Can't say I was there, but I hear nowadays it's unbelievably insane. Apparently 900 cases got sold out in a matter of hours today and a lot of the people there are now hawking their bottles on ebay, which is pretty ****ty. That's the way these limited beer releases work these days. A sad state of affairs, but hopefully it will be a soon-dying fad.

What brewery were you at for your pre-DLD partying, just out of curiosity?

Flossmoor Brewery.

That's my regular hangout, as I grew up in the next town and I'm a mug club member there.

Rarely do I venture over to other breweries (mostly due to travel time to get to other quality places) but when I do it is usually to three floyd's (about 10-15 minutes further away for me).

And yea, we showed up 10 minutes before it started at 11am and didn't get our beer until after 4pm I think. There wasn't too much left when we got ours and we were pretty worried for the last hour or two when the staff kept coming up and down the line doing head counts more and more frequently.

I bought one bottle while I was in line, some guy and his wife came out of there with 12 and were selling a few to friends and he was willing to give one up to me for regular price (15 bux) so I wasn't TOO nervous about waiting for nothing, the most important thing for me was to be able to try it, having another dozen is really just a luxury.

Total noob question.

My favorite beers are Heineken, Guinness, Becks, and Newcastle. In that order. With that in mind, what are some "less mainstream" beers I'm likely to enjoy?

Edit: My *absolute favorite* was actually something called "Upper Canada. . ." I forget the whole name, I had it in Toronto. Honey aftertaste/flavor.

Where do you live? That'll help us identify some microbrews in your area to try.

Hey Wookie, I was unbanned so now I'll post reviews as Labarde instead of as Filenky Corkleone.

Miami, but only for another year. I'm also in the northeast (Boston/NYC) a couple times a year.

I don't know much about beer from that area, and we haven't gotten many reviews from there, either. The NE is fertile beer country, though. How is the selection at wherever it is that you buy beer? Is it that there are many options, but you don't know what to try, or is it a pretty limited selection, so you'd have to do some hunting to find the better beer?

The beer you listed that you liked is pretty mainstream, nothing too exotic, and it runs the gamut from light to dark. What have you tried that you didn't like, esp. beers you didn't like that were more sophisticated than Bud Lite or Natty Ice?

Since it's difficult to make some specific recommendations given that your tastes seem pretty broad and there isn't much knowledge in this thread about that area, you might consider an exploratory beer scavenger hunt. Here are some things to look into finding that would give you a pretty good introduction to many different styles of beer and teaching you a little about what flavors you like in beer and what ones you don't. Some categories to get:

• An American Pale Ale: these will generally be one step up in flavor from Heineken and Becks, but they won't be anything that will be so out of this world as to be off-putting, either. Sierra Nevada Pale is a good one, and often a bar by which all APAs are judged. Many people have some that they prefer to SN, but SN has such good distribution that most beer lovers have tried it at some point, and almost every pale ale lover thinks it's pretty good.
  
• Something lighter, fairly sweet, and a little spicy: A beer like Hoegaarden, Blue Moon, or a German hefeweizen/hefeweissbier (make sure it's from Germany and not the US) would fit here. This style of beer makes up a lot of my summer drinking.
  
• Something hoppy: hops are a principle component in many beers. They're hated by some, deified by others. They'll add bitterness to beer, along with floral, citrusy, and sometimes grassy flavors. Beers to look for in this category would be India Pale Ales (IPAs), American barley wines, red hoppy ales, and "imperial" or "double" versions of each.
  
• Something malty: On the other end of the spectrum, we'll have unhopped or lightly hopped beers that feature a darker malt. These would be darker in color. Styles to look for would be brown ales (try one other than Newcastle), Scotch ales, dark or black lagers, etc.
  
• Something that will make Guinness look thin and watery: Look for just about any American stout or porter and give it a go. If you can find an imperial stout, all the better.
  
• Something from one or more of the following breweries: Rogue, Stone, Flying Dog, Dogfish Head, or Great Divide. These are five "micro" breweries that are both highly regarded and have national distribution. If you come across anything by them, it's almost certainly worth trying.
  
