Hooray beer!

[SirSmUgly]

21 hours ago, Zimbra said:

I miss Lagunitas' Brown Shugga. That was a quality beer that drank real smooth for 10%ABV.

I had three of those in one sitting once without paying attention to the ABV. Drunk and feeling like I've eaten two whole brown sugar pound cakes was no way to live. I never had another one after that.

Too bad because it's an objectively delicious beer. I did that to myself by being dumb. 

[Zimbra]

Yeah, I did the same the first time I found it on tap.  It's a one hitter quitter for sure.  I really wish I would have saved a bottle because I bet it tastes amazing aged a few years.

I am drinking a New Glarus Moon Man IPA this evening, which is my favorite of their beers.

Edited January 25 by Zimbra

[Technico Support]

On 1/23/2025 at 4:56 PM, Zimbra said:

Won't do you much good if you're not in Wisconsin, but New Glarus is apparently doing an imperial pilsner as one of their limited beers this spring.

I miss Lagunitas' Brown Shugga. That was a quality beer that drank real smooth for 10%ABV.

Hell yeah, Brown Shugga was awesome.  Lagunitas definitely suffered the same fate as craft brewers like Magic Hat, where they were bought and the new owner decided to drastically cut their offerings.  All I can ever find by Lagunitas now (not counting their NA offerings) is their IPA and Little Sumthin Sumthin (spelling might be off).  Both are very good but I miss their variety.

I drank my Heavy Seas Loose Cannon while grilling dinner, eating dinner, and watching tv.  It was good but not a standout beer.  Inoffensive but not something you’ll remember.  But not something you’ll regret, either.  Good but not great.

[Curt McGirt]

In my battle with the bottle I discovered that the Heikeken NA tastes just like the original, if anyone's interested. I hate having to pay that much for NA beer though -- and probably shouldn't indulge that vice at all. There's a good Michelob, too, can't remember what kind. 

[Technico Support]

As a goof, I want to suck down a few NA beers at lunch, maybe spill some on me, go to a meeting with really obvious beer breath, get reported to HR for drinking at work, reveal that it's NA, and force the company to create a non-NA beer policy.

[Zimbra]

I always hated the Heineken NA commercial where the guy opens one at the end of a business meeting and everybody gives him a look until he reveals it's non-alcoholic.  I would be infinitely more weirded out by that than if they just cracked a regular beer (which would also be weird).

This week's beer store haul are Ommegang Hennepin and Deschutes Obsidian.

[Curt McGirt]

Heh. Turns out the Michelob I liked was Amber Max -- and it's actually 4%. Not exactly NA. And god, look what I found in that search! 

Spoiler

Has anybody tried any of those?! Ridiculous. 

[Technico Support]

1 hour ago, Curt McGirt said:

Heh. Turns out the Michelob I liked was Amber Max -- and it's actually 4%. Not exactly NA. And god, look what I found in that search! 

  Hide contents

Has anybody tried any of those?! Ridiculous. 

Looool WTF

In my own (limited) experience, once beers get into the teens, there’s an unpleasant alcohol flavor and burn that’s not my thing, beer-wise.  At that rate, I’m going straight to hard liquor with bourbon and Coke Zero, vodka or tequila and tonic, or rum and coke (or root beer, tasty af).  
 

Bonus recipe: Gosling’s rum, root beer, vanilla ice cream, thank me later.

Edited January 29 by Technico Support

[Curt McGirt]

Dairy with liquor defeats the purpose of the liquor though haha

I've gotta say, I have the worst taste in alcohol. Vodka, 40s. But I appreciate something when it really is good... it's just I make do with what isn't. Don't be me, folks.

[Nice Guy Eddie]

I've all but stopped drinking. I haven't had a drink since December 14th @ Streetlight Manifesto, but I'm going have to make an exception for this, the Edgar Allan Poe themed speakeasy.

https://www.edgarallanpoebar.com/tickets

[NikoBaltimore]

So I'm happy there's a touring EAP speakeasy and everything but excuse me while I post the following:

Spoiler

WHY THE FUCK IS THERE NOT A POE SPEAKEASY IN BALTIMORE WHERE HE ACTUALLY LIVED AND DIED????!!!!!!

