The Craft Beer Thread....

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  • PJFAN13
    PJFAN13 Posts: 1,422
    edited March 2013
    :D
    Post edited by PJFAN13 on
    11.30.93~10.2.96~9.13.98~9.1.00~8.25.00~7.3.03~7.5.03
    7.9.03~9.28.04~10.1.05~5.12.06~5.13.06~5.27.06~5.28.06
    8.5.08(EV)~10.9.09~5.21.10~6.20.11(EV)~7.5.11(EV)~7.9.11(EV)
    11.21.13~8.27.16(EV)~11.14.16(TOTD)~4.13.20~9.27.20~9.26.21~10.2.21
    2.15.22 (EV)~2.25.22 (EV)~2.27.22 (EV)~5.3.22~5.7.22~9.17.24~9.29.24
  • PJFAN13
    PJFAN13 Posts: 1,422
    rearviewross wrote:
    My question is about aging. What types of beers do you age and how do age them? Do you keep them cold in the fridge or leave them at room temp? What does aging do?
    First and foremost - I'm no expert. I've homebrewed in the past, made a few delicious batches, now I solely experiment with new craft beers. I am a big fan of IPA's - particularly Double IPA's - hophead if you will :) These beers - with the exception of Dogfish's 120 should be enjoyed fresh. My friends accuse me of being "Stone washed" because I believe in their philosophy of beer is meant to be enjoyed fresh. Hence, my love and adoration for IPA's = not much around for storage :D

    On to your question...

    For the handful of beers that improve over time: try Lambics, Barleywines, old & strong ales and some Imperial Stouts. The idea of aging beer is to see what it tastes like more mature, so buy a few bottles of each - try each immediately. Then wait. 6mos. 1 yr. Store your beer standing up. You'll want any and all yeast, particles, etc... on the bottom of the bottle opposed to laying it on its side. Keep it in a dark place. No crazy lights and preferably no exposure to sunlight (no skunk!). Ideally, storing it a consistent temp of 50-55 degrees works best. No hot garages or closets near furnaces. Basement that is cool or a small fridge is ideal.

    Being a Stone fan, I did a Vertical Epic tasting on the 02.02.02 through the 12.12.12 in mid Dec. It was one of the highlights of my beer drinking life. The 05.05.05 simply matured to the point of WOW - it was my fave of the series BY FAR - it was aweome in 2005 and WAAAAAY better in 2012.
    That being said, I've stored a few of the Barleywines and Double Bastards - and a few Lucky Bastards. Outside of Stone, I've enjoyed Alesmith Speedway Stout, Ommegang Ommegeddon, Dogfish 120 & Bitches Brew - within a 6 year period. Fun, enjoyable, cool to see the differences and tasty. That all being said, pour me a fresh Pliny the Younger, Enjoy by 4/2013, Dorado or Pallette Wrecker any day of the week.

    Have fun. Let us know how you fare.

    PROST!
    11.30.93~10.2.96~9.13.98~9.1.00~8.25.00~7.3.03~7.5.03
    7.9.03~9.28.04~10.1.05~5.12.06~5.13.06~5.27.06~5.28.06
    8.5.08(EV)~10.9.09~5.21.10~6.20.11(EV)~7.5.11(EV)~7.9.11(EV)
    11.21.13~8.27.16(EV)~11.14.16(TOTD)~4.13.20~9.27.20~9.26.21~10.2.21
    2.15.22 (EV)~2.25.22 (EV)~2.27.22 (EV)~5.3.22~5.7.22~9.17.24~9.29.24
  • rearviewross
    rearviewross Posts: 3,055
    PJFAN13 wrote:
    rearviewross wrote:
    My question is about aging. What types of beers do you age and how do age them? Do you keep them cold in the fridge or leave them at room temp? What does aging do?
    First and foremost - I'm no expert. I've homebrewed in the past, made a few delicious batches, now I solely experiment with new craft beers. I am a big fan of IPA's - particularly Double IPA's - hophead if you will :) These beers - with the exception of Dogfish's 120 should be enjoyed fresh. My friends accuse me of being "Stone washed" because I believe in their philosophy of beer is meant to be enjoyed fresh. Hence, my love and adoration for IPA's = not much around for storage :D

    On to your question...

