Beer!

tohostudios wrote:

I haven't had much luck with Christmas/Holiday/Winter beers so far this year.

Schlafly's Christmas Ale is probably the best so far.

Right now I'm drinking:

Do you drink more than one in a sitting?

SpectreFate wrote:

tohostudios wrote:

I haven't had much luck with Christmas/Holiday/Winter beers so far this year.

Schlafly's Christmas Ale is probably the best so far.

Right now I'm drinking:

Do you drink more than one in a sitting?

These usually come in "bombers" which are 22oz bottles (B-22 bombers, hence the name) so the answer is no.

EDIT: Actually, it depends on the circumstances. If I don't have to get up at 4 am to get ready for work the next day then hell yeah, I'll have another bomber. But on a typical work night, no.

tohostudios wrote:

I haven't had much luck with Christmas/Holiday/Winter beers so far this year.

Schlafly's Christmas Ale is probably the best so far.

I am going to see if the Schlaflys is here yet this weekend. I still have a stash of pumpkin ale to tide me over.

My local brewery's holiday ale. This american strong ale is brewed with brown sugar. It is excellent. 9.9 ABV, oh yeah!

I saw that in the store. I was wondering how it was.

It does have a strong hop character, but it is also sweet. You should try it.

Went back to my beer store and they were out of it already. That happens to me all the time.

I settled for a bunch of Belgian winter ale bombers and a 6 pack of Schlafly's Christmas ale.

Drinking Schlafly's Christmas Ale. I still think this is as good as last year's version.

Waiting for Southern Tier's "Choklat" to be available here (it's made in the Northeast King so you might be able to find it before me. It comes in a 650 ml bottle though; not a sixer.)

I recommend "Choklat" to anyone who thinks they don't like beer; this stuff tastes like a dessert.

Joe wrote:

My local brewery's holiday ale. This american strong ale is brewed with brown sugar. It is excellent. 9.9 ABV, oh yeah!

Looks nice Joe. I just finished up some lame Christmas ale and it was bad, like 5.5 abv bad. Didn't check that when I got it.

well my pumpkin ale is gone

now to try some Christmas ale!

Interesting article on 9 beers Americans no longer drink:

http://247wallst.com/2012/12/03/nine-beers-americans-no-longer-drink/

thejokeriv wrote:

Interesting article on 9 beers Americans no longer drink:

http://247wallst.com/2012/12/03/nine-beers-americans-no-longer-drink/

Not surprising considering how horrid many of those are.

"Your American beer is like making love in a canoe, it's f*cking close to water". - Monty Python Live At The Hollywood Bowl

Tohostudios, you sir, are a connoisseur of the amber necter; though u class yourself as a 'BEER SNOB' - Same thing I've sampled a few tipples in my time - but I'd nay be in your league for knowledge. In saying that, I am looking forward to sharing my limited know how on the subject. On the way home, I picked up a bottle of Irish Bushmills on special offer 16.99 in Euro and a bottle of British ale, SPITFIRE, abv 5.4% - I found it a little thin on the pallet, not the usual rich ale taste. Do u know of this ale, sir?

Speaking of British ales, this is an absolute gem. Sadly, in Ireland, British ale is very expensive, and this retails at 2.26 euro in the supermarkets. Only Tesco sell it, so it is a treat when I can get a chance to buy a couple of them.

Chrome Locust wrote:

Tohostudios, you sir, are a connoisseur of the amber necter; though u class yourself as a 'BEER SNOB' - Same thing I've sampled a few tipples in my time - but I'd nay be in your league for knowledge. In saying that, I am looking forward to sharing my limited know how on the subject. On the way home, I picked up a bottle of Irish Bushmills on special offer 16.99 in Euro and a bottle of British ale, SPITFIRE, abv 5.4% - I found it a little thin on the pallet, not the usual rich ale taste. Do u know of this ale, sir?

I don't recognize the label. 

Too bad British beers are so expensive in Ireland; one of my favorite British breweries is Samuel Smith.  Their oatmeal stout is the best I've had in that style. 

My favorite beers are stouts and Belgian ales but I like 'em all as long as their not real hoppy like an IPA. 

Chrome Locust wrote:

Speaking of British ales, this is an absolute gem. Sadly, in Ireland, British ale is very expensive, and this retails at 2.26 euro in the supermarkets. Only Tesco sell it, so it is a treat when I can get a chance to buy a couple of them.

