Beer in the new era

Haha whoops!

last weekend i tried a six-pack of hacker-pschorr oktoberfest (cause my new beer store has a big ol hacker-pschorr mural on the side of it) and without even knowing of its munich origin (somehow i was under the impression it was from poland?) i declared it to be the best beer i've had since trying spaten optimator a few years ago. so now i think i like munich beers most of all and goddamnit i am going to try a new one next weekend.

may I recommend Celebrator

oh yeah i've had that! it had a plastic horse attached to the bottle. that was good too.

Oh so btw dudes, my local has the hopslam on tap for $3 a pint!

You're in MPLS, yes? Might I inquire where this would be??

Cherokee Tavern in (ahem) West Saint Paul

not sure if it was a happy hour deal or frequent imbiber thing or what, but !!!

in further beer news, i have now had the 21st amendment "Brew Free! or Die IPA" and it is also shitttttty. any SF peeps want to let me know if it is just swill because of their local brewer or?

I had two new-to-me brews last night, and neither were particularly enjoyable to me.

New Belgium's Ranger IPA - Not terrible, and would totally drink over many beers, but it was a little plain as IPAs go, and just sort of middle-of-the-road, no particularly nice hop flavors. Still, not bad by any stretch. Reminded me of Red Hook's Long Hammer.

Lagunitas "Little Sumpin' Extra Ale" - Strong, at 8.75 abc, and pretty flavorful. Edging towards a golden ale with its syrupy sweetness. Again, not at all bad, but just not my preference as beer goes. Had nice hop notes, but could have used a bit more carbonation.

Each was had out of a 22 oz, and a pint glass. This morning has been SLIGHTLY fuzzy.

Almost every place I've seen with Hopslam uses the 10 oz. snifter glasses vs. pints, either b/c of alcohol content or spendiness (and I've seen the snifters going for 5 or 6 bucks.) So yeah, $3 pints = !!!

Have heard bad reviews of the New Belgium IPA, but I don't like any of their other beers, so not surprised.

I'm attempting to give up beer for Lent, and so far it's been HARD!!

I had a Bruery Mischief the other day. Pretty good, in a Belgian strong ale style, fairly dry and hoppy. It was an 8 oz pour, but for only $4 not too bad.

The Ranger is my favorite of all the New Belgium beers but that's not really a ringing endorsement.

i went to the bruery for a beer tasting over the weekend. pretty epic on the "good times" scale. there was a guy there who kept chatting us up and telling the ladies about how everything was crafted and what was coming up. later we found out he didn't even work there. he fooled us, though!

Sounds great - I would definitely add that on my to-do list for the next time I'm in Southern Cal.

The Ranger is my favorite of all the New Belgium beers but that's not really a ringing endorsement.

Ditto. Not particularly bad, but it sort of lacks character.

yep, had ranger, found it boring.

also had some dreck stunt beer that had a chili pepper in it (thx birthday gift givers) and it was so bad that even i pour it out about 1/3 of the way through.

The Ranger is my favorite of all the New Belgium beers but that's not really a ringing endorsement.
thirded/fourthed, whatevs. I live near the NB brewery so I always give their stuff a try, but I'm never knocked out. Ranger was OK, but there are way better IPAs.

Alright! *high fives*

drank some amadeus biere blanche last night.this would be a great summer beer.

just went to telegraph in santa barbara. love their california ale. also had their robust ale, which is like a double of the california, but i wasn't as keen on it. picked up a reserve wheat (sour) too. nice people too.

for Chicago folks, Stone ridiculousness all over the first week of April:

http://www.stonebrew.com/find/chicago/

I am so excited about this.

I am now in Germany. Know nothing about German beers, so if anyone has recommendations, particularly stuff available in Berlin ... thanks. I'm usually not fascinated by lagers but willing to branch out.

I'm usually not fascinated by lagers

lol me = classic US microbrew drinker

"'Tell them that the brewer at Orval likes Budweiser!' He smiled. 'I know they detest it, but it is quite good.'"

Current Smuttynose Seasonal is very nice, cherry but not sweet, can't wait to drink this outside in the sun, might have to hoard some for the summer.

http://www.smuttynose.com/_Media/hamanisix-2-2.jpeg

I had the Smuttynose IPA at a bar in Brooklyn a couple weeks ago. Very good.

