Craft beers

[Wouter D]

Craft beers

Very nice, but I can never drink even one of those without waking up with a headache the next morning. Your mileage may vary, obviously.

[Hugh Fatbastard]

Craft beers

I've only ever seen the Duvel around here.

I'll see if Houblon Chouffe is available.

[Stumpy Pepys]

Craft beers

treibeis wrote: Warsteiner

I'm suspicious of people who drink that, and I'm not entirely joking. You can't live somewhere with trillions of different beers and still prefer Warsteiner to everything else on offer. It ain't right.

Yeah, the few national brands I see are all bland--Warsteiner, Bitburger, Becks and all that weird shit that comes out of Veltins.

[Le Gog Sportif]

Craft beers

Made a rye pale ale called Wryneck with Conwy Brewery last week, only 80 litres but will be available on cask and in bottle. No stupid massive hops, just Challenger as a base, with Progress and Cascade to give a bit of aromatics. Quite excited to see how it goes. Made a saison with them last year and it sold well.

[Hugh Fatbastard]

Craft beers

you sound like my Wife's cousin.

He's started home-brewing on a dare and has become quite adept. Won himself a couple of medals to boot.

He made a decent IPA using (IIRC) New Zealand hops.

I think it's always a good thing having a brewer (hobbyist or otherwise) in the family.

[G-Man]

Craft beers

Our local beachfront joint is big on craft and imported beers and ciders. They sell this Belgium beer, which I shall order only for the name:

[Le Gog Sportif]

Craft beers

Kind of hate the words 'craft beer'; I often love the actual beers but hate the whole beardy hipster bollocks.

However it is great that there's so many innovative beers out there at the moment. They don't always work but it's got to be an improvement on Tetley and Worthington. It's a little bit wanky but I'd much rather have the choice of beers there is now than the limited selection of shite I had to put up with when I started drinking 20 years ago. We should be bloody grateful.

[Sir Moses Hill]

Craft beers

Yeah, "craft beer" is largely a marketing term and it's becoming a meaningless one now the brewing giants have accepted the trend and are embracing it by either acquisition or getting all crafty themselves (Tenth & Blake Beer Company by MillerCoors). Of course, others are staying strictly macro, which is the only reason needed to drink micro.

I count it one of the genuine joys that my five and a quarter years in North America have coincided with the beer revolution here. The west coast is better, particularly Cascadia. I'm no longer there but my current location of New York offers everything there is to buy both draft and bottled. The best local shop of any type in my neighbourhood is City Swiggers on 86th/2nd, a craft beer specialist store with small bar and an owner that passes you frequent free samples and asks what you think. I spent the weekend drinking a 64oz growler of Cigar City Jai Alai IPA. Who'd have thought they'd be brewing great beer in Tampa?

Complaints: too large a focus on graphic design and snappy names, too ABVy (the Jai Alai is 7.5%) and many breweries too prone to gimmickry e.g. holiday beers and ludicrous flavouring additives. Otherwise, all good.

[Sam]

Craft beers

Geoffrey de Ste. Croix wrote: IPA's have suddenly become a bit of a thing amongst the big Dutch breweries and Grolsch and now Brand have brought out versions. The Grolsch version ticks all the boxes, not too hoppy, balanced but I can't quite put my finger on why I don't like it.

Brand is better but it's not Landlord. However this, this is the absolute best IPA I have ever tasted:



Now you would trust the Belgians to be able to do most things beer-wise well and this is fantastic, my local offie has started selling it. It's 9% but beautifully balanced, the hops don't overpower and it's just delicious. If the gods of mount olympus had an official IPA supplier, it would be La Chouffe.

Blimey, 9% is at the outer limit of what I'd consider a drinkable draught cider, never mind beer.

