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Old 04-11-2013, 19:55   #46
WhiskeyBoarder
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After reading the story behind it, I MUST find this beer! Plus I'm already a huge Lagunitas fan.

Lagunitas Undercover Investigation Shut-Down Ale
The latest post on my blog is a review of the Undercover Ale. I don't wish to whore the site here given my respect for the forum, so please contact me if you wish to have the link and do not already have it.

Nutshell: Undercover is mostly unlike most other Lagunitas brew, other than it shares great value. It is dominated by malts rather than hops. What do I think of that? Going to have to check the blog haha

But seriously, gents, if you like good beers, here is my current recommendation:

American IPA ("AIPA") by Schlafly's. A delicious IPA with a touch of sweetness that is nearly as good as the highly touted beer of which it is similar, Hopslam.

Cheers, gents. And thank you.
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Old 04-13-2013, 01:55   #47
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The latest post on my blog is a review of the Undercover Ale. I don't wish to whore the site here given my respect for the forum, so please contact me if you wish to have the link and do not already have it.
I have a great deal of respect for this site as well, having been here for several years and reading much more than I post. That said, until the mods say we can't, and since this is a craftbeer thread, I'd do it like this:

I just reviewed Sierra Nevada's Ovila Belgian-Style Abbey Quad and Ipswich's India Pale Ale. One of these beers impressed the hell out of me, one did not. Click here to find out which came out on top.

That, my friend, is called pimping. Subtle difference perhaps.
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Old 04-19-2013, 22:57   #48
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In light of current events, the beer of the day should be Sam Adams Boston Lager. Hoist a pint for the boys in blue.
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Old 04-24-2013, 01:01   #49
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Hey y'all, watch this!

No, not the last words of your not-too-bright uncle. Just page pimping.

But for those in or soon to visit the Phoenix area, I found a great tiny craft beer brewery in Scottsdale. They have some stunning brews and even got me to like a beer style I've always hated.

Which style? If interested, check out my review at facebook.com/ThirstyWarrior.
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Old 04-25-2013, 19:33   #50
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The best "job" in the world

I'm a tour guide for Diamond Bear Beer in Little Rock, AR. I get to talk about beer, drink beer, and they pay me in beer. We are having our Foam Fest tomorrow, for $40 you get to taste as many of the 200+ home brewers and craft brewers from around the state.
If you pour a beer and the head raises past the top on the glass, it almost has enough hops.
Now that I'm retired I plan to start brewing. Will be mainly IPA styles. If you come through Little Rock, AR I'm the only Sherlin in the phone book
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Old 04-25-2013, 23:06   #51
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I'm a tour guide for Diamond Bear Beer in Little Rock, AR. I get to talk about beer, drink beer, and they pay me in beer. We are having our Foam Fest tomorrow, for $40 you get to taste as many of the 200+ home brewers and craft brewers from around the state.
If you pour a beer and the head raises past the top on the glass, it almost has enough hops.
Now that I'm retired I plan to start brewing. Will be mainly IPA styles. If you come through Little Rock, AR I'm the only Sherlin in the phone book
I hate you!

Wish I could make it to Foam Fest. Feel free to post the details to my FB. About 20 people might see it, but you never know. I'm sitting outside my hotel in the courtyard with two different IPAs to sample.

Now if someone would just pay me for that.
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Old 04-30-2013, 06:52   #52
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Kim Jong-Ale?

Too bad they don't serve food.

http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/...orea-breweries

'Kim Jong-Ale': North Korea's surprising microbrewery culture explored

For a country that commonly experiences famines, North Korea has a surprisingly large range of beers. And if you're a microbrewing enthusiast, it might be the last country you'd think of visiting on a tasting tour. That's exactly what Josh Thomas did, though, from 30 March to 6 April this year.

Thomas, who lives in Hong Kong and works in advertising as a creative technologist, is a self-confessed lover of all things beer. Though an amateur microbrewer himself, he "might be moving over into the professional realm soon with some mates", he told Wired.co.uk. "I've been brewing beer for a number of years, and love to travel the globe trying beers from different cultures."

North Korea has a robust domestic beer brewing culture, despite its isolation from the outside world. Famously, the regime bought a British brewery in 2000 for £1.5m and had the whole thing shipped and rebuilt on the edges of the capital, Pyongyang. That formerly German-owned Ushers equipment now produces Taedonggang beer, one of the most popular domestic brands (and, like every other enterprise in North Korea, it's state-owned).

The people of North Korea love a beer as much as Europeans or North Americans, but the culture around brewing is obviously different in some unique ways. Thomas' itinerary in his trip took him to many of the same museums, parks and national monuments that every tourist to North Korea sees, but it also featured special stops at some North Koren breweries where he could share knowledge with locals and sample the local suds.

