Craft beer Drinkers Unite!

[itw419]

[quote name='c.brown' timestamp='1408248685' post='9950005']
Haven't heard great things about this year's KBS. I've got three that I'm going to hold onto for a year or so to see how they age.

Headed back to VT for a sales meeting in September and I'm actually devoting two days to beer missions. Gonna try to visit Hill Farmstead and hopefully hit up the Warren store to grab some Lawson's. Anyone have any idea if it's all gone early Thursday morning or does it last a day or two?

Anyone here had any toppling Goliath? It's got tons of hype and I virtually impossible to find.
[/quote]

I really want to go to VT for a beer trip. Hill Farmstead, Lawson's and The Alchemist make some great beer. I haven't had any Toppling Goliath yet but I really want to.

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Here is my latest trip to the store.

 

Currently drinking the Bear Republic. Firestone and Avery might be my two favorite breweries right now. Everything I have had from them is really good. The Hangar 24 was my least favorite. I am saving the Mirror Mirror for last, heard good things about it.

 

[RobotDoctor]

I am an IPA kind of guy. The "hoppier", the better! I used to prefer Ales and occasional Hefeweisens. That changed about 3 1/2 years ago when having a pint (or few) with a couple of buddies. Now my tastes have changed and I prefer a beer as bitter as my ex-wife.

Here are a few IPAs I really like:

Airways Brewery and Bistro, Kent, WA
- Loud Lady IIPA (200 IBUs)
- Sky Hag IPA (~ 100 IBUs)

Wet Dog Cafe, Astoria, OR
- Bitter B itch (138 IBUs)

Green Flash Brewery
- Palletwrecker IIPA (100+ IBUs)
- West Coast IPA

Stone Brewery
- Ruination IIPA (100+ IBUs)
- Stone IPA

O'Dells Brewery
- O'Dells IPA

There are many others that I have found to be terrific and many more that I will pass on. I live in a community blessed with several craft breweries and there is even a Budweiser brewery in town (but we won't talk about that). I also travel a lot and visit the west coast states on a regular basis. Over the years I have enjoyed many a great craft beer. I suppose over the past decade or two my standards have been raised due to this. If I can't have a craft IPA then unsweetened tea or water will have to do. I think I just might be a beer snob!

[swats]

The brewery right down the road from me, Two Roads, makes some decent, not great beer. I just learned that they are contract brewing Lawsons Finest Sip of Sunshine, and then shipping it back to VT. Talk about the ultimate beer tease! My buddy and i were joking of a plan to break in and steal the kegs.

[JBent9610]

Anyone else into pumpkin beers? They are, by far, the ones I look forward to each year.

Southern Tier Pumking - I think this is their best year since I first tried them 4 or 5 years ago. The difference is the bitterness in the end, which is something different for a pumpkin beer. Good pumpkin and spice flavors with a little IPA in the finish. Perfect!!

Hoppin Frog Double Pumpkin - Year in and year out, this one never disappoints. Good pumpkin and spice flavors. This is probably the most consistent pumpkin beers I've ever had that doesn't taste heavy on a spice one year and light another year.

Dogfish Head Punkin Ale - I find this one to be fairly weak this year, but not bad. The first year I tried it (2009?) was amazing. Very strong pumpkin and brown sugar flavors. It is what turned me into a pumpkin beer fiend. This year is had good spice, but not strong on pumpkin.

Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin - another yearly consistent beer. Very good pumpkin flavor, weaker in the spice area. A great alternative to other pumpkin beers that are heavier on the spices. In contrast, their Pumpkinhead is one of the worst pumpkin beers I have ever had. I don't know if they've gotten any better as I haven't tried it in a few years.

Heavy Seas The Greater Pumpkin - Another annual favorite. This year has great bourbon flavor and pumpkin/spice flavor. This might be the best year for it yet.

Fathead Spooky Tooth Imperial Pumpkin Ale - Another favorite for me. Good pumpkin and spice flavors along with some sweetness. It seems a little thicker/creamier than other pumpkin beers. While I think it's one of the best this year, a fellow coworker didn't care for it.

