here my favourite has to be Punk IPA.

edit: spotted a Sierra Nevada Torpedo a couple pages back - also a favourite, but due to the high alc content it's a little hard to talk the office manager into buying it for the office beer fridge.

[nubbinator]

I'm experiencing IPA fatigue.  They're all aggressive and hoppy as possible and very few get outside of the citrusy, piney, and dank hop profiles.  Every now and then there's something awesome, but they're just so boring, formulaic, and repetitive now.  It's like, hey, go drink this unbalanced IPA that tastes like sucking on a pinecone or snorting grapefruit or orange zest or drinking weed extract. 

I'm at the point where I don't want an IPA anymore because I know 95% of the time I'll be disappointed.  I just want something balanced with tropical fruit (or any fruit other than citrus), grassy, earthy, or herbal notes.

I'm not even kidding when I say 50% of my local beer and wine store I hit up is IPAs.  I want some barley wines, some witbiers, some eisbocks, some black lagers, some goses, some Belgians aside from "farmhouse saisons," and so on.

/end of beer rant

[zombimuncha]

I'm experiencing IPA fatigue.  They're all aggressive and hoppy as possible and very few get outside of the citrusy, piney, and dank hop profiles.

You say it like it's a *bad* thing!

Every now and then there's something awesome, but they're just so boring, formulaic, and repetitive now.  It's like, hey, go drink this unbalanced IPA that tastes like sucking on a pinecone or snorting grapefruit or orange zest or drinking weed extract. 

I'm at the point where I don't want an IPA anymore because I know 95% of the time I'll be disappointed.  I just want something balanced with tropical fruit (or any fruit other than citrus), grassy, earthy, or herbal notes.

I know what you mean. Some of them are a bit much. Hops are awesome but balance is important too. I think you'd like Punk IPA, if you can find it over there (it's an IPA from Scotland, of all places.) It starts off big and hoppy, as they all do, but maybe they only they turned this one up to 9, 9.5 compared to some of the west coast IPA where they turned the hoppiness up to 11, then it passes thru citrustown on its way to a long and extremely well balanced biscuity finish.

I'm not even kidding when I say 50% of my local beer and wine store I hit up is IPAs.  I want some barley wines, some witbiers, some eisbocks, some black lagers, some goses, some Belgians aside from "farmhouse saisons," and so on.

/end of beer rant

You're living in my IPA dream world. Don't take it for granted.

[nubbinator]

West Coast style IPAs do not have balanced finishes.  The style is typified by big aggressive hop forward taste with hop bitterness all through the finish.  Malts are typically on the back burner and we'll usually have a jarring transition from hops to malts without any thought to how the two can complement and balance each other.

And you say it's your dream world, but even your favorite meal gets boring if you eat it every day and it tastes almost the same every time.  I love IPAs, but there needs to be variety and balance.

[zombimuncha]

Surely there must be SOME well balanced west coast style IPAs? I thought the SN Torpedo came pretty close. Please name some names for me to look out for. Preferably ones that might be findable east of Maine.

[smknjoe]

Racer 5 isn't too hoppy.

Hardcore IPA ain't half bad and should be pretty easy for you to get, zombimuncha.

[zombimuncha]

Racer 5 isn't too hoppy.

Hardcore IPA ain't half bad and should be pretty easy for you to get, zombimuncha.

I like hoppy! "isn't too hoppy" is not a strong recommendation. I like hoppy AND balanced. Like clicky AND tactile. [edit: glares wordlessly at MX Blue]

Hardcore IPA must be new. I didn't see it at the Brewdog pub a couple blocks from my office the last time I was there. Thx for tip!

[ghostjuggernaut]

I agree with the current state of IPA's.  They seem to be the go to beer for breweries anymore, and many are getting to be too similar.  I have been drinking a lot more Porter's and Stout's lately.  They are still a lot of bad ones out there, but the overall quality seems to be getting better lately.  There are also a lot more flavor profiles available for those types as well.

[zombimuncha]

You'll not find these outside the UK, but damn they're tasty! I find it very surprising that supermarket own-brand beer a) exists at all, and b) tastes this good. They do a "Citra" one as well, which is spectacular.

[drewba]

I'm not even kidding when I say 50% of my local beer and wine store I hit up is IPAs.  I want some barley wines, some witbiers, some eisbocks, some black lagers, some goses, some Belgians aside from "farmhouse saisons," and so on.

Step 1: Register on classifieds (iso:ft) on talkbeer.com, ratebeer.com, /r/beertrade, etc

Step 2: Trade your world class local IPAs for the styles you're interested in.

Step 3: Discover a hobby that goes harder on the wallet than keyboards

I've done over 100 trades, if you want some pointers I'm willing to help. You would have zero trouble finding people wanting to trade you beer for Russian River, Alpine, Pizza Port, Kern River, etc.

