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Jerome Louis posted:I served my wine sensory panelists a Hanssens Artisanaal Gueuze and had people literally retching after smelling it. The bottle was super skunked. Made me think of Jester King releasing some of their beer in green glass bottles http://jesterkingbrewery.com/jester-king-in-green-bottles . What do you guys think of the "complexity" added from skunkiness? I actually would have liked the skunky note in the gueuze if it were toned down a bit and could see how it would add a bit of funky complexity if it were present at very very low concentrations. Too strong tho is just gross. No no no no no. Ugh, sounds horrible. The reason someone like Cantillon can have their beers in green bottles is there's hardly any hops in them to skunk, and they're stored fairly dark in the brewery besides. Skunk has literally no place in beer IMO.  edit: Just read through that Jester King guff. I had a bottle of Blaugies Saison d'Epeautre not too long ago. Green bottle, refrigerated for a number of weeks. Skunked so bad I couldn't finish the first tiny glass. I normally adore that beer, but it completely ruined it.
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Aug 18, 2015 10:00
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ExtremistCow posted:Someone from talkbeer had The Bruery test several bottles of Cantillon, IBUs were between 15-30. There's hops in there. Then storage plays a role. Like I said, I've had skunked Belgian saison (eww) and plenty of Cantillon, and never skunked.
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Aug 18, 2015 19:20
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Spanish Manlove posted:FUUUCK that's a good one. The other one I had was "SONS OF NORTHERN DANKNESS" but I thought no one would get that. Totally would 
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Aug 18, 2015 19:56
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The Bunk posted:Didn't see it in the Wiki but I'm sure it's been covered, so does anyone have a list of cool pubs/breweries to check out in London? We'll be staying with a friend (apparently in/near Brixton) but I imagine we'll be going all over the city, and maybe some daytrip outside of London as well but no firm plans. Ooh, you'll be right in my wheelhouse! When are you arriving? The answer to this kind of depends on what sort of thing you're looking for. So I might as well write a bit more extensively. Essentially, this boils down to "traditional" vs. "new". BREWERIES There is a huge influx of new breweries in London. From the poor times when there were 3 breweries in the city, there are now something like 75. Most are tiny operations but a few are worth checking out. On the traditional side, the Fuller's tour in Chiswick is good fun and ends with a time-limited open bar (unless they've changed it). Old-school brewery building, traditional methods, even some Yorkshire squares. On the newer side, the thing to do is to do the Bermondsey Beer Mile. Around the area of Maltby Street and Druid Street, there are something like 5 breweries within a mile stretch. They all open their doors early on a Saturday morning. The Kernel Brewery was the first in London to make American-inspired IPAs and the like, but are closing their Saturday bar due to overwhelming demand in September. That still leaves Brew By Numbers, Partizan, Anspach and Hobday and the thoroughly American Fourpure. Do arrive early and be prepared for long lines. Still, it's a fun thing to do in the shadow of Tower Bridge and there's street food at Maltby Street Market to soak up the beer. If you're still going after the Beer Mile, head up to Tottenham Hale for Beavertown Brewery who open from 2pm to 8pm on Saturdays. They have much more space than the Bermondsey crowd and usually have quite a few brewery-only specials on. There are food trucks outside. Or, if you don't want to go to the brewery, Duke's Brew and Que is the closest thing they have to a brewery tap - it's a barbecue restaurant with really good service and all their beers (among others) on. When the brewery started, they brewed in the kitchen and fermented in the basement. It was a cramped operation - I helped them out a couple of times when they were still down there  Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights, you can go to the lager-focused Camden Town Brewery in Kentish Town (I know...). Their Pilsner is really good and if the India Hells Lager is fresh, it's worth having some of. On those nights you can also visit Redchurch in Bethnal Green which is a pretty neat operation and much loved as a hangout by a bunch of us who work in the industry. That said, you won't have a shortage of these beers in: PUBS In terms of the newer style of pubs with wide selections and keg as well as cask beer, I would recommend the following list: The Craft Beer Company (multiple locations) The Queen's Head, Acton Street (near King's Cross) Mother Kelly's (Bethnal Green) The Black Heart (slightly divey rock bar in Camden Town, part of the Barworks group) Earl of Essex (Angel, also part of Barworks) BrewDog bars (their own range and selected guest beers, all on keg) Getting decent cask beer in London is a challenge. A lot of it doesn't rotate quickly enough to be tasty. Especially if you haven't had experience with how good cask beer can be (and the American way of taking your standard brew and throwing spices into it is not it) you might get seriously disappointed. For that sort of thing, I'd recommend the Euston Tap just outside Euston station. They have a massive turnover of punters which means the beers have decent rotation. It's not as consistent as when I ran the cellar there but you can't have everything. Other than the Euston Tap, the Cock Tavern in Hackney is my go-to for well-kept cask. The same guy owns the Southampton Arms up near Gospel Oak but I haven't been for a while so can't vouch. That said, they're both awesome spit and sawdust sorts of places. They're the most traditional pubs I'd recommend, aside from the Queen's Head above. BREWPUBS Not that many of these around. I'd definitely check out the Howling Hops taproom in Hackney Wick and if you can bear painfully unironically hipsterish hipsters, you can brave the Crate Brewery next door. But the one that is making waves right now is the One Mile End brewpub, the White Hart. The guy who runs the brewery used to brew for Redemption, who make seriously traditional ales, but his experimentation is really wild. I was blown away by a "farmhouse pilsner" which is a pilsner he throws a load of grapes into and then referments with saison yeast. Tasty. I might come back and edit stuff into this. I think London is a great place to drink now, but you kind of have to take teething problems of a lot of the breweries on the chin. Kaiho fucked around with this message at 22:35 on Aug 18, 2015 |
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Aug 18, 2015 22:04
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Air-: Jackhammer is a firm staff favorite. Bone dry, bitter as hell, classically hopped. Try to find some Pracownia Piwa stuff, I've had a couple and thought they're decent.