*dusts off arms and shoulders*  Ah, much better.  I will say though I'll gladly do the DC one and get everybody I can to join.

I still need to post on here or Discord about my beer-related stuff but I need a slow day at work and enough caffeine to get that going.

Edited January 29 by NikoBaltimore

[Curt McGirt]

They're touring everywhere for three straight months. I wonder if it'll just land in B-more after that. 

[Technico Support]

Since@Curt McGirt mentioned vodka, I feel compelled to share this great post that completely turned me off to Tito's and other high-end vodkas.  TL;DR: it's all bullshit salesmanship.  Vodka is just water and ethanol and everyone making vodka in the US gets their ethanol from the same handful of places.  There's no distillation or fermentation required.  "Craft" and "handmade" are terms with no legal backing.  Producers like Tito's might add some steps to the process, like charcoal filtering, in order to boost their "craft" claims, but nothing makes much of an appreciable difference. 

Quote

Not surprisingly, Tito's doesn't give tours. That's because they don't have grain silos, grain mills, mash cookers, fermenters, and the other trappings of a real from-scratch distillery.

Now I'm not buying bottom shelf bathtub vodka sold in plastic bottles like Kamchatka, just in case, but I'm definitely not buying Ketel, Grey Goose, Tito's, etc.  I'll stick with middle of the road Svedka or New Amsterdam, depending on which is on sale when I'm buying.

Edited January 29 by Technico Support

[Curt McGirt]

Svedka is my baseline, but I drop to Skol time and time again, out of price. Let's hope that's over now. 

[Technico Support]

I am having a Svedka and diet tonic, with a splash of Nellie & Joe’s key lime juice, right now.

Don’t even get me started on the one good diet tonic I found vs the multiple shitty ones.

[driver]

On 1/29/2025 at 3:57 PM, Curt McGirt said:

Svedka is my baseline, but I drop to Skol time and time again, out of price. Let's hope that's over now. 

Tito's was my go to and Smirnoff 100 proof was a now and then deal. Had a family member who existed on Dark Eyes.

[gatling]

On 1/21/2025 at 10:39 AM, Curt McGirt said:

Oooo, you guys just reminded me of Young's Double Chocolate Stout. *droooooool*

This is one my top five favorite beers!  I actually prefer the Samuel Smith Organic Chocolate Stout by just a slim margin.  Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout is also in the top five with these two.  I'd love to try the fruit beers from Samuel Smith, but haven't seen them around me.  The Taddy Porter and Nut Brown Ale are both very good, too.  Founders Rubaeus is also in my top five, and I'd love to find their Hazelnut Fudge Imperial Stout to try.  The most unique stout I've had was from Odd Side Ales, a Mayan Mocha Stout.  "Inspired by Mexican hot chocolate. It is carefully blended with Dutch chocolate coffee, cinnamon, nutmeg, and habaneros which will leave you with the perfect balance of chocolate and heat." 

[Curt McGirt]

Thinking of vodka made me think of Stoli (which I love) made me think of Stoli 100 (the blue label) made me think of my old holiday tradition of Jager and Rumple Minze (which is I guess the proper spelling). I LOVED that shit. 

[Technico Support]

I bought the old faithful Lagunitas IPA for the weekend.  I was eyeballing a local Baltimore coffee porter but I wasn’t in a porter mood.  Next weekend for that one, probably.

[Technico Support]

Followup: I got the Peabody Heights Trashbuster Coffee Porter over the weekend and it was very good.  As mentioned, I'm typically not a porter guy due to some weird aftertaste issues, but this was delicious!

[NikoBaltimore]

I fucking love everything about Peabody.  The place is incredible, they have a Dugout section which is a big ol' arcade that's relatively cheap to get into and I can't recall a beer that was less than pretty good.  Heck, we were up there two days ago and if not for the snow my wife would be going back tomorrow.  Oh, and the Trashbuster is indeed delicious.