I think I've seen this one in my favorite beer store.

CL, do you have microbreweries in Ireland?

Here in the states it's trend that's really taking off. Americans are finally realizing what real beer tastes like and rebelling against the swill the big breweries have been churning out for years. Here in St. Louis alone we have almost a dozen microbreweries producing small batches of craft beers in practically any style you can think of.

I was wondering if this a global phenomenon.

tohostudios wrote:

CL, do you have microbreweries in Ireland?

Here in the states it's trend that's really taking off. Americans are finally realizing what real beer tastes like and rebelling against the swill the big breweries have been churning out for years. Here in St. Louis alone we have almost a dozen microbreweries producing small batches of craft beers in practically any style you can think of.

I was wondering if this a global phenomenon.

Yeah, man, we'd have microbreweries, but only for serious hobbiests, as we only have a tiny population, so its just for hardcore enthusiasts like yourself really, impossible to make any sort of living out of.

St Louis, u lucky sod, I bet its about 100 degrees your end - bloody minus and then some these parts.

Try that old Pec, matey, if your beer store sells it - you'll love it - its real hardcore, hops and then some as soon as u open the cap.

How much would u pay in dollars for the Dragons Milk for example? Or an imported ale? We have nothing like that this end - we get a few British ales because so many English have moved here in the last few years, but that's about it, I'm afraid.

I'm a tad jealous of your ale store, my friend.

Dragon's Milk is pricey here (15 USD for a four pack) but trust me, it's worth it. I actually have a "beer cellar" (really just a closet in the basement) where I age beers in a dark, cool environment and this one ages really well. After about 6 months, the fairly strong bourbon taste from the barrels is mellowed out substantially.

It's funny, DM is the first beer I ever tried "aging" with. BEfore that I thought only wine and hard liquor improved with age. Nope. Certain beers do too. But you have to be careful because some get worse. I found that out the hard way.

tohostudios wrote:

Dragon's Milk is pricey here (15 USD for a four pack) but trust me, it's worth it. I actually have a "beer cellar" (really just a closet in the basement) where I age beers in a dark, cool environment and this one ages really well. After about 6 months, the fairly strong bourbon taste from the barrels is mellowed out substantially.

It's funny, DM is the first beer I ever tried "aging" with. BEfore that I thought only wine and hard liquor improved with age. Nope. Certain beers do too. But you have to be careful because some get worse. I found that out the hard way.

Found out the hard way, hey? He, he. I was converting dollars to Euro and you say 15 USD for a 4 pack of Dragons Milk. That works out 11 Euros my end, about 3 Euro a bottle, give or take. Friend, is that a pint bottle, or a half pint bottle? If we are talking a pint bottle (no idea what that is in the States measuements) - then we'd be more or less same price wise for quality imported ales.

I'm guessing its a pint bottle u are talking about. 4 pints for 15 USD.

Chrome Locust wrote:

tohostudios wrote:

Dragon's Milk is pricey here (15 USD for a four pack) but trust me, it's worth it. I actually have a "beer cellar" (really just a closet in the basement) where I age beers in a dark, cool environment and this one ages really well. After about 6 months, the fairly strong bourbon taste from the barrels is mellowed out substantially.

It's funny, DM is the first beer I ever tried "aging" with. BEfore that I thought only wine and hard liquor improved with age. Nope. Certain beers do too. But you have to be careful because some get worse. I found that out the hard way.

Found out the hard way, hey? He, he. I was converting dollars to Euro and you say 15 USD for a 4 pack of Dragons Milk. That works out 11 Euros my end, about 3 Euro a bottle, give or take. Friend, is that a pint bottle, or a half pint bottle? If we are talking a pint bottle (no idea what that is in the States measuements) - then we'd be more or less same price wise for quality imported ales.

I'm guessing its a pint bottle u are talking about. 4 pints for 15 USD.

I'm terrible with measurments. It's a standard US 12 ounce bottle like most beer comes in here.

EDIT: according to an online converter, 12 fluid ounces equals about 3/4 of a US pint.

Finished one of these:

[quote="tohostudios"]Finished one of these:

OMG!! A 8.9% stout ale. You did not elababorate. Looks delicious, cost a pretty penny I'm guessing.

I went to the ale review after you posted it, a fine looking stout, sir.

Tonight's first glass, Southern Tier's Creme Brulee Stout:

had a sam adams while bowling.