Beer.

[Johny Cee]

It helped that I was single and drunk a large percentege of the time this was happening.

This is when you made the decision to become an attorney? 

[Abagadro]

This was actually during law school. 

[Abagadro]

My beer roster so far this evening:

Harp Lager
Big Sam Smith's Porter
Pacifico
Deschutes' Mirro Pond Pale Ale
EDIT: Stella Artois


I'm running low though so I may have to make a journey out to Nevada.

[CmdrSlack]

Here's the batch that is, sadly, consumed except for the few reserve bottles I kept to see how it ages.

This was bottled about a month ago.  The glass was part of a set I received from my law school when I graduated.  It was allegedly one per student...there were spares.

Before:



After:



I really like how this one shows the post-pour head.  The color isn't really obvious though.  I had the flash on for this one.  That was a bad idea.  It's a new camera...

So here's two more that are lit differently, to more accurately show the color:





EDITeleventybillion:  Sorry about the multi edits, I've just gone from a 1.3 megapixel to a 6.2 megapixel camera...so I had to be a PS noob for a few there.

[Soln]

Westmalle Trappist beer, the double, not the triple

[TripleDES]

In its home country, Stella is considered camel piss, yet I hear foreigners liking it way too much.

[NowhereMan]

As I said earlier, I can't stand the stuff and it gives one hell of a bad hangover. There's also a reason it's called wifebeater in the UK yet it seems to be very popular. The whole 'reassuringly expensive' advertising campaign also gave it a brief air of classiness here but if you're going to drink Belgian beer there are better ones.

In fact almost any other Belgian beer would be a better one.

[Sir Fodder]

If you're ever in Tucson head down to Nimbus Brewery, the pale ale is good, not sure if they still make it but a strong brew called Stumble Bumble was killer, the extra special super hopped pale ale they used to make occasionally was some of the best beer I've ever had. Some good live music and the occasional freight train chugging by right outside the bay doors adds to the ambiance.

Corsendonk from Belgium is a winner (as are most Belgian abbey ales IMO). I always used to try out the Anchor Steam special (Christmas) ale, nutmeg and stuff in there, a different recipe every year.

[Johny Cee]

Mostly,  I find myself drinking Labatt Blue as my "ordinary" beer.  Cost is right,  and it's decent for a mass market beer.

If you're in the Adirondacks,  Lake Placid Brewery has some decent beers.  Gotta love a beer called "46R IPA".

I have to say that I enjoy a couple of pints of Guinness or Murphy's to start out the night.

[Tale]

I'm another Guinness drinker. I also like the Belgian beer Duvel.

I learnt to drink beer as an exchange student in Bavaria, so I'm also partial to hefe-weizen (wheat beer with yeast sediment). German beer is not properly represented in the rest of the world, because there is a local brewery in every town and that's what the locals drink. Under German law there can be no preservatives or anything other than the original recipe, so it has a short shelf life and doesn't officially get exported (though you can probably find authentic German beers from boutique beer importers).

But mostly I drink whatever Aussie beer is on tap here in Sydney, or discounted at the local shop. Recently consumed: Carlton Draught (the current fad in cheap beer on tap), Cooper's Draught, Boag's Premium, Little Creatures Pale Ale. Tonight I am drinking Sheaf Stout, an Australian beer I've never tried before, because I read on the Internets that people overseas think it's a stout to compare with Guinness. It's pretty good actually, I might have found a cheaper alternative to fake draught cans of imported Irish Guinness.

If you're ever in Sydney and you like beer, there's an area called The Rocks and it has a pub called The Lord Nelson. They brew their own beers, in many different styles, and they're all awesome and only available on tap.

[trias_e]

Just in case people don't know about this site, I figure I might as well post it:

www.beeradvocate.com


Basically how I pre-filter what I buy, good because I'm poor and dont want to spend the cash to get every microbrew I can get my hands on.

