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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Kraken »

So...Bell's Two-Hearted Ale. I keep reading that it's Michigan's best IPA. Some say it's one of the world's best. I thought it was pretty average. Good, sure; smooth and nicely balanced, but not something I'm going to rush out and buy again. If it has any fans here: What do you love about this beer that I'm missing?
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Drazzil »

Jeff V wrote: Sat Jun 15, 2019 10:46 pm So today, my wife's friend had a party and we were a good hour late arriving. I always BYOB since not a single one of her friends can be trusted to have anything potable. It's a 40 minute drive to this friend's house...and the route does not go past a single grocery or liquor store. I spent the party nursing a cup of coffee when the hostess kept badgering me to eat. Filipino food is not edible without beer, and it certainly doesn't go with coffee. My wife told her that's why I wasn't eating and she exclaims, "oh, I have beer!" She proceeds to get me a Miller High Life. I thanked her then hid the unopen can behind the kid's gift bags arrayed on a table. Moments later she asked if I wanted another. Uh...no thanks.
When I drank beer miller high life was my go to. Loved the stuff. I'd buy cases. Coming in slightly under that was MGD. MGD was the beer for me. If I wanted a beer that tasted good. #9 by the magic hat brewing co.

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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by EvilHomer3k »

Kraken wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 8:05 pm So...Bell's Two-Hearted Ale. I keep reading that it's Michigan's best IPA. Some say it's one of the world's best. I thought it was pretty average. Good, sure; smooth and nicely balanced, but not something I'm going to rush out and buy again. If it has any fans here: What do you love about this beer that I'm missing?
Much of that reputation was earned 5-10 years ago before the craft brew craze really kicked it into high gear. At the time it was one of the few IPAs that hit 7% ABV. It's still an excellent IPA but there are so many now that are stronger, more flavorful, more daring, etc. Because of that, it may taste a bit bland by comparison to a double dry hopped coconut mango barrel aged brut ipa but it's an excellent basic IPA. I certainly wouldn't classify it as best in the world for basic IPAs but I can understand why someone would have 10 years ago.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by ImLawBoy »

EvilHomer3k wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 9:09 pm
Kraken wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 8:05 pm So...Bell's Two-Hearted Ale. I keep reading that it's Michigan's best IPA. Some say it's one of the world's best. I thought it was pretty average. Good, sure; smooth and nicely balanced, but not something I'm going to rush out and buy again. If it has any fans here: What do you love about this beer that I'm missing?
Much of that reputation was earned 5-10 years ago before the craft brew craze really kicked it into high gear. At the time it was one of the few IPAs that hit 7% ABV. It's still an excellent IPA but there are so many now that are stronger, more flavorful, more daring, etc. Because of that, it may taste a bit bland by comparison to a double dry hopped coconut mango barrel aged brut ipa but it's an excellent basic IPA. I certainly wouldn't classify it as best in the world for basic IPAs but I can understand why someone would have 10 years ago.
For the last couple of years it's been ranked the best beer in America by the American Homebrewers Association, so I don't think its current reputation is based on the past. I find it to be a nearly perfect IPA to my palate, with a nice balance of hops and malt and a decent alcohol kick. I don't think it's a beer that will blow anyone away - at least not anyone who's frequently out there trying a ton of new beers like many of us are - but I think it's highly regarded due to being a paragon of the balanced IPA style. Put another way, if I wanted someone to try an ideal IPA, Two Hearted would be a likely choice.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Kraken »