The only beer of theirs i have been disappointed with is the Star Island Single, which was kind of a nothing taste wise.

This has appeared in town at exorbitant cost but it is very good, and hey, I have a paycheque.

http://www.merchantduvin.com/images/brewery_art/pinkus_art/pinkus_munster_alt_bot.gif

Had a couple of pints of Ommegang Hennepin last night. Not bad at all.

last summer i got a beer at an italian restaurant that i had a really fond memory of. unfortunately i forgot the name, but always kept my eyes peeled for the fairly distinctive bottle. today my diligence was rewarded:

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_8WZUREVptlM/R58HgVKcIZI/AAAAAAAABLQ/TouvfqWdwcg/s400/Amarcord%2Bc%C3%B3pia.jpg

ok, so it's not amazing. but i do like it a lot--apparently it's a lager but it reminds me more of a mellow, slightly fruity blond ale. predictably, it would great with light italian cuisine in warm weather.

weyerbacher quad gots me fucked up

Had a few Sam Adams Noble Pils tonight, not bad, and at $1 bottle very well-priced.

that's like the second endorsement for those itt

and i keep seeing them mad cheap down the street

there was a Sam Adams Cherry Wheat left in the fridge after a party this week and I felt like such a sucker for enjoying it as much as I did

I'll drink anything that's left in my fridge, but I can't see myself buying a Cherry Wheat beer.

some serious bang fer yer buck going on tonight; saw a beer i'd never tried before, a 22 oz polish beer called BIG BOSS PORTER. 9.4% by abv. figured it'd be like 3-4. Nope. $1.75. I haven't tried it yet. For all I know it's complete garbage, but that ABV at that size at that price is a good deal imo.

and by 3-4 i meant $3-4.

oh and i guess it's not 22oz, it's 17. but that's still fine.

this shit is pretty gnar, but i can tell it's gonna get me fucked up.
bring it on bitches.

king of good surprises BOOZE MART had a couple of australian 6 packs on sale so I gave them a whirl, warmed up with a couple of pints of furthermore knot stock (so great) at my local, so hopefully i haven't damaged my taste buds too much for this but

first up - Barons Black Wattle: kind of a weird stouty thing flavored with wattle seed? kind of winey and raisiny, bt w/a decided coffee chocolate thing going on at the finish? one of those beers that always seems like it should be colder than it is, if that makes any sense. not really sure how to feel about it tbh, def not bad but kind of ???

also what is up with 11.2 ounce bottles of beer? is this some metric thing i am not aware of or? because i seem to see it more frequently these days and it is kind of a pain in the ass.

sorry, not "flavored" but "infused". whatever.

round 2: barons lemon myrtle witbier: this would almost be ok if it didnt taste like some strange blend of citronella candle and lemon pledge. you aussies have some weird shit growing in your fields to go along with you marsupials and platapusses.

yeah it's a metric thing iirc

Got a couple of Dogfisg Burton Baton IPA's last night. Very good.

I look forward to a few brews later on. No determination as to what types yet.

also what is up with 11.2 ounce bottles of beer?

I have this issue when buying Hofbrau Munchen Original in bottles.

Drinking some Stone Ruination IPA I brought home from Denver before I knew Stone was coming to Chicago.

The way that Stone is taking over Chicago the first week of April is truly stunning. 30 taps of Stone at one bar, 20 at another, 15 at a Whole Foods on Easter Sunday. This is going to be awesome / horrible.

I love me Oskar Blues beers (and upon visiting that brewery, it is an awesome restaurant/blues club too)

11.2oz = 1/3L

I love me Oskar Blues beers

I love the Old Chubb but I don't think I've tried any other. Is the Ten Fiddy any good? ~$15 for a four-pack it better be.

I had Stone for the first time last week when I was in California. Arrogant Bastard was v. good, but it was the Sublimely Self-Righteous that really impressed me: a black IPA with a great combination of roasty and hoppy notes. Looking forward to the Chicago invasion.

what do you guys think of hitachino nest? i had their red rice ale last week and really liked it--nice and mellow, subtle without being boring. and terrific label design.