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Splizwarf posted:I discovered Ruby Redbird this year and envy you. I find this interesting because I thought all Shiner beer was poo poo apart from Bock and Black Lager, which I still think is the best schwarzbier ever. Definitely worth visiting the Spoetzl Brewery sometime if you're in the area though, although they're only open weekdays.
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Oct 26, 2012 19:10
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Prior to Ruby Redbird, the only Shiner I'd ever seen up in VA was their Bock, and it didn't impress me. I'm a big sucker for Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy (and I dislike everything else they make) and Sam Adams' Blackberry and Cranberry Wheatbeers, so Ruby Redbird was an amazing find for me. I'll have to look for that Black Lager, it's probably around here someplace. Fruit juice in beer can go so horribly (like Leinenkugel's fall seasonal, the Berry Weiss, it's too syrupy strong), so finding a new fresh clean one is a real pleasure.
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Oct 26, 2012 19:18
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For fans of New Glarus's fruit beers: blame the weather. Due to the horrible weather this summer, there's not nearly enough Door County cherries to make a batch of Belgian Red, or apples to make another round of the Apple Ale. They're making due with a new beer, Serendipity, for the time being.
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Oct 26, 2012 21:57
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Coco13 posted:For fans of New Glarus's fruit beers: blame the weather. Due to the horrible weather this summer, there's not nearly enough Door County cherries to make a batch of Belgian Red, or apples to make another round of the Apple Ale. They're making due with a new beer, Serendipity, for the time being. The apple thing is wrong, as Apple Ale IIRC is back in November or so. But Belgian Red is definitely out of commission temporarily. edit: source: http://www.newglarusbrewing.com/index.cfm/beers/beerschedule
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Oct 26, 2012 22:02
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Purchasing my Reserve Society membership with a friend today. A decent list of beers are included but I am excited to get to reserve some of their rarer beers, especially those aged in rye barrels. Anyone else joining this year?
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Oct 26, 2012 23:09
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Jack Skeleton posted:Let's talk about "beer futures" and memberships. I know Cigar City is starting up theirs soon. Fifty-Fifty Eclipse futures are another month or so from being picked up. Bruery just opened up Reserve Society membership again. Crooked Stave does one, too. I'd love to join if I had money to burn, but the price seems ridiculous. $300 for 10 beers, some random schwag and a 15% discount on purchases? Crooked Stave's poo poo owns but it's not worth $30 a bottle to me. I don't think they're an inherently bad idea, they just tend to be priced for someone above my pay grade.
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Oct 26, 2012 23:20
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El Jebus posted:Purchasing my Reserve Society membership with a friend today. A decent list of beers are included but I am excited to get to reserve some of their rarer beers, especially those aged in rye barrels. Anyone else joining this year? I was in last year and I'm in the Hoarders Society this coming year, split with 2 friends. Opening a bunch of RS beers at a bday birthday tasting next weekend. Or a FW Anniv 13/14/15/16 vertical. Or a Three Floyds Baller Stout & the gang: Dark Lord, Darkness, Beer Geek Brunch, Black Albert. Or... oh god so many beers to drink.
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Oct 27, 2012 00:44
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SUPER HASSLER posted:I find this interesting because I thought all Shiner beer was poo poo apart from Bock and Black Lager, which I still think is the best schwarzbier ever. Splizwarf is right duder, Ruby Redbird is the stuff. Grab a sixpack next summer and let the ginger-citrus soothe your cares away.
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Oct 27, 2012 01:52
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Oh my gosh... have any of you tried Stone's new collab yet? I absolutely love the combination of mint and chocolate to begin with, but this beer kind of takes my love of the pair to another level. It's so well balanced it's unbelievable. I would be interested in trying it with a few months age on it to see if the mint tones down a bit. I enjoy it quite a bit with the amount of mint flavor/smell it has, but I could see that it could be off-putting to some folks. I'll just say that I'm glad that I bought 8 of these for myself. Edit: This beer is incredibly rich. I would recommend to everyone that they share it with at least one other person, or plan on sipping on it for quite a while! Kudosx fucked around with this message at 07:04 on Oct 27, 2012 |
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Oct 27, 2012 06:59
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Docjowles posted:Crooked Stave does one, too. I'd love to join if I had money to burn, but the price seems ridiculous. $300 for 10 beers, some random schwag and a 15% discount on purchases? Crooked Stave's poo poo owns but it's not worth $30 a bottle to me. I did something similar with a brewery in Minnesota and while I don't think it's worth it per bottle, I'm happy to support a process. I'm thinking 5 years down the line, more sours will be available because fans were willing to support the early times. I'm overpaying per bottle, but I know that because they're such a small production, they're losing money anyway. That's why, among friends, I have 50 gallons of different sour beers aging. I'm willing to do it the cheap way and pony up as well. If you want to save money, brew your own in any number of ways. Also, support the commercial folks if you can.
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Oct 27, 2012 07:04
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Anyone have any Founders Harvest yet? Is it my imagination or is it not nearly as bright and refreshing as it was last year? It's still very good, but not as awesome as I remember it.
