Just got back from Total Wine & More in Tampa....Holy #### I could have spent $500 in 20 minutes...The awesome thing about this store is they have EVERY beer hot AND cold, so I didnt have to worry about them getting warm on the 40 mile trip home...They even have a whole aisle of nothing but a rediculous selection of single 12 ouncers, bombers, and 750s. Un friggin real.

I had to stop after I was there 5 minutes and already had 4 six packs, a 4 pack, 4 bombers and a few singles totaling $65.....Im gonna have to make it a weekly trip to pick up new beers to try....Heres what I picked up for now.

Great Divide Titan IPA 6pk
Boulder Beer Hazed & Infused 6pk
Avery IPA 6pk
Dogfish Head 60min IPA 6pk (One of my favorites)
Dogfish Head ApriHop 4pk

Rogue Dead Guy Ale 22oz
Rogue Chocholate Stout 22oz
Rogue Brutal Bitter 22oz
Great Divide Hercules Double IPA 22oz

Lost Coast Indica IPA (2 12oz singles)
Youngs Double Choc Stout (nitro can single)

As you can tell, Im a hophead, so this trip I stuck with mostly IPAs. Ive never seen Rogue around here, so I snatched up a varity of em to try. Next time Im going for Belgian, Trappist ales, and some double IPA heavy hitters.

Of the above list, the only 2 Ive tried are the DFH 60min and the Youngs double choc stout (But Ive never had it in the nitro can)

Will report back as I try each one in the coming week.

good pull. I really like the Great divide ales. Rogue also makes some quality beers and you picked three of my favorites. I like the 90 min IPA more than the 60, but I have never been unhappy with the Dogfishhead brews (not so high on the ApriHop, but its still better than lots of other beers).

enjoy.

went to FOUR different liquor stores in my area yesterday looking for Ommegang, Dogfish, and maybe DeKonnick.

nothing.

"imports" here are Molson, Corona and Labatt's. few places had Guinness and Heineken but that's about it.

i finally stumbled into Woodman's and they had a nice selection but a lot of it i've already had...

Agree on Rogue. Dead Guy is a great brew.

Let's pretend that's true. It really doesn't matter. I'm all for drinking quality beer, but if someone is "sniffing the bouquet" of a beer or "discussing it's complexities" - or imagining what a diff. the shape of the glass makes that they drink it from - they are almost certainly a nauseatingly pretentious flaming metro and shouldn't even be drinking beer in the first place. They should instead grab a wine cooler or a way-too-expensive glass of wine and watch "Merlin Rouge" a few more times.

Good grief.

If we sniff the bouquet, it's on our own time.

Actually, the glass makes a ton of difference. Drink a good beer out of a bottle, and then one out of a proper glass and report back.

Ok, so I didnt eat anything Wednesday night before sampling some of these brews and got TOO drunk....I cant remember the last time I puked from beer

These beers arent for pounding on an empty stomach. So after the 1st night, I decided to take a break for a day and revisit the ones Ive tried:

Ok, so far:

Great Divide Titan IPA: EXCELLENT beer. My favorite so far of those I bought. I will be picking up more of this. ALOT of hops, ALOT of flavor. Nothing but good things to say about this one. An excellent IPA. 6.8% ABV gives it a nice kick. One of my new faves.

Dogfish head ApriHop: Really good. Alot like the 60min but with a sweeter finish. Didnt really taste apricots, but the 7% ABV was well hidden and its a great beer. Will buy again. These guys know how to make quality beer (although I dont care for their Chicory Stout)

Boulder Hazed & Infused: tasty as hell. At first I didnt like this one, but it has grown on me. Hoppy and fruity. Crisp and refreshing. A fine beer.

Avery IPA: Another that has grown on me. One of the better American IPAs.

Lost Coast Indica Ale: Meh. A little too malty for an IPA. Started out kinda bready and finished, well, meh. 6.5% ABV is wasted in this beer. Im glad I only bought two 12oz bottles of this one. It wont make any more appearances in my fridge. Pass.

Rogue Dead Guy Ale: I liked this one quite a bit. Hints of caramel with the rather subtle hops made this one go down nice and easy. The 6.5 ABV makes it a nice session brew - not too strong, not too weak. Im looking foward to trying the other Rigue brews I picked up, and I wish I would have picked up a bomber of Shakespear Stout. Next trip I will.

Youngs D Choc stout: Ive had this beer before, but not in the notro can. I liked it better than in the bottle. Even though its only 5.2% ABV this is a nice beer. Youngs almost never disappoints. We will see how it measures up to the Rogue Choc Stout

Dogfish head 60min IPA: Fantastic as always. I like this one better than the 90 min, but only because I like the taste so much I like to drink 3 or 4 of these. (The 90min is a bit strong to put too many away....the 9% abv can really sneak up on you). Excellent brew from an excellent brewery, and a staple in my fridge.