ImLawBoy wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 10:39 am
EvilHomer3k wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 9:09 pm
Kraken wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 8:05 pm So...Bell's Two-Hearted Ale. I keep reading that it's Michigan's best IPA. Some say it's one of the world's best. I thought it was pretty average. Good, sure; smooth and nicely balanced, but not something I'm going to rush out and buy again. If it has any fans here: What do you love about this beer that I'm missing?
Much of that reputation was earned 5-10 years ago before the craft brew craze really kicked it into high gear. At the time it was one of the few IPAs that hit 7% ABV. It's still an excellent IPA but there are so many now that are stronger, more flavorful, more daring, etc. Because of that, it may taste a bit bland by comparison to a double dry hopped coconut mango barrel aged brut ipa but it's an excellent basic IPA. I certainly wouldn't classify it as best in the world for basic IPAs but I can understand why someone would have 10 years ago.
For the last couple of years it's been ranked the best beer in America by the American Homebrewers Association, so I don't think its current reputation is based on the past. I find it to be a nearly perfect IPA to my palate, with a nice balance of hops and malt and a decent alcohol kick. I don't think it's a beer that will blow anyone away - at least not anyone who's frequently out there trying a ton of new beers like many of us are - but I think it's highly regarded due to being a paragon of the balanced IPA style. Put another way, if I wanted someone to try an ideal IPA, Two Hearted would be a likely choice.
"Balanced" is how I described it, but that's not what I prefer in an IPA. Usually I like hazy NEIPAs. When I want a change, I go for piney West Coast IPAs. So a beer that isn't either comes off as "meh." I appreciate that it nails the middle really well...maybe it's the Joe Biden of beers.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by ImLawBoy »

Kraken wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 11:10 am
ImLawBoy wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 10:39 am
EvilHomer3k wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 9:09 pm
Kraken wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 8:05 pm So...Bell's Two-Hearted Ale. I keep reading that it's Michigan's best IPA. Some say it's one of the world's best. I thought it was pretty average. Good, sure; smooth and nicely balanced, but not something I'm going to rush out and buy again. If it has any fans here: What do you love about this beer that I'm missing?
Much of that reputation was earned 5-10 years ago before the craft brew craze really kicked it into high gear. At the time it was one of the few IPAs that hit 7% ABV. It's still an excellent IPA but there are so many now that are stronger, more flavorful, more daring, etc. Because of that, it may taste a bit bland by comparison to a double dry hopped coconut mango barrel aged brut ipa but it's an excellent basic IPA. I certainly wouldn't classify it as best in the world for basic IPAs but I can understand why someone would have 10 years ago.
For the last couple of years it's been ranked the best beer in America by the American Homebrewers Association, so I don't think its current reputation is based on the past. I find it to be a nearly perfect IPA to my palate, with a nice balance of hops and malt and a decent alcohol kick. I don't think it's a beer that will blow anyone away - at least not anyone who's frequently out there trying a ton of new beers like many of us are - but I think it's highly regarded due to being a paragon of the balanced IPA style. Put another way, if I wanted someone to try an ideal IPA, Two Hearted would be a likely choice.
"Balanced" is how I described it, but that's not what I prefer in an IPA. Usually I like hazy NEIPAs. When I want a change, I go for piney West Coast IPAs. So a beer that isn't either comes off as "meh." I appreciate that it nails the middle really well...maybe it's the Joe Biden of beers.
I can see how if you like garbage like hazy IPAs it would not be very satisfying. ;) When I drink an IPA I prefer it to . . . you know . . . taste like an IPA. That means it needs to have some bitterness to it. I do enjoy the occasional hop bomb West Coast IPA. Sometimes I wonder if I'd like hazy IPAs better if they weren't called IPAs but rather had a wholly different name so that I'm not disappointed whenever I try one.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Kraken »

