Great Beer....the sequel

[AustinTXCat]

I am starting to try a few Belgian dark ales. This one was excellent. Does anyone have some suggestions of others to try?

Are you looking for Belgian or Trappist or Dubbel?

For Trappist beer, Westvleteren 12 and 8 are widely considered as ranking among the world's best beers. Singles are difficult to find in the USA. Crates are only available at the brewery.

Chimay, Rochefort, Orval and Achel are other outstanding examples of Belgian Trappist beer.

 

[DSmith21]

^ Thanks for those suggestions. I have had the Chimay (Blue and Red) and they were excellent too.

 

[AustinTXCat]

^ Thanks for those suggestions. I have had the Chimay (Blue and Red) and they were excellent too.

Personally speaking, I love the dryness of Chimay White. Several good Trappist beers are on the market. Spencer is also worth a sample as a comparison.

 

[DSmith21]

^ I found this beer judging resource which gives a encyclopedic description of all beer styles along with several commercial examples. The styles that I want to try are the Dubbels and the Strong Dark Ales.

http://www.bjcp.org/docs/2008_Guidelines.pdf

 

[AustinTXCat]

^ I found this beer judging resource which gives a encyclopedic description of all beer styles along with several commercial examples. The styles that I want to try are the Dubbels and the Strong Dark Ales.

http://www.bjcp.org/docs/2008_Guidelines.pdf

Ommegang brews a great Dubbel (Abbey Ale). Lagunitas offers two fine strong ales, Hairy Eyeball and Brown Sugga, in that category.

 

[TransyCat09]

Orval [cheers]

 

[jameslee32]

Speaking of dark beer, wondering when I'll get down to Darkness Brewery. I think that's their thing. Although I'm back to drinking Commodore Perry tonight.

 

[LadyCat92]

Went to West Sixth for the first time in forever yesterday. Surprised at how much they expand their selection.

 

[buckethead1978]

I think the Falls City Easy Goer IPA is pretty decent.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

Real glad everyone participated in top5 summer beers. Dicks.

Went out last night for a friends birthday. I can't go hard on both weekend nights anymore, so I was DD. Still had a celebratory shot and beer. First time having Allagash White and it was awesome. Just the right amount of sour to it. It's a pretty common beer my way, but their brewery is only 5 hours from my in Portland Maine.

 

[LadyCat92]

Is it just me or has Liquor Barn's beer selection become incredibly uninteresting. Walked up there today and could find nothing that I wanted to try / bring home. Grabbed a couple of singles, but even that was a struggle to find something different.

 

[We-Todd-Did]

I stopped by the Beaumont store last week. It seemed they had a better selection than the others, particularly in the imports. They had several of the trappist imports that Austin and Dsmith mentioned above but the prices were a little out of my range. I trust the opinions on here, as well as BA, but those are serious money for experimenting.

As for summer beers, I'm keeping 3 ready for grilling whenever the rain stops.
- Sweetwater Blue
- Bell's Oberon
- Ballast Point Grapefruit Sculpin
Nothing fancy, just lighter ones I like.

 

[Free_Salato_Blue]

What's a good local brew in Southern California that's distributed in the SoCal area stores?

Looking at this:

 

[weused2luvhim2]

Sipping some Dogfish Head 90 minute. One of the best beers made IMO. Not including some of the unicorn beers.

 

[AustinTXCat]

Sipping some Dogfish Head 90 minute. One of the best beers made IMO. Not including some of the unicorn beers.

DH 90 rocks! Awesome suds.

 

[We-Todd-Did]

Tried this tonight because I saw the BA 99 rating. This is the most complex thing I've ever tasted. Initially tasted coffee, chocolate, and vanilla, finishes hot with peppers and noticeable burn (13%). It's like a roller coaster ride.

 

[UKserialkiller]

Tried this tonight because I saw the BA 99 rating. This is the most complex thing I've ever tasted. Initially tasted coffee, chocolate, and vanilla, finishes hot with peppers and noticeable burn (13%). It's like a roller coaster ride.

You're the f***** man. That beer is in my Top 10. Fantastic quality

 

[UKserialkiller]

Sipping some Dogfish Head 90 minute. One of the best beers made IMO. Not including some of the unicorn beers.

That beer is what I normally drink day to day. It's my go to beer

 

[AustinTXCat]

Tried this tonight because I saw the BA 99 rating. This is the most complex thing I've ever tasted. Initially tasted coffee, chocolate, and vanilla, finishes hot with peppers and noticeable burn (13%). It's like a roller coaster ride.

You're the f***** man. That beer is in my Top 10. Fantastic quality

Bomb! is da BOMB! Drank this beer twice. Amazing suds. It also sits in my Top-10.

