OT: beer

[scaredyclassic]

my goodness. i stopped drinking beer probably about 10 or more years ago. i became a wine and cocktail kinda guy. recently ive started drinking expensive beer. this stuff is delciious! it’s like the whole beer thing erupted while I was alseep. i was vaguely aware things were happening, i knew there were many more bottles ont he shelf at baron’s, but…golly. this stuff is great! the pricing apporaches a low level drug habt, but its worth it!

really tasty

[carlsbadworker]

Any particular brand you’d recommend from baron? I am a wine person but I do drink lots of beer in summer.

[barnaby33]

Russian River, Supplication and Sanctification,
Bruery, pretty much anything they make
Manzanita Riverwalk Blonde
Ballast Point Victory at Sea
Bear Republic Racer 5 IPA.

Those are my blanket recommendations. If you narrow down a style I might be able to offer more suggestions. I’m a wino as well, but I know a dude.
Josh

[The-Shoveler]

Costco actually has decent beer
Kirkland Amber Ale

I generally only drink the better quality stuff (maybe 1 a night)
But generally my tastes are very commercial as well (as is my budget )
Guinness or Sam Adams
Maybe on a hot day Corona or Heineken.

[LAAFTERHOURS]

I am a beer snob and found out about 5 years ago that having kegs of craft at home is much better than bottles. I also like to stock bombers of some special stuff at all times. Most breweries will provide you with kegs and some dont charge deposit. A sixtel (5.5 gallons) for 50-70 bucks with 56 12 oz or 42 pints is a solid deal for fresh brew. I am picking up a keg of Lost Abbey Lost and Found when I arrive in town this week.

My wife thinks I am a PITA when we go out to eat because I take longer to order my drink than her based upon the beer list.

[NotCranky]

Never in my life not even up to 35 or so years ago when I had my first beer would it have occurred to me that there were not enough good beers…and I like beer a little bit. I am humored by the variety now more than anything, it’s funny to see the hype like little kids trading poke,e,mon cards or something. Same with cigars and wine . Little boys become big boys only the price of their toys goes up.

[livinincali]

San Diego is known as an IPA town and it’s craft brewery businesses are growing at a tremendous rate. Check out some of the tasting rooms around the county. The new ballast point down in little italy is one of the nicest ones. Coronado off a little side street near Sea World Dr and Morena is nice and kind of impressive. You can see the entire brewing operation as you sip on some tasters or a pint. Pizza Port is always good because of the variety of stuff they have. I need to get up to the Bressi Ranch location, I’ve heard it’s impressive.

Or hit up one of the numerous beer bars. Go old school with Hamilton’s or O’Brien’s, they’ve been around before the craft beer explosion. Or go with some of the newer places that have a nice casual inviting experience. My favorites are Regal Beagle (do the Regal Seagull if you’re north county coastal), High Dive, and San Diego Brewing Company. Of course every bar and restaurant is moving away from the Bud Light, Coors Light, Guiness, Blue Moon, and Newcastle standard that was around before.

[scaredyclassic]

[quote=Blogstar]Never in my life not even up to 35 or so years ago when I had my first beer would it have occurred to me that there were not enough good beers…and I like beer a little bit. I am humored by the variety now more than anything, it’s funny to see the hype like little kids trading poke,e,mon cards or something. Same with cigars and wine . Little boys become big boys only the price of their toys goes up.[/quote]

no, seriously, im willing to agree that all wine tastes about the same…but a good IPA is not like a regular commercial beer, any more than kraft mac and cheese is like a bit of goat cheese from some foofy shop.

not saying it’s necessarily ultimately better, just different…

[NotCranky]

[quote=scaredyclassic][quote=Blogstar]Never in my life not even up to 35 or so years ago when I had my first beer would it have occurred to me that there were not enough good beers…and I like beer a little bit. I am humored by the variety now more than anything, it’s funny to see the hype like little kids trading poke,e,mon cards or something. Same with cigars and wine . Little boys become big boys only the price of their toys goes up.[/quote]

no, seriously, im willing to agree that all wine tastes about the same…but a good IPA is not like a regular commercial beer, any more than kraft mac and cheese is like a bit of goat cheese from some foofy shop.

not saying it’s necessarily ultimately better, just different…[/quote]

That’s where we disagree scaredy, I pretty much only like red wine but even with in my budget and low level of discernment, some are awful , too sweet, too vinegary and too sour…and there are some that are good. Now when I am with people who pay more ,,,i agree that they often get more….up to a point.

