quote:

Originally posted by Rawhead:
Yeah on the aromatics... I try to recognize all these things you beer ppl seem to see but it all boils down to good or bad for me. I'd say the Duvel ranks in with the good About to crack open the third.

Where did you find the utopias? I had a hell of a time tracking down even sam adams doppelbock which May's had in stock sometime year before last even though the sam adams site said it was not legal in mo? Why not legal in MO? Wound up getting sick as a dog on it for some reason. hehe.

No idea why it wouldn't be legal, unless A) they didn't get label approval before marketing (Missouri has a weird law about labels) or B) it's an alcoholic strength thing. But that makes little sense, as they offer others just as strong.

I had Utopias at a tasting at a restaurant/bar I go to here in KC. $40 got you dinner, three of the regular Sam Adam's brews along with it, and a 4 ounce pour of Utopias with dessert. Seeing as how Utopias runs about $150 for a 24 ounce bottle, that turned out to be a good deal. It's non-carbonated, rich, full bodied, and roughly 25% alcohol by volume. The taste was similar to, yet better than in my opinion, a good cognac.

Glad you like the Duvel!

quote:

Originally posted by John O:
No idea why it wouldn't be legal, unless A) they didn't get label approval before marketing (Missouri has a weird law about labels) or B) it's an alcoholic strength thing. But that makes little sense, as they offer others just as strong.

Yeah probably the former, but things tend to sneak through.

quote:

$150 for a 24 ounce bottle, that turned out to be a good deal.

Wow... yeah won't be trying that any time soon.

quote:

Glad you like the Duvel!

Yep thanks for the recommendation! Here's my substitute glassware:

Hah! Hey, it works! Love the rocky head o' foam on that stuff. It's like meringue. And a very sneaky 8.5% ABV as well.

quote:

The black and tan or black and white (which I've always heard referred to as a "half and half") are great, and even better when you use a slightly better stout like Beamish or Murphy's, in my opinion. You can also use Guinness or another Irish dry stout to top off Blue Moon (Belgian Brunette), an apple cider such as Woodchuck or Strongbow (Snakebite), A Fuller's ESB ('arf and 'arf), or just about anything else your heart desires. The trick is to find a stout that's low enough in alcohol that it doesn't blend with the slightly stronger drink underneath. And pour s l o w l y, since it's unlikely you have a nitro tap at home.

The reason why you pour slowly over a spoon is because you probably don't have a nitro tap at home.

Snakebite, huh? I've always used Woodpecker cider and heard it called a "stout pecker".

La fin du monde is exquisite! Great character, memorable flavor. I'll get the 17 oz bottles next time.

Can't thank you enough for finding the Cellar for me John. That's my idea of a booze super-store! You have to walk through rows and rows of wine racks to get to the beer wall, but it wraps around the store. And I love that they have bottled imports in large and small sizes, and will sell a single bottle instead of forcing you to buy a sixpack.

The bad news is they don't carry Duvel--not licensed for sale in OK. And they do not have a beer list! Of course you can get a wine list and they offer samples, but not beer. I mentioned it to the manager, and he said they hadn't printed a beer list because the list was always changing because of prices and availability, or some such excuse. I said "you order from a supplier's list, don't you?" And he said yes, so I said "All you need to do is copy the list, and put a disclaimer saying call for pricing and availability. And make it available on your website, so I don't have to waste your clerks time asking about beers you don't carry." They liked the idea--don't know why no one had thought of it. I told the clerk I'd look at his website--they need to put up a list with links to brewer's so guys like us can research the stuff before we buy it.

The clerk recommended some Smith's Taddy Porter, and some kind of wheat beer named Franzkeimer or something like that. It's chilling now, so I'll correct this after I try it. We'll see if the boy knows his beer.

Get this--they sell all kinds of wine, beer and hard liquor, but they cannot sell glasses or bar supplies. Oklahoma law prohibits it! They can't even sell snacks or lottery tickets: just booze. I feel a rant about government intrusion coming on....

Take some liberties on that beer first Pete, it has a substantial affect on you posts. It kinda makes the "S" in "sport" stand out on your chest a little more!

quote:

Originally posted by leftcoastlooker:
Take some liberties on that beer first Pete, it has a substantial affect on you posts. It kinda makes the "S" in "sport" stand out on your chest a little more!

OOh Yah!

When he started calling me "sport". I started calling him "jock-sniffer." Fits his profile: talks a good game, but was afraid to try out for the varsity.

I will not blame beer for any of my remarks--stupid, offensive or incoherent though they may be at times. I believe what Republicans say they believe--let's have some personal responsibility and not blame someone or something else for our bad behavior. But if I get in real trouble, I will follow their example and blame Clinton...

quote:

Originally posted by Pete Kirkman:
[ But if I get in real trouble, I will follow their example and blame Clinton...