Wired.co.uk spoke to Thomas to get a feel for this less-reported part of North Korean culture:


Wired.co.uk: Why did you want to go?
Thomas: I always had an interest in traveling to out-of-the-way places that are hard to visit, and between my interest in Cold War history, my proximity to the country living in Hong Kong, and a personal interest in Korean culture and history, it seemed like the time to go. While travel to the DPRK [Democratic Republic of Korea, the country's official title] seems extremely exotic to people in the West, it's actually quite common for Hong Kong residents. Two of my close work friends traveled to the DPRK months earlier than I did and they really convinced me that it wasn't as insane as it seemed.


Finally, and most importantly, the blog "American in North Korea" was my final inspiration to go. Joseph Ferris's adventures in the country and his mind-bogglingly beautiful photos showed me a side of the country that I had never read about or seen before, and I organised the trip through Young Pioneer Tours based in Beijing with Joe as our guide.

The itinerary for your trip was designed around your passion for beer -- what did it include?
All itineraries in the DPRK have to be approved by the government so the best you, as a tourist, can do is propose a schedule. It's up to them to approve it. Basically I spent eight months reading every piece of literature ever written about North Korea. I worked with Joe to visit all three major breweries in the country: The Paradise Microbrewery, the Yanggakdo Hotel Microbrewery, and the Taedonggang National Brewery. Obviously, this wasn't a full trip's worth of sites, so we filled the gaps with many "normal" tourist attractions like museums and national monuments, and even other "off the beaten path" attractions like the "Concrete Wall Observation Post", where you look into South Korea through binoculars.



What were the immediate characteristics of North Korean beer that you noticed?
It certainly isn't a light lager like OB or Hite, beer popular in South Korea! Light lagers, like OB, Hite, Budweiser, Coors, or Miller are popular in many countries around the world, but certainly barely count as beer in my opinion. Great on a hot day when you need something light to drink, but not big on taste. Because electricity is in short supply in North Korea, the refrigeration required for lagers is simply impossible, so the majority of beers we drank were either ales or "steam beers".


Steam beer is a style invented (ironically) in the United States -- the only beer style to originate from the US -- during the California Gold Rush. Based on German-style lagers, but fermented at ale temperatures, it was a popular drink created out of necessity in locations where refrigeration is impossible. It seems the North Koreans discovered this style by accident, and their beer is very similar to the American beer brand Anchor Steam. Darker, fuller-bodied, hoppier, and delicious, it was hands down better than South Korean beer!

Obviously we tried many different beers in the country, ranging from steam beers, to oatmeal stouts, to chocolate porters and pale ales, so its hard to generalise, but I'd have to say the average beer is a steam beer. The only real difference between the steam beers I had in the DPRK and the steam beers in the US was that they seem to have a hard time cleaning their tanks, I assume because of the difficulty of getting certain chemicals into the country because of the trade embargo. Certain steam beers tasted a bit of tanks that needed to be cleaned, and imparted a bit more metallic taste as a consequence. However, all in all, they were delicious beers.

What kinds of ingredients are they restricted to?
Beer is one of the simplest things to make in the entire world. If you can make porridge, you can make beer. If you can make congee, you can make beer. If you can make bread, you can make beer. The North Koreans are incredibly clever at making do with very little, and they honestly were able to make more interesting beers than most other countries of the world. Their beers were a little short on hops, and I could explain that as they perhaps are having a hard time importing or growing them. However, I find it much more likely that, in a climate that naturally grows the hop plant, the lack of hops is more easily explained by palate of Koreans. They simply don't like beers as hoppy as the craft beers I brew and drink.

What kind of experimentation do North Korean breweries resort to when there are ingredient shortages? Or electricity shortages?
None of the ingredients required for beer seemed to be in short supply. Famine aside, beer seemed to be quite readily available. Even when driving around the street you would notice people drinking local beer, indicating that the food shortages don't seem to limit the beer production much in the country.


However, because of the electricity cuts, they seem to stick with steam beers and ales as they do not require refrigeration. Because of the embargo, asphalt and petrol seems to be hard to come by, leading to it being very hard (if not impossible) for beer to be shipped around the country. As a result, it is a country of microbreweries. The hotel makes their own beer. The bowling alley makes their own beer. The restaurants make their own beer. The national Taedonggang beer was certainly available throughout the entire country, but any location with sufficient space for a microbrewery, they seemed to build one in order to offset any supply chain inefficencies.

What was the best beer you tasted?

Continued on the magazine's web site...
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Old 05-02-2013, 23:55   #53
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Best dam hefeweizen in the world

Over the past 25 plus years I've sampled beer in at least 20 countries (probably forgot a few) and nearly twice as many U.S. states. I appreciate the different styles on their own merits.

