|
mysterious frankie posted:I was actually looking to special order from Binny's, Binnys won't ship beer. That and just because it's on the site doesn't mean they have it in stock. They haven't had Cantillon for a while. For you ChiGoons, I had my first good experience at Hopleaf last night. I went there early enough, sat down to get dinner, and had a great time. poo poo was still packed starting at 6 though. The Chouffe Houblon on tap probably helped my perspective.
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 13:56
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 9, 2024 21:54 |
|
|
 Asheville beer tourism trip report Long story short, if you love craft beer, make it a point to spend a couple days here. There's a ton to do and it's all within a short distance. I spent only a day there and it was definitely not enough. Plus I am kicking myself in the face for driving with a car too full to bring any additional beer. I would have filled up my whole hatchback with cases and cases of beer like a bootlegger. All pictures are here if you wanna quickly browse. http://imgur.com/a/LZCHb Here was my itinerary: Appalachian Vintner Bruisin' Ales Pisgah Brewing Wedge Brewing Thirsty Monk Walking into Appalachian Vintner, there's a huge rack of nice beer glasses immediately to the left. The bar is in the center of the shop, and just to the right/back of it, you'll see this:  The only real downer about this place was lack of refrigeration but the quantity and depth of their selection more than makes up for it. They do have refrigerated sealed growlers from Pisgah and a few refrigerated bottles, and you can open them on premise with a small corkage fee.    I've never seen this many Evil Twin beers in one place.  Sitting at the bar, this flyer caught my eye.  They have 10 taps, half are "sessionable" lighter beers, and this was the back half that had some bigger/"rarer" beers.  Had to hit Bruisin' Ales as well, but next time around, I'd spend a lot more time at Appalachian Vintner instead since it's more spacious and comfortable.  They have two taps and they only do sample pours, $2 each or $3 for both. So why not both (Foothills Barrel Aged People's Porter, Sweetwater Happy Ending).  Pisgah Brewing was totally worth the drive and Black Mountain wasn't far at all. Great that their flagship beers are easily sessionable and it's fun to just hang out there. And even though it's the typical brewery in an industrial park area, their taproom's vibe was cool since it looks like it doubles as a music venue too.  It wasn't easy to find Wedge. I spent a good 20 minutes going in circles before I finally realized it was on the side of the building facing the French Broad river. Neat looking metalwork was put together out in the patio as another sitting area and the whole place had a friendly communal air. Very fun to kick back and hang out there and it was overall my favorite stop.     Final true beer stop way later on in the night was Thirsty Monk. Phenomenal bar that has two completely different vibes (upstairs is all about American craft, downstairs is Belgian).   They had this rare New Belgium beer on tap, which had a balanced tart flavor from pomegranate/raspberries and really light and refreshing body. Almost wine like. Prices were on the higher end compared to other beer stops in Asheville, but I felt it's like Churchkey where you'll get what you pay for. Regarding the Valentine's ale, did NB decide to mass produce this beer? I've never heard of the stuff and there's extremely limited information about it, but I ran across it at RFD in D.C. last night. RFD and Iron Horse are both not bad options if you're looking to grab a beer and you're in Chinatown!
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 15:00
|
|
|
mysterious frankie posted:Yeah, derp, Cantillon. I'll take some Cantillon off your hands. E-mail me: bagofsunchips [at] gmail.com
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 15:51
|
|
|
Those Asheville pictures look great! I showed my girlfriend the drinking poster and she had a laugh.
