Ah I see, kind of makes sense.

Prairie has used Kreb's equipment to make their beer since pretty much the start. I'm pretty sure Prairie had a building with store etc...in Tulsa (though they didn't brew there) and that's where their business address was. I'm guessing that's gone now so their official address is now in Kreb's.

To your original point, Prairie Bomb is probably the best year round imperial stout in existence. Freaking ridiculously good. Pirate Bomb (Prairie Bomb aged in Rum barrels) may be the best stout I have ever had.

Belching Beaver distributes in the midwest? They're one of my favorites here... that one is excellent, and they have a Peanut Butter Latte that looks like a wheat, but tastes like a stout... and it's delicious.

They also have a coconut pineapple IPA that I wasn't all that impressed with.

Unfortunately they don't. I had it when I was in Vegas last October right after the shooting.

Definitely. I love it. Barleys down the street from me will sometimes have these things called "deconstructed Bombs". Basically a prairie bomb broken down with each flavor in it's own glass.

That was just a promotional event that Prairie did with on-premise accounts this year. It'd be nice if they would do it again. I loved the vanilla/coffee blend that I was making.

It's a really cool idea. They'll probably do it again eventually. I didn't even get to do this, but when a friend told me about it, it sounded awesome.

Question: Does anyone LIKE Clown Shoes? just about every offering I see from them looks like something I have ZERO interest in drinking (this came up on another board where we were bemoaning the shitty breweries distributed in our area and coveting the great ones that aren't).

I confess, I haven't really tried any of their shit, but there's just something about the brewery that rubs me the wrong way. Maybe it's negative connotations about the whole phrase clown shoes.

Clown Shoes has some interesting beers, but the good ones get lost in the shuffle with all of their mediocre beers. Now, to be fair, all of the beers that I've tried from them have been decent from a quality perspective, I just didn't care for them personally all that much.

I like Clown Shoes. Royal Standard, Pecan Pie Porter, and Crasher in the Rye are all good.

I've always enjoyed their barrel aged stuff, as long as it isn't infected (which has happened a few times).

Got my beer for the game Sunday.

And one I may or may not break into.

http://cdn.ebaumsworld.com/mediaFile...5/84896829.gif

Don't know if I've ever seen Sam Smith Imperial Stout anywhere... definitely would have tried it by now.

Another one that came to mind is The Abyss - Barrel Aged Imperial Stout by Deschutes Brewery... had it on tap last weekend and it was really good.

Have you guys had any of that Pabst Blue Ribbon yet?

Talk about small batch artisanal goodness, mmm... thats the special beer I got for the big game, but did go ahead and get some Grey Goose so that I'd have a fancypants brand of vodka

Picked up a few bottles of The Abyss for the game Sunday.

Who's tried the Mothers coconut extra stout? I haven't had it before, but I just picked up 1 from Gomers.

That's one of the ones I just bought (in my pic above). Looks interesting but I haven't tried it yet.

Well cheers lol. I think I'll open it here in a couple hours.

Piney River Raise A Ruckus is fantastic. Imperial Coffee Stout aged over vanilla beans. Sounds like Victory at Sea but really doesn't taste like it at all.

If you're able to get your hands on some do it now and thank me later.

They also have a bourbon barrel-aged version that I haven't tried yet but will definitely be buying soon.

Being a beer nut, I'm surprised I've never even had a Piney River beer. And I've had a TON of local beer.

Until this one I've honestly never been overly impressed with them, though their two popular sessions (Float Trip Ale and Black Walnut Wheat) have won several awards.

I only tried this one based on the pressure from a very good Brown Derby salesman...I'm glad I caved.

Have you tried anything from Walnut River? That's a fantastic brewery that I also haven't tried nearly enough of.

Their ridiculousness beer was made with something like 40 different types of yeast strain and 15 different hops. Something along those lines.

Plus the Darketh Udder is a great stout as well.

For me brewing beer is all about creativity and not playing it safe. A brewery that plays it safe goes nowhere. Have something unique and people will keep coming back.

No I haven't but a friend at work from Wichita swears by their Kolsch. I'll keep an eye out for them next time I'm at the liquor store.

So the Mothers coconut extra stout is a very good stout. With that said, where the hell is the coconut? To be fair I did just eat a few almonds and pistachios. But all I get is some chocolate malt and just a touch of coconut. I do still like it though.