Jack-O Traveler Shandy - the same coworker who didn't like Spooky Tooth raved about this one. It was just ok to me. I had it on draft and thought it was fairly weak in pumpkin and spices. It was also much thinner than other pumpkin beers I've had this season.

Sam Adams Oktoberfest - Not a pumpkin beer, but released around the same time. In the past few years, I haven't bothered to try this as it got fairly boring and flavorless to me. I'm glad I tried it this year as it had a great malty sweetness. It reminded me very much of the first year I tried it (2008?).

I hope to someday try the pumpkin beers from Cigar City Brewing and Elysian Brewing, but they are, unfortunately, not sold near me.

[itw419]

[quote name='JBent9610' timestamp='1412391883' post='10232853']
Anyone else into pumpkin beers? They are, by far, the ones I look forward to each year.

Southern Tier Pumking - I think this is their best year since I first tried them 4 or 5 years ago. The difference is the bitterness in the end, which is something different for a pumpkin beer. Good pumpkin and spice flavors with a little IPA in the finish. Perfect!!

Hoppin Frog Double Pumpkin - Year in and year out, this one never disappoints. Good pumpkin and spice flavors. This is probably the most consistent pumpkin beers I've ever had that doesn't taste heavy on a spice one year and light another year.

Dogfish Head Punkin Ale - I find this one to be fairly weak this year, but not bad. The first year I tried it (2009?) was amazing. Very strong pumpkin and brown sugar flavors. It is what turned me into a pumpkin beer fiend. This year is had good spice, but not strong on pumpkin.

Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin - another yearly consistent beer. Very good pumpkin flavor, weaker in the spice area. A great alternative to other pumpkin beers that are heavier on the spices. In contrast, their Pumpkinhead is one of the worst pumpkin beers I have ever had. I don't know if they've gotten any better as I haven't tried it in a few years.

Heavy Seas The Greater Pumpkin - Another annual favorite. This year has great bourbon flavor and pumpkin/spice flavor. This might be the best year for it yet.

Fathead Spooky Tooth Imperial Pumpkin Ale - Another favorite for me. Good pumpkin and spice flavors along with some sweetness. It seems a little thicker/creamier than other pumpkin beers. While I think it's one of the best this year, a fellow coworker didn't care for it.

Jack-O Traveler Shandy - the same coworker who didn't like Spooky Tooth raved about this one. It was just ok to me. I had it on draft and thought it was fairly weak in pumpkin and spices. It was also much thinner than other pumpkin beers I've had this season.

Sam Adams Oktoberfest - Not a pumpkin beer, but released around the same time. In the past few years, I haven't bothered to try this as it got fairly boring and flavorless to me. I'm glad I tried it this year as it had a great malty sweetness. It reminded me very much of the first year I tried it (2008?).

I hope to someday try the pumpkin beers from Cigar City Brewing and Elysian Brewing, but they are, unfortunately, not sold near me.
[/quote]

I like pumpkin beers but I can only drink a few each year. The Greater Pumpkin is really good. I've been drinking Screaming Pumpkin from Griffin Claw this season. It's a solid beer.

[12tamale]

[itw419]

 

Such a good beer

[bppry]

 

Such a good beer

Indeed! Was just talking today about a road trip to 3 floyds.

[fore_life]

I hate you guys who have access to 3 Floyd's

[12tamale]

Finding It's quite difficult to drink anything else 3 Floyd's is that good.
Ran the whole gamut, and decided Zombie dust just does it.
I'm an hour away from the brewery, and most liquor stores are limited to 2 cases, 1 six pack per customer.

[12tamale]

I'm sitting on a 12 pack this weekend, and most likely not sharing, I have some Pride and Joy for them, which is excellent this year.

 

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Looked everywhere for 3floyds tonight no where to be found.

 

Here is what is in the fridge this week

 

[scratchswinger]

Have you guys tried Ballast Point?

[One_Putt_Blunder]

[quote name='scratchswinger' timestamp='1413007683' post='10269601']
Have you guys tried Ballast Point?
[/quote]

Had a couple of their IPA's very solid stuff the Sculpin and Big Eye I think

[fore_life]

[quote name='scratchswinger' timestamp='1413007683' post='10269601']
Have you guys tried Ballast Point?
[/quote]

Yes! One of my faves was a vanilla DIPA cask ale from their tasting room in little Italy, so good! Headed back next week!