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 16:32
|
|
|
The Cantillon was an AMAZING example of a lambic, but it was overshadowed by my first Orval experience coming right before it. In hindsight I should not have placed those two back to back; the Cantillon, while great, was of a style which I am familiar, while the Orval was so weird & new that I could only describe its flavor mainly with colors & geometric shapes... actually rereading that, I'm wondering if maybe the yeast was infected with something psychotropic.Paul Proteus posted:Binnys won't ship beer. That and just because it's on the site doesn't mean they have it in stock. They haven't had Cantillon for a while. That's lame. The site made it seem like you buy online, they ship to a location, you pick it up there.  How available is Cantillon in Chicago, do you think? Do I sit on the batch I discovered, or can it be reliably found when needed?Also had my own first good Hopleaf experience recently. Last summer I ordered a Maudite, was corrected on the pronunciation, then the server left the table, never to return. I guess I must have really shaped up since then, because they actually came to my table multiple times, took my order and brought it & everything! The rabbit was pretty serviceable and the beer list was swanky as all out. Thick like the bible. The second floor bar is pretty nice too.
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 17:01
|
|
|
mysterious frankie posted:The Cantillon was an AMAZING example of a lambic, but it was overshadowed by my first Orval experience coming right before it. In hindsight I should not have placed those two back to back; the Cantillon, while great, was of a style which I am familiar, while the Orval was so weird & new that I could only describe its flavor mainly with colors & geometric shapes... actually rereading that, I'm wondering if maybe the yeast was infected with something psychotropic. To give you an idea re: Cantillon in Chicago, a store sent out an email to their list saying they got in bottles of Cantillon Grand Cru, Lou Pepe, and Rose de Gambrinus, and that this was only announced to their email list and not their website, facebook, or twitter. When I got there a couple hours later, there was only one bottle of Grand Cru and 3 bottles of Rose de Gambrinus left. Buy out the store's stock - some other Chicagoans will be more than willing to take it off your hands 
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 18:07
|
|
|
Kudosx posted:Care to share where you get beer from in Strongsville? Heinen's? Only place I've ever bought beer from in Strongsville is TBK It actually was the Heinen's. Definitely one of the better grocery store beer selections there. I'm an east sider and it was MY GIRLFRIEND that lives right by TBK that picked up the Mikkeler for me (  ).There's the Red Wine & Brew in Chesterland that goes out of it's way to have pretty much any beer they can get in Ohio (but you have to watch out for age, especially in the imports) If you're ever in Mentor there is a Save On Cigarettes right off 306 and Mentor Ave(right across from The Brew Mentor (LHBS)) that has a badass single bottle selection.
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 18:29
|
|
|
crazyfish posted:To give you an idea re: Cantillon in Chicago, a store sent out an email to their list saying they got in bottles of Cantillon Grand Cru, Lou Pepe, and Rose de Gambrinus, and that this was only announced to their email list and not their website, facebook, or twitter. When I got there a couple hours later, there was only one bottle of Grand Cru and 3 bottles of Rose de Gambrinus left. Got it. Assuming I haven't missed my chance I'm putting the ol credit card to work tonight.
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 18:42
|
|
|
Question for all: what is the best beer to go along with spring/summer grilling? I'm thinking something crisp and light, maybe citrusy. Like Sam Adams Alpine Spring, if it stood out more.
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 19:25
|
|
|
Stroop There It Is posted:Question for all: what is the best beer to go along with spring/summer grilling? A good craft pilsner, wit or saison, IMO.
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 19:57
|
|
|
Stroop There It Is posted:Question for all: what is the best beer to go along with spring/summer grilling? Good call on saison as well
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 19:58
|
|
|
Stroop There It Is posted:Question for all: what is the best beer to go along with spring/summer grilling? I had been resisting New Belgium's Shift Pale Lager, thinking it was a mass-appeal beer. I'm not ashamed to say that I was wrong. I put it on-par with Alpine Spring or Noble Pils. Very good hoppy-lager that went perfectly with my fishing/grilling day yesterday.
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 20:18
|
|
|
Speaking of summer lagers - Summerfest is here! It's not my favorite Sierra Nevada (I'm enjoying a shotgun-able Torpedo tall boy right now), but it's a good micro lager. Good dose of euro-style lager skunk.
|
|
#
?