Favorite Beer:  Shakespeare Stout by Rogue

I recently travelled to europe, and even had some of the fabled monastery beer (andrechs monastery), but still...nothing tops good old shakespeare for me.  I did get to have some great lagers though.  The lager is really a lost art in america it seems.

Favorite Session Beer:  Fullers ESB.  I love this beer!  I could drink it all night.  In fact I did one night in London as a random 70 old that reminded me of Gandalf kept buying me rounds until I was nicely hammered.  Underground/tourist/totally/drunk...how did I make it back to the hostel in one piece and with some cash left?

I suppose Fullers ESB will always remind me of that old weird guy.

Favorite Shit Beer:  PBR.  So much better than bud, miller or coors it blows my mind how cheap it is.


And schild is damn right about sam smith.  I highly recommend their IPA and Imperial Stout also.  Both are excellent.

[Teleku]

Just want to throw in a recommendation for Sierra Nevada (brewery is local to where I grew up, heh).  Their biggest selling beer is their Pale Ale, but they make many great beers.  Another good brew is Arrogant Bastard Ale by Stone Brewery (local to San Diego).  Good stuff. ;)

[stray]

Yeah, great stuff (Sierra Nevada). Then again, there are few ales I don't like.

[WayAbvPar]

My beer roster so far this evening:

Harp Lager
Big Sam Smith's Porter
Pacifico
Deschutes' Mirro Pond Pale Ale
EDIT: Stella Artois


I'm running low though so I may have to make a journey out to Nevada.

You are welcome to drink with me anytime- haven't had the Big Sam Smith's, but ther rest are among my favorites. Did some Blue Moon and Fire Rock for Christmas Eve, and then Santa left me something in my stocking-



Sometimes being a bad boy pays off I guess!  :-D

[Yegolev]

Also I don't understand love for Stella, unless the stuff you get over there is very different from the stuff in the UK (which it could well be) it is a really horrible lager and has a tendency to induce bad, bad hangovers.

I have had a Stella in Scotland, at an Italian restaurant of course, and that's generally where I have it.  Tasted about the same, as I recall.  I only have it if they don't have Moretti for some reason, or anything better, which seems to be often.  I like Moretti because I want to be the dude on the label when I grow up.  It's more of a result of my love of Italian food.

Stella might give me a headache if I drank more of it, but it doesn't bother me like a lot of lager.

I don't drink Guinness anymore.  Naturally, it's because I got terribly sick on it once.  How, you ask, does one get sick on Guiness?  I will simply advise that you never, ever drink beer through a straw, even if you think the waitress is hitting on you.

Regarding the mention of Rolling Rock, MGD and such... I simply cannot drink that anymore.  It's like expensive water that makes my brain baby kick.  My baseline is Newcastle or Stella, depending on the menu.  If they just have Bud, MGD, etc. on the menu, first off why am I eating there, and secondly I'll just have water.

[Sky]

That's the nice thing about having a local brewery that brews good stuff, most local restaurants carry it and you can find it everywhere. Especially since they made swill when I was a kid. Whoever turned that brewery around deserves a medal.

[Train Wreck]

I tried an ale called The Angel's Share by The Lost Abbey a few days ago that was pretty good.  They use barrels that brandy was formerly aged in.  It has a strong brandy flavor and 10.5% alcohol content.  As far as I know, it's only available at the brewery in San Marcos, CA.

Usually I stick with New Castle Brown Ale.

[Murgos]

I will simply advise that you never, ever drink beer through a straw, even if you think the waitress is hitting on you.

Funny how the concept had never even entered my mind as a possibility until just now.  Particularly Guinness.  The entire concept seems foreign and strange to me.

[Yoru]

I will simply advise that you never, ever drink beer through a straw, even if you think the waitress is hitting on you.

Funny how the concept had never even entered my mind as a possibility until just now.  Particularly Guinness.  The entire concept seems foreign and strange to me.

Guinness can go up a straw? 

[Yegolev]

Go with your instincts and pretend it isn't possible.