 

[UKserialkiller]

Bomb! is da BOMB! Drank this beer twice. Amazing suds. It also sits in my Top-10.

:100points::bomb::boom:

 

[Levibooty]

St Pauli Girl is still my favorite beer. I like either but brown is probably my favorite of the two.

 

[trueblujr]

Ok, so I'm new to the party here. Just read through all 11 pages of this thread.
Here's my beer take: (I'm in the Louisville market)

Against The Grain is one of the best around. Big fan of the Brown Note and had another ale there a couple of weeks ago but the name escapes me. Really good beer.

Goodwood is a spinoff of BBC. They have some decent offerings, but was never a BBC fan. I think they tried to get too big too fast, they were early players in the local craft brew business. I think they tried to be more of a restaurant at first.

Flat 12 Beirwerks is another I like, they originate out of Indy, but have a place in Jeffersonville.

I'm not a huge IPA fan, more of a darker, brown ales, sour ales, porters, Belgians, kinda guy, but I like trying most anything that isn't overly fruity or overly hoppy.

Austin...I have a lot of respect for your opinions on here after reading through this thread, however I take exception to anyone who buys the sampler packs. Just my two cents, but I think those are mostly comprised of beers the suppliers are trying to empty off their shelves. The ones that are on the verge of being past their prime. I don't think you get quite the quality of beer you would get by building your own sampler pack from singles.

Apocalypse brewing in Louisville sucks. I like the setup with the food trucks, but the beer is bad.

I try to find local breweries when I travel for work, so far some of my favorites have been Great Dane in Madison, Wisconsin. Springfield Brewing in Springfield Missouri, had a beer called "Del Fuego" brewed with chili peppers that was absolutely amazing. Had a good Bourbon Barrel Stout down in Titusville, Fl at a place Called Playalinda Brewing.

Right now I'm drinking a beer from 5 Rabbit called 5 Vulture that is an amber ale brewed with ancho chilies. Gives it a nice hint of heat, but nothing to overpower the taste. Great beer.

 

[LadyCat92]

I try to find local breweries when I travel for work, so far some of my favorites have been Great Dane in Madison, Wisconsin.

I tried Great Dane when I was up in Madison a few years ago. Only time I've ever gotten a flight and hated every single beer in it. Maybe it was just a bad day, but I really did not enjoy their brews. Avoid them now when I see them show up on a menu.

 

[UKserialkiller]

Ok, so I'm new to the party here. Just read through all 11 pages of this thread.
Here's my beer take: (I'm in the Louisville market)

Against The Grain is one of the best around. Big fan of the Brown Note and had another ale there a couple of weeks ago but the name escapes me. Really good beer.

Goodwood is a spinoff of BBC. They have some decent offerings, but was never a BBC fan. I think they tried to get too big too fast, they were early players in the local craft brew business. I think they tried to be more of a restaurant

I like Against the Grain brews (from what I've had). But Cincinnati has a brewery with the chickory that is unf*****g believable. Easily better than anything coming from that part of the U.S. even Zaftig (sp?) makes a Breakfast Stout that makes me wanna commit homicidal butt rape. It's that good.

 

[AustinTXCat]

Austin...I have a lot of respect for your opinions on here after reading through this thread, however I take exception to anyone who buys the sampler packs. Just my two cents, but I think those are mostly comprised of beers the suppliers are trying to empty off their shelves. The ones that are on the verge of being past their prime. I don't think you get quite the quality of beer you would get by building your own sampler pack from singles.

Thanks.

No sampler pack I drank was ever past the recommended expiration date. l have been told some brewers produce various oddball beers as a "one-of-a-kind" in order to clear out older stocks of ingredients. Other brewers experiment with recipes. This practice is common at breweries around Austin, with the difference being kegged beer rather than bottled. Hence a reason for so many one-off beers.

 

[jameslee32]

I like Against the Grain brews (from what I've had). But Cincinnati has a brewery with the chickory that is unf*****g believable. Easily better than anything coming from that part of the U.S. even Zaftig (sp?) makes a Breakfast Stout that makes me wanna commit homicidal butt rape. It's that good.

Cincy's Triple Digit? They brew out of Listermann's. The oldest brewery supply store in town.

 

[BlueRunner11]

Pliny the Younger - RRBC

 

[trueblujr]

So question...
When you're geared up for a heavy drinking night, do you stick to one offering or do you drink several types? If the latter, how do you sequence it? Do some types taste better to you after drinking another? Or vice versa? Do some types taste nasty after downing something else. I'm about 7 beers in tonight. I started with a 5 rabbit 5 vulture. Moved on to a Goodwood bourbon barrel stout. Then I stepped over to a Dark Horse Brewing, amber Ale,Then I moved on to a Long Trail Amber Ale. Drank two of those. After that I moved over to a Flat 12 Pouges Run Porter. I then had to settle for an old standard Smithwicks ale. Unfortunately all I have left is an Ace Perry Cider. I brought those for my wife but she's a lightweight so I'm stuck with what she's left with.