    For the handful of beers that improve over time: try Lambics, Barleywines, old & strong ales and some Imperial Stouts. The idea of aging beer is to see what it tastes like more mature, so buy a few bottles of each - try each immediately. Then wait. 6mos. 1 yr. Store your beer standing up. You'll want any and all yeast, particles, etc... on the bottom of the bottle opposed to laying it on its side. Keep it in a dark place. No crazy lights and preferably no exposure to sunlight (no skunk!). Ideally, storing it a consistent temp of 50-55 degrees works best. No hot garages or closets near furnaces. Basement that is cool or a small fridge is ideal.

    Being a Stone fan, I did a Vertical Epic tasting on the 02.02.02 through the 12.12.12 in mid Dec. It was one of the highlights of my beer drinking life. The 05.05.05 simply matured to the point of WOW - it was my fave of the series BY FAR - it was aweome in 2005 and WAAAAAY better in 2012.
    That being said, I've stored a few of the Barleywines and Double Bastards - and a few Lucky Bastards. Outside of Stone, I've enjoyed Alesmith Speedway Stout, Ommegang Ommegeddon, Dogfish 120 & Bitches Brew - within a 6 year period. Fun, enjoyable, cool to see the differences and tasty. That all being said, pour me a fresh Pliny the Younger, Enjoy by 4/2013, Dorado or Pallette Wrecker any day of the week.

    Have fun. Let us know how you fare.

    PROST!

    Thanks for the info, appreciate it. :D
    Forced to endure, what I cannot forgive.
  • shep
    shep Houston Posts: 5,900
    PJFAN13 wrote:
    rearviewross wrote:
    My question is about aging. What types of beers do you age and how do age them? Do you keep them cold in the fridge or leave them at room temp? What does aging do?
    First and foremost - I'm no expert. I've homebrewed in the past, made a few delicious batches, now I solely experiment with new craft beers. I am a big fan of IPA's - particularly Double IPA's - hophead if you will :) These beers - with the exception of Dogfish's 120 should be enjoyed fresh. My friends accuse me of being "Stone washed" because I believe in their philosophy of beer is meant to be enjoyed fresh. Hence, my love and adoration for IPA's = not much around for storage :D

    On to your question...

    For the handful of beers that improve over time: try Lambics, Barleywines, old & strong ales and some Imperial Stouts. The idea of aging beer is to see what it tastes like more mature, so buy a few bottles of each - try each immediately. Then wait. 6mos. 1 yr. Store your beer standing up. You'll want any and all yeast, particles, etc... on the bottom of the bottle opposed to laying it on its side. Keep it in a dark place. No crazy lights and preferably no exposure to sunlight (no skunk!). Ideally, storing it a consistent temp of 50-55 degrees works best. No hot garages or closets near furnaces. Basement that is cool or a small fridge is ideal.

    Being a Stone fan, I did a Vertical Epic tasting on the 02.02.02 through the 12.12.12 in mid Dec. It was one of the highlights of my beer drinking life. The 05.05.05 simply matured to the point of WOW - it was my fave of the series BY FAR - it was aweome in 2005 and WAAAAAY better in 2012.
    That being said, I've stored a few of the Barleywines and Double Bastards - and a few Lucky Bastards. Outside of Stone, I've enjoyed Alesmith Speedway Stout, Ommegang Ommegeddon, Dogfish 120 & Bitches Brew - within a 6 year period. Fun, enjoyable, cool to see the differences and tasty. That all being said, pour me a fresh Pliny the Younger, Enjoy by 4/2013, Dorado or Pallette Wrecker any day of the week.

    Have fun. Let us know how you fare.