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Aug 19, 2015 07:51
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air- posted:Bartender mentioned having those taps in the other room! I believe there's a brewpub that serves their beer "by the meter" that I'm supposed to check out over here too? I haven't given up on tank pours yet though, been told I just gotta keep digging. A lot of those guys contract brew at whoever's, so their production is really sporadic. I also tried Szałpiw Duke of Flanders which was a full on great Flanders Red. -- Now I'm starting to think whether it might be worth slinging a couple of BD seasonals in my suitcase just for kicks since it seems Americans don't get most of the range...
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Aug 19, 2015 11:42
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The Doo Do Chasers posted:Whats the one, ultimate beer spot to hit in Seattle? My lady and I are going up this weekend and I dont want to drag her around to too many places. If its a brew pub it needs to have decent vegetarian options. I really really enjoyed Brouwer's Cafe, but have only been to Seattle once so take that with a huge grain of salt.
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Aug 20, 2015 11:42
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Man I'm glad that's mostly not a thing in Europe.
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Aug 23, 2015 15:51
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air- posted:I'm making it my highest priority to take a trip to CBC/Borefts for that exact reason. I hear so many good things about how the vibe is so much more chill at those festivals versus neckbeards going nuts trampling people when beer gets tapped. Yep, I mean CBC is a bit OTT (being Mikkeller) but Borefts is cool. I'm also looking forward to the Independent Manchester Beer Convention.
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Aug 23, 2015 17:21
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Sigh. Looks like I'll have less time to geek out about beer in SF than I thought. Decided to take a punt and ask on reddit (just for kicks, I swear) what they recommended: "which brewery/breweries should I absolutely not miss if I have one day to dedicate to beer? Who are the ones that you think are genuinely making the best beer that's worth seeking out?" I have so far been recommended Mikkeller 2 times, City Beer twice, Anchor Steam, Speakeasy, 21st Amendment (x2), Magnolia and Cellarmaker.  I mean sure, Magnolia looks cute and all but ehh? edit: FTR the 2 breweries I'm going to hit are (based on your recommendations and the beer styles they do) Cellarmaker and Rare Barrel. Kaiho fucked around with this message at 15:50 on Aug 25, 2015 |
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Aug 25, 2015 15:42
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Senf posted:Are you driving? If you are, drive to Fieldwork before Rare Barrel (because the former is in North Berkeley). If not, still find your way to Fieldwork first and then take an Uber or something to Rare Barrel. And if you're looking for food (and more beer) after, you could hit the brand new Drake's Dealership in Oakland, which is conveniently located about 2 blocks away from 19th Street BART. They aren't brewing anything on site, but the beer is brewed about 15 minutes away in San Leandro and they're working their way up to 30+ taps. I do have a car but am super wary of going places in it and having a drink. I'm meant to be road tripping for two weeks, I don't want to crash/get arrested for DUI. Unless there's a trick to this and you actually meant something like "get your girlfriend to drive you". I did consider that Drake's place considering its proximity to BART, actually. I've only ever managed to have one Drake's beer (Draconic).
