Beer in the new era

I'm in LA every weekend, but that's on the wrong side of town for me.

Lots of Backwoods Bastard at the south loop Binnys, Chicagoans! Only 80-some bucks a case.

Am I weird for hating Scotch Ales?

I'm always amused when I read reviews of barrel aged beers, and folks exclaim "this is great, but only if you like bourbon!" or "man, this beer is so hot, the bourbon is overpowering!", each declarations that scan as if the reviewers have never had a sip of bourbon in their life. Even BCBS is about 13-15%abv, which is nothing compared to even weak whiskey.

they've got all these craft beers now. have you seen this? i was in the 7/11 the other day and they had all these "craft beers". wanna know what i think about carft beers?

just my $0.02

i'm not a big scotch ale fan

yeah scotch ales are very rarely my thing either

sometimes I enjoy them, been a while since I had one though. Bad ones are gross and can taste syrupy

don't talk to me about scotch whisky! one time i drank so much scotch whisky, i threw up everywhere!

just my $0.02

Yeah I'm see Backwoods everywhere this year. People I talk to said they got a LOT more than last year. Still I expect it will be gone in a couple of weeks, except for those charging like 18 a 4 pack.

A - poured thick and almost oily. Murky amber with no head even though I poured hard. Thick (like cankle thick) legs...
S - Bourbon. Sweet, syrupy malt behind, but bourbon all up in front
T - Holy... F($*&@^... Crap.... Just yes. Yes to every boozy vibrant bourbony note that sings over the top of a fantastic deep caramel malt backbone like Mark Knopfler's '61 strat over John Illsley's baseline. In just under 6 minutes time I will be putting this on repeat.
M - Thick, rich, just f#*(@($ awesome. Like feltching god

Bourbon County Stout prices:

4-pack BCBS: $26.99
Prop: $26.99
Vanilla Rye: $26.99
Coffee (single bottles) $6.99
Barleywine (single bottles): $6.99

$7 or so for the reg. bottles seems in line, but $27 a bomber? That's pricey.

Yeah those bomber prices are bullshit

Enjoyed the 2xRye from Southern Tier. I'm becoming a big fan of rye in beer. Not nearly as heavy or cloying as one might expect given the high ABV.

xp Gouging getting pretty obv now.

Dunno, if I actually get those prices it seems reasonable. Problem will be the corner stores charging 50, 75, and beyond for the bombers. 30-40 for regular.

I'm going to be in Ohio when it is released, I'm not expecting to get any anyway.

*rural-ass Ohio, that is

I think BCBCS is the real winner here imho

1-month-old Sierra Nevada Celebration ON SALE for $9 per six at my grocery store? Hell yes.

ohh yeah was just looking for that the other day

also why do all the Plaid Pantries in Portland have Ballast Point 6-packs for under $10?

Green Flash acquires Alpine

Wow apparently my local beer store treats me right, celebration 6 packs are $8 and 12s are $12 all day every day.

Chicago sucks that way,

Green Flash acquires Alpine

― nickn, Tuesday, November 11, 2014 8:48 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

that ba thread is very lol

ba in general is pretty lol except when it's so annoying

though i will say i kind of appreciate the reference pages on the site that talk about specific beer styles http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/style/

celebration ale is out!

hey anyone try allagash confluence? it's pretty pricy and i don't like spending a lot of money but i'm headed home to cleveland for the holidays and want to share some interesting stuff w/ my brother. we've both been on a funky/sour kick recently and i don't know if confluence is a sour but i hear it is very funky and delicious

No, but I did have their Coolship Resurgam and it was a fantastic geuze. Would love to see how it performs in a blind taste test with the Belgians.

yeah i haven't had confluence either, but it's probably excellent. 750ml is just a tough format sometimes. anything allagash puts in a corked 375ml should be purchased without questioning.

this is kind of interesting: http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2014/11/14/state-investigating-pay-play-allegations-massachusetts-beer-industry/o4m3VbNmSVw8CdGzVXFoyJ/story.html

"Massachusetts regulators have launched an investigation into whether beer distributors, brewers, and retailers are violating state law by agreeing to promote certain beers at bars and liquor stores in exchange for payments that freeze out competitors.

Investigators for the state Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission said they have issued subpoenas to a number of breweries, beer distributors, and retailers for records to determine whether they are paying for, or demanding payments for, access to bar taps in pubs and restaurants and shelf space at stores.