ImLawBoy wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 12:05 pm
Kraken wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 11:10 am
ImLawBoy wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 10:39 am
EvilHomer3k wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 9:09 pm
Kraken wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 8:05 pm So...Bell's Two-Hearted Ale. I keep reading that it's Michigan's best IPA. Some say it's one of the world's best. I thought it was pretty average. Good, sure; smooth and nicely balanced, but not something I'm going to rush out and buy again. If it has any fans here: What do you love about this beer that I'm missing?
Much of that reputation was earned 5-10 years ago before the craft brew craze really kicked it into high gear. At the time it was one of the few IPAs that hit 7% ABV. It's still an excellent IPA but there are so many now that are stronger, more flavorful, more daring, etc. Because of that, it may taste a bit bland by comparison to a double dry hopped coconut mango barrel aged brut ipa but it's an excellent basic IPA. I certainly wouldn't classify it as best in the world for basic IPAs but I can understand why someone would have 10 years ago.
For the last couple of years it's been ranked the best beer in America by the American Homebrewers Association, so I don't think its current reputation is based on the past. I find it to be a nearly perfect IPA to my palate, with a nice balance of hops and malt and a decent alcohol kick. I don't think it's a beer that will blow anyone away - at least not anyone who's frequently out there trying a ton of new beers like many of us are - but I think it's highly regarded due to being a paragon of the balanced IPA style. Put another way, if I wanted someone to try an ideal IPA, Two Hearted would be a likely choice.
"Balanced" is how I described it, but that's not what I prefer in an IPA. Usually I like hazy NEIPAs. When I want a change, I go for piney West Coast IPAs. So a beer that isn't either comes off as "meh." I appreciate that it nails the middle really well...maybe it's the Joe Biden of beers.
I can see how if you like garbage like hazy IPAs it would not be very satisfying. ;) When I drink an IPA I prefer it to . . . you know . . . taste like an IPA. That means it needs to have some bitterness to it. I do enjoy the occasional hop bomb West Coast IPA. Sometimes I wonder if I'd like hazy IPAs better if they weren't called IPAs but rather had a wholly different name so that I'm not disappointed whenever I try one.
I might agree if my tastes were stuck in 10 years ago. I used to think Harpoon IPA was the bomb. Bells tastes a lot like that. Nowadays I consider Harpoon (which is ubiquitous on tap here) to be the minimal acceptable beer. It didn't change; I did.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Rumpy »

The hoppy and bitter westcoast style have long been dominant and it's only been until the last several years that we've started to see diversification, at least from my experience in my part of Canada. Personally, I've found most of the style to be too bitter to the point that I was put off by the style for decades, then about two years ago I discovered the hazy more mellow style which I find a lot more to my liking. I actually had one recently that felt like it straddled the line between hazy IPA and Belgian style. It was very mellow, but super tasty. I don't mind a little bitter, mind you. It's just that of the examples I'd tasted, it felt like many had gone overboard on the hopfactor.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by ImLawBoy »

Kraken wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 1:01 pm
ImLawBoy wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 12:05 pm
Kraken wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 11:10 am
ImLawBoy wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 10:39 am
EvilHomer3k wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 9:09 pm
Kraken wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 8:05 pm So...Bell's Two-Hearted Ale. I keep reading that it's Michigan's best IPA. Some say it's one of the world's best. I thought it was pretty average. Good, sure; smooth and nicely balanced, but not something I'm going to rush out and buy again. If it has any fans here: What do you love about this beer that I'm missing?
Much of that reputation was earned 5-10 years ago before the craft brew craze really kicked it into high gear. At the time it was one of the few IPAs that hit 7% ABV. It's still an excellent IPA but there are so many now that are stronger, more flavorful, more daring, etc. Because of that, it may taste a bit bland by comparison to a double dry hopped coconut mango barrel aged brut ipa but it's an excellent basic IPA. I certainly wouldn't classify it as best in the world for basic IPAs but I can understand why someone would have 10 years ago.
For the last couple of years it's been ranked the best beer in America by the American Homebrewers Association, so I don't think its current reputation is based on the past. I find it to be a nearly perfect IPA to my palate, with a nice balance of hops and malt and a decent alcohol kick. I don't think it's a beer that will blow anyone away - at least not anyone who's frequently out there trying a ton of new beers like many of us are - but I think it's highly regarded due to being a paragon of the balanced IPA style. Put another way, if I wanted someone to try an ideal IPA, Two Hearted would be a likely choice.
"Balanced" is how I described it, but that's not what I prefer in an IPA. Usually I like hazy NEIPAs. When I want a change, I go for piney West Coast IPAs. So a beer that isn't either comes off as "meh." I appreciate that it nails the middle really well...maybe it's the Joe Biden of beers.
I can see how if you like garbage like hazy IPAs it would not be very satisfying. ;) When I drink an IPA I prefer it to . . . you know . . . taste like an IPA. That means it needs to have some bitterness to it. I do enjoy the occasional hop bomb West Coast IPA. Sometimes I wonder if I'd like hazy IPAs better if they weren't called IPAs but rather had a wholly different name so that I'm not disappointed whenever I try one.
I might agree if my tastes were stuck in 10 years ago. I used to think Harpoon IPA was the bomb. Bells tastes a lot like that. Nowadays I consider Harpoon (which is ubiquitous on tap here) to be the minimal acceptable beer. It didn't change; I did.
I think Harpoon is definitely a notch or two below Two Hearted, FWIW. Harpoon is much less assertive - the hoppy bitterness is more restrained.