[EIM]

Craft beers

That Cigar City stuff that Moses mentions is, or was at least, sold in Cask in Pimlico. When the brewer found out he phoned bollocked them and told them to stop immediately, saying it can't possibly be in the perfect condition to sell if they've transported it across the world. They managed to pacify him slightly by saying it was shipped over in refrigerated containers, but he was still dead unhappy about it.

[DCI Harry Batt]

Craft beers

The Ballad Of Lightbowne Lil wrote: IPAs so fucking hopped they turn your mouth into a cat's anus. What's the fucking point in THOSE. Brewdog are dicks for this sort of thing.

I thought you liked cats.

[DCI Harry Batt]

Craft beers

G-Man wrote: Our local beachfront joint is big on craft and imported beers and ciders. They sell this Belgium beer, which I shall order only for the name:

That's me, that is.

[Gerontophile]

Craft beers

Bulbous, TT?

That Duvel picture is very offputting. The version I drank had leas, and one had to stop... well after two, one had to stop anyway.

I was in Amsterdam over Christmas, with an affirmed real ale wanker, sorry drinker, and he poo-poohed all of my suggestions, other than Duvel.

Having said all of that, he thought that Priapic was a Trappist beer only available in the country of Utero...

[DCI Harry Batt]

Craft beers

Kris With A K. Innit.

[blameless]

Craft beers

I've had Kwak before (they sell it at the Bierodrome in London) - it's delicious, but you can't have too many or you'll end up with a thumping headache.

[Gerontophile]

Craft beers

TonTon wrote: Kris With A K. Innit.

I've heard.

[diggedy derek]

Craft beers

What Gog says, more or less.

Seems bizarre that we're getting pissed off at more choice. Also, I think these beers have raised standards generally - in London at least, more so-called craft beers often means more real ales also. It's the shit corporate beers which have lost out.

Just one caveat - can't be arsed with too many bizarre hop+stout +whatever combinations. But that's just the occassional one really.

More indepedent companies in a field which was previously almost devoid of independent comapnies is surely a good thing. Whatever we thibknif a couple of mildly irritating brands.

[Borracho]

Craft beers

steveeeeeeeee wrote:

I've been a Heineken drinker since I was 20 and there are times when you just become completely sick of it.

Jesus, 20 years drinking only Heineken?

No, that's not what I said.

[Gangster Octopus]

Craft beers

Gog wrote: However it is great that there's so many innovative beers out there at the moment. They don't always work but it's got to be an improvement on Tetley and Worthington.

You obviously mean the industrial effluent manufactured in Warrington under the name "Tetley", rather than the similarly named drink of the gods brewed in Leeds, which is, sadly, very sadly, no longer with us.

[Guy Profumo]

Craft beers

Gangster Octopus wrote:

However it is great that there's so many innovative beers out there at the moment. They don't always work but it's got to be an improvement on Tetley and Worthington.

You obviously mean the industrial effluent manufactured in Warrington under the name "Tetley", rather than the similarly named drink of the gods brewed in Leeds, which is, sadly, very sadly, no longer with us.

Stones'. Brewed in Sheffield >> Tetley's. Brewed in Leeds.

100% true fact.

(Mind you. Ward's was vile stuff)

[sw2borshch]

Craft beers

Is Tetley Imperial brewed in Hartlepool now, then?

[Capybara]

Craft beers

Guy Potger wrote:

However it is great that there's so many innovative beers out there at the moment. They don't always work but it's got to be an improvement on Tetley and Worthington.

You obviously mean the industrial effluent manufactured in Warrington under the name "Tetley", rather than the similarly named drink of the gods brewed in Leeds, which is, sadly, very sadly, no longer with us.

Stones'. Brewed in Sheffield >> Tetley's. Brewed in Leeds.

100% true fact.

(Mind you. Ward's was vile stuff)

I was never a great fan of Tetley's bitter in the old days and would always grab the mild if it was available. However, it was nectar compared to Stone's which was the kind of beer you would only drink if there really was nothing else. Ward's, on the other hand, was worth travelling miles for, and I often did.