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Just started my 2nd glass of the Marin Brewing White Knuckle DIPA pictured above was not sure what to expect from this one as it is my first sample of Marin Brewing. Picked it up to enjoying during the Giants game tonight since it is a SF beer.

Really good brew reminds me a bit of a weak barley wine as same hints of caramel flavor and color as some barley wines have. Just over 8% abv so not a super strong beer but a nice easy drink with great flavor.

[scratchswinger]

Yeah Ballst Point is currently my favorite beer. My local Costco has mix cases for $30 which is a steal.

[One_Putt_Blunder]

[quote name='scratchswinger' timestamp='1413084074' post='10273075']
Yeah Ballst Point is currently my favorite beer. My local Costco has mix cases for $30 which is a steal.
[/quote]

Glad you like it, for some reason it always ends up as my forgotten brewery, but everytime I grab one I remember it is a solid beer.

Which did you end up getting?

[scratchswinger]

The Costco case has 6 of each Scolpin, Big Eye, Wahoo and Pale Ale.

[jlt73]

[quote name='12tamale' timestamp='1412984796' post='10268117']
Finding It's quite difficult to drink anything else 3 Floyd's is that good.
Ran the whole gamut, and decided Zombie dust just does it.
I'm an hour away from the brewery, and most liquor stores are limited to 2 cases, 1 six pack per customer.
[/quote]

Even at three Floyd's the cases sell out quickly

[bppry]

I have 3 2012 bourbon county stouts I wouldn't mind trading for some zombie dust if anyone is interested.

[bub72ck]

Made a trip down to Asheville, NC last weekend. A'ville is becoming a hotbed for craft brew and the trip definitely didn't disappoint. There are about 17 breweries in the area and we made it to a few of them. Here is a recap:

1) Hi Wire Brewing. Our first stop was one of the best. I tried a few of the beers.

Hi Wire Lager
Hi Pitch IPA
Strongman Coffee Milk Stout
Lion Tamer Red Eye
Bed of Nails Brown

All of the beer was good and all very drinkable. I'm an IPA lover at heart and theirs was good but not earthshattering. The Strongman was fantastic! It was the only beer I took home from the trip. If you like coffee and you like stout (I love both) you need to try it. Has the most coffee flavor of any beer ive ever had.

2) Asheville Brewing Company. Had a meal here and tried a few of the beers.

Fire Escape
Ninja Porter
Seasonal Oktoberfest
Red Light IPA
Stuntman Brown

I'll be honest and say the beer here was marginal at best. The Oktoberfest was almost undrinkable. No flavor and just bad. The Fire Escape is interesting. It is brewed with jalapenos and has an interesting flavor. The flight glass was about all I would want of it though. I did like the Red Light IPA as a beer with my meal but it's not exceptional. The others were just ok. The food here was good though. I had a chicken quesadilla and it was pretty tasty. Overall the beer left us disappointed (included the other three in my party)

3) Wicked Weed Funkatorium The most unique stop on the tour. They specialize in sour beers and other "funky" creations. Most all of the beers are aged in oak barrels.

I tried a couple of the sour beers and they are just not for me. Not necessarily a bad taste but not something I would want an entire glass of. They taste like a mix of beer and white wine. I figured I would just have either a beer or a white wine. I did try an IPA from their funky collection and it was very good. The place had an awesome atmosphere. It felt like a German pub in the 1700s. No TVs and long picnic style seating which I thought was cool. You could walk into the temp controlled storage room and the barrels were stacked to the ceiling with the beer aging inside.

4) Burial Beer. The newest and most primitive of the places we stopped. Inside was a bar with about 6 stools and maybe 4 tables. They are a self-described "nano-brewery" and seemed the most excited about their products of any place we went. They had a chalkboard where patrons could leave ideas about beer they wanted to see made which I thought was cool.

I had the Reaper Tripel and tried my brother in laws Farmhouse Ale. I liked both of them. The tripel is a unique flavor and their recipe uses apples for flavor. We went outside and they have corn hole set up.

