quote:

---

Good news out of Santa Rosa, RRBC was not damaged by the earthquake.

---

Thank goodness! A bunch of neck beards trying to lap up beer off the ground would not be a pretty sight...

Wife and the kiddies are heading out of town next weekend so thinking about a day trip to Austin to hit up some breweries in the area.

What are the must sees/best breweries in the area? Thinking since some of the breweries are open until 7 I might be able to do 2 or 3.

And places that are close to good food would help too....gotta be able to drive back in the evening after a few hours off.

quote:

---

Wife and the kiddies are heading out of town next weekend so thinking about a day trip to Austin to hit up some breweries in the area.

What are the must sees/best breweries in the area? Thinking since some of the breweries are open until 7 I might be able to do 2 or 3.

And places that are close to good food would help too....gotta be able to drive back in the evening after a few hours off.

---

Jester King is a must visit... It's about 30-40 minutes outside of town, though. Stanley's is right next door to JK and makes some amazing pizza. You could spend some time at JK and then hop over to Thirsty Planet (right down the road). I'm not a huge fan of Thirsty Planet, but it's worth checking out if you're over there. My favorites in town are Austin Beerworks, Hops and Grain, and Adelberts. Austin Beerworks usually has a food trailer parked outside on the weekends.

Went to Austin Beerworks on Friday night and enjoyed it. Smaller operation but definitely worth visiting. I still have to find a way to get down there for JK.

I was a little surprised that my Bruery post got no responses, so I searched the thread and found that everyone seems to consider them overrated.

I see Bruery on a lot of lists for the best sour beers in the country, so I am curious what it is that makes y'all not like them. They were really expensive, so I could see that being a thing, and there were certainly some that I didn't like. I'd imagine if I tried all 40 on tap that I'd like less than 15.

I don't know enough about sours to have an educated opinion, so I'm looking for a lesson in sour beers. I have liked most of the RRBC stuff I've tried, but the Rodenbach has been hit or miss, with miss getting poured down the sink.

The biggest complaint of Bruery sours are they tend to be acetic (vinegar-y). Compared to their other offerings, and other sours on the market, they're priced well. They've made some duds, and they've made some real winners. The best Bruery sours tend to be Reserve and Hoarders Society exclusives. My favorites have been Sour in the Rye with Kumquats, Sour in the Rye with Peaches, Griffon Brux, and Oude Tart with Sour Cherries.

They are currently finishing up an all sour beer fermenting and packaging facility, along with tasting room. In 2015 all Bruery sours will be branded under the new label Bruery Terreux.

So I picked up a Gueuze Fond Tradition at Spec's the other day, and just noticed today that it is over 2 years old. Bottled date of 7/18/2012.

Is it a normal occurrence to find lambics that are already fairy old just sitting on a shelf?

I've spent the last hour cleaning my beer closet.
I had a bottle of Texas Big Brew's White Chocolate Porter sitting on the top shelf and it literally exploded. Not popped the top - that was intact. The only parts of the bottle still together were the neck and where the label was. In cleaning the underside of the shelf above it, fine pieces of glass were embedded in the pine.

It was at the back of a bunch of other bottles and still managed to spray above the door.
The wife noticed it when it dribbled down the shelves, coating each, and out the door.

I simultaneously now want a beer - and not!

Edit: It also knocked a bottle of Warlock off, yet it survived intact. Once I drink it I might have to give it an extra star for bottle survivability.

[This message has been edited by docaggie (edited 8/24/2014 9:35p).]

quote:

---

I had a bottle of Texas Big Brew's White Chocolate Porter

---

That was your first mistake... Their beer may be good (although I've heard otherwise)... However, after they publicly begged for a grand to help pay their taxes, I vowed to never buy their beer ever. I'd post something on their Facebook page about your bottle exploding... It could lead to another epic rant by their owner.

quote:

---

after they publicly begged for a grand to help pay their taxes

---

Da fuq?

quote:

---

So I picked up a Gueuze Fond Tradition at Spec's the other day, and just noticed today that it is over 2 years old. Bottled date of 7/18/2012.

Is it a normal occurrence to find lambics that are already fairy old just sitting on a shelf?

---

Not that surprising. It all matters where you shop. It should be fine as long as it wasn't sitting somewhere that received direct sunlight. Gueuze is pretty bulletproof.

quote:

---

quote:

---

after they publicly begged for a grand to help pay their taxes

---

Da fuq?

---

They deleted the post on Facebook a while back, but the BA thread is worth the read if you have some time... http://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/texas-big-beer-brewery-having-issues.161700/

This is a steal at $12 for all the Colorado folks. Carb is a little low but that's about all I can find wrong with it.

I won't buy texas big beer for the same reason. That begging to get tax penalties reduced was pathetic. Plus, reading about the queen all the time annoyed the **** out of me.

Finishing the night with a dragon's milk from the second night in the row.

[This message has been edited by Aggieoo (edited 8/24/2014 10:44p).]

quote:

---

quote:

---

So I picked up a Gueuze Fond Tradition at Spec's the other day, and just noticed today that it is over 2 years old. Bottled date of 7/18/2012.