So all I have left to try are the Rogue Choc Stout, the Rogue Brutal Bitter and the heavy hitter from Great Divide, Hercules Double IPA (at 9.1% ABV). Once I try these, Ill make another trip and pick up another haul of new stuff to try as well as some of the ones I liked from the last trip.

Just had to add:

Rogue's chocolate Stout: The BEST Choc stout Ive ever had, hands down.

Had Rogue Shakespeare Stout and Dead Guy for the first time the other day. Both were outstanding.

Enjoying a nice Chimay Cinq Cents right now...

Some good foreign and domestic beers I like (apologize if they've been said):

1. Costa Rica: Bavaria Gold - blows away their better known Imperial.
2. Pilsen Urquell
3. Yuengling (brewed in PA).
4. Leinenkugel's Honey-Weiss and Oktoberfest (Wisconsin).
5. Premium (Minnesota).

No, they aren't the finest beers but they're the best a broke student can buy.

If you havent had the Choc Stout yet, think Shakespeare with a cappucino kick.

As for Chimay, I just tried the Grande Reserve and Cinq Cents side by side last night - first time Ive had Chimay in about 6 months when I first started drinking good beer. The Cinq Cents reminded me of a strong, skunky lager (maybe Heineken). Not a fan. But the Grande Reserve, holy cow that is some tasty stuff.

Im picking up a couple of 750s of that nectar tomorrow.

I've got a ton of stuff in the fridge right now, and none of it sounds particularly good.

Rahr Blonde
Dos Equis
McTarnahan's IPA
Stella Artois
Guiness
Shiner Bock (probably my next drink after this JD is gone)
Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin Ale
Fat Tire

Therein lies the problem with grabbing an armful of beer on the way out of a party without paying attention to the name on the labels.

Funny, but Leinie's Honey Weiss is my least favorite beer that they make. My order of preference:

1. Red
2. Original Lager
3. Honey Weiss

Granted, it's better than a lot of stuff I can buy at my local Wal-Mart (yes, my local Wal-Mart sells Leinenkugel's, that was a shock), but the aftertaste leaves me kinda parched.

Will have to check out the Choc Stout. Have you tried the Rogue Hazelnut Brown? Saw that the other day and need to check it out.

I do disagree on the Cinq Cents; I like it quite a bit, although Grande Reserve is clearly the best Chimay.

Another day, and some new beers for football watching (LSU v. Alabama).

Rogue Hazelnut

Abita Restoration Ale (a special brew they are doing for Hurricane Relief; Abita Springs is just north of New Orleans, and so they give $1 per sixer to charity)

Sam Smith Oatmeal Stout

What's on tap for the rest of you today?

Just got back from the beer store. I was very pleased to see that the Christmas beers are out. I'm knocking off my first Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale of the year. Avery Old Jubilation is up next.

Have quite a few Christmas beers to try this weekend.

Anchor Our Special Ale
Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale
Boonville Winter Solstice
Lost Coast Winterbraun
Alaskan Winter Ale
Corsendonk Christmas Ale
Wychwood Bah Humbug
Alesmith Yulesmith
Rogue Santas Private Reserve
Affligem Noel Christmas Ale
Samuel Smith Winter Welcome
Youngs Winter Warmer
Moylans White Christmas

That is a beautiful, beautiful list.
Damn, I love winter . . .

Im making the 80 mile round trip to my beer store Sunday morning. Im hoping they have the SN Celebration. Ive been waiting to try that beer.

Agreed. I'm getting a little moist here.

Anyone seen Anchor's Winter Warmer Christmas Ale yet?

Bastard.

I live 40 miles from the brewery and have yet to see any Celebration around these parts.

Nice list. I killed a sixer of the Lost Coast Winterbraun during MNF earlier in the week. It is a pretty good brew. No nearly as good as the Sierra Celebration or Boonville, but worth a try.

Not yet.

Knocking back a bomber of Racer 5 right now. Hercules IPA to follow.

I tried the Breckenridge Christmas Ale Thursday, and a mighty tasty beer it was...

Now you've seen some.

Man, that is pretty mean. Oh, and I will be ordering my KEG of Celebration soon.

Had a change of plans...watched LSU/Alabama over two nice 11 oz. Chimay reds and a Rogue Dead Guy at a local rest/bar, and celebrated the win with a draft Anchor Steam. The Dead Guy draft was my first Rogue draft, which was

Feeling pretty good, though

I'm trying some Grimbergen Blonde Ale right now. I've had better Belgian beers, but it's still pretty tasty. I think I might like it better in summer.

if you like newcastle you'll love

hobgoblin english ale - wychwood brewery

really amazing for a brown ale

Just picked up a few new ones and a few favorites at the beer store.

