Beer in the new era

Had a good trip to LA last week: visited Bottle Logic (known for their BA stouts), Monkish (known for their IPAs), Highland Park Brewery*, The Bruery, Firestone Walker and also ducked into the new Mikkeller Bar and Barbara's (great pub). It's amazing how LA turned around it's beer culture from the last time I was there.

*Drive Like Jehu fans should note that it's located next to Mark Trombino's donut shop.

Shit man that sounds awesome
Just another reason to visit the promised land

how was highland park? my buddy lives near it and was talking it up last time i saw him.

Highland Park brewery is located in (behind) the Hermosillo restaurant on York, right? I like their beers.

Monkish are one of the better local breweries

I've been enjoying the slightly boring but stupidly fresh and high quality lagers from Chicago's Baderbrau lately. Aside from Marz it's the closest place making beer near where I live.

back on a sour tear recently, managing to have 4 kinds in the past several days. this one was my favorite but it was also $18 a bottle : (

https://apinthalffull.files.wordpress.com/2017/01/wp-image-128613897jpg.jpg

Threes neither way, hoppy lager, recommended

North Coast Le Merle is very delicious but then again it would be

Had a 2017 kbs yesterday for the first time ever

I truly don't understand the hype

I'm glad i just walked in and asked the beer guy what hard to get bottles he had and he just happened to have it

Otherwise i feel it's at the very least on par with Abita's bourbon st barrel aged coffee stout (haven't had it in a long while)

some of the KBS hype has to be due to its longevity, right? been brewed since 2003 according to the internet.

Had the Lost Nation Gose and was underwhelmed. Not sure what I was expecting, maybe something a bit more sour or with more oomph, but it was just strange. Maybe an acquired taste but at 8 bucks a pop not sure I'll be going back

xp

i'll keep an eye out for a vintage bottle when trading, that might be better?

i wouldn't trade for old kbs and trust some rando had it cellared correctly.

it's sort of a legacy beer at this point and i thought it tasted a touch thin this year but the guys i compare notes with loved it. i think it's a more measured take on barrel aging than a lot of examples with a more recent pedigree.

KBS is a fantastic Whole Foods pick up, not sure I'd rate it any higher than that. Last year's sat around almost a full year at my local spots.

I've always thought it was well balanced/solid. Not my favorite BBA stout, but always consistently good. I have a preference for more punch you in the face with bourbon BBA stouts.

origin story
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hIC7F-qe9Q

Sipping a glass now, gotta say that Lagunitas's The Waldos Special Ale - "the hoppiest, dankest beer we've ever brewed!" or something - is not an easy drinker. Super bitter and surprisingly strong at nearly 12% (which is more than I thought it be when I poured it), though given the alcohol level well balanced. I like double IPAs, but might not be my thing and might not be the best thing to drink while I'm getting dinner ready.

had this one the other night, it was a very solid Belgian style. for a SoCal brewer it's perhaps a tad bit distasteful depending on what you think the statute of limitations is for this kind of thing.

http://barleyforge.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/hero_the_black_dahlia.png

josh, you sound surprised that a 12% 3xIPA is not the best aperitif

Wow, that label is pretty ott.

xpost Ha, I honestly didn't even look at what it was before I bought it or even opened it! I just thought, huh, here's one of their one-offs, I'll pick up a six-pack. This was weeks ago, iirc. So I had put a couple in the fridge when I came back from a trip, then finally opened the first one tonight. It wasn't until I was a few sips in that I decided to investigate what I was drinking!

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/GD6qtc2_AQA/maxresdefault.jpg

lol fair

yesterday: ABI buys Wicked Weed
today: Heineken doubles down on Lagunitas to 100% ownership

tomorrow?

I'm for sale, buy me ABI!

OK, gave The Waldos Special Ale another chance, and ... just can't do it. Way too bitter for me, not fun to drink.

i've been enjoying ciders a lot lately

there are a lot of bad ciders through. most of the ones on the shelf are not good. but the good are ones are amazing

link:

http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Heineken-buys-rest-of-Lagunitas-as-beer-sales-go-11121674.php

RE Waldo's: maybe my tastebuds are IPA-fried, but I thought there was quite a bit of sweetness (peach/apricot notes) along with the bitter. Alcohol burn, too. For all that I thought it was well-balanced. I liked it, but probably not enough to buy again.

I tried a cider from 101, which I had avoided because of their "probiotic" claims, but the Black Dog one was good. It has blood orange and lavender in it (the lavender was also off-putting but a friend said it was good).

And I will re-state my enjoyment of Seattle Cider's "DRY" type.

I got the sweetness in the Waldo, but my tastebuds still got bitter first and foremost. No alcohol burn, though, but that is a bugaboo of mine. Wine is higher ABV than all but the strongest of beers, and there's no burn there. So why should beer have burn? Unless I am misunderstanding the term and/or have had too much high proof bourbon.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/articles/15649/its-official-new-england-india-pale-ale-is-a-style/

yesterday: ABI buys Wicked Weed
today: Heineken doubles down on Lagunitas to 100% ownership

tomorrow?

― Jersey Al (Albert R. Broccoli), Thursday, May 4, 2017 9:35 AM (ten hours ago)

http://www.independent.com/news/2017/may/03/firestone-beer-maker-donates-250000-trump/

oh for christ's sakes

A spokesperson for the Firestone Walker Brewing Company confirmed that a family trust on which company founder Adam Firestone and his wife, Katherine Firestone, sit donated $250,000 to the inaugural effort of President Donald Trump

The fuck does this mean. Inaugural effort? Did they mean inauguration?

Drank a coors light tonight

My local is asking me for a reccomendafion for a draft sour that they can put on tap. Thinking of pitching the lagunitas aunt sally, as it's the best that I've had (over Brooklyn bel air and Peekskill) that doesn't come in limited quantities / cans / bottles etc.

where is yr local (what state)

I'm guessing tri-state area. Does your local get Allagash or Grimm kegs?

NYC

I didn't know Grimm has kegs! Nor am I sure if the bar has an exclusive supplier, and what their selection is, and so on so at a disadvantage

Yeah ask them who their distributor(s) is/are.

grimm if they do kegs would be the best, those guys are awesome

grimm ipas have shown up at bars in boston so i have hope for u.

yes Grimm is very good in my experience as well. I've had the Vacay sour (apricot tinged I believe) in the 22 oz bottle and would love to try the one with grape dust

Sorry, the grape one was either by Threes or Other Half...memory a little hazy

Grimm kegs (including sours) get NYC distro via Union Beer Distributors. Check if your local has an account.

thanks Al

I guess nobody bought Backwoods Bastard on the west coast because there's a ton for relatively cheap at Grocery Outlet. Frootwood and KBS still hard to get, though.