Classics are classics for a reason. I don't shy away from new stuff (I do shy away from hazy IPAs, but only because I've tasted a bunch of them and determined that it's not my style), but I am also happy to revisit classics.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Kraken »

ImLawBoy wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 2:09 pm
Kraken wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 1:01 pm
ImLawBoy wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 12:05 pm
Kraken wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 11:10 am
ImLawBoy wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 10:39 am
EvilHomer3k wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 9:09 pm
Kraken wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 8:05 pm So...Bell's Two-Hearted Ale. I keep reading that it's Michigan's best IPA. Some say it's one of the world's best. I thought it was pretty average. Good, sure; smooth and nicely balanced, but not something I'm going to rush out and buy again. If it has any fans here: What do you love about this beer that I'm missing?
Much of that reputation was earned 5-10 years ago before the craft brew craze really kicked it into high gear. At the time it was one of the few IPAs that hit 7% ABV. It's still an excellent IPA but there are so many now that are stronger, more flavorful, more daring, etc. Because of that, it may taste a bit bland by comparison to a double dry hopped coconut mango barrel aged brut ipa but it's an excellent basic IPA. I certainly wouldn't classify it as best in the world for basic IPAs but I can understand why someone would have 10 years ago.
For the last couple of years it's been ranked the best beer in America by the American Homebrewers Association, so I don't think its current reputation is based on the past. I find it to be a nearly perfect IPA to my palate, with a nice balance of hops and malt and a decent alcohol kick. I don't think it's a beer that will blow anyone away - at least not anyone who's frequently out there trying a ton of new beers like many of us are - but I think it's highly regarded due to being a paragon of the balanced IPA style. Put another way, if I wanted someone to try an ideal IPA, Two Hearted would be a likely choice.
"Balanced" is how I described it, but that's not what I prefer in an IPA. Usually I like hazy NEIPAs. When I want a change, I go for piney West Coast IPAs. So a beer that isn't either comes off as "meh." I appreciate that it nails the middle really well...maybe it's the Joe Biden of beers.
I can see how if you like garbage like hazy IPAs it would not be very satisfying. ;) When I drink an IPA I prefer it to . . . you know . . . taste like an IPA. That means it needs to have some bitterness to it. I do enjoy the occasional hop bomb West Coast IPA. Sometimes I wonder if I'd like hazy IPAs better if they weren't called IPAs but rather had a wholly different name so that I'm not disappointed whenever I try one.
I might agree if my tastes were stuck in 10 years ago. I used to think Harpoon IPA was the bomb. Bells tastes a lot like that. Nowadays I consider Harpoon (which is ubiquitous on tap here) to be the minimal acceptable beer. It didn't change; I did.
I think Harpoon is definitely a notch or two below Two Hearted, FWIW. Harpoon is much less assertive - the hoppy bitterness is more restrained.

Classics are classics for a reason. I don't shy away from new stuff (I do shy away from hazy IPAs, but only because I've tasted a bunch of them and determined that it's not my style), but I am also happy to revisit classics.
I don't mean to denigrate Bell's. Sure it's better than Harpoon, but it's the same style -- neither left coast nor right coast. Appropriate for a Midwestern beer to be in-between, I'd say. Maybe I'll give it another chance one day...there are just so many other beers that I like better.

