Thread: Ramblings From The USA - 1

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Originally Posted by johnboy

…but labour problems are the same the world over.
Sigh.

On some of my crankier days (I hear some of you cynics) I referred to managing employees as "adult daycare"...............at least that was the more charitable phrasing........

I think Sam Adams is a decent major brewery that you usually can find on tap in most parts of the country. As for dark beer, their are quite a few porters and stouts made all over this country, or you can give a double IPA a shot, but be careful of the highter alcohol content in those. I think sticking to the craft beers/ micro breweries is definately the best choice, Sierra Nevada has a nice Octoberfest thats in just about every grocery store around here, and they distribute around the whole US, usually can't go wrong with something they make if the style of beer is something you normally drink, you won't be terribly diapointed. If your into Highly and I mean Highly Hopped beers and IPA's then I suggest trying something from Lagunitas Brewing Company, for me they are too hopped for my taste and tend to run too high in Alcohol to enjoy a pint and then try to navigate home. If you make it out west you will be overwhelmed with choices, most of which are currently trending for high hops and dry hopped flavor, but there are a lot of other choices popping up every day, maybe check out a Beverages and More warehouse store, at last count ours has somewhere between 350-500 different brews!

IMO Amber Bock is just barely more palatable than their mainstay product, Bud Lite. As Rrumbler stated, the large, traditional breweries just don't seem to be able to compete with the micro/craft breweries. Sam Adams is, IMO, an exception akin to Kansas City's Boulevard Brewery - a large volume brewer that still knows how to hit the sweet spot. I've learned to totally avoid anything labeled "IPA", as they tend to be far, far to strongly hopped for my taste. I cannot abide an ale that comes back and slaps me in the mouth with that nasty bitter hoppy after taste. I would Never, EVER, buy or order anything labeled "Double IPA". That's just asking for your tongue to be ripped out, twisted into bitterness and thrown back in your face!!

I really, really like Sam Adams Octoberfest, and their summer Porch Rocker is an amazing brew, too. jb, knowing your taste for the darker brews Sam Adams Creme Stout is about the only thing that might fit, and it's not big on body. One regional that I think you'd really like is TurboDog from the Abita Brewery in New Iberia, LA (that's Louisiana, not Los Angeles, Lower Alabama or Lower Arkansas). As Steve Stovens mentioned, there are a ton of very nice stouts and porters being brewed in small batch breweries across the nation now - we're finally starting to recover from Prohibition, only 80 years after the fact....

Instead of asking "What's your best dark beer?", my question is generally "What's your most popular local microbrew?", and then, "Do they offer a stout or porter?" Many of the kids clerking in package stores have no idea what "dark beer" means. Just my $0.02, as a home brewer and lover of dark ALES.

Originally Posted by firebird77clone

You might try an Amber Bock, on tap. Better than anything Coors makes. If you come across a B Merrils restaurant, they stock over a hundred different brews

How 'bout that!
That's just what I did.
And after last night's rubbish I'm quite enjoying it!

Originally Posted by Bob Parmenter

On some of my crankier days (I hear some of you cynics) I referred to managing employees as "adult daycare"...............at least that was the more charitable phrasing........

Ain't that the truth!
My philosophy always was: you treat me fair and square; I'll do everything I can to help you in your career.
But if you choose to play silly games...well; there are no 'new' silly games; just variants of old ones.
And I've met them all before.
So if that's how you want to go...so be it on your own head...'cos I've got silly games that will leave you wondering what on earth happened.
I can get extremely vicious if you try to divert my money from my pocket to yours.
Believe me.

Beer advice...crikey...I'm being inundated with choices!


(Perhaps I'll try to sample them all...)

Tuesday 8th September.

The proprietors of the Allegheny (last night;s motel) had told us of a local museum that could be well worth a visit: Simpler Times Museum, 117 Simpler Times Lane, Tidioute. (Don’t ask me to pronounce it) So that’s where we headed.
Got there about 9:00…not a soul to be seen.
Some sheds were locked; but most were open-sided lean-to or gable…so Was able to wander around and poke in to most of it .
It was all fascinating, and some of it just bloody ingenious. A mock-op showed how many wells could be some distance apart, some distance away, and still be controlled through a series of rods by utilising only one relatively centrally situated electric motor.
The really smart ideas are the simple ones.
And that idea was smart.
And oh so simple.
So I poked and prodded around steam-powered saw-mills, crawler tracked logging winches from the 1920s, assorted crawler tractors and dozers, (even an Oliver OC3, but a much later model than mine,) wheel tractors of varied ages, makes, and models, some of which I’d never heard of, even a little Fergy TEA 24…how on earth did that make its way to America?
I thought Henry Ford had that market sewn up!
10:00 came and went…still nobody showed to take my money…so we left.
A great place to visit…and at that price…good value!
(I’ve got the address. I’ll send some dosh when we get home.)