5) Greenman Brewery. I was most familiar with Green Man and like their beers. Overall the most drinkable collection I had all day. None of them stood out over the others but all four of the beers I had would be great in a full pint.

White IPA
Harvester
Seasonal Oktoberfest
Porter

The Oktoberfest was my favorite but I enjoyed all of them. I really wanted to try the Imperial IPA but they didn't have any available.

We went to Mellow Mushroom for dinner and I had a Brew Free or Die IPA from 21st Amendment with my meal. It was the best IPA I had all day.

6) Wicked Weed. We saved what was probably the best stop for last but unfortunately we were all so tired we didn't get to enjoy as much as other places.

Jack O'Hammered
Chinook Me All Night Long

Both of these beers were AMAZING! Wicked Weed is on to something and the beer definitely lived up to expectations. As I said above we were very tired and the place was packed. They were actually at fire code capacity and we had to wait until people left to even get in. The Jack O'Hammered was phenomenal. I wanted to try a few more beers but we had already been out around 10 hours and were ready to head home. I will definitely be going back soon.

Overall a great trip and got to try some awesome craft brew. My brother in law and his GF came down from Ohio to go with my wife and I and he brought me Bodhi IPA from Columbus Brewing Company. This is the best IPA I've ever had. If you live anywhere near Columbus, OH definitely try this one if you are an IPA fan.

[Black Label Johnny]

Flying Dog and Bombshell.

[toddnt]

Almanac has a heavy ABV Pumpkin beers...

[fore_life]

Currently in San Diego and ripping through beers I can't get in AZ. Went to the ballast point tasting room today, 2nd time there and it does not disappoint! Habanero Ipa? Sure! Really cool tasting room only small batch stuff.

Was at pizza port ob yesterday and finally had pliney(on tap) and scored 2 bottles this afternoon.

Plan on Coronado tomorrow, and lost abbey/port, modern times, alesmith, and other while we are here.

Also, will probably bring home a case of belching beaver peanut butter milk stout, it's bomb! And they release a horchata imperial stout this weekend, hope to find some!!

Ps anyone here on untapped?

[itw419]

[quote name='fore_life' timestamp='1413430400' post='10297195']
Currently in San Diego and ripping through beers I can't get in AZ. Went to the ballast point tasting room today, 2nd time there and it does not disappoint! Habanero Ipa? Sure! Really cool tasting room only small batch stuff.

Was at pizza port ob yesterday and finally had pliney(on tap) and scored 2 bottles this afternoon.

Plan on Coronado tomorrow, and lost abbey/port, modern times, alesmith, and other while we are here.

Also, will probably bring home a case of belching beaver peanut butter milk stout, it's bomb! And they release a horchata imperial stout this weekend, hope to find some!!

Ps anyone here on untapped?
[/quote]

You should try some beers from Alpine while you're there. They make awesome IPAs.

[Risley1984]

Anything from Left Hand or Avery. Both are top notch Brewers from Colorado!

[fore_life]

[quote name='itw419' timestamp='1413506650' post='10302429']
[quote name='fore_life' timestamp='1413430400' post='10297195']
Currently in San Diego and ripping through beers I can't get in AZ. Went to the ballast point tasting room today, 2nd time there and it does not disappoint! Habanero Ipa? Sure! Really cool tasting room only small batch stuff.

Was at pizza port ob yesterday and finally had pliney(on tap) and scored 2 bottles this afternoon.

Plan on Coronado tomorrow, and lost abbey/port, modern times, alesmith, and other while we are here.

Also, will probably bring home a case of belching beaver peanut butter milk stout, it's bomb! And they release a horchata imperial stout this weekend, hope to find some!!

Ps anyone here on untapped?
[/quote]

You should try some beers from Alpine while you're there. They make awesome IPAs.
[/quote]

I've heard that, it's on the way back home to PHX, might be able to detour for lunch/beer

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Currently tapped into Krunkle Sam while enjoying the SF Giants win (ran out of SF beer)

Really good barleywine subtle nice caramel finish and color good stuff from Clown Shows