Is it a normal occurrence to find lambics that are already fairy old just sitting on a shelf?

---

Not that surprising. It all matters where you shop. It should be fine as long as it wasn't sitting somewhere that received direct sunlight. Gueuze is pretty bulletproof.

---

If it was the specs in CS, I grabbed two bottles a week ago. They were good. It was the first time I has seen them at our specs. So who knows where they came from and what conditions they were a stored in.

That's the first I've heard about Texas Big Brew and tax issues.
Should've known better considering the crappy label on it.
Oh well. Finishing the night with Festina Peche instead.

quote:

---

quote:

---

quote:

---

after they publicly begged for a grand to help pay their taxes

---

Da fuq?

---

They deleted the post on Facebook a while back, but the BA thread is worth the read if you have some time... http://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/texas-big-beer-brewery-having-issues.161700/

---

Heh...that was me who started that thread...

And the fact he was begging for not even that much money was even more humorous to me. You own a brewery, but can afford a thousand bucks? You were talking about shutting down? Seriously...

quote:

---

Wife and the kiddies are heading out of town next weekend so thinking about a day trip to Austin to hit up some breweries in the area.

What are the must sees/best breweries in the area? Thinking since some of the breweries are open until 7 I might be able to do 2 or 3.

And places that are close to good food would help too....gotta be able to drive back in the evening after a few hours off.

---

Let this be your guide:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AnWkkVrImx3qdFNQRVhuejhCSDZ5TllveFZsX0toTXc&usp=drive_web#gid=0

That is all the breweries and their hours all over TX. I try to keep it as updated as possible (Austin is pretty much 100% right since I live here).

With that said, here are my brewery rankings:

Austin Beerworks
Jester King
Hops and Grain

Best 3.

Next tier:

512
Live Oak
Independence
Adelbert's

After that, they are usually decent. Just not my go-tos by any means.

I ended up in CS yesterday randomly....and swung by New Republic and Blackwater. NR was decent, I enjoyed their beer.

Blackwater...I liked that place. If that was in Austin, I would be there a lot. The Contract Killer Coffee Porter was great even on a summer day. I will definitely be back the next time I am in town.

Blackwater has some darn good food. We went to a beer pairing event there with Odell. Quite tasty!

Little secret... you can order Blackwater from O'Bannons and they'll bring it over.

If anyone in Houston wants some JK La Vie en Rose and Bier de Miel, I have two bottles of each that I probably wont drink. As y'all know, I cant really drink anymore and I bought some stuff for me wife to drink (and let me taste) but she has effectively given up drinking too, which means all the beer I've bought since the big cellar sale last summer is piling up around the house. Let me know.

I'd be interested in the Rose. Where you at in Houston?

I-10 and Bunker Hill.

quote:

---

If anyone in Houston wants some JK La Vie en Rose and Bier de Miel, I have two bottles of each that I probably wont drink. As y'all know, I cant really drink anymore and I bought some stuff for me wife to drink (and let me taste) but she has effectively given up drinking too, which means all the beer I've bought since the big cellar sale last summer is piling up around the house. Let me know.

---

Sent u an email BSD

Thanks for the interest. The JK bottles are gone. I may take some inventory and offer out more later this week. Stay tuned...

Bmac -- Shoot me a message at kyle dot b dot nickell @ gmail please

Who's headed to SC this week? Scriffer, myself and others will be in Charleston on Friday after the game. Definitely thinking a visit to Westbrook should happen. There's also the a brew cruise that might work if we can get enough folks involved. http://www.brewscruise.com/charleston/.

Hubs05, NColoradoAg... y'all game for a 3 brewery tour? We've got 4 in our group, but probably need more.

quote:

---

Hubs05, NColoradoAg... y'all game for a 3 brewery tour? We've got 4 in our group, but probably need more.

---

I don't want to commit to anything. I'll be out there with my parents and siblings, and the trip also doubles as our 4th wedding anniversary. I'll be at Westbrook for sure, probably right when the open at 4 on Friday. Nothing set in stone though.

Still planning to pack beers for impromptu bottle sharing before the game.

Gotcha. If all else fails, I know that we'll be at Westbrook since that sounds like the best brewery in the area.

Was I able to snag one of the Roses, BSD, or did someone else get them?

Sorry, Lucky. Someone came thru with a bulk takedown order that includes the Miels so I went with that. I have some more goodies that I'll be parting with so I'll keep you in mind.

Well made it up to ft collins finally and had a damn good time. Enjoyed meeting up with NoColorado who became our guide. Unfortunately didn't have the time for choice city. Had a blast at new Belgium and took a video of my big ass sliding down the slide but somehow must have deleted it accidentally. I wound up sticking my legs over the side of the slide and damn near took out a light fixture. Will have to make a return trip.

quote:

---

If anyone in Houston wants some JK La Vie en Rose and Bier de Miel, I have two bottles of each that I probably wont drink. As y'all know, I cant really drink anymore and I bought some stuff for me wife to drink (and let me taste) but she has effectively given up drinking too, which means all the beer I've bought since the big cellar sale last summer is piling up around the house. Let me know.

---

GD it