New trials:
750ml Allagash Dubble Reserve (7%ABV)
750ml Ommegang Abbey Ale (8.5%ABV)
22oz Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout (9.5%ABV)
22oz Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar (6.2%ABV)
12oz Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA (21%ABV)....yes, thats righht. 21% ABV

Debated on whether or not to give in and buy a $8 12oz DFH 120min, but the guy working there talked me in to it. It was either that or buy a 12oz bottle of Trappistes Rochefort 10 to try ($12 for a 12oz bottle )

Plus I picked up some more Rogue Choc Stout and DFH ApriHop. 2 of my faves.

The beer store around the corner from my house got some in over the weekend. Thank God.

I really wish they would sell Celebration year round. Every year when I taste it, I'm reminded how much missed it. It is an excellent ale.

I haven't tried Grimbergen, but I'm a big fan of the Belgian style. Not everyday drinking beer, for sure, but I really good one can send me into a near orgasmic bliss. I've pimped it before to everyone that likes the style, but if you see some Pranqster, buy it and don't look back. It is American brewed, but they do a hell of a job with a Belgian ale.

I still cant find SN Celebration round here yet.

We had a small after-party party at my house on Saturday. One of my friends goes into my fridge and grabs and opens a beer.... it's a Dogfish Head World Wide Stout!! This sucker is 18% ABV!! I told him he probably doesn't want to be drinking that at this point in the night....so we split it. I felt like hell yesterday. 8-9 Sam Adams, some shooters and then that to finish off the night.

Been on tap and in bottles here for almost two weeks. GB the new beer laws. Can't wait for the Bigfoot's to appear in a couple of months.

As far as Belgian pales go, I really like Duvel and La Find Du Monde. I also like Tripels a lot, particurlarly the Westmalle Trappist Tripel. If you want a darker and more complex Belgian and you want to sip, I suggest the St. Bernadus Apt 12(its a Quadrepel).

I've tried them all except the Great Divide (have a bottle of Oak Aged Yeti in the fridge though...tonight might be the night...crappy weekend). All very good. You'll have to try the Rochefort at least once. It's expensive, but very good. I was lucky enough to have a bartender "forget" to charge me for it once. She got a nice tip. The 120 minute IPA is definitely a sipping beer.

that Sierra Nevada christmas ale gets you ####ed up fast! I used to love that stuff back when I was a drunk

Its found its way to the convenience stores out on Long Island (well, the weird ones that have really good beer)

Corsendonk Christmas Ale?

:gulp:

I MUST have it...................

I'm sipping on an Oak Aged Yeti right now. My god is this stuff good. Great Divide does a good job of balancing their beers. Stone is the only brewery that surpasses them in the big beer department, and not by much.

I still haven't seen Duvel here. I even put in a request for it, but I think the beer store owner is getting tired of getting me new stuff. Sometimes it doesn't sell as quickly as some of the more well know local micros like Sierra, Anderson Valley, Mendocino and Sudwerk .... and shelf space is at a premium in his cooler. If he doesn't think he can sell it, it is difficult to get him to order it. Next time, I'll threaten him at gunpoint.

I guess I could take the 20 minute drive to the super beer store, but I'm lazy. Someday ....

Back in the day, two houses ago, I used to frequent a place called Belgique Gourmand. It was a small restaurant run by a guy who worked for NATO and it had an awesome Belgian beer collection.

Here's the thing. I can remember loving one of Duvel or Corsendonk and being underwhelmed by the other. But I can't remember which was which.

The Grimbergen reminded me a bit of the one I was a bit underwhelmed by. It was good beer by almost any measure, but it was just light and fresh. There was very little hoppiness to balance it out. Maybe I was spoiled by the Allagash Four that I sampled at the Boston Beer Fest. Now that was a beer (admittedly not a pale) that had it all going on in the flavor. Every second I tasted something different.

I'm getting all teary-eyed, scoob. You're going to make a great beer snob. Welcome.

I believe you mean "Celebration ale". Unless there is a Christmas one, I am not sure. But I just had this last weekend and it is good. You are right, I was suprised of the good buzz I had after a few of these.

What are some other stronger beers that I can get for like $23 a case? I don't mind spending that much if I don't need as many.

If I can't be a snob at it, I won't do it. Was a wine snob. Still a food snob. Trying to be a beer snob.

I'm hoping to eventually graduate to being a Single Malt snob.