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Oct 27, 2012 15:41
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RiggenBlaque posted:Anyone have any Founders Harvest yet? Is it my imagination or is it not nearly as bright and refreshing as it was last year? It's still very good, but not as awesome as I remember it. I had that same reaction as well and thought it was just me. It reminded me too much of their All Day IPA.
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Oct 27, 2012 15:43
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RiggenBlaque posted:Anyone have any Founders Harvest yet? Is it my imagination or is it not nearly as bright and refreshing as it was last year? It's still very good, but not as awesome as I remember it. i seem to remember it having a more earthy taste last year; tasted more like a normal IPA to me this time around. IANAIPAG, and this is one of the few hop-centric beers i actually look forward to, so i found it a little disappointing.
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Oct 27, 2012 15:51
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RiggenBlaque posted:Anyone have any Founders Harvest yet? Is it my imagination or is it not nearly as bright and refreshing as it was last year? It's still very good, but not as awesome as I remember it. I had it and it's pretty good nice citrus sweetness that goes into a dry bitter finish, but one problem I seem to have is discerning grapefruit from pine when they're at high levels of bitterness like in the Harvest Ale. I picked up some pine with the citrus, but nothing in the Harvest Ale description hints towards it, despite me and a few others on ratebeer thinking it.
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Oct 27, 2012 17:01
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Heading up to Traverse City right now to visit Jolly Pumpkin. Any other gems I should check out while here?
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Oct 27, 2012 17:48
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I didn't buy any Harvest Ale last year (wasn't a big fan of IPAs/hoppy beers in general, now I love them, go figure), but I thought the 4-pack I bought the other week was fantastic. Really wish it wasn't all gone, ah well. Woke up to a box of Heady Topper at my door, can't wait to crack one of these open with lunch.
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Oct 27, 2012 19:43
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hellfaucet posted:Heading up to Traverse City right now to visit Jolly Pumpkin. Any other gems I should check out while here? Right Brain is decent, I love North Peak's food, Seven Monks has an awesome tap list, and I personally think it's worth the trip to go to Bellaire and check out Shorts.
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Oct 28, 2012 01:16
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2012 Victory at Sea is significantly inferior to 2011 or 2010.  Wouldn't even recommend the current batch at all.
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Oct 28, 2012 01:43
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Fresh Heady Topper is absolutely delicious, and I can see where all the internet word of mouth/"hype" is coming from. So drinkable, would definitely have this on-hand at all times if I lived in/around Vermont.
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Oct 28, 2012 02:56
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Angry Grimace posted:2012 Victory at Sea is significantly inferior to 2011 or 2010. You better have an oncoming cold or are spreading lies to hoard it all yourself because if you're not lying I'm going to be very upset, Victory at Sea is my favorite beer of all time.
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Oct 28, 2012 15:33
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Chicago: Velvet Merlin on tap at Twisted Spoke. A little disappointed. Side by side with FBS, I definitely prefer the Founders.
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Oct 28, 2012 16:47
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Midorka posted:You better have an oncoming cold or are spreading lies to hoard it all yourself because if you're not lying I'm going to be very upset, Victory at Sea is my favorite beer of all time. No, its just not nearly as good as last year's. They do make multiple batches per year, so maybe the first batch was just off.
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Oct 28, 2012 18:19
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danbanana posted:Chicago: Velvet Merlin on tap at Twisted Spoke. A little disappointed. Side by side with FBS, I definitely prefer the Founders. Velvet Merlin isn't really comparable to FBS I think (not that I've had a ton of Founders, but I've had FBS before), what with the prominent coffee character. I agree in terms of absolute quality but it's kind of like comparing *random decent pale ale* to Pliny the Elder. One's an affordable and quality every day drinker, one comes out sporadically and can be hard to find but owns hard.
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Oct 28, 2012 22:28
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Docjowles posted:Velvet Merlin isn't really comparable to FBS I think (not that I've had a ton of Founders, but I've had FBS before), what with the prominent coffee character. I agree in terms of absolute quality but it's kind of like comparing *random decent pale ale* to Pliny the Elder. One's an affordable and quality every day drinker, one comes out sporadically and can be hard to find but owns hard. Um, which is which there? Understand that we don't get VM at all. I'd only seen it even listed in Chicago a couple other times and those were FW tap takeovers for CCBW. This is the first time I've ever really had a chance to try it. And though a seasonal, FBS is all over the place here when it's out. I think the last 5 beer bars i've been to have had it on tap. It's the standard, but VM has a solid rep and is pretty much the same style.
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Oct 28, 2012 23:55
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Uhh.... Velvet Merlin is a moderate abv oatmeal stout, 5.5% ish with a moderate finishing gravity. FBS is an 8.3% oatmeal stout with chocolate and coffee with a slightly sweet finishing gravity. They aren't really very comparable other than both being oatmeal stouts.
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Oct 29, 2012 00:06
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rage-saq posted:
So... Pretty much the same style.