[CmdrSlack]

I don't drink Guinness anymore.  Naturally, it's because I got terribly sick on it once.  How, you ask, does one get sick on Guiness?  I will simply advise that you never, ever drink beer through a straw, even if you think the waitress is hitting on you.

Heh.  If getting sick on Guinness put you off it, then I guess you're lucky you never spent a summer living in Dublin.  My roommates and I drank so much Guinness that we were all basically shitting black after the first four days in country.

[Fargull]

Mmm.. Guinness.  I was in Stuttgart in 90 and had the pleasure of drinking Dinkelacker Märzen with a great steak.  That taste has stuck with me since then, damn good beer.

[Yegolev]

then I guess you're lucky you never spent a summer living in Dublin.

I hear this quite a bit.  I am told they have a four lane highway in Dublin, by the guy my company sent to the plant in Drogheda for six months.

I can't really drink like I used to, my body has rebeled against alcohol for some reason.

[Sky]

Girlfriend bought me a case of Negra Modelo for xmas :) It's tough to find around here, and she won't tell me where she got it. Women!

[Abagadro]

You are welcome to drink with me anytime- haven't had the Big Sam Smith's, but ther rest are among my favorites. Did some Blue Moon and Fire Rock for Christmas Eve, and then Santa left me something in my stocking-

My beer fridge is open to you if you are ever in SLC. The Stella was a one-timer as I hadn't tried it before and saw it on my last beer run. Doubt I'll but it again as there wasn't much special to it.  My other usual standard that didn't make that list that night is Red Tail Ale from Mendocino Brewing. You can probably get Deschutes up there in the grocery store which makes me very jealous
(for you people with little idea of what we have to put up with out here in Utah, I was craving more Pacifico and went to the state liquor store and it is 46 dollars a case).

Unfortunately my supply is low right now and I am having the typical "end of the year and I am really fucking fat and I've probably drank a keg's worth the last week so I shouldn't drink any more beer for a long time" moment.  Hopefully that will pass soon and I will trek out to Bendover, I mean Wendover, soon.

[WayAbvPar]

I was craving more Pacifico and went to the state liquor store and it is 46 dollars a case).

That is criminal! Can you get it online anywhere? Hell, I could probably get it for 1/2 that and ship it to you and you would still save a few bucks.

[Abagadro]

Nope. Illegal to ship into Utah.

[Yoru]

I just picked up some Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout.

It's pretty good; a little on the sweet side, but still pretty thick and malty. Very bubbly, and it holds its head for a decent length of time. Tastes a little too much like chocolate though.

[Raging Turtle]

I like beer, but I also love hard cider.  Currently drinking Woodchuck, either the Amber or the Dark and Dry variety.  I've tried Strongbow, and it was ok but not as good as woodchuck, and I've tried Mike's, and that was pretty much crap.  Anyone have a favorite they could recommend? 

[Sky]

Nope. Illegal to ship into Utah.

Bom bom bom...Eastbound and down, loaded up and truckin', we gonna do what they say can't be done!

[WayAbvPar]

Nope. Illegal to ship into Utah.

Does he work your area?

[MisterNoisy]

I like beer, but I also love hard cider.  Currently drinking Woodchuck, either the Amber or the Dark and Dry variety.  I've tried Strongbow, and it was ok but not as good as woodchuck, and I've tried Mike's, and that was pretty much crap.  Anyone have a favorite they could recommend? 

It's not really a cider, but I like Ephemere when I'm looking for that sort of thing.  It's technically an ale, but with a ton of apple flavor.  Great served cold with a fruit-based dessert.

[Abagadro]

Does he work your area?

No, but I do drive extra careful when coming back from my Nevada beer runs.

[WayAbvPar]

All this beer talk has got me thinking I might need to start brewing my own, now that I have the space (figured it would be a PITA in an apartment). Anyone have any links to some good 'get started' brewing sites?

[Abagadro]

My advice is to ask around and see what is the best homebrew supply store in your area and go talk to them.