trimandson Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Water and tea innit, still sober Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reality Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Tea for me. Though plenty of wine tomorrow I should imagine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterms Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 In case anyone hasn't noticed, Thresher and other parts of that chain are having a closing down sale, 50% off wine. Got some Barolo, Pouilly Fume, Pouilly Fuisse, and Sancerre, which I would normally have walked straight past. Must keep them for special occasions. But the poor buggers in the shop have no idea if they will have a job in a week's time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rendelc Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Im having a Desperado! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thecraft Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Moving to the US has turned me into a right beer snob...........and i love it. That's perhaps because the US doesn't have a CAMRA and thus has a craft brewing industry that's willing to try new stuff... eh? CAMRA came about to support small breweries from being overrun by the large corporates - fail to see the connection here... CAMRA's definition of real ale is fundamentally conservative and retrograde with the result that (I've been told by numerous British expats in the craft sections at the local beer emporia) there isn't much difference between one real IPA and another. The US craft brewing industry has evolved to where the various craft IPAs on tap at a pub that has multiple choices in that area or at a off-license will have noticeably different flavor profiles, abv's, etc., thus making it more likely that one of them is just right for one's tastes (and also making more to be snobbish about... e.g. you can say "Dogfish Head overhops all their beers and I never drink them"). Saving the British craft brewing industry is laudable. The US missed its chance with Prohibition (only the megabreweries survived, and then with the consolidation after WWII only a few survived into the 80s), but the blessing of that episode was that when craft brewing re-emerged in the 80s (and then grew like crazy in the 90s before shaking itself out in the early 00s) it was largely unshackled from the past. A strong case can be made that the USA (at least in the states that don't outlaw beer with more than 5% abv) is the best place in the world to be a beer lover, despite the prevalence of Bud, Miller, and Coors. The site of a local beer emporium (and their current flyer) I can see where you are coming from but I don't think CAMRA is restrictive in the way you think. For example they put pressure to bring in legislation allowing landlords in brewery owned houses to stock at least beer from another brewery as a guest beer. There were no conditions as to the nature of this beer, it didn't have to meet any CAMRA standards or anything it just had to be brewed by a different brewer. (This has since been repealed) Obviously their festivals will stock beer that meets their definition, the main feature of which is that secondary fermentation takes place in the container the beer is dispensed in. I also think it isn't true that one IPA tastes like another!! Not at all to me, some I love, some I hate!!! I think there is more chance that british microbrewers just choose to produce traditional beer! Which is great Not knocking the US producers at all and its great they are doing well, but for me the UK & Ireland, Germany Belgium and Czech Rep possibly are the big countries for diverse beer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted November 14, 2009 VT Supporter Share Posted November 14, 2009 Picked up a bit of Entire Butt Bottle Conditioned English Porter by Salopian Brewery, Shrewsbury. Haven't poured it yet... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vojskovoda Posted November 14, 2009 Share Posted November 14, 2009 Drinking silly amounts of Coca-Cola. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drat01 Posted November 15, 2009 Share Posted November 15, 2009 If ever "upt north" or in North Derbyshire try this - its bloody lovely .... :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P3te Posted November 15, 2009 Share Posted November 15, 2009 finlandia and coke zero not the most masculine combo ever Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xela Posted November 15, 2009 Share Posted November 15, 2009 Hobgoblin ale. This stuff is the bollocks. Did 4 bottles of speckled hen last night that's a nice drop too. Hobgoblin is nice but I prefer Fursty Ferrett. Fuller's Honeydew is good as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xela Posted November 15, 2009 Share Posted November 15, 2009 Last night... it was Staropramen, whatever they serve on the German Market (wasn't the wheat beer but the normal lager) and JD and cokes when i was in Flares! Feel rough now! :-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom_Wren Posted November 17, 2009 Share Posted November 17, 2009 For Levi im drinking Sam Adams Boston lager. Missus drinking blue moon. Till she tried the Sam, now she "likes yours better". Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bickster Posted November 17, 2009 Moderator Share Posted November 17, 2009 Bottle of red tonight a 2006 Bordeaux Lurton La Chapelle, quite pleasant realy, on offer in M&S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villaajax Posted November 17, 2009 Share Posted November 17, 2009 I think a nice cup of milk is in order Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowychap Posted November 17, 2009 Share Posted November 17, 2009 Booze: Red booze (wine and port). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted November 17, 2009 VT Supporter Share Posted November 17, 2009 For Levi im drinking Sam Adams Boston lager. Missus drinking blue moon. Till she tried the Sam, now she "likes yours better". Cheers. (never really got into Blue Moon... though semi-craft brews from mainstream brewers aren't my thing, the whole Belgian-style bit isn't to my liking (I haven't found a Belgian beer that wasn't at least somewhat overrated)) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom_Wren Posted November 17, 2009 Share Posted November 17, 2009 For Levi im drinking Sam Adams Boston lager. Missus drinking blue moon. Till she tried the Sam, now she "likes yours better". Cheers. (never really got into Blue Moon... though semi-craft brews from mainstream brewers aren't my thing, the whole Belgian-style bit isn't to my liking (I haven't found a Belgian beer that wasn't at least somewhat overrated)) Aye blue moon is shite. But i do like the Sam, i was drinking it ooop north earlier in the summer. Lovely. I need to start drinking it more. Any other Sam brews worth trying Levi? I know they do a few. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted November 17, 2009 VT Supporter Share Posted November 17, 2009 Out of what I've had (I'm actually visiting beeradvocate for the list of what they make... guess that's what having so much of the stuff will do to you )... * Black Lager (a fairly rare American example of a Schwarzbier): definitely recommend (caveat: I also like Michelob Amber Bock, which this is fairly similar to... it's a bit of a mindfuck drinking something that's about as dark as Guinness yet tastes nothing like Guinness... that's a good thing in my book... I thankfully grew out of my Guinness phase at university) * Boston Ale (the closest the US has come, in my experience, to cloning Bass): recommended... it's also available under various restaurant brands (e.g. Uno's, Piccadilly Pub) * Holiday Porter: one of the only reasons I look forward to the coming weeks * Sam Adams Light: it's a travesty, but when you get past that, it's actually pretty good (it's more light in the low-alcohol sense than the low-cal sense, but that just means you can drink more!) * Octoberfest: varies from year to year... this year's is good * Old Fezziwig Ale: not usually a fan of the cinnamon/nutmeg/pine-needle seasoned beers that come out this time of the year (the Harpoon Winter Warmer is probably the single biggest reason I avoid that brewery... put a bit of IPA into the water your Christmas tree sits in and you've basically made Harpoon Winter Warmer), but this one lays off on the pine needles. * Scotch Ale: when I'm in the mood for this, it's good * Summer Ale: as a true New Englander, I prefer winter to summer... but this is the only redeeming feature of summer (I can get lovely young ladies walking around in not that much in the spring, thank you very much)... a few years ago the owner of a restaurant that a friend of a friend worked at discovered that he had a keg of this that was close to going bad, so he ended up with a free keg. I'll never forget the odyssey that night of driving a couple of hundred miles hunting for a tap. The beer is that good. * White Ale: very good Belgian-style witbier... better than Hoegaarden * Winter Lager: highly recommended * Brown Ale: meh... but I'm not a fan of the style... I'm told by connoisseurs of the style that it's not outstanding * Cream Stout: meh... but as above I'm not really into stouts... but it's considered one of the best stouts in America, if not the