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Aug 25, 2015 18:21
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toenut posted:Magnolia is my favorite place for beer in SF. They make fantastic bitters and milds. Unfortunately, those styles don't create enough buzz I guess. Appreciated. That said, living in a country where bitters and milds are (at least traditionally) the thing, I'm looking for innovation and stuff I can't get. Furious Lobster posted:My trick is called for every beer I drink, have at least 1 pint of water. This is a sensible approach to life in general. Senf posted:Then you can easily take BART from SF to the North Berkeley station and cab/Uber/BART from there. I'd obviously never recommend drinking and driving, I was just assuming there was a chance you'd be getting around with a group or something. Thanks. It's just us 2, except when we're meeting with friends in the evening(s) for dinner and whatever.
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Aug 25, 2015 18:42
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funkybottoms posted:sad day when the Yanks are giving a Brit drinking tips I'm not a Brit, just living here  a worthy uhh posted:Yanks drink 8% "session" beers vs 3.5% Real Ale The ABV inflation thing seems to have maybe broken its back. Sure, your standard IPA will still be 7%+, but there's thankfully more good sub-5% stuff coming from the States.
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Aug 25, 2015 19:38
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Drunk Nerds posted:Need some Southern California Session IPA recommendations for upcoming Fantasy Football drafts, pretty please. You guys have good opinions. loving Firestone Walker Pinner, man.
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Aug 26, 2015 22:57
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A Detroit airport bar has a good dozen beers I'd drink on draft. When even airport bars are like this, oh man I'm looking forward to getting my drink on on this US holiday.
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Aug 27, 2015 19:56
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Well isn't that a fucker. Come all the way to Paso to see Firestone, find out everything beery in this town closes at 9pm or is a sports bar with crappy food. I suppose I'll stop by the store this morning before hoofing it back up to SF. I was looking forward to it too 
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Sep 4, 2015 15:45
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OMG posted:The most I've spent for singles was around $8 for BCBS and barrel aged Siberian Night. Cantillon? Even at the brewery, a 750 runs you more than that.
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Sep 5, 2015 07:27
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Munkaboo posted:Looks like I will be in Brussels for Zwanze day. Kernel isn't open to drink in at all anymore. You can buy their beer in loads of places though, and grab beers from the brewery shopfront on Saturday mornings. I'm not sure Uber is a thing in Belgium, but it might be. It'll be expensive though. Look into hopping on a train to Bruges if you want somewhere to go.  I have somehow arrived in deepest tiniest central Colorado. This town, Fairplay, has a brewery (yay!) who describe their IPA on their website as "malt-forward" (what?). I guess tiny mountaintop breweries can't afford to compete for hop contracts.. Now I'm kind of wishing I'd booked a place to stay in Breckenridge (though it's more expensive) as there are way more breweries there.
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Sep 7, 2015 00:31
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Eejit posted:The brewery in Fairplay is pretty bad. There isn't really a good place to get a drink there if you want something more than Coors. Really the only good things in town are the Brown Burro and Java Moose. If you find somewhere good lemme know. Their pilsner was actually legit good and their cream ale drinkable. Amber had a load of diacetyl and the IIPA (they were out of the IPA) was hot, but aromatic. danbanana posted:That's a bad descriptor but I get what they're probably meaning. Personally I would have just said Midwest Style, but I'm biased. Who would fall into that category? I know East Coast IPAs are maltier than west coast too, but none are as dry as contemporary European IPAs
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Sep 7, 2015 04:06
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Glottis posted:Thanks for the heads-up about LIbertine, I've been going down to that area for a long time and had no clue it was there. I stopped over there this past week. Nice place (described well above), nice staff, food was good and a few of their beers were genuinely inventive.
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Sep 8, 2015 11:49
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Bag of Sun Chips posted:Mmmmmm I love hypocrisy in the morning. Magee deserves it after what he's said about other breweries selling out. Yeah I find it interesting that he has been so vocal about it all yet then signs a majority stake away.
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Sep 8, 2015 23:14
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Fluo posted:Bristol Beer Week is here once again. Every pub tries to out do its self each year and such. The one I'm hyped about is the Trans-Atlantic Rainbow Project again [3rd year of The Small Bar doing this] and the Sour Beer festival 60+ sour beers. I'll be at Beavertown in the afternoon tasting those (plus BA Surly Darkness!) and then doing Zwanze in the evening. My belly... Spanish Manlove posted:They hosed up that rainbow. Trust me, I know a lot about spectrums. I'm pretty sure that image is in order of draws (they drew partners and colours) rather than ROYGBIV.
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Sep 16, 2015 12:30
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Fluo posted:
Even if it's "just" a straight red IPA, it'll be good given the pedigree of the brewers. The one I'm looking forward to is the Wild Beer/Firestone collab.
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Sep 16, 2015 13:05
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cryptoclastic posted:
I have loved pretty much every single Wicked Weed beer I've got to try.