To me beers mostly are rated like coffee, weak and watereyish or strong and thick tasting. Yeah there is some levels of sweetness that come with it too…but that is not a controlling factor. I don’t put sugar in my coffee …could pay more attention to the sweetness variable I guess. Some of the really cool beers that have been shared with me have off tastes, like pine resin or too much reminder of the fermented grain…like it wasn’t finished….pretty happy when my guest bring over the basics and I don’t have to pretend their cool beer matters much to me.

[moneymaker]

I’m a recycling type, tired of crushing cans or lugging bottles, so I’m going to have to go keg next time I buy beer. Anyone know who has the best keg selection in town, I’m talking mini keg, the kind you can put in a frig/mini frig.

[scaredyclassic]

[quote=Blogstar][quote=scaredyclassic][quote=Blogstar]Never in my life not even up to 35 or so years ago when I had my first beer would it have occurred to me that there were not enough good beers…and I like beer a little bit. I am humored by the variety now more than anything, it’s funny to see the hype like little kids trading poke,e,mon cards or something. Same with cigars and wine . Little boys become big boys only the price of their toys goes up.[/quote]

no, seriously, im willing to agree that all wine tastes about the same…but a good IPA is not like a regular commercial beer, any more than kraft mac and cheese is like a bit of goat cheese from some foofy shop.

not saying it’s necessarily ultimately better, just different…[/quote]

ok. well, it’s only been a month for me. i literally haven’t had a beer in many years. maybe im just excited to have a beer…

That’s where we disagree scaredy, I pretty much only like red wine but even with in my budget and low level of discernment, some are awful , too sweet, too vinegary and too sour…and there are some that are good. Now when I am with people who pay more ,,,i agree that they often get more….up to a point.

To me beers mostly are rated like coffee, weak and watereyish or strong and thick tasting. Yeah there is some levels of sweetness that come with it too…but that is not a controlling factor. I don’t put sugar in my coffee …could pay more attention to the sweetness variable I guess. Some of the really cool beers that have been shared with me have off tastes, like pine resin or too much reminder of the fermented grain…like it wasn’t finished….pretty happy when my guest bring over the basics and I don’t have to pretend their cool beer matters much to me.[/quote]

[NotCranky]

Have fun though Scaredy, I remember having my first black and tan in a pub in London.
Knocked my socks off ..it was that good. Never had had a dark beer of any kind before that…mostly just redneck beer. Sharing it with two nice young ladies from the Netherlands probably helped. They even treated! Beer is a good excuse to enjoy company …it’s good for that.

It would be fun to build a kegerator from a chest freezer. I have the controller already…bought it for a different hobby. There are videos on youtube of how to do the project.

[afx114]

Welcome to the wonderful amazing world of beer! Be prepared to spend many years and a small fortune on exploring various breweries, brewpubs, bottle shops and styles. I started many years ago and still to this day every day is a new adventure in beer. Pretty soon you’ll be trying Russian Imperial Stouts double-dry hopped with 6 types of hops, brewed with yeast harvested from the beard of the brewer, and aged in bourbon barrels that have been cellared in the hull of a sunken nuclear submarine. I’m not even joking.

San Diego is ground zero for this revolution, so consider yourself lucky and jump in to the deep end head first! If there’s one recommendation I have it’s to try a new beer every time. Of course you will find favorites that become your go-to, but I make it a policy whenever eating out or visiting a bottle shop to always get something I’ve never had before.

The places mentioned above are great, but if you really want you socks blown off hit up Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens up in Escondido. That place was a revalation to me as a beer n00b back in the day. It’s not just the beer, but the cuisine and location/decor/setup that goes along with it. Stone Liberty Station isn’t too bad either. My vote for best restaurant taplist goes to Waypoint in North Park. It’s owned by the Bottlecraft guy. Their beer menu is mind-blowing.

I can’t even imagine a world without good beer. It’s like trying to imagine a world without the Internet. How did we survive those dark ages?

[Hatfield]

“Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” — Benjamin Franklin*

Best beer I’ve had in the past two years was a wet-hopped IPA from Latitude 33 called “Wet Hump IPA.” My God it was good. They had it at the Regal Beagle and I did my damnedest to drink that keg dry,

Current favorite is Ballast Point Sculpin. I’m enjoying one right now in fact. Originally was hard to find on draught but now quite prevalent. Racer 5 and Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA are also favorites. Green Flash IPA is not bad either.

* this quote is wildly attributed to Benjamin Franklin, but there seems to be little or no evidence he actually said it. But I don’t care.

[moneymaker]

Significance of “1984”, no it’s not the government spying on us, but the number of ounces in a keg. After a keg who cares about the government anyway.

[Author]

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