Lately I've settled into buying Lord Hobo's Hobo Life, Notch Left of the Dial (both session IPAs), Clown Shoes Zen Garden, Radiant Pig Save the Robots, Wormtown's Don't Worry, Mayflower's New World IPA, and Widowmaker Blue Comet. You'd probably hate all of them except Hobo Life, which is bitter and astringent (especially for a low-alcohol brew).
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Isgrimnur »

Today was the first day at the bar in a while.

Epic New England IPA - My first NEIPA, light flavor.

Breckenridge Summer Pils - I'm pretty sure that I just don't like Pilsners

Sierra Nevada Kellerweis - a Bavaraian whear, a touch bitter, and weak.

All in all, not my favorite threesome that I've sampled.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Daehawk »

Had two last week. Simple beer for a simple man.

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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Jeff V »

Drazzil wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 8:26 pm When I drank beer miller high life was my go to. Loved the stuff. I'd buy cases. Coming in slightly under that was MGD. MGD was the beer for me. If I wanted a beer that tasted good.
My god I knew you had a sordid past, I had no idea how utterly horrifying it could be.

#9 is rather pedestrian, but light years better than anything bearing the Miller name.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by EvilHomer3k »

Four things before you two go off the deep end.
1. While some people may like one style of beer over another that doesn't mean the other style is bad. It's beer. They're all good.
2. Because of the craft beer movement every single area of the country has some fantastic breweries making beer in every conceivable style (and I, like everyone else, would put some local brewery up and say how awesome they are - and they ALL are).
Spoiler:
But, seriously, Toppling Goliath and Pulpit Rock are the best in the country.
3. Stone Fear Movie Lions Double IPA is awesome. DogfishHead Slightly Mighty is not terrible (just don't drink it after Stone Fear Movie Lions).
4. How awesome it is now compared to 10 years ago when the best we could find in most places was equivalent to Pete's Wicked Ale.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Kraken »

EvilHomer3k wrote: Wed Jun 26, 2019 1:05 am 4. How awesome it is now compared to 10 years ago when the best we could find in most places was equivalent to Pete's Wicked Ale.
Craft beer is the reason I'm 30 pounds overweight. Once upon a time Sam Adams Boston Lager was a revelation.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Z-Corn »

I've never not drank good beer. Always been a beer snob.

When I was a 16yo dishwasher and stealing beer from the walk-in it was Geary's Pale Ale.

My first batch of homebrew was for my 21st birthday.

I used to skateboard up the street to the best beer store in town to meet Larry Bell as he was hand delivering his Cherry Stout.

I was brewing at the old location of Founder's when they were a month away from having to shut down the business.


Having said all that...the best beer in the world is the one in front of you right now.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by AWS260 »

Daehawk wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 8:06 pm Had two last week. Simple beer for a simple man.

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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Drazzil »

Jeff V wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 9:58 pm
Drazzil wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 8:26 pm When I drank beer miller high life was my go to. Loved the stuff. I'd buy cases. Coming in slightly under that was MGD. MGD was the beer for me. If I wanted a beer that tasted good.
My god I knew you had a sordid past, I had no idea how utterly horrifying it could be.

#9 is rather pedestrian, but light years better than anything bearing the Miller name.
Can't account for alchaholic tastes. :wink:
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by ImLawBoy »

EvilHomer3k wrote: Wed Jun 26, 2019 1:05 am Four things before you two go off the deep end.
1. While some people may like one style of beer over another that doesn't mean the other style is bad. It's beer. They're all good.
First, I think you're reading waaaaaaaaay too much into things if you think Kraken and I were anywhere close to going off the deep end. Sure I goofed on hazy IPAs (because they're terrible), but I did so with a wink and an acknowledgement that it's just not my style. I'm happy for others to have a beer they enjoy. (I just wish breweries would get consistent on nomenclature and labeling so I don't pick up what I think is a new traditional IPA and I end up with a cloudy mess that forgets that IPAs should have *some* bitterness to them.)

