Speaking of beer....

[fltpkr]

I live in an area known by brewmasters as "beervana". Whether we deserve that title or not is somewhat questionable, I guess, but there sure are a lot of micro/craft breweries here, and they're serving up some pretty respectable suds. Now, I'm not a beer snob ( I could give a rat's behind about original gravity or IBU's) and I still occasionally slug down a few of the ol' Silver Bullets, but dang it I do like what the locals are turning out. Anyway, my question is this: Are there craft breweries in your town, and how do you rate them? Do you have local favorites? How would you compare micro brews with the big commercial outfits? How many can you drink and still strap on your tele? (just kidding on the last question, but had to get something tele-related in there)

[SMPTE]

Hey WHERE'S THE BEER!?

I was made promises of a beer-like nature!

[Tremo]

there was a thread somewhat on this a couple months back, but I think ti was more comparing european beers to the big domestics.

Anyway, the consensus was that Bud is not beer, instead, it's some sort of animal urine. And light beers are basically flavored water for the weak at heart.

The local craft/microbrews are generally held in high regard, as are the euro brews.

[Solman87]

there is one texas beer i cant get enough of: Shiner Bock. Annheiser Bulschite can imitate it all they want with "zegen bock", but ill take the yellow label any day.

and there are boatloads of microbreweries around that i love, but im too lazy to list them all right now.

ok, fine, here are a few:
Real Ale Co.
Cellis
New Belgium Brewery

just a few...

[Tim Armstrong]

Silver Bullets??? What, regular Coors isn't light enough for you???



I was a professional brewer for six years, and my favorite brewery is Odells in Fort Collins, Colorado (my favorite beer town). I sure miss it!!!

Locally, we have a really superb microbrewery just up the road in Milton, Delaware, called Dogfish Head. They also have a microdistillery, and make probably the best vodka I've ever drank in my life, Blue Hen Vodka...

Cheers, Tim

[Boxelder]

i've been snowed in for 2 days and i'm glad beer is something i have plenty of.......

[SMPTE]

Originally Posted by Solman87

there is one texas beer i cant get enough of: Shiner Bock. Annheiser Bulschite can imitate it all they want with "zegen bock", but ill take the yellow label any day.

and there are boatloads of microbreweries around that i love, but im too lazy to list them all right now.

ok, fine, here are a few:
Real Ale Co.
Cellis
New Belgium Brewery

just a few...

Mmmmmm Shiiiiiner. I had heard that Cellis went down hill though.

[E.D. Patton]

Originally Posted by fltpkr

I live in an area known by brewmasters as "beervana". Whether we deserve that title or not is somewhat questionable, I guess, but there sure are a lot of micro/craft breweries here, and they're serving up some pretty respectable suds. Now, I'm not a beer snob ( I could give a rat's behind about original gravity or IBU's) and I still occasionally slug down a few of the ol' Silver Bullets, but dang it I do like what the locals are turning out. Anyway, my question is this: Are there craft breweries in your town, and how do you rate them? Do you have local favorites? How would you compare micro brews with the big commercial outfits? How many can you drink and still strap on your tele? (just kidding on the last question, but had to get something tele-related in there)

Beervana indeed. I'm just up the road from you fltpkr, and Portland, OR has the finest beer, the ripest Craigslist, the prettiest women, and the best low-dough gigs a man could ask for!

My fave? Hair Of The Dog's "Fred In The Wood". Sublime.

[WisconsinStrings]

I live pretty close to Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. And if you know Leinenkugels, you know Chippewa Falls.

Not a micro brewery, but they do turn out some very good beer. Sunset Wheat is my current favorite.

Also in WI is New Glarus, Sprecher, and Capitol Brewsing Co which are pretty good too.

[woodman]

when i retired this time last year, some good friends gave me a year's subscription to this "beer-of-the-month" club. every month, you'd get delivered to your door a sampler case of four different microbrews (3 of each). my conclusion: there's so much good beer being made in this country, who needs imports???

[chickenpicker]

There's no competition. I don't drink anymore, but when I did, I found that the small brewers beat the mass producers hands down.

[Arlo]

Allagash Brewing Company
Bray's Brewpub and Eatery
Casco Bay Brewing Company
DL Geary Brewing Company
Federal Jack's Brew Pub
Gritty BMcDuff's
Sebago Brewing
Shipyard Brewery
Stone Coast Brewing Company
Brays Brew Pub

I still drink Coors Light.

I did swill down a marvelous can O Fosters the other night with my Favorite Scandinavian dish: Jansson’s Frestelse.