world * Pale Ale: I know I've had it (it's normally part of the Brewmaster's sampler pack), but I can't recall anything about it (probably because it's often the sixth or so out of the sampler) * Cherry Wheat: avoid, unless you have a vagina * Cranberry Lambic: I end up getting this every year because it's always part of the winter sampler 12-packs... avoid, even if you have a vagina Of the limited edition beers, well, the only one I've had is the 2005 Imperial Pilsner... my Christmas bonus that year from the owner of a liquor store I was managing was: * a gallon of vodka * magnum of Moet et Chandon Rose * 4 cases of the Imperial Pilsner (out of only 5000 produced) Of course I drank all four cases in about a month instead of cellaring them (which it apparently does very well). The Alstrom Brothers"] Amazing head retention even after you take several sips ... the lace pretty much clings all the way down the glass too. Completely orange-amber hazed color, this is most likely from the boat load of hops used in this brew. Very floral, tad orangey with other mild citric tones ... faintly pine-like with an herbal backing, all from the hops. Mild and clean solvent alcohol. Creamy smoothness is sublime in the full body, big hop presence of bitterness and flavor. Layers of pungent oil; soft herbal, clean citric, tobacco, dull pine. Maltiness drops in a foundation of sweet and toasted character ... but this is simply overshadowed by the massive hop onslaught. A big two thumbs up to the Boston Beer Co. for brewing this beer ... I'd love to this or similar every year. Sometimes the more hops the better. Paired this with some sharp goat cheddar. === Pours a crazy chill-hazed opaque burnt orange colored brew, crowned with a milky white head that settles to creamy lace with plenty of stick and retention thanks to all of the hops in this brew. Some clarity comes with warmth on this one. The small amount of dregs were avoided and left in the bottle. Big fresh and spicy hop aroma, floral bouquet, and a sneaky alcohol waiting to kick my ass. Oh man! The mouthfeel on this one is so damn smooth and creamy, and a bit chewy. Full-bodied, with an even sugary feel. Lively carbonation, that's crisp for about half a second. Blissful on the palate! Alcohol spice is the first to come to play, followed by some heat, then sweet bready malts. Juicy flavors of ripe citrus fruits. Wrapped around all of this is a massive profile of aggressive hops. It's all there: leafy, oily, resiny, coarse, a bit piney, floral, herbal, grapefruit rind, salty, with some earth and wood under the coarseness, and a faint dot of spearmint. Crazy. 110IBU from Hallertau Mittelfrueh? A hop that's around 3% alpha acid? A reckless use of hops indeed! Let's add pithy and grassy, too. Hops are so damn complex I might either faint or start trippin'. A toasty caramel also emerges as the beer warms and the spicy alcohol and heat also picks up the pace. Finishes with a drying coat of dusty hop tannins on the palate and a slight burnt hop and ashy resinous linger, and some crackery flavors. Leaves the palate bone-dry and wanting more. I paid $2.99 for the bottle, making it the bargain beer of 2005 for me! What an amazing beer, and a Pilsner, oddly balanced and highly drinkable, and a ballsy release for Boston Beer Co. that succeeded, big-time. And, kudos to Jim Koch for recognizing that hops will deteriorate, and slapping this beer with a very short lifespan to ensure maximum enjoyment with consumers. Though I'm within the month, all bottles had up to this point have been pretty close, though with this one I'm noting an increase of heat and more hop tannins. Hop-wise, the beer peaked when it was released. And the point of this beer was its fresh use of hops - not to age it as it's big and "Imperial." Drink it now, before your experience is not as intended. The greatest beer I've ever had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted November 17, 2009 VT Supporter Share Posted November 17, 2009 I'd definitely get the winter sampler pack, even if you have to give the Cranberry Lambic to your dog when he misbehaves. If you're up in the area and driving back south, I'd suggest stocking up on Berkshire Brewing Company beers (since they're only legally available in Massachusetts, Vermont, and Connecticut)... I know people who will drive a few hundred miles to stock up on BBC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom_Wren Posted November 18, 2009 Share Posted November 18, 2009 Kin hell Levi, Nice one! i will pop down the outdoor and see what i can do our kid! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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