Be careful, you'll have a pack of Newport smokin grudge carriers from team Hillary stomping your head in sensible shoes.

Glad you found the place, Pete! We have Lukas Liquors here in both KS and MO (about 4 miles apart), and it's a similar place to what you describe Cellars to be. TONS of wine, and oh yeah, we have a lot of beer back here too. A WINE tasting bar.. and oh yeah, we'll uh, have some sort of tasting for beer on Saturday between 1 and 1:30. They carry it, and exactly one guy who works there knows anything about it. Ah well... I feel I know a bit about it, and if they have it, I don't need some college kid slobbering on my shoulder telling me how good something is, or how he didn't like it because, you know, Natural Light rocks and stuff.

The Taddy Porter is a good English porter, to say the least. More chocolately than roasty, as it's the brown porter style more than the more typical robust porter. BUt it's tasty.

The Franziskaner (I'm assuming that's what it was) is a decent German hefeweizen. I'm not a big fan of the style, as the banana and clove ester from the yeast get to be a bit too much for me. But it's a good example of the style, and you'll likely enjoy it too. So their beer guy didn't take you on an exotic journey by any means, but he didn't steer you wrong, either.

It sucks not being able to drink for a few weeks (medications, etc.). I'm like a candy aficionado who just found out he's diabetic, but instead I'm a beer aficionado who had to go on cholesterol meds. I still drink, because what's life without a good beer? But I have to cut back a bit.

Tonight I got to try the '08 rendition of Boulevard's "Bob's 47", as well as the Dundee Honey Brown Oktoberfest. The Bob's is good as always, yet a lot more hoppy than I remember it in years past. A bit out of style for an Oktoberfestbier, but who cares? Good is good. It's my second favorite of Boulevard's seasonals (behind the Irish). The Dundee? Uh... well... um... it was... uh... er.... when I think of how it tasted, I see Japanese Scatologic Porn vids in my head. It was pretty nasty. Bland, undercarbonated, with a metallic aftertaste. Not sure who they're marketing this towards. BudMilCoors drinkers will find it flat and "beery", while craft beer drinkers will find it flat and plain ol' nasty. Not something I'm going to drink again.

But hey, that's the fun of beer. Always something new to try, even if occasionally it's pure guano.

Just moved a couple of my own beers into kegs today. Not bad, if I do say so myself! My American stout came in at 6.9% ABV, has a nice roasty flavor and a lot of hop character to it. It may look like a dry Irish stout, but it sure doesn't taste like one. Too much character!

My standard American lager is also shaping up nicely. Crystal clear, crisp without having too much bite, just the "kiss o' the hops" as Schlitz used to say (and apparently does again... the "new" Schlitz is using the "old" formula), and pretty much exactly what I wanted it to be. Not my favorite style, and I typically make it for family gatherings, but even I'll drink one now and again. Now I just have to wait for them to force carbonate, and I'm good to go.

I'm happy, given how much trouble I had with not paying attention to changes in the water chemistry up here, and the resulting "bland" beers I brewed before realizing what the problem was. Seems I've fixed that issue. Now, on to something for winter!

"Japanese scatalogical porn videos"??? Now that's a nasty image.

The Taddy was good. The Franziskaner was decent, but nothing special. I'd be interested in trying one of your concoctions, John, but I would have to wait until the above image was clear of my brain.

Heh! Note that MY beer doesn't taste like that to me. That was the J.W. Dundee Honey Brown "Oktoberfest". I repeat: Not MY beer, the Dundee Honey Brown Oktoberfest.

Thank you. That is all.

Everyone see this? :

http://www.joplinglobe.com/dailybusiness/local_story_247101303.html

Sounds awesome! Nice to see Joplin get a smart business operation for a change.

Hmm I've had a few new beers over the last few nights courtesy the highly recommended new wine beer store in Joplin. OK so maybe not courtesy since I still had to pay for em, but I used FOOD STAMPS! Haha! Had Stella Artois, Stone Mill ORGANIC Pale ale, Delirium Nocturnum, Sam Adams Double Bock, Shock Top Belgian white and Maredsous 10 Tripel. I also got some Hoegaarden Ale which I have yet to try.

Not much to say about most of em... the stella was skunky... the wheat beers (stone mill and shock top) were pretty weak. The Sam Adams Double Bock, which I have had before and got majorly sick on, was pretty damn good. The Delirium Nocturne was also very good, I still have 3 bottles to go though so more to come on that. The Maredsous, a Belgian Tripel, at 10% abv was fûcking great! It's probably the only one out of this group that I'm going to buy more of... alcohol was barely noticed.