[tribade]

Changing it up a bit today. Bayern Munich lost to Dortmund and in unemployed. Time to indulge myself:

[Dubsgalore]

had my first craft beer in my life the other day...landshark lager...im sorry jwaz i take back all my hate for beer ... 

[tribade]

had my first craft beer in my life the other day...landshark lager...im sorry jwaz i take back all my hate for beer ... 

Another one has seen the light!  Welcome to the dark side of liquor, where you will spend more on beer than keyboards  )

[Dubsgalore]

had my first craft beer in my life the other day...landshark lager...im sorry jwaz i take back all my hate for beer ... 

Another one has seen the light!  Welcome to the dark side of liquor, where you will spend more on beer than keyboards  )

I seen't it

[Synjin]

http://i.imgur.com/o70GJvy.gifv A great way to never run out of beer.  You are welcome.

[Sed8op8]

This is a great wheat pale ale with lots of kick and a very decent price. It's widely distributed so its not a very rare beer but when I used to drink this would be great after a hard day at work.

[IvanIvanovich]

I too got burnt out on all the IPA madness... but I do still like a good one from time to time. Currently my favorite is from Squatters in Utah. Also, while not actually an IPA by strict definition, I really enjoy Schneider Hopfenweisse. Both seem to hit most of the really good points of an IPA style, without overdoing it in any area and keeping a pretty good balance.

I see some Tyskie on the last page... I miss having that as everyone seem to have stopped carrying it in my area. I prefer the Mocne variety though.

[HoffmanMyster]

It's a Surly day today. 

[jwaz]

It's a Surly day today. 

Dude. Not. Fair. 

[drewba]

It's a Surly day today. 

Cool! Any chance you're going to Darkness Day in October? I'm mulling it over...it's one of the better beer events

[absyrd]

Maybe some of you can figure this out...

My dad got me Dogfish Head IPAs. 60 min, 90 min and 120. Why the hell does the 60 destroy my stomach??

[smknjoe]

Those are all solid beers and all of them have the same ingredients in varying amounts (with the 60 being the most "watered down" It's more complex than that, but for the sake of simplicity...). So...maybe it's what you're eating with them...

[absyrd]

Could it be more "raw" hops since the cooking process is shorter? I am clueless about beer.

[smknjoe]

The names have nothing to do with the "cooking" process. They refer to the dry hopping process. The 60 is dry hopped for 60 minutes, the 90 for 90 minutes, and the 120 for 120 minutes.

[smknjoe]

...so if "raw" hops were the problem the 90 and 120 would make you respectively "sicker".

[jwaz]

It's not dry hopped (post boil hopping) but continuous hop additions to the boil, IIRC.

and absyrd I have no idea. I'm not sure what would make it any different... at least enough to upset your stomach.

[smknjoe]

I thought DFH was dry hopped? It's been a while since I've read anything about them. So, it's possible I'm wrong. Even if they use a continuous hopping process absyrd's problem doesn't make much sense in regards to the hops. I think it's something else making him sick.

Edit: They do dry hop, but the numbers refer to the continuous hopping process. My bad. Still doesn't make a difference though as far as how the hops are going to affect you.

[IvanIvanovich]

new beer of the day... Empyrean Fallen Angel. It's marked as a 'sweet stout'. I didn't find it overly so. It reminds me of some of the better imperial stout style beers I have had in taste, but without the ultra syrupy molasses heavy mouth feel. I felt like I could probably stomach drinking 4-6 of these which is nice if you want to stick to one thing. If you like stouts, you might want to give it a try.

[drewba]

If anyone is in to Gueuze, https://belgiuminabox.com is doing "volume deals". After shipping, the price per 750ml bottle was roughly $14 which is $6-8 cheaper than you can find in stores (not to mention my local beer stores generally sell out instantly of Drie Fonteinein Oude Gueuze, at least). Also the glassware is basically impossible to find in the states.

[jwaz]

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If anyone is in to Gueuze, https://belgiuminabox.com is doing "volume deals". After shipping, the price per 750ml bottle was roughly $14 which is $6-8 cheaper than you can find in stores (not to mention my local beer stores generally sell out instantly of Drie Fonteinein Oude Gueuze, at least). Also the glassware is basically impossible to find in the states.

I can buy Ouede Gueuze at my local Whole Foods and a few other spots around. Now if they had any Cantillon available I would be all over this.


Nice haul though!  :thumb:

[noisyturtle]

This is a great wheat pale ale with lots of kick and a very decent price. It's widely distributed so its not a very rare beer but when I used to drink this would be great after a hard day at work.

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One of my fav's. It's so crisp and drinkable, plus 7.5% ;)