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Sep 17, 2015 14:56
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ChickenArise posted:They don't really do much wrong (except maybe their barrel aged stuff; feel free to loudly talk poo poo about it while not knowing the brewmaster is within hearing distance) Haha, I found Yusseff to be a charming guy I want to bathe in Victory at Sea, that stuff is great.
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Sep 17, 2015 23:37
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This year's Fou'Foune is the tiiiiiits too, enjoy! Drink fresh.
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Sep 18, 2015 15:08
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Just finished my glass of Zwanze. Not usually a sour stout kinda guy, but this one strikes a nice balance. Fou'Foune 2015 still kills, though.
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Sep 19, 2015 20:25
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So what happened at that Hunahpu day? Did they massively oversell tickets, have people buy more than their allowed amount or what? I keep hearing stuff about this, it's pretty notorious but obviously not something I followed at the time being I'm in europe.
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Sep 20, 2015 21:36
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I don't think I'll ever get that sort of mentality. Glad it's not (yet) made its way into Europe.
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Sep 20, 2015 22:46
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a worthy uhh posted:Cantillon sells their beer at/under $1/100ml, so I don't see any real reason U.S. brewers can't other than literal Stockholm Syndrome and/or masochism of lovely American beer nerds. What about taxation? Belgium famously has like zero excise tax for production less than 200k HL per annum.
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Sep 21, 2015 10:27
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In case anyone cares, Stone is releasing an encore version of Vertical Epic 080808...
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Sep 21, 2015 18:51
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HatfulOfHollow posted:OK. Who else will I be seeing in Denver? I went to a gig/event at Ratio Beerworks on Larimer when I was in town. Thought their saison and sours were really good. Plus had great service. This is of course going to be different on GABF week.
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Sep 22, 2015 15:53
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Apache posted:Any UK goons have suggestions of places to try in Edinburgh and London? We'll be there the first week of November. Didn't see any exceptionally highly rated breweries in either place, but Meantime brewing looks interesting in London, though it's nowhere near where we're staying by the Victoria station, might be accessible via the tube though, that and CASK Pub and Kitchen which is near our hotel look like good bets for food and beer. Hanging bat in Edinburgh. Best pub in the city by miles. I wrote this about London a few pages back: Kaiho posted:Ooh, you'll be right in my wheelhouse! When are you arriving? What I would add to the above is to not bother with Meantime. If you're looking for a brewery tour, do Fuller's for the traditional experience. If you're looking for craft beer, skip Meantime entirely. Their beers are pretty average at best. Eejit posted:Met up with Hassler at Ratio, place makes good beer. Only 6 brews, but the four I had were all quite good. Was a big fan of the wine barrel aged saison and the extra pale ale, although the IPA and coffee-infused scotch ale were also both good. I thought the coffee infusion was a little too much, I preferred the non-coffee version. Solid beers all though. I'm glad I went when I was there.
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Sep 23, 2015 11:40
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A buddy of mine went to GABF and got to try that for what I assume is free. Which is great for him, coming from the UK, there's next to no BCBS around.
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Sep 27, 2015 23:50
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How different is the BCBS event price/silliness to Dark Lord Day? edit: VVV I thought so. Same price point too. So hate one or hate all I guess. Kaiho fucked around with this message at 15:44 on Sep 29, 2015 |
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Sep 29, 2015 15:39
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I found the seaweed gose a bit gym bag and feet. Would have preferred a lighter, zestier thing with aromatics of the sea rather than drinking a stagnant pool.
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Oct 2, 2015 17:29
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cryme posted:Do they bottle all of these? My friend has a huge DFH collection and he's gonna be pissed if he has to track a bottle down The Beavertown/DFH was bottled, yeah. Pretty limited, though, I think we got a case and are lucky to get that. It has a beavertown label, for what it's worth.
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Oct 2, 2015 19:36
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58 because what the hellSpuckuk posted:Pretty sure they only got released in bottles FWIW it has a beavertown label, but that's for the best as Beavertown labels are amazing. There were kegs too. But yes, Beavertown label. Kaiho fucked around with this message at 16:26 on Oct 4, 2015 |
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Oct 4, 2015 16:05
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krustster posted:Gonna start replying to all arguments with old Midorka posts. Great idea.
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Oct 4, 2015 20:20
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Oh hello thread, been a while. Anyone else heading to Copenhagen Beer Celebration? I realize this may already have been discussed, but totally up for hanging with non-awful (no stinkers) goons My plan tomorrow is to hit up Warpigs in the afternoon followed by the Brus opening party.
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May 11, 2016 22:59
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