Beer

[HuskyHawk]

We went
2024
2020
2022
2021
2023

And then went to the annual specialties.

Consensus was 2020 was the best. The 2024 Vanilla Rye was very good. I though the 2024 Macaroon was meh.
We had a 2022 or 2023 Proptietor's which is so good it's basically a different level.

I’ve had Proprietor’s at beer fests. Just incredible how many complex flavors they manage.

 

[auror]

Yeah I like BCBS at 5 years. Downhill after that. Coffee versions drink within a year.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Pale Ale at Widowmaker

 

[Dove]

Out of North Haven's Twelve Percent Beer Project, Timber Ales brews epic stouts. Here is "For Everett." Coffee, vanilla and peanuts innit.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Where I'm at on the western panhandle of Florida a few breweries really stand out.
Alga
Odd Colony
Emerald Republic
Gary's Biergarten
Coastal County

This one from Odd Colony is all night easy drinking.

 

[HCCForever]

Looking forward to the 6th annual Cocoa Village Brewers Bash sponsored by Bugnutty tomorrow. Sixty breweries will be represented mostly from Fl and two excellent local bands.

 

[AreBee1969]

Living vicariously through you all.

I am donating stem cells to my brother next month so I have been alcohol and cigar free since I found out I was a donor match 23 days ago, not that I'm counting. I haven't gone this long without a beer since I was was 16!

I've been drinking Guinness Zero at home which is surprisingly close to the real thing. Also tried the Brooklyn Hoppy Amber that was OK but had a funk to it. I would like to find some of the Athletic Dark beers, but all I see are IPAs.

Any dry January peeps find anything worth trying?

 

[HuskyHawk]

Living vicariously through you all.

I am donating stem cells to my brother next month so I have been alcohol and cigar free since I found out I was a donor match 23 days ago, not that I'm counting. I haven't gone this long without a beer since I was was 16!

I've been drinking Guinness Zero at home which is surprisingly close to the real thing. Also tried the Brooklyn Hoppy Amber that was OK but had a funk to it. I would like to find some of the Athletic Dark beers, but all I see are IPAs.

Any dry January peeps find anything worth trying?

A Noble sacrifice. Wish I could help more. I have tried the blue Athletic on. I also tried the Erdinger at a beer fest. I would think Stouts and pale lagers would hold up best.

13 Best Non-Alcoholic Beers for Zero-Proof Drinking

Whether you're sober, sober-curious, or just started a dry month, these non-alcoholic beers will deliver all the flavor but without the booze.

www.eatthis.com

 

[Dove]

So freakin' good!!!

 

[Letsgohuskies11]

Really enjoy these double dry hopes Pale Ales from Marlowe. They taste like an IPA but are only 5.4% which I enjoy. Marlowe really does some great beers

 

[Dove]

View attachment 106840
Really enjoy these double dry hopes Pale Ales from Marlowe. They taste like an IPA but are only 5.4% which I enjoy. Marlowe really does some great beers

I hope to get there in late March or early April.

 

[karstenkibbe]

I hope to get there in late March or early April.

You should get there in early March, specifically March 2, for the bottle share of the century. Bring some Caius bottles and haze with you, try a few hundred world class beers from other attendees, and buy a can of a TDH DIPA that Zac is brewing for the Japanese market but will sell 1 can/pp to attendees on 3/2.

 

[AreBee1969]

So freakin' good!!!
View attachment 106769

I had one at the Bidwell before the game Friday. It was very good. Thank you!

 

[Waquoit]

Hey kibbe, have you made it to New Zealand yet? It is craft beer heaven!

 

[karstenkibbe]

Hey kibbe, have you made it to New Zealand yet? It is craft beer heaven!

You are half correct on that statement. NZ is currently hop growing heaven. No region is coming close to producing the quality of next-generation hops. But Kiwiland is definitely not brewing heaven. As far as finished product is concerned, the U.S. and pockets of Europe are still producing the best beers.

 

[Waquoit]

You are half correct on that statement. NZ is currently hop growing heaven. No region is coming close to producing the quality of next-generation hops. But Kiwiland is definitely not brewing heaven. As far as finished product is concerned, the U.S. and pockets of Europe are still producing the best beers.

Have you been there and had the beer fresh? Or are you just going off getting a can that’s been shipped from the other side of the world? Because every beer I’ve had so far would be the best beer I ever had in Connecticut. Admittedly, I wouldn’t say I have the most developed beer pallet.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Have you been there and had the beer fresh? Or are you just going off getting a can that’s been shipped from the other side of the world? Because every beer I’ve had so far would be the best beer I ever had in Connecticut. Admittedly, I wouldn’t say I have the most developed beer pallet.

That's interesting. We don't know what we don't know. I'd be surprised if they had breweries that were actually better than any of our best breweries. Freshness certainly matters and I think was a driving force in so many small craft breweries opening globally. Farm to table concepts apply.

There's no wine thread here (which is a bit odd) but I went to a winery in the Loire Valley, which is known (in the U.S. anyway) for really good Sauvignon Blanc from Sancere for example. The primary red grape is Cabernet Franc, which some say can't stand on its own (if grown in Bordeaux or Napa/Sonoma). Visited a winery with absolutely amazing Cabernet Franc wine, at a very fair price. Can't get it here of course. I imagine that story plays out even more with beer.