So if you are doing a hard drinking night how do you set up your lineup?

 

[AustinTXCat]

So question...
When you're geared up for a heavy drinking night, do you stick to one offering or do you drink several types? If the latter, how do you sequence it? Do some types taste better to you after drinking another? Or vice versa? Do some types taste nasty after downing something else. I'm about 7 beers in tonight. I started with a 5 rabbit 5 vulture. Moved on to a Goodwood bourbon barrel stout. Then I stepped over to a Dark Horse Brewing, amber Ale,Then I moved on to a Long Trail Amber Ale. Drank two of those. After that I moved over to a Flat 12 Pouges Run Porter. I then had to settle for an old standard Smithwicks ale. Unfortunately all I have left is an Ace Perry Cider. I brought those for my wife but she's a lightweight so I'm stuck with what she's left with.

So if you are doing a hard drinking night how do you set up your lineup?

Lightest to darkest and weakest to strongest.

However, with hard-drinking days now behind me, I've since decided a moderate, more reasoned approach is now recommended. For full beer appreciation, limit intake to two or three 12-oz bottles. Drink slowly. Any amounts of unique beers thereafter are not advised, as one cannot objectively rate certain beers.

Ideally, it is also advised one partake of a 2-4 ounce sample size. Such samples are possible alone if deliberate. On the tongue, sweet taste buds are located front while bitter are located further back. Moreover, between samples, one should cleanse the palate with water and bread or unsalted peanuts.

 

[weused2luvhim2]

You're the f***** man. That beer is in my Top 10. Fantastic quality

Where are you guys finding this Prairie Bomb?

 

[UKserialkiller]

Where are you guys finding this Prairie Bomb?

Down here in Florida at Total Wine.

Runs about $10 for a 12-oz bottle.

Unbelievable.

If ya ever have that hard of a time finding it, let me know. I'll mail it to ya. I have a beer pen pal in Ohio (UK fan Phyre Cat). Awesome awesome guy. He sends me beer in Ohio that I can't get and I send him beer in Florida he can't get.

 

[We-Todd-Did]

Where are you guys finding this Prairie Bomb?

Frankfort, west side Red Dot. 8 bucks. Their new section is always interesting.

 

[LineSkiCat14]

Pretty sure I drank like 8,000 Grapefruit/Pineapple Sculpins this weekend.

Glad to see Summer beers gaining popularity... I feel like only a few years ago it was Corona, Landshark and that was about it.

You can't float down a river in 93 degree weather drinking a Dogfish 90 minute.. just don't work.

 

[weused2luvhim2]

Pretty sure I drank like 8,000 Grapefruit/Pineapple Sculpins this weekend.

Glad to see Summer beers gaining popularity... I feel like only a few years ago it was Corona, Landshark and that was about it.

You can't float down a river in 93 degree weather drinking a Dogfish 90 minute.. just don't work.

Only like a 2% difference it abv. But whatever keeps you from drowning lol.

 

[LadyCat92]

Which one of you is ChulaMonster? I just got an invite on untappd but can't figure out who it is.

 

[UKserialkiller]

Which one of you is ChulaMonster? I just got an invite on untappd but can't figure out who it is.

Not me. You know I'm Beershits

 

[AustinTXCat]

Where are you guys finding this Prairie Bomb?

I just noticed this afternoon some stores offer Prairie Bomb Birthday in our area. It is pretty hot on some Facebook Texas beer groups I frequent.

 

[AustinTXCat]

Ethereal was next. I really like the venue their. Reminds me of warped wing in Dayton. Excellent beer there as well. Its like a little city in the middle of nowhere. I ate ice cream in some place there and I really wanted to eat at a restaurant really close called Middle Fork. Food looked so good. All in all it was a great experience. I try new breweries any chance I can get but I think that lexington is truly a gem and very underrated. All the places are so different and that is what makes it great to me. Rooster brewery in Paris the only one that eluded me, so if anyone has any insight on Rooster please reply.

I just read some good feedback about Ethereal. Hope to hit it this coming November.

 

[TransyCat09]

@We-Todd-Did do you ever go to Bourbon on Main in Frankfort? Do they usually have decent taps?

Ethereal looks good and the location is indeed neat. The problem is, the 4 times I've tried to go I literally couldn't park anywhere. Maybe just hit them at super busy times, but my lord. I had to back out of the parking lot because I couldn't even turn around

 

[LadyCat92]

Not sure the last time you went @TransyCat09 but it seems to have helped since they paved the lot and have marked spaces.