    PROST!

    how was the 4/2013? I scored a bottle of it last weekend - probably going to have it either friday or saturday night.... the enjoy by 12/21/2012 was great....
    Houston, Texas... Believe it or not, there are 7 million people here... must be a couple of fans who'd love to see you play.
  • JK_Livin
    JK_Livin South Jersey Posts: 7,365
    Found a bountiful amount of Immort, 75min & Hellhound. South Jersey is f'd up in their distribution of Dogfish. The place around the corner from me gets scraps. A guy told me the salesman flat out tells them they can't have it. While a place I went to this weekend had cases and cases of this stuff.
    Alright, alright, alright!
    Tom O.
    "I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?"
    -The Writer
  • PJFAN13
    PJFAN13 Posts: 1,422
    shep wrote:
    how was the 4/2013? I scored a bottle of it last weekend - probably going to have it either friday or saturday night.... the enjoy by 12/21/2012 was great....

    Magnificent. Sounds crazy, but I had 2 bottles of that and 2 bottles of Pliny in the fridge...I reached for the 2nd bottle of Enjoy By and left the 2 Pliny's (which I looove).
    My personal fave of the "Enjoy By's". Hop-erific! Its a quality one PACKED with citrus and hops and aroma - the way a quality dipa should be.
    You will enjoy it tremendously, shep - I await your review good sir :)
    11.30.93~10.2.96~9.13.98~9.1.00~8.25.00~7.3.03~7.5.03
    7.9.03~9.28.04~10.1.05~5.12.06~5.13.06~5.27.06~5.28.06
    8.5.08(EV)~10.9.09~5.21.10~6.20.11(EV)~7.5.11(EV)~7.9.11(EV)
    11.21.13~8.27.16(EV)~11.14.16(TOTD)~4.13.20~9.27.20~9.26.21~10.2.21
    2.15.22 (EV)~2.25.22 (EV)~2.27.22 (EV)~5.3.22~5.7.22~9.17.24~9.29.24
  • Jearlpam0925
    Jearlpam0925 Deep South Philly Posts: 17,507
    The only Pliny the Younger east of the Mississippi is in Philly....and it has been glorious.
  • rearviewross
    rearviewross Posts: 3,055
    Picked up one of these yesterday. Will try it this weekend.

    SamuelSmithImperialStout.jpg
    Forced to endure, what I cannot forgive.
  • Horos
    Horos Posts: 4,518
    a3ec2f2e5ff4__1362431338000.jpg?tw=0&th=720&s=true&rs=false
    Had one of these this weekend. Coming around and starting to enjoy stouts more.
    #FHP
  • shep
    shep Houston Posts: 5,900
    PJFAN13 wrote:
    shep wrote:
    how was the 4/2013? I scored a bottle of it last weekend - probably going to have it either friday or saturday night.... the enjoy by 12/21/2012 was great....

    Magnificent. Sounds crazy, but I had 2 bottles of that and 2 bottles of Pliny in the fridge...I reached for the 2nd bottle of Enjoy By and left the 2 Pliny's (which I looove).
    My personal fave of the "Enjoy By's". Hop-erific! Its a quality one PACKED with citrus and hops and aroma - the way a quality dipa should be.
    You will enjoy it tremendously, shep - I await your review good sir :)

    I have never had a bottle of Pliny...

    One day I hope to try it. Would be more than happy to send something special from Texas in return if you'd trade me one ;)

    I wish RR would do business in the state of texas - but I understand why they don't with the cost of label licensing fees in this state.... :(

    This beer is on tap for tonight:

    http://www.beermonthclub.com/brouwerij-de-ranke-noir-de-dottignies-1.htm?catid=816