Next time I go to Branson, Mothers brewing is a MUST STOP place to check out when I'm in Springfield. I love most of their stuff. Best coffee beer I've had in my life was from Mothers, and it isn't Winter Grind. It was something else.

Was it their Imperial Grind? I neve had a chance to taste it but I heard great things.

Picking up some Arkham's Finest from Modern Brewery this afternoon.

Just grabbed some 2nd Shift LSD cans that arrived in town yesterday along with some newly distro'd Transient cans. Pretty happy about that.

Nice haul today:

Deschutes Obsidian Stout
Samuel Smith Imperial Stout
Modern Brewery Arkham's Finest
Evil Twin Even More Jesus

Love the Obsidian, my kid brought some over for Thankgiving

Excellent.

And **** waxed dipped bottles.


https://www.deschutesbrewery.com/wp-...dients_WEB.png

Cracking mine tomorrow.

I've never been able to find 3 Floyd's Zombie dust so I made my own from a clone recipe I found. By far the best homebrew I've ever made. I dont know how close it is because I've never tried the original but I'm guessing pretty close based on the Zombie Dust reviews. This stuff is outstanding.

Just poured mine. I dont think its that great, its alright I guess. Do agree about the lack of coconut. I made a coconut porter that I still have a few left of...it blows this out of the water and has a very noticeable coconut flavor.

Ive honestly not been very impressed by any Mother's beers. They all range from "ok" to terrible for me. Their Lil' Helper is the nastiest beer Ive ever had, couldn't even give the rest of the 6 pack away. Sucks because they're one of two hometown breweries for me and the other (SBC) isnt anything special either.

Wow, I thought I was the only person with this opinion.

MILF their seasonal release Imperial Stout is extremely good. Much better than The Abyss in my opinion.

Their base beers are just decent though I like Little Helper but drank so much of it years ago I shy away from it anymore.

Just a shit ton of citra hops if I remember correctly.

I do want to try MILF, I've heard from many people it's outstanding.

Yep. It's delicious but from what I've read the aroma from Citra doesn't last long so it's definitely a beer you want to drink up while it's fresh.

The knock on ZD has always been that it falls off a cliff within a week or so, which used to be true. Since they've upgraded their bottling and packaging process, that's been vastly corrected, in my experience anyway. While obviously still best super fresh, it stays great for several weeks at this point and the biggest knock on it now is that several other citra apa's have caught up to it and its no longer as prestigious as it once was. It's pretty much become a shelfie here in the last year, so if you feel comfortable, feel free to PM me a shipping address and I'll be happy to send you a couple...for science of course.

Not real impressed with this Samuel Smith Imperial Stout. Kind of tastes like figs or prunes. Their oatmeal stout is one of my all time favorite beers, but this and the organic chocolate stout aren't doing it for me. Still want to try the taddy porter though.

I should probably give this another shot. I had one at Craft Beer Cellar in Columbia last year, before I started really getting into stouts.

And speaking of stouts - this is embarrassing...

Just cracked my first Founders Breakfast Stout. Have always passed on it because I'm not a coffee fan.


Damn, I'm stupid.

Better late than never.

I have a new favorite stout. Its labeled as an Imperial but its only 8.1% so I'm calling it a stout. Brewed with cocoa, coffee, peppers, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg. This stuff is insanely good!

One of my favorites... up there with Modern Times Monster's Park, except it's under $20 and not $34.

Speaking of Stone, in case anyone hasn’t seen it today, the recent rumors were true and they have filed suit against MillerCoors. Will be interesting to see how this plays out. More here:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.pas...r-the-mar.html

It will be interesting to see how that plays out. While it looks like Stone has a legit brand protection, market confusion beef with MillerCoors, a 30 pack of Stones may have been a thing before Stone Brewing. Although, I doubt Stone would create a social media attention whoring build up over a brand infringement lawsuit announcement unless they know they have a good case.

Also, I had my first Pirate Bomb! ever over the weekend, what a fantastic beer. The hype is well deserved on that one.

This is what we enjoyed at SB party

https://www.boulevard.com/wp-content...ndBadge-01.png

Picked up Shiner Dunkelweizen and Clown Shoes The Barista to begin the collection for Easter week.

Drinking another Xocoveza. I cannot get over how amazing this stuff is...like heaven in a glass. Damn near $3/ bottle but so worth it.

:drool:

In the current craft beer climate, $3 per bottle is very cheap for a beer with ingredients like Xocoveza uses.

