Tried Stone's 13th Anniversary ale this weekend. Along with the usual BS they put on the back of the bottle, they usually give an idea what they are going after with a particular beer. Not this one. It seemed pretty much an American styled barleywine (thxRDH) to me, but instead of slightly more hop than malt, this one is hopped to the tenth power. Way, way over the top. This one would probably benefit from some cellaring, but it might be right up Kevroc's and other's alley. I thought it was a little green but hop fans should find plenty to love here. 9.?% ABV and off the chart IBU's. Kinda torn whether this one gets 2.5 or 3 hearts.

Picked up a six from a new local brewery Hangar 24. They're shipping a pale ale and an Orange Wheat which is what I grabbed. Not the biggest wit fan, I really enjoyed this. Apparently, they use whole, locally grown oranges in the brewing process. The orange is very subtle but very real. When I burped it tasted like orange rinds. I thought it was fun and tasted good.

Thanks for the heads-up russell!

I had an Arrogant and a sixer of Green Flash's West Coast IPA this weekend.

I'll look for the anny-v ale next trip.

Stone calls the 13th an imperial Red. I agree about the hopping: way, way overdone. It had a really lingering bitterness that just coated my mouth. I thought the malt side was also not so great. I guess it's to be expected with a big red ale like that, but it just finished too far on the sweet side for me. I definitely prefer dry beers in general.

I got mine for free, but saw 22oz bombers going for $6.50. That's reasonable enough that I wouldn't have been put out by buying a bottle, but I definitely won't pick up another. I might go out and try something like Rogue's impy red just to have a basis of comparison.

I got to try a few new brews this past weekend when I was in MN. I couldn't find my way to a liquor store that was all that great, but I picked up a couple that I couldn't get out here. My selections were Bell's Kalamazoo stout and Goose Islands IPA. The stout was very good. All the men in my family with whom I shared it were impressed. I don't think it quite passes up Rogue's Shakespeare or Elysian's Dragonstooth, but it's good, even if I can't offer much in the way of specific notes beyond that now. It's about a and a half beer.

The IPA was also solid. It was a little pinier than Lagunitas's version, so I didn't like it quite as much, but the hops were still flavorful and the malt solid. It's about .

What really makes Goose Island beers awesome is the price.

I tried their IPA for the first time when I was in Nebraska and was honestly pretty disappointed. It is kinda hard to rate an IPA though since hop aroma/flavors tend to mellow out w/ age. Who knows how old the sixer I got was.

Wookie, all you had to do was PM me (I live in MN) and I could have pointed you to a few great liquor stores.

I'm going to lose sleep because you visited Minn and you didn't drink any Surly. Sigh.

Of the numerous Goose Island beers, I think the Nut Brown, and the Honkers are the best. The IPA is unmemorable, and the 312 is like drinking lemonade.

abs,

If you knew of a liquor store that was both closer to where I was and better than the sole liquor store in Blue Earth, I'd be both shocked and regretful.

Do you like Lagunitas' Imperial Red or their Lucky 13?

My favorite bar (Mac's Industrial in NE MPLS) has Furthermore Fatty Boombalatty on tap.

I've had this beer before but never reviewed it. Anyways, it's a belgian pale ale that rings in at 7%. I really enjoy this beer. It's a slow drinker, but good. Very yeasty, very spicy, and has good hop balance. Def a good starter BPA.

and a half

i'm a tard apparently. I bought Old Rasputin XII at the store, different than their XI which was only sold at their store, of which I had 1 bottle left after a purchase of 3, of which is now gone because I foolishly drank it thinking I'd just go buy another one. Oops. Anyways it's a similar brew and I'm not talented enough to tell the difference, so I'll just buy a couple of XII's and age one.

Hey Loungers...Haven't posted in this thread yet, but wanted to share my beer tasting experience last night. It was at a nice beer bar in Chicago's Bucktown neighborhood, called the Bluebird. Every week or two they hold a beer tasting of 6-10 brews from a brewery for $25, including some pretty good flatbread pizza, cheeses and breads.

Anyway, last nights brewery was Lagunitas, based in Petaluma, CA. I've seen their brews mentioned a bunch of times itt, but this was my first time trying them. The midwest sales rep was there and gave us a summary of the 9 brews we would be tasting. They were:

- Little Sumpin' Sumpin
- Imperial Red
- Correction Ale
- Lucky 13
- Maximus
- IPA
- Hop Stoopid
- Pils
- Censored Ale

The sales rep made it sound like they are known for their IPA's, but I actually thought their Pilsner was quite good too.

My favorites of the group were the Censored Ale, Correction Ale and Hop Stoopid.

Censored Ale - Probably my favorite overall. A really nice caramel aftertaste. creamy in color. Delicious.

Correction Ale - This is one of their seasonals, just released this Spring. The rep made it sound like this wouldn't be around too long, so if you can find it I'd definitely check it out.

Hop Stoopid - A very hoppy IPA. Smells like a Christmas tree. Sounds like popular brew among more experienced IPA lovers.


Sorry my descriptions are so weak...Anyone tried these?

The Lagunitas IPA gets lots of love around here. I enjoyed the censored, too, but it borders on being too sweet.

Yeah, that's what I meant about the price being the best part. It isn't great or anything, but it's a solid IPA and around here (Twin Cities) it is really really cheap. Usually can be had for less than the standard local beer (Summit). It's been a few months now, but the last time I purchased it I payed $6.99 for a 6.

Rochefort 10 is quite possibly the best beer I've ever had. Any others agree?

I'd love to get my hands on some Westvleteren, but I have no idea how to get it in the states.

This !!! There is grapefruit in that stuff for the love of god.

Also nice to be back on the new belgium distribution list.

Couple of beers i have had recently were pretty good.

First one was Weihenstephaner Kristall Weissbier . This was a very nice summer beer. Great Great finish with a unique taste. Went back to the store to buy a few more today. $2.99 per bottle isn't bad for a beer of this quality.

Next one was Wacko by Magic Hat. This was a nice summer beer. I like the seasonal stuff, and this one is pretty decent in my book.

Ken

Rochefort 10 is very high up on my list, easily one of the top 3 best beers I've ever had. Unfortunately, I don't drink it very often because I'd rather spend the $5 on a 750ml of Maudite or some other Unibroue beer.

Rochefort 10 is among my faves though i recently tried the Achel Extra and that's some worthy competition.

and i would also love to find some Westvleteren stateside, if anyone has any ideas on that.

I have a liquor store about 5 miles from my place that carries almost any Trappist beer, among them, Wesvleteren.

You sure about that? If so, would you be interested in arranging a shipping deal for some extra $$$?

Wow, I just called them, and they don't have it because you apparently cannot buy it stateside (fool me ). I could have sworn I saw un-labeled bottles in there that I thought were Westvleteren. I apologize for getting your hopes up!

Guess it's time to visit Belgium!

I'm drinking a Bear Republic Red Rocket ale right now. It's a pretty solid hoppy red ale, but it doesn't really set itself apart. The hops aren't quite as flavorful as, say, the Lagunitas IPA or Ithaca's Cascazilla. I think it's tasty, but only about .

Has anyone had Gumballhead? I'd love to try some but can't get it in the Midwest. Trade me for some maybe?

About to brew up 10 gallons of Munich Helles (think Spaten Premium)! I'm using a Kolsch yeast in 1/2 the batch and a dry, neutral ale yeast for the other. I've been wanting to brew up something light and tasty to deal w/ this 100F+ heat.

I might start bottling up some of my stuff to get some unbiased opinions. If anyone would be interested just PM me or something.