Arlo's recipe for Jansson’s Frestelse

2 large potato's
1 large onion
2 cans of kipper snacks
1 pint of heavy creme
real butter
1 square glass baking dish.

Cut up the taters into small fingers kinda like fries.
Layer some on the bottom of the glass baking dish. (not all of em save some for the next layer, i always spray a little olive oil on the bottom first)
Then cut up onion in the same fashion or a bit smaller (diced) if desired.
Layer them on top of yer taters. (not all of em save some for the next layer)
Open a can o kippers and place it in chunks on the onions spread it around. Do the same with the second can so that you have a nice layer of fish.
Another layer of onions on top of that. Then the rest of the taters to cover that.
Pour on the creme. Use enough to fill the glass baking dish at least half way bu not more than 2/3.
Dab a lil butter on the top in strategic locations.
Bake it at 375 until golden on top and most of the creme has dissipated.

Crack open your Fosters and have some real Swedish cooking. OK well they use salty anchovies. A little too salty for me so I tamed her down a notch.

Great meal but very heavy and a winter dish in my hood.

Bon appetite and don't forget the brew!

[Jelly]

The town where I live once held the title of "Bierstadt" because it had more breweries per capita then anywhere else in Germany (11 breweries for 50,000 people at that time). Since then there have been some consolidations and some buyouts - alas, the title has been bestowed upon another town somewhere else.

[Guitarzan]

Originally Posted by fltpkr

I live in an area known by brewmasters as "beervana". Whether we deserve that title or not is somewhat questionable, I guess, but there sure are a lot of micro/craft breweries here, and they're serving up some pretty respectable suds. Now, I'm not a beer snob ( I could give a rat's behind about original gravity or IBU's) and I still occasionally slug down a few of the ol' Silver Bullets, but dang it I do like what the locals are turning out. Anyway, my question is this: Are there craft breweries in your town, and how do you rate them? Do you have local favorites? How would you compare micro brews with the big commercial outfits? How many can you drink and still strap on your tele? (just kidding on the last question, but had to get something tele-related in there)

It's also pinot noirvana too.

I lived in PDX a couple of years, and at one point, near you at the edge of Sellwood and Milwaukie. Those winters on the west side will break any southerner, but there are things that I miss:

1. the excellent selection of local beer;

2. the excellent selection of local pinot;

3. the summers (moderate temps and little humidity);

4. Gino's/Leipzig Tavern in Sellwood;

5. Esparza's (TexMex) in the northeast;

6. Pambiche (Cuban) in the northeast.

I like the Descutes Brewery beers best of all of the OR brews. Unfortunately, they are not distributed here. We only have Rogue and Bridgeport, and I like the latter better than the former. I went to Rogue's brewery in Newport, but their brews have never grown on me.

Colorado is probably the second best microbrew state.

I want to try the Victory beers from PA, but can not find distribution.

In Atlanta, we have Sweetwater Brewery, and the 420 Pale Ale is the leading product. It stands up well against anyone nationally. We also have Altanta Brewing Co., which makes various "Redbrick" products. They have been distributed exclusively in Georgia, only recently went beyond Georgia's borders. We recently lost Dogwood Brewing.

[Guitarzan]

Originally Posted by Tim Armstrong

Silver Bullets??? What, regular Coors isn't light enough for you???



I was a professional brewer for six years, and my favorite brewery is Odells in Fort Collins, Colorado (my favorite beer town). I sure miss it!!!

Locally, we have a really superb microbrewery just up the road in Milton, Delaware, called Dogfish Head. They also have a microdistillery, and make probably the best vodka I've ever drank in my life, Blue Hen Vodka...

Cheers, Tim

You are not kidding or exaggerating about Dogfish Head, that 90 minute IPA is the shizzle. I've been sipping it all week, it has finally gained a distribution foothold in Altanta. The two shops I was in this week are moving the 90 minute very well.

I have not heard about the Vodka, but like vodka and would like to give theirs a whirl.

I discovered a vodka from Oregon called Crater Lake, and it is excellent. I never knew about it when I was there.

[jazzguitar14]

PBR ME ASAP

[woodman]

Originally Posted by jazzguitar14

PBR ME ASAP

that's not beer -- it's a beer-like substance!

[63dot]

for my region, northern california, there is anchor steam and sierra nevada and they are reasonably well regarded nationwide

in my town, there used to be monterey brewing company beers which i thought were ok...better than budweiser and coors, but not on the level of the anchor steams and sierra nevadas, imho

i know there are a whole bunch of brew houses in washington and oregon...why?...maybe the weather?

