We have never talked about Beer

I looooove Great Divide. If you ever get to Denver, stop in there, the bartenders are a very fun group.

So I had a friend who did a test with a big alcohol IPA in comparison to an American barleywine. His theory was that when you get that high in alcohol, you usually have residual sugars as well, and when aged, you end up with something very similar to a barleywine.

So he took 3 years worth of Bells Hopslam and did a vertical, and asked several of us to sample it with him, then we had a couple of actual barley wines as a comparison afterward. What I took from it, is yes, an older IPA that is sufficiently high alcohol does end up tasting similar to a barleywine when aged. But, that lingering flavor of stale hops ends up permeating the brew. And honestly, there are a lot of barleywines on the shelf that taste the same. There is a fine balance of too much hops in a barleywine when balancing the malt bill. English versions get this right, but some of the American versions give me something of a stale taste, which isn’t a good thing for a beer that many frequently refer to as one that can be cellared.

Been working through the beers I purchased last week. So far:

  • Naughty Dog Eggnog beer: ugh. I love Eggnog but I don’t know what this was.
  • Anderson Valley Seasonal Ale: liked it.
  • Ballast Point Commodore: after the Eggnog beer I was worried about the raisin and cinnamon advertised in this one. No worries though, the spices are quite subtle. Loves this stout.
  • Lagunitas Brown Shugga: I didn’t realize this was a lager. Didn’t taste much in the way of brown sugar. Did not enjoy.
  • Founders Dirty Bastard: loved it. Will buy more.
  • Left Hand Fade To black: has an almost burnt aftertaste, which is intriguing since I’ve never tasted anything like that. Tasting a bit of anise too. It’s ok but probably won’t get more.

Eight varieties to go!

I too bought this one in my recent pickup. I was also very surprised how subtle the spices were. This is mostly a traditional stout with the slightest of flavors added. I’m down with that, it works. For those who don’t like bitter, note that the malts in this one are on the bitter side for sure.

I still have several to go as well. I’m looking forward to introducing my girlfriend to Unibroue’s La Fin Du Monde. She loves Belgian Tripels, I know she will like it.

http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2016/11/30/scottish-brewery-releases-20000-beer-in-taxidermy-squirrel/

Wonder why a squirrel?

Because if they used a raccoon then it would be enough to kill a man.

Brew Dogs used to (maybe they still do) have an hour long show on the Esquire Channel where each week in conjunction with another brewery they would make some kind of weird, strange beer combination.

It isn’t actually being sold for $20k.What you get for $20,000 is shares in the company and the right to buy ‘End of History’.

At the risk of injecting politics into beer, it reminds me of a bumper sticker I saw the other day:

Is that true?
(or did you see it on Fox News?)

A little internet digging also reveals that the original Scotland Brewdog gang made End of History in 2010 and sold it for 500GBP/bottle (also with the roadkill-covered bottle).

Brewdog are arch publicists. They make good beer for the most part and have 20+ bars across the UK generally with 15+ taps (this is a lot in this country) although most people go in there and buy the bog standard IPA and lager. Their hype shtick is very boring, mind.

Brew Dogs are building their US brewery here in Columbus and promised that squirrel beer would be the first one they make.

You can also get Brewdog very cheaply (for craft beer) on Amazon, which saves me lugging it home from the supermarket. I generally prefer Beavertown though (also available on Amazon, but not as cheap unless it’s Neck Oil).

Went out the other night to dine and had some Troegs Chocolate Stout Nitro. Man, that stuff is good when coming from a tap. It had such a lovely head on it. Plus they served it in a glass that looked like a cognac snifter (stubby, rounded glass) instead of the pint glasses I use at home. Very tasty!

I tried to get something else to follow it up (and I don’t even recall what it was now, sadly) but they poured half a glass and ran out, so he recommended the Troegs Mad Elf (it’s a holiday ale). I ordered it and another beer I really liked. There was just enough cherry in it to get a faint taste of it right when you took the sip, and that soon gave way to the honey and spices. Plus, I got the half-glass they poured for free. So… score!

Went out last night for dinner and was a bit dumbfounded that Carraba’s Italian chain only has:
Peroni
Stella Artois
Blue Moon
Bud Light
Birra Moretti

Dude …

It was disheartening as a craft beer lover. I almost ordered a Blue Moon but ended up just having a mixed drink instead. I don’t mean to be so snobbish, it is just that I was take aback at the lack of some more variety on that list.

What do you guys do when you run into something like that? Just not drink? Choose wine or mixed drinks instead?

Quick edit: I used to live in Italy. You have to understand Peroni and Moretti are both like the Miller/Bud choices of Italy. Neither are very flavorful, nor that great.

See if they have any whiskey that isn’t terrible. Order it neat with a glass of water on the side.

I considered Bourbon. Went with a vodka tonic which I regretted, as their tonic was nearly out, so it tasted mostly of a vodka with water.

And I like your idea.

Oof, that’s rough. Gin and tonic is my go to when not having beer.

In that list, yeah, I probably stick with water. If I was going beer, it would have been the Blue Moon as well.

I don’t know, that’s a reasonably-wide selection for a chain restaurant that isn’t typically associated with a belly-up bar. And at least they’re consistent with the Italian theme.

For the most part if you go into some random sit-down chain restaurant here in Virginia (Applebees, Ruby Tuesday, Bonefish, Red Robin, etc.), your choices are:

Bud/Bud Light
Miller Light
Coors
Corona
Sam Adams
Sam Adams Seasonal

Some places might switch out the Miller Light for Michelob ULTRA and Blue Moon for the Corona, but you really only get one “craft” brew… and that’s stretching the limits of that term.

In thinking about it, @Tin_Wisdom, you are right, I’m thinking general eating establishments and not really comparing it to the other chains, which I mostly avoid. They do indeed have beer lists similar to what you posted.

In that case, I would have been all over the Sam Adams Seasonal.

There are parts of me that hate the fact I have a fucking beer palate now. 7 years ago, ANY of those beers would have been fine. Now it just makes me sad to read the menu. Fuck, I’ve become a beer snob. :(

One nice thing is that, by me, most places also have Linenkugels and Goose Island, and about 75% will have Sam Adams and seasonals. About 50% will even have Lagunitas. Guinness is also fairly common.

Sure, not much local or craft, but the selection of beers is usually decent. And most places have some form of craft beer menu, with all kinds of smaller things. Even Red Robin and stuff have a craft menu with at least 10-15 items.

My reasoning is once they show a lack of taste in beer, something like whiskey neat is hard to screw up, as the steps involved are removing the cap on the bottle and successfully transporting some fraction of the liquid into a glass.

I’m amazed that restaurants can screw up something as simple as a manhatten, but I don’t underestimate their ability to have decade old open bottles of vermouth sitting around waiting to ruin perfectly good rye.

At least you get rye. I usually have to specify rye or I get maker’s mark/jack/whatever.