McAuslan beers are distributed throughout the US by EuroBrew. I've seen some of the other beers they distribute (like St. Peter's and Wychwood) around Columbus, and I know I've seen the occasional McAuslan (bottled, of course). Whole Foods? Next time I'm in Palmer's or Weiland's (that would be this weekend) I'll keep an eye peeled for them.
cool, hope you guys can get your hands on some. and hopefully, they haven't sat on the shelves too long.
Just got back from a quick trip to the Pacific NW and hit a different brewpub everyday. Here's the three I made it too: Deschutes in Portland. Really enjoyed their Green Lakes Organic Ale Rogue Ales Public House in Astoria, Oregon. Sampled six different beers there Ones I liked: Double Dead Guy White Frog Mogul Madness Ones I didn't like: Old Crustacean The other two apparently made so little of an impression that I can't remember what they were looking at their menu. Pike Brewing Company in Seattle where I had the Pike's Tandem Double Ale which was quite good.
Oregon = Napa/Sonoma Valley for Hopheads. salivating at the beers you drank. love, Obsidian and Cascade.
Fantastic beer. Smooth, rich, and well balanced all the way through. Maybe not quite Moose Drool good, but a contender in the Brown Ale category.
Had myself a Clipper City Heavy Seas Yule Tide over the weekend. Not bad at the beginning, but got better the further along I got. It's a Belgian tripel, high on the alcohol content.
I wound up drinking a couple of these while out for some mariscos, it literally taste like water with a half spoon of sugar in it. Not what I like in a beer, but I will say it drank smooth and the food was good enough to compensate for the flavor.
I also just returned home from a bit of a beer vacation. On the way to visit relatives in Arizona from Idaho, we hit up: The original Rogue Public House in Newport, Oregon - I'd only been to the Public House in Portland before, but they're pretty similar. Lost Coast Brewing in Eureka, California - Worth the trip because I love Great White but otherwise it wasn't very exciting. Anderson Valley Brewing in Boonville, California - Aside from the fact that they opened late because everyone was hungover from their holiday party the night before, AVBC was pretty great. They had a good number of beers on-tap that you don't see elsewhere and the setting amidst rolling vineyards is really beautiful. Russian River Brewing in Santa Rosa, California - Surprisingly, I didn't put two-and-two together on the fact that we were near Russian River until we were almost in Santa Rosa but the stop was obviously well worth it. On Sunday, all of their beers are steeply discounted and the pizza was excellent. If I weren't driving, I would have sampled every single one of their beers - I think there were 16 of them on-tap that day. Lagunitas Brewing in Petaluma, California - Evidently, their bar just recently opened in the industrial park next to their brewery. The setting isn't excellent, but once you're inside the courtyard and bar area, you don't realize you're in the middle of a bunch of warehouses. Anyway, they also had a bunch of local-only beers on-tap, including a black Hop Stoopid, and the crowd was really fun. It's also dog-friendly. Firestone Walker Brewing in Paso Robles, California - I was probably most excited to go here to see their barrel setup. The barrel room is just off the tasting room and is pretty impressive looking. The other cool thing they have going for them is that the tasting room looks out onto the actual brewery and you actually walk into the brewery to get to the bathroom. It's very up close and personal. As for their beers, I've never had their Reserve or any of their anniversary beers, which I got to try and were excellent, and they also had a selection of Nectar Ales, which I had never even heard of before we got there. I didn't make it to Bear Republic or Moylans on this trip but I'll pencil them in for next time. I did drive way out of my way to go to North Coast in Fort Bragg only to find out that their bar and restaurant close at 9PM on Saturday night so that kind of sucked. I also didn't go to Mendocino Brewing because, although I don't dislike their beers, I had heard bad stories about the service in their taproom. Overall, though, it was a pretty cool trip and the drive was scenic almost the entire way.
Speaking of Rogue, I had their Maierfest Lager tonite with dinner. Big fan. Really enjoyed this beer.
Recently it was reported that NOAA chose Newport, OR over places like Seattle and Bellingham, WA as the new home of its Marine Operations Center-Pacific beginning in 2011. Rogue is based in Newport. Coincidence?
If you are a fan of the American IPA (double, triple, etc), my understanding is you owe some gratitude to Rogue. They and Sierra Nevada pioneered the style, and others like Russian River have nearly perfected it with beers like Pliny the Elder and Younger. Rogue never stops experimenting. They and Stone are two of my favorite breweries because they are so inventive.
New Belgium Ranger IPA, who's had it? I think it's pretty excellent. The Chinook and Simcoe hops combine for an earthy peppery fruitiness that's unmatched among cheaper IPA's, IMO. It has hints of the flavor profile of a spiced Belgian Golden Ale to me.
I thought it was excellent. Nice dry finish. Will be good for summer drinking and is one of those IPAs that's nice and hoppy yet not so much that you can't have more than one.
Bless you, Half Time, for putting that 50% discount on the draft Hitachino White Ale. Me and my growler thank you.
Holy hell did I miss something cool! OK...battra's favorite beers: Magic Hat #9 Schlitz (try it, seriously) PBR (ditto, besides at my soccer bar in St. Louis, you get a pint for $2.50!) Sapporo Asahi Tiger Beer Schlafly Pale Ale, Pilsner, and the late American Lager