Since I live in Harford County however Peabody is worth the drive yet there's a few spots around me.  Slate and Falling Branch are fine but inconsistent with beer quality.  Double Groove is a little bit better and they have records to play while at the bar but the clientele is not a bunch we like to hang with for too long.  The best one around is Independent which always has some damn good beers and everything else is aces to boot.  Oh, and maybe it was due to some convincing it was Baltimore Sun's best MD brewery last year which is wild since they're only a few minutes from me.  I try to not go to these places often due to money but considering how dull the county was before they have stepped up.

Edited February 10 by NikoBaltimore

[Ramo2653]

My go to beer without having to think about it is going to be either a Miller High Life or a Hamms and Hamms became an option since there's a few bars in my neighborhood that will sell cans or taps of Hamms for $2 and who am I to pass up a deal?

With that said, I love craft beers with sours being my favorite but I know I can't drink them all night.

There's also 3 or 4 craft breweries in the neighborhood that are super close which are nice to sample.

I had a really good Pilsner from Dovetail brewery last night after bowling at our sponsor bar. Then I followed that up with a Bell's Best Brown Ale since they had that on tap too.

Notable beers I've had in the last year include: A really good sour beer at Peachbarn Brewery in Sister Bay, WI, a really good Stout at Ore Dock Brewing in Marquette, MI and a bunch of really good beers at Two Fathoms Brewing in Winona, MN. They also had some really good canned teas that were infused with THC and CBD. Oh and on a drive back from Iowa, I made a detour to New Glarus Brewery since it wasn't that far out of the way coming back and they had some cool stuff available in their store. They had some aged bottles of their Scotch Ale and their Sour Brown Ale so I got a few 4 packs. I also picked up a few 4 packs of their regular Sour Brown Ale which is called Enigma which they don't release too often since it's used to balance our their fruit beers from season to season. 

One of the places I bowl at offers mini pitchers and since my other teammates on my Wednesday team don't drink beer I'll usually get one of those and be set for the night. I usually just get their rotating New Glarus tap and lately it's been Cabin Fever which is a Maibock.

As far as harder booze goes, I usually stick with Titos or New Amsterdam for vodka because price wise it's about the same around me. The only vodka I remember being interesting was one that was aged in used bourbon barrels. I've got some thoughts on bourbon and rye but that's probably for another thread.

[Zimbra]

8 hours ago, Ramo2653 said:

I also picked up a few 4 packs of their regular Sour Brown Ale which is called Enigma which they don't release too often since it's used to balance our their fruit beers from season to season. 

The first time I had Enigma I just kinda skimmed the label and didn't realize that it was a sour.  That was a really unpleasant surprise when I took my first swig.

Also I think I'm coming down to Milwaukee for Collision next month and might need some bar recommendations.

[Technico Support]

15 hours ago, Ramo2653 said:

I usually stick with Titos or New Amsterdam for vodka because price wise it's about the same around me.

That's wild, because Tito's is like $10 more than New Amsterdam where I am.

[Ramo2653]

8 hours ago, Zimbra said:

The first time I had Enigma I just kinda skimmed the label and didn't realize that it was a sour.  That was a really unpleasant surprise when I took my first swig.

Also I think I'm coming down to Milwaukee for Collision next month and might need some bar recommendations.

I assume you'll be sticking to downtown? I've got some picks for downtown but I don't hang out there too much since I work downtown when I go into the office so I usually just go back home (plus I've aged out enough that any coworkers around my age have families they need to get back to and anyone younger has been strictly working from home plus I don't even know if I'd want to hang out with younger coworkers). 

With that said, I love The Swinging Door and the 3rd Street Market Hall is converted from the old Grand Ave. Mall so it's a big bar in the middle with food stalls surrounding it and games are around there too. Anything in the Deer District will be good too and Old World 3rd Street has tons of bars/restaurants.

I was thinking about going to Collision depending on the ticket prices.

If you're not committed to downtown, there's plenty of cool places around since pretty much every neighborhood has fun pockets of places. I can always go in depth about my picks based on neighborhood and what vibe you're looking for.

1 hour ago, Technico Support said:

That's wild, because Tito's is like $10 more than New Amsterdam where I am.

I'd have to check recent pricing since to be fair I haven't purchased vodka in years since I won a booze cart from a raffle at a bowling tournament. And this was the cart: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp_Ey8uOXcp/