Second, not all beer is good. Some mass produced beer is pretty bad. Some craft beer is pretty bad. It's OK for us to give our preferences on those things, and even to do so strongly. That doesn't mean that Kraken can't continue to enjoy his bastardized version of IPAs or that I can't continue to seek out boring old classic IPAs.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Alefroth »

ImLawBoy wrote: Tue Jun 25, 2019 12:05 pm Sometimes I wonder if I'd like hazy IPAs better if they weren't called IPAs but rather had a wholly different name so that I'm not disappointed whenever I try one.
+1

They aren't even indicating on the label anymore if it's hazy. I picked up a pale ale from Ft. George because I like pale ale and Ft. George is a dependable brewery. I was so disappointed when I poured it and it was some hazy crap. No mention at all of haze level on the label. That definitely was no pale ale.

Pale ale
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Daehawk »

I hardly drink but today is a drinking day. Maybe a drunk day.

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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Jeff V »

"IPA" has been so misused so much it's more of a surprise than anything when a beer bearing that moniker resembles the actual thing. The style was an English creation, heavy hops helped preserve the beer on long sea voyages to/from India. Now, as we know, different hops create different flavor profiles...when pollutants are added to accent a particular flavor, it's no longer the real deal.

That said, beer professing to be "hazy" or "juicy" I have no real problem with. I can't drink fruit juice, so the next best thing, amIright?

Today I had a couple of Bell's Two-Hearted's on tap. Much better than canned or bottled, and a nice change from the six pack of Hazy Little Things I imbibed yesterday. Not the best ever, but to receive lots of votes, you need to be pretty ubiquitous and Bells is one of the few mega-micros that have the distribution reach to compete for such accolades.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Kraken »

I hadn't realized that can four-packs aren't a thing everywhere. They completely dominate the market here.
Browse the beer coolers at any liquor store and you’ll notice the traditional six-pack is being downsized. Craft brewers increasingly are opting to sell their products in four-packs of 16-ounce cans.

It’s the latest evolution of a trend that started about five years ago when more craft beer drinkers started reaching for aluminum cans instead of glass bottles.

“Even if it’s a good, quality beer, it won’t sell if it’s sitting on the shelf in the six-pack format instead of the 16-ounce four-packs,” said Rob Vandenabeele, cofounder of local craft beer website Mass. Beer Bros.

Brewers started to adopt the four-pack after a few influential beers popularized the packaging, said Bart Watson, chief economist of the Brewers Association, a Colorado-based trade group. Some trace the four-pack’s rise to 2013, when craft beer fanatics were lining up outside Vermont brewery The Alchemist to buy its Heady Topper IPA, one of the first beers sold in 16-ounce four-packs, he said.
It wasn't too many years ago that I wouldn't even buy canned beer. Now I rarely buy 6-packs anymore; all of the best beers come in pint cans. 12-oz cans still have their place in 12-packs, though.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Daehawk »

As a underage teen around 1986 the long neck Buds were soooo good.....if you could get them. I couldn't wait until I was 21 but by then Id basically stopped drinking. Over the years I may drink a 6 pack in a year....maybe a little more.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

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I think I've seen 4 packs from some of the mass-market brewers. Thing is, they're not nearly as convenient, and often more expensive in the long-run, because why buy 4 when you can buy 6? This is the case with at least one Canadian brewery which releases only 4 packs; their beers are always more expensive in their 4-pack config than any of their competitors with 6-packs. Then again, this is from a nation where 12 and 24-packs are common.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

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At least a 4-pack of pounders will make it easier for you to compare with offerings at a well-equipped pub. I don't really seek them out though...weekdays I don't often have more than one beer a night; a six pack lasts longer under those conditions.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

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MillerCoors Blog
“These days you can watch any game or any movie, interact with your friends, find a date and get food delivered to you without ever having to leave your couch,” says Hilary Jamieson, senior director of on-premise channel marketing for MillerCoors. “We need to give people a reason to get out and about. People still want to engage with each other, but we’ve got to give them a better reason to do so.”