[RomanS]

While the market is slowly taken over by the brands Heineken bought up in the last couple of years, we still have plenty of small breweries here in Austria; they aren't called "microbreweries" but "Privatbrauerei" - "private brewery" over here... my favorite local ones are Weitra Bräu (especially their Hadmar-Bio Bräu, my all-time favorite beer - made only from organic ingredients, brewed in open wooden tubs, like a couple of centuries ago, this beer really tastes like liquid bread), Zwettler (brewed by monks) or Trumer (famous for their pilsner type beer), but I also love the Czech brews.
BTW, since these aren't light beers like in the US, I don't feel safe strapping on my Tele after about 2 or 3 of those, and I wouldn't feel safe walking after about 5 or 6 (one being half a liter...)

[markophonic]

Bell's brewery in Kalamazoo, MI

Best stuff in the midwest!

[furrfurrfurr]

Budweiser. It's a lager from Fairfield.

[bassbuster33]

Another vote here for Deschutes. Awesome beers. There so many good ones from Widmer, Rogue, Bridgeport, McMenamin's...... the list goes on and on. Sierra Nevada probably started it all and there beers are great. Anchor Steam is another great one from the bay area.

[Steve G]

Bet you never heard of this one! WHIM ales brewed very locally to me and producing Hartington bitter and Magic Mushroom Mild.
Best I ever had is Spingo ales from Cornwall (UK) brewed (only) in the pub for 450 years and tastes fabulous. Their main brew is called simply 'middle'.

[TeleTurkey]

Originally Posted by bassbuster33

Another vote here for Deschutes. Awesome beers. There so many good ones from Widmer, Rogue, Bridgeport, McMenamin's...... the list goes on and on. Sierra Nevada probably started it all and there beers are great. Anchor Steam is another great one from the bay area.

I love Sierra Nevada and Anchor Steam, but I beleive you have it backwards one which got it rolling!

I love Dogfish Head, but I drink more of the 60 minute than the 90.

I still drink PBR, Shlitz or whatever you put in front of me. (I do avoid light beers for image reasons) It's kinda like saying you won't drink Maxwell House because it isn't as good as Starbucks. It's all good to me.

[KYTele]

Guinness is good for you, and I'll be havin' me another one now thatchura mentionin' it.

"Here's to a long life and a merry one.
A quick death and an easy one.
A pretty girl and an honest one.
A cold pint-- and another one!"

[jazztele]

Originally Posted by Solman87

there is one texas beer i cant get enough of: Shiner Bock. Annheiser Bulschite can imitate it all they want with "zegen bock", but ill take the yellow label any day.

and there are boatloads of microbreweries around that i love, but im too lazy to list them all right now.

ok, fine, here are a few:
Real Ale Co.
Cellis
New Belgium Brewery

just a few...

How far south you gotta be to get shiner? i can usually find some in SW MO. when we visit my girl's dad every summer...but it'd be nice to get it up here...

of course, i'm happy with my old style. having one right now, actually.

[Guitarzan]

Shiner makes several good brews in addition to the Bock.

My favorite American hot weather brew is Shiner Blonde. Shiner makes a light, but I have not been able to find it here.

In regard to OR and WA being beer states and having brewhouses, I guess that it is largely attributable to the availability of beer ingredients. I suppose the weather figures in as well, and the cultural tendencies to hang out in coffee shops, bookstores, etc. They grow plenty of cereal grains in the river valleys and on the irrigated plains close to the rivers on the east side of the Cascade range. But, one thing they figured out a long time ago was that they were on the same lattitude as the hops growing region in Germany and other parts of Europe, and the termperal conditions were fairly close. So hops production worked well, and that is one ingredient in beer that can't be grown everywhere in the US. OR has a pretty significant hops agriculture market, as it does for wine grapes.

[fltpkr]

Some great replies here! Does my heart good to know that the brewer's art is alive and well across the good ol' U.S. of A.
My personal favorite in Portland is Lucky Lab Brew Pub's Organic Golden Ale, which I think you can only get at one of their two pubs. Not overwhelmingly hoppy, but enough to taste, with a nice balance of malt. And at 4.5% alcohol, you can have a couple or three and still remember where you parked. They serve a Scottish style ale that's 6.4, and a few of those will leave you wondering how you're going to crawl home.
I keep hearing lots of good things about Shiner Bock. I may have to get my uncle in Mexia to send me a sample.