    I'll let you know how it goes. (and yea I know... I'm only getting around to my January beers of the month now... I am spoiled rotten :lol: )
    Houston, Texas... Believe it or not, there are 7 million people here... must be a couple of fans who'd love to see you play.
  • Jnich2424
    Jnich2424 Posts: 608
    Had some Oskar Blues "Ten Fidy" earlier, and now I'm drinking some Ballast Point "Victory At Sea Imperial Porter" It's been crazy since I got back. I've tried a lot of new stuff, and can't wait to get back to WI for a bit to try some good Founders and Three Floyds (plus more)
  • rearviewross
    rearviewross Posts: 3,055
    Jnich2424 wrote:
    Had some Oskar Blues "Ten Fidy" earlier, and now I'm drinking some Ballast Point "Victory At Sea Imperial Porter" It's been crazy since I got back. I've tried a lot of new stuff, and can't wait to get back to WI for a bit to try some good Founders and Three Floyds (plus more)

    No, Three Floyds in Green Bay but I had a Founders Breakfast Stout at dinner the other night. I think it is appropriately named. Strong chocolate and coffee flavors and that smooth creamy oats taste at the end. Also had a Dirty Bastard, it was good too.
    Forced to endure, what I cannot forgive.
  • Horos
    Horos Posts: 4,518
    Had a Ninkasi Babylon DIPA and a Boneyard Venom DIPA last night. Both were rather tasty and smooth.
    #FHP
  • carolinabeerguy
    carolinabeerguy Kernersville, NC Posts: 2,517
    A new brewery, Fort Myers Brewing Company, opened here last week. I get off work at 2:25 (high school teacher) and their tasting room opens at 3:00. That works out perfectly.
    I wish I was as fortunate, as fortunate as me.
  • MaxGoldenrod
    MaxGoldenrod Posts: 1,341
    Looking into my crystal ball...

    I see growlers of multiple craft brews being brought home this weekend.

    Stocking up for our annual cabin in the mountains trip.

    Mmmm... :D
    "Then the Spirit of God hovered over the water, and God said, Let there be music, and there was Pearl Jam."

    Whose idea was it for the word "Lisp" to have an "S" in it?
  • Horos
    Horos Posts: 4,518
    Local taproom is having an IPA fest this weekend. Going tomorrow. Over 50 breweries represented. Will definitely be drinking some Pliny as well as many others.
    #FHP
  • shep
    shep Houston Posts: 5,900
    Horos wrote:
    Local taproom is having an IPA fest this weekend. Going tomorrow. Over 50 breweries represented. Will definitely be drinking some Pliny as well as many others.

    lucky bastard...

    i thought i was doing good by planning to have my 'enjoy by 04/01/2013' and pizza...

    a new brewery officially started distributing here in houston yesterday... called 8th wonder.... might have to wander out and try and find a glass at one of the local establishments in the area....
    Houston, Texas... Believe it or not, there are 7 million people here... must be a couple of fans who'd love to see you play.
  • mfc2006
    mfc2006 HTOWN Posts: 37,489
    Horos wrote:
    Local taproom is having an IPA fest this weekend. Going tomorrow. Over 50 breweries represented. Will definitely be drinking some Pliny as well as many others.

    Nice!
    I LOVE MUSIC.
    www.cluthelee.com
    www.cluthe.com
  • Bentleyspop
    Bentleyspop Craft Beer Brewery, Colorado Posts: 11,385
    I don't mean to brag but I live in Colorado where we have just over 170 breweries and brewpubs with roughly 80 more coming online in the next year or so.

    I live in Boulder to be more specific where I have roughly16 breweries and brewpubs within walking and bike riding distance. Plus another 50 or so within an hours drive.

    Boulder is also home to the brewers Association
    And every October we have the Great American Beer festival in Denver

    And they just keep coming!!

    :D
  • he.who.forgets
    he.who.forgets Posts: 4,593
    adam42381 wrote:
    A new brewery, Fort Myers Brewing Company, opened here last week. I get off work at 2:25 (high school teacher) and their tasting room opens at 3:00. That works out perfectly.
    We've got another small craft brewery opening here too, called Aardwolf Brewery. I'm expecting big things as the dude opening the place used to be a brewer with Terrapin. That brings lil ole Jacksonville to 5 true craft breweries, out of which I enjoy Intuition's beer the best.
    We were but stones your light made us stars

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