• Something truly exotic: You might want to do this category last, after you've tried some of the above beers so you'll be more accustomed to more flavorful beers and know what sorts of things you like better. Beers that would fit into this category would be just about anything with a cork top, almost anything from Belgium or brewed in the Belgian style (dubbles, tripels, or quadrupels especially), anything 9% or greater ABV, any 22 oz or 750 mL bottle that costs north of $10 or any 12 oz bottle that costs north of $4, etc.

I'd love to hear you report back on how you like beers that you try, and as you report back with what you can find and what you thought of it, we can offer up some better advice of things to look for.

All,

Before taking competition wins to heart, it's worth researching just what the competitions are. Lots of them are crap and don't mean anything. Even among the biggies, some awards are considered more prestigious than others. Also, most, if not all, competitions take entries by style category. If you brew an APA but enter it as an English, you might have the best-brewed beer, but it will get so heavily penalized for being out of style that it won't win anything. I can't imagine any brewer worth their salt would deliberately miscategorize a beer just to give it a better shot at an award.

"My favorite beers are Heineken, Guinness, Becks, and Newcastle. In that order. With that in mind, what are some "less mainstream" beers I'm likely to enjoy?"

Heineken and Guinness are worlds apart, beer-wise. What is it you like about Guinness? The flavor, the mouth feel, the whole package?

RDH,

Yeah, I'm not exactly going to use the results of that to pronounce the best beers of world, but its certainly a curiosity. Many categories did feature some worthy winners, many categories had some beers I'd never heard of and would like to try, and many had some wtfs that left me scratching my head. I mean, you have to wonder when something called a tripel and that tastes like a tripel doesn't win in the tripel category, but maybe it was subtly different enough that it had a better home in another? But mostly, I was just happy to see some beers I enjoyed getting some recognition, and I now have a convenient list of some beers to try, too.

A couple of brief review of beers I tried this past weekend that sucked.

First of all was Long Trail's Belgian White. I bought it on a whim to see if it could stack up to Victory's offering. Blech. It had a sharp lemon flavor and not much else. It didn't have the maltiness or yeastiness or spiciness of a good beer in this style. It was somewhat hard to finish. I prefer Blue Moon. and a half .

The second beer I tried was Magic Hat's Spring '08 edition of their Odd Notion line, which seems to be an ever-changing line of seasonals that are a little out in left field. This beer was too far out there for me. I had no idea what I was drinking until I looked it up. This is an Irish red ale brewed with cardamom. The weird herbal, gingery flavor of the cardamom dominated everything. I didn't so much care for that flavor, and this beer didn't really have a lot else going for it. I would definitely avoid this one. I give it a single, solitary .

We actually had an event here in NYC for Magic Hat. I'll agree that the Irish Red wasn't all that great, though if anyone gets the chance at a local bar, try the Odd Notion English Dark Mild (evidently it's their summer version). For a 3.5% brew, it's really quite flavorful and quaffable. Lots of dark malts in there. I didn't really take notes for a detailed review, but I'd give it at least 3.5 . It was my first real mild and although I'm still a big beer guy, this one got me thinking a bit.

Enterprise Brewery Knappstein Reserve Lager (Australia)



Pours a very light blonde colour, very little lacing and a poor head. Sour fruity smell, almost like a white wine. Floral taste, very hoppy and vinous, with fruit notes of grape and lemon rind. Dry bitter finish. A unique brew but not one I especially enjoyed.

I give it a 2.7/5.

^

At least the bottle looks pretty nice.

I know I said I'd review some beers a weekish ago, sorry it's going to have to wait a few more days.

I have two Darkhorse Brewery beers sitting in the fridge, the double crooked IPA and black beer. I'll have those reviewed in the next few days.

I'll also review the Dark Lord tomorrow night after I finish my VPP requirements for the month (kind of like motivation).

Cardamom seeds?

That sounds interesting and something I might like. Even though you gave it a poor rating, I'll look for one this weekend.

Quick review -Harpoon's 100 barrel series - Firth of Forth ale. $6 for a 22 oz bottle. Dark Amber color, almost no head. Truly one of the worst beers I've had. This is a twist on a Scottish Ale and to me, there was almost no body whatsoever. No hops, no nothing. I've never been more disappointed in a beer ever. I've heard the otehr 100 barrel series are pretty good and I like Harpoon in general, but this one is
one to avoid. I should have known when it said 5.4 % ABV......

if even....