Okay…pedal to the metal again.
Lunch in Olean.
Can’ remember the name of the place…but I chose the clam chowder.
Mucked around a bit here, bought some beers, (heeding Rrumbler’s advice, avoiding the major breweries, buying Michelob Amberbock,) before heading out of town.
Suddenly…”Son…find a gas station…or something…NOW!”
He found one…it was closed…”See those trees over there…head for them. NOW!”
Whew!
I made it.
On the road again…thirty minutes later…”Son…find some more trees…not those ones…there’s a house in the middle….there’s a paddock of maize…STOP! NOW!”
I made it that time too.
But it was close.
Dunno what was in that chowder; but it didn’t like me.

Finished up in Seneca Falls. In a grot-shop motel called Starlite.
It’s redeeming features being it has a microwave with two knobs, (second night in succession we’ve struck that,) and I eventually got the fridge to work.
Otherwise…avoid this place…

Disclaimer: be aware that the views and the opinions expressed by the author of this missive are bloody good ones.

But Johnboy, was it the beer or the chowder ? Seems you will be able to write a " While Visiting America, Avoid These Beers " best seller.

One of the biggest beer mistakes I've made was a beer sampler tray, at the Phantom Canyon in Colorado springs. Eighteen one ounce shot glass samples of their house brews. Made some evil chemistry in my gut!

I'm starting to grow more fond of dark pale ales and such. My Uncles came up from Texas 2 weeks ago and they brought up some Buffalo sweat............ Never, I repete never drink that nasty crap! He also brought up some others that I can't remember their names and it was garbage too. He tried passing michelobe ultra to me and Pabsts it awesome compared to that stale water junk!

I'm with you on the over hopped thing Roger. It strikes me as one of those phase/fad things...........sorta like a few years back we went through a hot sauce trend. Somehow I think it's driven by the "Mr. Macho" thing..........who can down the most viciously, outrageously hot sauce without whining. Never mind that there's no chance of enjoying any flavor that might be present. The goal seemed to be, who could make a sauce so hot it would take paint off a battle ship without removing the cap. Argh!
Now it's hops in brews............it's not about flavor complexity and lingering enjoyable taste........just so it makes you pucker tighter. Hmmmm, maybe that last comment shouldn't be used around jb right now............

jb, Michelob is Anheuser Busch/Budweiser's so called "premium" line, but just another of their monster brewery tags for high volume production beers. Amberbock is a passable amber lager, but not much body IMO. It's a vast improvement over the flavored water, rice based brews making up the bulk of their volume, but there's lots better craft brews out there to be sampled.

And Ryan, your description of "...darker pale ales..." There's dark ales, there's pale ales, there's India pale ales (yuck!!) and even double IPA's (double yuck!!), but I can't say that I've ever seen a darker pale, but I suppose it's possible A pale ale that's slightly darker in color than another pale ale? Maybe you've coined a new term in brewing!! Michelob - a darker shade of pale!

Where's Procol Harum when you really need 'em.........................

Originally Posted by Bob Parmenter

I'm with you on the over hopped thing Roger. It strikes me as one of those phase/fad things...........sorta like a few years back we went through a hot sauce trend. Somehow I think it's driven by the "Mr. Macho" thing..........who can down the most viciously, outrageously hot sauce without whining. Never mind that there's no chance of enjoying any flavor that might be present. The goal seemed to be, who could make a sauce so hot it would take paint off a battle ship without removing the cap. Argh!
Now it's hops in brews............it's not about flavor complexity and lingering enjoyable taste........just so it makes you pucker tighter. Hmmmm, maybe that last comment shouldn't be used around jb right now............

That's hitting the nail square on the head, Uncle Bob. I totally agree.

.

I can hear the opening cords on the organ now Uncle Bob, so light the joint and pass it around...