Apr 14, 2012 23:20
|
|
|
CalvinDooglas posted:Speaking of summer lagers - Summerfest is here! If I were willing to lose a Ten Fidy/$2.50 I think making someone shotgun a Ten Fidy would be a good way to settle a bet.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 03:28
|
|
|
the yellow dart posted:If I were willing to lose a Ten Fidy/$2.50 I think making someone shotgun a Ten Fidy would be a good way to settle a bet. Where are you getting Ten Fidy's for that price?
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 03:29
|
|
|
I think you only get that price if you shotgun it for the store clerk's amusement. and mini review: Shipyard Fuggles IPA: pretty good. Resiny, dark-ish IPA, mild malts in the background. More enjoyable than Shipyard Export, in my opinion.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 03:37
|
|
|
Speaking of shotgunning... there's a video of a dude on youtube chugging a 120 minute IPA. I'm pretty sure I'd throw up mid-beer if I tried that with a 120 minute. Actually... after searching on youtube, apparently chugging 120 minute is a popular video theme.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 03:43
|
|
|
Kudosx posted:Speaking of shotgunning... there's a video of a dude on youtube chugging a 120 minute IPA. Gotta beat sipping one and, you know, tasting it.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 04:21
|
|
|
I bought a Dominion Oak Barrel Stout to try, the description sounds so appealing and the price seems way too good to be true. I guess when things seem too good to be true they are. This is just lacking in so many ways, coming up a bit bland with almost no oak flavor and thin on the taste in-general. Oh well it was only $1.50. Drinking a Sam Adam's East-West Kolsch now and it's a decent easy drinking beer. I'm not familiar with this style, but I could put a few of these back. Midorka fucked around with this message at 05:17 on Apr 15, 2012 |
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 04:29
|
|
|
So I have an extra bottle of Avery Mephistopheles (16.5%) and a bottle of Flying Dog Double Dog (11.5%). I am thinking that I might need to pour myself a trainwreck of a black & tan in the next few days. Tonight is yet another Sculpin night because I just got off a double shift with no breaks and I am too fried to want to try a new beer and think about things.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 04:58
|
|
|
Picked up the new Magic Hat seasonal sampler on impulse while grocery shopping, mostly because I want to try Pistil. I am 66% ok with the purchase; having three bottles of that goddawful Elder Betty holding down the shelf in my fridge is a small price to pay to see what putting dandelions in beer is like.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 05:16
|
|
|
That is the only thing keeping me from picking up that pack - I hope some customer drops a case and manages to break a few so I can just zero it out and take it home. edit: in other news, we decided to toss a four pack of Ten Fidy after a customer returned it, citing the canned-on date of Nov last year. It found its way from the trash can to my trunk. I am glad my manager and some of our customers don't understand beer. FreelanceSocialist fucked around with this message at 05:53 on Apr 15, 2012 |
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 05:18
|
|
|
mysterious frankie posted:Picked up the new Magic Hat seasonal sampler on impulse while grocery shopping, mostly because I want to try Pistil. I am 66% ok with the purchase; having three bottles of that goddawful Elder Betty holding down the shelf in my fridge is a small price to pay to see what putting dandelions in beer is like. They have a Summer seasonal pack out? loving hell, I bought the Spring one for kicks and that was brand new less than a month ago.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 05:18
|
|
|
Gentlemen, I have gazed upon the eldritch horror that is Rogue Voodoo Donut Maple Bacon Beer. It smelled like melted plastic and scorched fur. It tasted like slightly sweet burned plastic with hints of fenugreek (fake maple syrup flavor). It was, to my palate, utterly without discernible redeeming quality. I'm halfway through an Old Viscosity and still have that cloying horrible smell in my nose.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 05:22
|
|
|