Labarde,

Interesting find, even if you didn't end up liking it much. Have you had any beer similar to that one that you liked more, or do you just not care for that style?

I was in Malaysia recently for work. Tiger Beer from Singapore seems to be the big thing there. To be honest, it's not that bad. Crisp and clean enough for a refreshing beer. Pretty decent malt flavor. A little on the syrupy side. 5% ABV. seems about right.

Labarde,

Where are you? In TN I can't get many beers, but I'm always hopeful that I'll be able to snag one I've read about.


All,

Every time I go to St. Louis, I visit Square One brewpub. It's located right on Lafayette Square, which is between downtown and Soulard. For through-travelers, that means it's very convenient for anyone going through StL. The brewmaster (owner/partner?) also has a brewpub in rural MO. They have five or so regular offerings: an American Lager, a Pale, an IPA, a hefe, and maybe something else, and then another five or so seasonal offerings. The regulars are a bit better than just "regular" - I like the pale a lot - but the real treat lies with the pinch-hitters, as with any brew pub. Square One always offers seasonal brews and brews them well. Last week, they had a Saison and a Wit, both perfect for spring, and I also had a taste of a "single malt scots," which was a Scottish ale brewed with only one type of malt (pretty sure it was MO; really interesting beer in any case).

The food at Square One is above average if unsurprising. You can get a burger with fries, an open-face grilled portobello sandwich, or BBQ brisket, all at reasonable prices.

I've also been really impressed with O' Fallon beers. Based just across the river from St. Louis, their smoked porter has not only won awards, but is the first smoked beer I've had where I didn't feel overwhelmed. They sell sampler 12-packs, and if you're passing through, nothing would be better than stopping for a great lunch at Square One and then leaving town with a sampler of O' Fallon brews.

I'm not very keen on wine and when I do drink it I prefer red. This was just too winey for me really. I have not had a similar tasting beer. It has been quite well received by other drinkers and maybe it is great for people who do enjoy wine more. I'm more into the darker brews.

I live in Australia, so I'm going to be rating quite a few local brews. It is easy enough to get some of the good European beers over here but I rarely see any of the good American brews I read about and desperately want to get my hands on. There is a store a little bit of a drive away I might have to check out as I've heard it has a massive selection of local and international beers. Hopefully some American ones there.

My review of Three Floyd's Dark Lord Russian Imperial Stout.

I saved my first bottle for the end of the month and just had it.

It's 13% ABV and you can only get it once a year during Dark Lord Day at the brewery (April 26th this year). They cost 15 dollars each for a 22oz bottle and you can only buy 6 bottles each. I believe they had around 900 cases this year. I got 12 bottles.



Every review I'd read before I drank this beer mentioned how this beer poured and looked like motor oil, and well I guess that is the best way to describe it. The head was actually kind of thin, and a very dark brown.

The aroma has a roasted, coffee smell to it. Some hints of fruit perhaps and a little bit of alcohol.

As soon as it touched my lips, I was overpowered by how thick this beer is. It's honestly like a milkshake or like drinking melted chocolate. Sweet roasted-chocolate notes, you can definitely taste the heavy black patent, very malty and flows into a bit of a bitter, kind of hoppy, more caramel finish.

The vanilla bean, oak aged Dark Lord I tried while in line may have been a bit more complex, but I didn't care for it as much as this beer. While there wasn't as much vanilla or really any oak in the bottled version, it was plenty complex.

I'm sure another person could name about a dozen flavors they experience while tasting this beer.

Overall, this really lived up to the hype for me. I've always loved stouts and have always been really hard on new stouts. Honestly, even though I'm not the most experienced drinker, I seem to harp on any weakness or non strength I can find in a stout, something I definitely do not do with other beers. While I've found probably a half dozen stouts that I enjoy drinking, nothing can really compare to this.