 

[storrsroars]

That's interesting. We don't know what we don't know. I'd be surprised if they had breweries that were actually better than any of our best breweries. Freshness certainly matters and I think was a driving force in so many small craft breweries opening globally. Farm to table concepts apply.

There's no wine thread here (which is a bit odd) but I went to a winery in the Loire Valley, which is known (in the U.S. anyway) for really good Sauvignon Blanc from Sancere for example. The primary red grape is Cabernet Franc, which some say can't stand on its own (if grown in Bordeaux or Napa/Sonoma). Visited a winery with absolutely amazing Cabernet Franc wine, at a very fair price. Can't get it here of course. I imagine that story plays out even more with beer.

Funny thing about that response - if I were to go back to ANZ again, I imagine I'd do what I did the first time, which is drink wine all day. The exchange rates around 20% more than they were back in 2003, but still AUD is .064 and NZD .053, so all the wines still a significant bargain (we laughed at how little we paid 22 years ago and I had several cases shipped back home). And it was uniformly good from producers not sold in US. I can't imagine spending time searching out beer unless it was at some brewpub with amazing lunch grub.

 

[Patman]

Have you been there and had the beer fresh? Or are you just going off getting a can that’s been shipped from the other side of the world? Because every beer I’ve had so far would be the best beer I ever had in Connecticut. Admittedly, I wouldn’t say I have the most developed beer pallet.

I would agree that i wouldn't trust a Kiwi beer that'd had to sit in a shipping container for a month and then in the store shelves after that. I'd even wonder about oxidation just being en route for that long.

Reason german beers hold up longer is that they don't... its more that they're not hop forward but oxidation still gets at them.

Now, I don't have the world's most precious tongue but I respect the time and beer question.

----

I wouldn't mind doing a 6 month vertical on one of the more reliable (quality and frequency) made IPAs. For argument lets say sips of sunshine. Say fresh as it can be, 3 weeks, 6 weeks, 12 weeks, and 24 weeks. Seeing what I learn because while "I know" this to be true about hops I don't see it.

 

[HuskyHawk]

I would agree that i wouldn't trust a Kiwi beer that'd had to sit in a shipping container for a month and then in the store shelves after that. I'd even wonder about oxidation just being en route for that long.

Reason german beers hold up longer is that they don't... its more that they're not hop forward but oxidation still gets at them.

Now, I don't have the world's most precious tongue but I respect the time and beer question.

----

I wouldn't mind doing a 6 month vertical on one of the more reliable (quality and frequency) made IPAs. For argument lets say sips of sunshine. Say fresh as it can be, 3 weeks, 6 weeks, 12 weeks, and 24 weeks. Seeing what I learn because while "I know" this to be true about hops I don't see it.

German beers didn't hold up at all for a long, long time. But it was light stroke. It was the green glass. Several brewers considered pulling out of the U.S. until they figured it out. Now you see cans and the bottles are either brown or in cardboard that blocks light (or both). Heineken is Dutch but it was funny when they shipped fresh beers here finally and fans were like "what is this"? Where's that skunked flavor and smell I like? U.S. Heineken now vs 15 years ago is not even the same beer. Oddly, Rolling Rock has a similar skunked profile, guess why?

That said, unpasteurized modern hoppy IPAs simply can't tolerate much shipping or unrefrigerated time period. Even in cans, which are best. Who knows what environment they are in?

 

[karstenkibbe]

Have you been there and had the beer fresh? Or are you just going off getting a can that’s been shipped from the other side of the world? Because every beer I’ve had so far would be the best beer I ever had in Connecticut. Admittedly, I wouldn’t say I have the most developed beer pallet.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion. I spend way too much of my free time (much to my wife’s chagrin) not only drinking craft beer, but talking to brewers AND hop growers (including the great folks at Eggers, Freestyle, Garston and Clayton - the four most prominent hop growers in NZ). They will tell you with confidence that their hops shine brightest in U.S.-brewed beers. I’ll leave it at that.

 

[Dove]

You should get there in early March, specifically March 2, for the bottle share of the century. Bring some Caius bottles and haze with you, try a few hundred world class beers from other attendees, and buy a can of a TDH DIPA that Zac is brewing for the Japanese market but will sell 1 can/pp to attendees on 3/2.

@karstenkibbe I can't afford to get shnockerred.

 

[Patman]

You are certainly entitled to your opinion. I spend way too much of my free time (much to my wife’s chagrin) not only drinking craft beer, but talking to brewers AND hop growers (including the great folks at Eggers, Freestyle, Garston and Clayton - the four most prominent hop growers in NZ). They will tell you with confidence that their hops shine brightest in U.S.-brewed beers. I’ll leave it at that.

interesting... I think so many seek to push the lines of IPAs so maybe not surprising. I dunno.

 

[Waquoit]

You are certainly entitled to your opinion. I spend way too much of my free time (much to my wife’s chagrin) not only drinking craft beer, but talking to brewers AND hop growers (including the great folks at Eggers, Freestyle, Garston and Clayton - the four most prominent hop growers in NZ). They will tell you with confidence that their hops shine brightest in U.S.-brewed beers. I’ll leave it at that.

I was just wondering if you were basing it on personal knowledge or on the opinion of others. Others have a dog in the fight. But I know a trend. I was here eight years ago and had a great IPA at a craft brewer. It was called “IPA”. I’m back eight years later and the same place has a bunch of different IPAs. Everybody has a great IPA over here now. I stand by my statement, New Zealand beers match if not surpass American beers. You need to find a way to get to New Zealand if you love beer.