I was stunned today when I discovered the best hefeweizen I've ever had in my life. I was gobsmacked when I realized where I was.

http://on.fb.me/11ZXj25
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Old 05-08-2013, 06:37   #54
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I'm a big fan of craft beers and miss my days in Austin, TX when we would make the pub crawl and sample the myriad varieties made there. I live in SW Virginia now and there is a pretty good craft brewery here in Abingdon, VA called Wolf Hills Brewery.

www.wolfhillsbrewing.com

Certainly not a fancy place, it's housed in an old ice house and has a bar, picnic tables and a small band stand. The generally serve brats and such so the food is not the draw. They have numerous beers (usually 15-20) on tap and have one and two liter "growlers" so you can take home a big container of your favorite.
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Old 05-08-2013, 06:40   #55
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Sam Adams Founder Helps Craft Brewers Grow Via Microloans

Sam Adams Founder Helps Craft Brewers Grow Via Microloans

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Boston Beer Company founder Jim Koch – maker of Samuel Adams – launched a program called Brewing the American Dream in 2008, which aims to help small business owners grow their businesses in the food, beverage and hospitality industries. The program offers mentorship as well as microloans, for which the interest rate depends on both the size of the loan and the borrower’s history, but according to the company are competitive with standard loan rates.

Follow the link for the story...

http://fxn.ws/12sDwpo
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Old 05-10-2013, 07:07   #56
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Top Ten Baaseball Stadiums for Craft Beer...

Nice article for all of us baseball and beer fans...

Top 10 Stadiums for craft beer
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Old 05-12-2013, 01:04   #57
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Nice article for all of us baseball and beer fans...

Top 10 Stadiums for craft beer
I was patiently going through the slide show while quietly seething, ready to rip, not you, but the article to shreds. I was seeing so many east coast fields. Ok, I haven't been to them. Then San Diego popped up, great beer city, but Mission Brewing (fantastic and close to the field) hasn't gained a spot inside the stadium. Hey, if you go to San Diego, and you love craft beer, I command you to visit Mission Brewing!

However, Number 1 was my cherished Safeco Field in Seattle. Ok, when it comes to overlooking Seattle craft beer I'm like Sean Hannity when MSNBC misses an Obama gaff. Yep, lots of great beer in Safeco but two of the best things were missing. Literally across the street from Safeco Field is Pyramid Brewing. You can stop there (trust me, the locals know so get there at least 3 hours early for a weekend game) to quaff and masticate before the game and save $$.

Also missing in the article is that Schooner Exact, from the SoDo district, has won a spot at Safeco. SoDo is Seattle slang for the neighborhood South of the now destroyed King Dome. Formerly an industrial area, SoDo, along with Georgetown, are trying to transform themselves.

Ok, the 3rd thing. The Silver Cloud hotel is at the same intersection as Safeco and Pyramid. Everyone should know slumber is the better part of inebriated valor.

Google Map it. Everything is in the NW quadrant of the map from the field.
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Old 07-08-2013, 19:48   #58
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I was patiently going through the slide show while quietly seething, ready to rip, not you, but the article to shreds. I was seeing so many east coast fields. Ok, I haven't been to them. Then San Diego popped up, great beer city, but Mission Brewing (fantastic and close to the field) hasn't gained a spot inside the stadium. Hey, if you go to San Diego, and you love craft beer, I command you to visit Mission Brewing!

However, Number 1 was my cherished Safeco Field in Seattle. Ok, when it comes to overlooking Seattle craft beer I'm like Sean Hannity when MSNBC misses an Obama gaff. Yep, lots of great beer in Safeco but two of the best things were missing. Literally across the street from Safeco Field is Pyramid Brewing. You can stop there (trust me, the locals know so get there at least 3 hours early for a weekend game) to quaff and masticate before the game and save $$.

Also missing in the article is that Schooner Exact, from the SoDo district, has won a spot at Safeco. SoDo is Seattle slang for the neighborhood South of the now destroyed King Dome. Formerly an industrial area, SoDo, along with Georgetown, are trying to transform themselves.

Ok, the 3rd thing. The Silver Cloud hotel is at the same intersection as Safeco and Pyramid. Everyone should know slumber is the better part of inebriated valor.

Google Map it. Everything is in the NW quadrant of the map from the field.
Triple A Columbus Clippers carries Columbus Brewing company's staples.. Columbus IPA which is not distributed heavily but is a really solid IPA and they also carry seasonals...its really fun and the ticket is inexpensive... the only downfall is its served in plastic cups
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Old 07-11-2013, 14:41   #59
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Triple A Columbus Clippers carries Columbus Brewing company's staples.. Columbus IPA which is not distributed heavily but is a really solid IPA and they also carry seasonals...its really fun and the ticket is inexpensive... the only downfall is its served in plastic cups
Just one more reason to like minor league ball. Which reminds me, I need to go to a Tacoma Rainiers game and see what they're serving.
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Old 07-15-2013, 12:38   #60
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Just one more reason to like minor league ball. Which reminds me, I need to go to a Tacoma Rainiers game and see what they're serving.
I don't want to violate any QP rules or anything but since you are on the west coast if you ever want to trade let me know (if permissible) ....I am always trying to get my hands on Pliny both the elder and younger....we can not get it here.

Curious if you get any Three Floyd's out that way because we do and they have some good brews
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