Now, to the value of this beer. If they actually sold it regularly, I would probably drink two dozen a year on special occasions, even for the 15 dollars. Not much beer by me goes for 15 dollars, every Unibroue, Three Floyds and most standard Belgians that I see generally don't eclipse 10 dolalrs for a 22/750. So while this might be one of the pricier beers compared to the general beer population, I don't think any other imperial stout is going to quite knock my socks off like this.

I had an Old Rasputin, one of my favorite Imperial Stouts, last night. And while I love that beer, it's just not in the same ballpark as this beer.

On a final note, I could hardly taste much alcohol in this beer, though after almost 90 minutes of drinking it, I could tell I had drank 22oz of 13% beer.

I'm going to give this a and give the Vanilla Bean Oak Aged version I tried at the brewpub a and a half rating. If they didn't serve it in a plastic cup and I was able to try it in weather that was better than 50 degrees with more than a few hours of drunken sleep, I could probably bump it up to a 4/5.

I'd suggest to any stout lover, do what you can to get this beer. If you're not quite a "stout man" I would still suggest you not pass up trying this beer if you have the opportunity. I won't say for sure that it's the best beer I'll ever drink, but I'm sure 20 years from now if somebody asks me what the best beer I ever drank was, this will certainly cross my mind.

Here's another review of a beer from Three Floyds.

The beer is Pride And Joy. The bottle calls it a "mild ale" in a long intricate paragraph. I guess it's just their version of an Amber Ale, meaning you get a much hoppier version. It's 4.8% ABV.




The beer poured a dull yellow/golden color with a semi-thick white head.

It smelled like flowers, some sort of citrus, maybe even grapefruit and hops.

It tasted of grapefruit. It kind of finished with some malt and was fairly hoppy throughout. These flavors were kind of subdued, or I guess as they would call it "mild."

Overall, not my type of beer, though I would definitely be more than happy to drink one. Nothing I'll be tempted to pick up at a decent liquor store. Probably not in the first 5-6 beers I'd suggest somebody going to Three Floyds to try, though it would probably be a good beer for somebody just getting into "good" beer to try, especially if they want to ease their way into hops and not just pick up that imperial IPA and hate the bitterness.

The price is 10-12 dollars for a 6 pack. Not bad, but not any less than so many other good 6 packs around here. I don't have a lot of amber ale experience that I can relate to, but I don't think FFF compares well to other beers anyways.

I'll give it a , not b/c it's bad, but b/c if you can find this beer you can find other FFF beers and I would recommend you try those before this.

Ry,

Excellent review of the Dark Lord. I'm very jealous. The mild ale sounds pretty good, but at $10+ for a sixer, I can't say I'd get it.

All,

I think I suck at picking out beer lately. I was shopping today, and for my first review from this batch, I picked Smuttynose's Summer Weizen Ale. I'm always skeptical of American Hefeweizens, but Brooklyn did ok, and this one advertised that it was bottle conditioned and used Bavarian yeast. Well, I should have been more skeptical. It reminds me a lot of the Long Trail Belgian white, honestly. It is pretty lemony, and it doesn't have much else going for it. There's a little more malt, but in spite of being cloudy and obviously bottle conditioned, the yeastiness doesn't really come through. I'll give it and not bother buying this one again.

looks like Dogfish Head is making its way to California. I found a random 4 pack of Midas Touch at my grocer yesterday. Just one.. nothing else. I've googled it some and it sounds like they're getting some distribution out here. Sweet!

Had a couple of nice local beers last night so here are the reviews.

Redoak Christmas Cheer (Aus)



Poured a dark reddish amber with a nice off-white head. Big aroma of
cinnamon and hot cross buns. The flavour is fantastic...brandy and raisins
and pudding all hit your mouth and you can really taste Christmas. Medium
body with an agreeable finish. A great warming beer to have with a winter
dessert.



3.9/5

Redoak Belgian Chocolate Stout (Aus)



Pours very dark brown with an brownish head that diminished quickly.
Strong dark chocolate aroma. Taste is kind of weak...somewhat chocolatey
and with hints of raisin but it just doesn’t pack much punch. Lacks the
complexity and body of better stouts.



2.8/5

O rly? I had my very first bottle of DFH 5ish years ago when I was going to college in the LA area. I had their Raison D'Etre. Hooked me for life.