mysterious frankie posted:Picked up the new Magic Hat seasonal sampler on impulse while grocery shopping, mostly because I want to try Pistil. I am 66% ok with the purchase; having three bottles of that goddawful Elder Betty holding down the shelf in my fridge is a small price to pay to see what putting dandelions in beer is like. Elder Betty is their new summer seasonal and I find it perfectly tolerable, if not great. Beats the poo poo out of their old summer beer, Wacko.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 05:24
|
|
|
bartolimu posted:Gentlemen, I have gazed upon the eldritch horror that is Rogue Voodoo Donut Maple Bacon Beer. It smelled like melted plastic and scorched fur. It tasted like slightly sweet burned plastic with hints of fenugreek (fake maple syrup flavor). It was, to my palate, utterly without discernible redeeming quality. I'm halfway through an Old Viscosity and still have that cloying horrible smell in my nose. This beer is their employees' sorrow fermented and pressurized.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 05:28
|
|
|
I am stealing that phrase and using it to steer customers away from Rogue beers. Will let you know when I get fired. PS: I tried to contact them for comment, no response. edit: Tasting notes, re: Sculpin: dear god I love this beer. Easily the best American IPA I have ever had - especially at $7/22oz. Perfect aroma, wonderfully balanced even when served too cold (being solid across a range of temperatures is loving hard, for sure). Sweet and bitter citrus come out as it warms, with a great, resinous pine hops foundation. Just awesome. And the finish is perfect - just hints of dry, bitter hops here and there that leave you wanting more. Oh wait, I have more... FreelanceSocialist fucked around with this message at 05:52 on Apr 15, 2012 |
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 05:35
|
|
|
I got a sampler of Magic Hat one time. The beers ranged from forgettable to hard-to-drink bad.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 05:47
|
|
|
While I agree, I'll still pick it up, as with Sam Adam's, just to have a few new beers to try and some other easy drinking, kick back with some friends outside, beers.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 06:02
|
|
|
deadwing posted:Elder Betty is their new summer seasonal and I find it perfectly tolerable, if not great. Beats the poo poo out of their old summer beer, Wacko. I got a sixer of Elder Betty a couple weeks ago and could not get into it, at all. The flavor was just too much for me, like bad jam and febreze. I'll give it another go whenever I get around to busting into the sampler, but I'm not optimistic. On the other hand, I liked Wacko. It's what an adult Doug Funnie would drink and that's good enough for me. mysterious frankie fucked around with this message at 00:52 on Apr 16, 2012 |
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 06:06
|
|
|
mysterious frankie posted:
Best description ever!
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 09:48
|
|
|
Ok so I promise this is the only time I will ever post something like this and Mods if this is out of order then please delete the post. Mod edit: Nope. Somebody fucked around with this message at 17:28 on Apr 15, 2012 |
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 16:54
|
|
|
If you've got a charity idea you want to post about, clear it with mods BEFORE posting. Spoiler warning: the answer is probably going to be no.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 17:29
|
|
|
Alright should have cleared it first sorry! I will stay out of the thread so it won't happen again.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 17:31
|
|
|
LeeMajors posted:I had been resisting New Belgium's Shift Pale Lager, thinking it was a mass-appeal beer. Been meaning to post about Shift. They did a pretty great job with it, very refreshing hoppy lager as you said.
|
|
#
?
Apr 15, 2012 17:54
|
|
|
short trip to visit family in MN =
|
|
#
?
Apr 16, 2012 00:19
|
|
|
Had some Shift earlier. I'm beginning to believe that New Belgium cannot do any wrong.
|
|
#
?
Apr 16, 2012 02:35
|
|
|
Speaking of "can do no wrong" Jolly Pumpkin Biere de Mars may be my new best beer in Michigan. Seek it out, folks.
|
|
#
?
Apr 16, 2012 02:48
|
|
|
Whisker Biscuit posted:Speaking of "can do no wrong" Jolly Pumpkin Biere de Mars may be my new best beer in Michigan. Seek it out, folks. Is it bottled, or am I SOL?
|
|
#
?
Apr 16, 2012 04:22
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 9, 2024 21:54 |
|
|
Phanatic posted:Is it bottled, or am I SOL? Bottled, 12 for a 750 in my neck of the woods.
|
|
#
?
Apr 16, 2012 04:23
|
|