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Oct 29, 2012 00:44
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rage-saq posted:Uhh.... Velvet Merlin is a moderate abv oatmeal stout, 5.5% ish with a moderate finishing gravity. FBS is an 8.3% oatmeal stout with chocolate and coffee with a slightly sweet finishing gravity. Maybe it't just a difference of distribution. We get any and all Firestone beers in Colorado as of a couple years ago, but Founders is trade only, so I don't consider Velvet Merlin a special release by any means. Unless you meant Velvet Merkin? Edit: "um": the addition of coffee is a pretty significant change
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Oct 29, 2012 00:46
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Docjowles posted:Pretty much this (thanks for bailing me out, rage-saq). Maybe it't just a difference of distribution. We get any and all Firestone beers in Colorado as of a couple years ago, but Founders is trade only, so I don't consider Velvet Merlin a special release by any means. Unless you meant Velvet Merkin? No, though Merkin is supposedly their next Reserve release. We get a lot of FW stuff, including Reserves, but not Merlin. And I get that they're not identical beers. But oatmeal stout to oatmeal stout isn't completely unreasonable.
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Oct 29, 2012 00:51
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danbanana posted:No, though Merkin is supposedly their next Reserve release. We get a lot of FW stuff, including Reserves, but not Merlin. not to gang up on you, but the addition of coffee, chocolate, and three percentage points of ABV is pretty significant. comparing Velvet Merlin to New Holland's The Poet would make a lot more sense. also, the only time Merlin has come out my way was a totally random keg a few moths back- so much better on draft than the bottle i got in trade.
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Oct 29, 2012 01:31
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danbanana posted:And I get that they're not identical beers. But oatmeal stout to oatmeal stout isn't completely unreasonable. Its all semantics in the end, style isn't everything clearly
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Oct 29, 2012 01:33
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funkybottoms posted:not to gang up on you No worries. I get that I made a comparison that wasn't agreed with. Okay by me. Two Brothers' Heavier Handed is loving solid.
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Oct 29, 2012 01:58
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Left Hand Wake Up Dead IS is pretty tasty if you haven't tried it.
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Oct 29, 2012 02:08
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Weyerbacher's Blasphemy is pretty excellent it's a bourbon barrel aged quad and they've done it right. The nose is thick and sweet of toffee, caramel, brown sugar, cherry esters, coconut, and vanilla, and the flavor is very similar with only mild bourbon flavors. Incredibly thick and incredibly smooth for the abv, well done Weyerbacher.
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Oct 29, 2012 03:52
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danbanana posted:So... Pretty much the same style. Yeah because the Stone Pale Ale and Lost Abbey Mongo are totally the same beer.
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Oct 29, 2012 06:28
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El Jebus posted:Purchasing my Reserve Society membership with a friend today. A decent list of beers are included but I am excited to get to reserve some of their rarer beers, especially those aged in rye barrels. Anyone else joining this year? I split a membership with a friend. We didn't quite go all out last year, and as a consequence didn't get invited to Hoarder's Society, which is probably good for our budgets. I'd estimate I've spent about $900 on RS beers over the last year, and that doesn't count money for travel (gas, food, hotel, vehicle maintenance, extra purchases in CA bottle shops) to pick the drat things up.
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Oct 29, 2012 14:40
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Anyone else try Ska's Mole Stout? Tasted like somebody went from Durango to Fort Collins to yank NB's Cocoa Mole recipe and water it down a bit. Had to look up the ABV; it's 5.5% compared to Cocoa Mole's 9%. Lacks the spiciness, too.
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Oct 29, 2012 15:14
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I just happen to have a bottle of each. I guess I know what I will be doing when I inevitably lose power and/or have to live on my roof during this stupid hurricane crap.
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Oct 29, 2012 16:14
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The SARS Volta posted:Anyone else try Ska's Mole Stout? I tried it, though I haven't tried Cocoa Mole. I liked it enough to seek out the NB next time I'm shopping, especially if it's spicier and stronger as you describe. Thanks for the heads up.
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Oct 29, 2012 16:18
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I loving LOVE Modus Hoperandi, but every single other Ska beer I've tried has been underwhelming, to the point I've stopped trying any of their other stuff when it comes out. Still buy some Modus like once a month though. And if you want a stronger, spicier stout, you can't go wrong with Great Divide's Chocolate Oak Aged Yeti. Not that Cocoa Mole isn't good too.
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Oct 29, 2012 17:13
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The SARS Volta posted:Anyone else try Ska's Mole Stout? I know there's a few NC/Triangle goons in the thread- have any of you guys had this year's batch of Roth Forgotten Hollow cinnamon porter in bottle yet? My roomie opened a bomber last night and it tasted absolutely awful- completely lacking any sweetness or even beer flavor. It tasted like straight-up gravy. I've had this year's batch on draft recently and know it doesn't taste like that at all (and I really enjoy that beer as well). Wondering if we just got a one-off bad bottle or if there was a batch problem. Also speaking of NC stuff I learned the bottle shop near my new place has Founders Breakfast Stout for $2.50/bottle. Not sure if that's a normal price or not but I certainly felt like I was stealing from the till when I bought a couple 
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Oct 29, 2012 17:14
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