The practice, known as pay-to-play, is illegal under state and federal liquor control laws, primarily to keep large national breweries from dominating beer markets. Though dating to the end of Prohibition, small breweries say the laws are especially relevant today because the surging popularity of craft beer has little and big companies alike competing for limited space at retailers."

been a common allegation in chicago for a while afaik

1-month-old Sierra Nevada Celebration ON SALE for $9 per six at my grocery store? Hell yes.

― dan m, Tuesday, November 11, 2014 7:04 PM (3 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Bought two six packs yesterday for $7.99 each. Brewed October 14, 2014

Saw 12-packs in the supermarket today for $13.99. It's normally priced like the PA and Torpedo around here.

FOBAB day! FOBAB day! FOBAB day!

Program for this year:

http://i.imgur.com/KwGFC0f.jpg

The Side Projects, GI Prop/Vanilla Rye, BA Abraxas will probably all kick before I get through the line.

jeff how was it?

drinking a year-old allagash merveilleux which is top notch, seriously need to start hoarding their one-offs (and a second job to afford doing so).

Heard FOBAB was nuts this year.

Did hear, specifically, that this year's Proprietors was great, the regular BCS was great, and that the Vanille Rye probably needs 6-months to take off the sweetness,

Hey people who know about these things, how does beer aging work? If the bottle is sealed, what is going on and how? And why?

http://draftmag.com/cellar/required-reading-the-chemistry-of-beer-aging/

a bit of this is beyond me but it's interesting

OK, that's cool

http://draftmag.com/new/wp-content/uploads/aging.jpg

That is cool, but that's decades before the advent of these super high ABV barrel aged stouts. Those are the ones people like to age, right? Not the sort of beer people were drinking (and aging? as opposed to just letting it get old?) in 1977. I always thought alcohol in essence served as a preservative. I know some people swear things like barrel aged stouts change radically over the years. Some folks say it is subtle. Others note that other flavoring agents - vanilla, or cocoa, or coffee - fade. I have no idea/opinion.

i've never aged a beer longer than a year and i think it was north coast old ale and it mellowed out a little but i didn't notice a huge difference.

also this brewmaster mike gerhart series from otter creek is pretty much uniformly good. picked up the kind ryed ipa and it's awesome. favorite is probably the overgrown pale ale but they are all good

FOBAB was fantastic, as usual. A bit crowded, but that is expected. Took a different approach and went with a lot of lighter stuff this year, sours, cider, mead. I didn't even feel that drunk at the end of the night. Didn't even go for any of the Goose stuff or other popular stouts. Standouts bolded below.

Dark Kriek - AC Golden Brewing Co.
The Jones Dog (Buffalo Trace Barrels) - Pipeworks Brewing Company
Grampappy - Rhinegeist
Sympathy for the Devil (Bourbon Barrel) - Sun King Brewing Company
Oskar The G'Rauch Double Date - Oskar Blues Brewing
Forest GINger - Finnriver Farm & Cidery
Yuzu Er'g Od Begravet - Off Color Brewing
MechaHugs - Half Acre Beer Company
Rambutan Lambic - Upland Brewing Company
Imperial Breakfast Magpie - New Day Meadery
Agrestic - Firestone Walker Brewing Company
Barrel Aged Neapolitan Milk Stout - Saugatuck Brewing Company
Big Bourbon Series Curse the Goat Doppelbock - Shoreline Brewing
Pappy's Ink - Rhinegeist
Swan Song - Bourbon With Cherry - Hailstorem Brewing Co.
Mastodon - Rhinegeist
Cheval Deux Barrel Aged - Horse Thief Hollow Brewing Co.
Dinos'mores (Wild Turkey Barrel) - Off Color Brewing
Absinthe Barrel-Aged Sales Guy Abbey Single - Spiteful Brewing

The Yuzu was my favorite of the whole show. Gin barrel aged Berliner Weissbier.

Gin barrel aged Berliner Weissbier.

sounds amazing!

I've liked the two off color beers I've had (a Berliner Weisse and an Altbier). Great labels too if you care (I do!)

I know some people swear things like barrel aged stouts change radically over the years. Some folks say it is subtle. Others note that other flavoring agents - vanilla, or cocoa, or coffee - fade. I have no idea/opinion.

― Josh in Chicago, Monday, November 17, 2014 10:20 AM (59 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

having done bourbon county verticals there is no question that the beer changes over time. outside flavors are delicate and will fade from their peak of freshness. malty high-abv beers like bigfoot or backwoods bastard taste pretty different a year or two on ime as well. in the case of bastard, it actually becomes drinkable.

i think my main takeaway from the link was that just because a bottle is sealed and alcohol is present does not mean that chemical changes aren't happening, it's just that spoilage isn't happening.