Thus the rise of a new class of bars offering activities such as target golf, shuffleboard, axe throwing, escape rooms, pétanque and table tennis. There are now some 5,200 activity-based outlets that serve alcohol beverages, and more are opening each year. Just as important: these so-called experiential venues draw a crowd that skews younger than the neighborhood tavern or the chain casual dining restaurant.
...
“If we don’t get drinkers into beer after they turn age 21, they’ll go straight to spirits,” Jamieson says. “We need to find new ways to bring them into our categories and our brands, and we think there’s a huge opportunity in this channel."
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

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How about better beer for one thing ;)

We do have a local bar with axe throwing. But somehow I'd think alcohol and axe throwing wouldn't mix.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Jeff V »

Rumpy wrote: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:16 pm How about better beer for one thing ;)

We do have a local bar with axe throwing. But somehow I'd think alcohol and axe throwing wouldn't mix.
That's what they said about darts. I've yet to stab anyone with them, despite throwing when they were in the line of fire (no, I didn't suck, I actually hit what I was aiming for despite their being in the way).
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Kraken »

Radiant Pig, the brewer behind personal favorite Save the Robots, has another hit with Own the Night. If you like NEIPAs these are both top-notch, and $11 per 4 puts them at the bottom of the premium price range. They are well worth <$3 per pint. Radiant Pig calls NY NY home but brews in Boston (Dorchester, to be exact).

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Re: Whatcha drinking?

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I told my wife that I was out of beer.

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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Rumpy »

Jeff V wrote: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:35 pm
Rumpy wrote: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:16 pm How about better beer for one thing ;)

We do have a local bar with axe throwing. But somehow I'd think alcohol and axe throwing wouldn't mix.
That's what they said about darts. I've yet to stab anyone with them, despite throwing when they were in the line of fire (no, I didn't suck, I actually hit what I was aiming for despite their being in the way).


Well, at least with darts, they're light and easy to handle. With the local place that does it, they have a backroom for the axe throwing. You'd pretty much have to as I don't think it's something you'd want to do near crowds.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by ImLawBoy »

Isgrimnur wrote: Tue Jul 09, 2019 11:22 pm I told my wife that I was out of beer.

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I would recommend the fridge. Stovetops have a tendency to generate heat if you fiddle with the knobs. YMMV
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

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Isgrimnur wrote:I told my wife that I was out of beer.

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Beer! It's what's for dinner!
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Isgrimnur »

The list:

Firestone Walker Mind Haze IPA (not pictured)
Strongbow Hard Cider Original Dry
Tupps Brewery Full Grown Hombre Imperial Stout
Tupps Brewery Full Grown Man Imperial Stout
Breckenridge Brewery Nitro Vanilla Porter
Rabbit Hole Brewing Off With Your Red IPA
Deep Ellum Brewing Local Legend Sweet Stout
Deep Ellum Brewing Dream Crusher 2x Rye IPA
Shiner Black
Alltech Lexington Kentucky Vanilla Barrel Cream Ale
Magners Irish Cider


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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Jeff V »

Mango Mosaic Pale Ale from Breckenridge Brewery, CO. Usually I am disappointed by this brewery's offerings and swear never to try them again. The price was right though, and hey, I was having people over for a mid-summer holiday party so what the heck. And I like it! The beer has a nice bitterness, the mango is briefly present in the after taste then fades from the palate. At 5.5% ABV thought it straddles the line between actual beer and something best served in a kid's juice box but hey, I'll grab this again if the price is right.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Jeff V »

My beer reserves are in critical condition....100+ heat index and I'm down to my last 3 (and only 1 cold!) Definitely need to make a beer run tomorrow.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Rumpy »

Know what you mean, Jeff. Last week we've had a terrible heatwave and I went through my reserve quicker than I normally do. It was in the high 30's Celcius, which is hot for us.
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Re: Whatcha drinking?

Post by Jeff V »

Hopsolution Ale DIPA by Bell's Brewery, Comstock, MI. Nice, deep bitterness nearly obliterates the notes of mango and pine. It's only 8% ABV, on the weak side for its species and on sale at $11.50/6, perhaps a tad over priced.
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