This is true, Ive spent $18 on a 4-pk several times but I dont like it

Had a Plum Katy from 2nd Shift on tap this afternoon. It's the first Katy variant I've had and I really enjoyed it. Hopefully we might see it packaged up here soon.

http://prairieales.com/prairie-prison-rodeo/


https://www.beergium.com/6340-big_de...rodeo-35cl.jpg

If you like coffee beers and IPA's this is the shit. Coffee IPA by Prairie Artisan.

Real.Good.Shit.

Why would you ruin a good coffee beer by putting a ton of hops in it. Just gross.

Edit: If your coffee is bitter it means you have shit beans, coffee is not supposed to be very bitter at all.

Sounds ****ed up. Taste excellent.

And good IPAs aren't just about being bitter. Just like coffee.

Sounds like you are bashing something because you don't understand it.

I am bashing it because IPAs are disgusting. :D

:eek:

Not a fan at all of the bitter beers.

Give me sours, wheats, darks, and even things like kolsch or berliner weisse and I am happy.

I wish Stone would make Dayman again. Best coffee IPA ever.

NewChief sent me a Coffee IPA a couple of years ago from Fossil Cove Brewing. It sounds bad, but I was pleasantly surprised. Interesting, at the very least. I was glad I got to try it.

Not sure if you have ever had one and I know you like both styles, but my next brew is going to be a Brett IPA.

Oh yes....I love Brett IPAs. Great Raft has a great Brett IPA series called Oceans Between Us. Their batch last fall was cascade hops on blood oranges and it was wonderful.

Barrel Works Series: Monstrosus. In the same realm as Xocoveza and Monster's Park. Glad these are becoming a thing... excellent.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/3818/276369/

Unlike Xocoveza though it appears these are/were a one time release. I need a good Xocoveza clone recipe, its definitely my favorite beer now but damn its expensive.

Oh, shit... Monster's Park has been available to me for several months, but didn't see the 'brewed once' for this one. Sadly, I've only seen Xocoveza once around town... that one was the least expensive of the three ($18, IIRC).

I have considered buying my own barrels, but unfortunately don't have a basement that's a constant 68 degrees like I did in KC.

Xocoveza here is about $17 for a 6/pk...I know that's really not that bad but as much of it as Ive been drinking lately its starting to add up.

Spent the afternoon at WeldWerks in Greeley CO today and drank a Bourbon Double Barrel Medianoche. Man, what a treat that was.

You don't really need much temp control for barrel aging. Fermentation has already stopped. You actually want the temp to fluctuate so the wood expands and contracts a little.

Even that wont make a huge difference as when you use smaller barrels, 5gal or 10gal, you wont have the beer in them but a few months, not a year like a 55gal barrel.

Smaller barrels have more oak surface area for the liquid than larger barrels (less liquid in the middle) so it takes way less time to get the flavors. If you aged a 5 or 10gal barrel for a year it would taste like a block of oak.

I have done 2 5gal barrel aged Imperial Stouts and have a 10gal going right now.

The whiskey barrel I am currently using is from Restless Spirits in Kansas City.

Had happy hour with with my department and our support department at the Conservatory in Houston.

Lager-ish. Greater Heights. Kolsch. A sweeter kolsch but otherwise pretty unremarkable.

Troppo. Platypus. Wheat with Mango and Passionfruit. Disappointing. Fruit didn't come through at all.

Jam Band. Boulevard. Ale with cherry, blueberry, and raspberry. Tart and just a bit sweet. The highlight of the night. I have found that I really like cherry ales. Haven't had one that I have found bad yet.

I had a Jam Band last night too. Wasn't impressed, Founder's Rubaeus is a lot better imo.

It wasn't the best cherry ale I have had. That has to go to Three Goomba's Tart Cherry but it was better than the other two brews from relatively new Houston breweries.

Found a couple six packs in Phoenix yesterday. PBJ

I meant for fermenting... even though I could get a few batches done in the winter (no time this year though).

So, the 5 gallon barrel stouts turned out well? I've tried a few different methods with chips and stuff, but they were all disappointing.

I’m drinking my way down to Spring Training in PHX with stops so far at:

WeldWerks- Greeley CO
Wiley Roots - Greeley CO
Santa Fe - Santa FE NM
La Cumbre - ABQ NM
Bow & Arrow - ABQ NM

Currently heading to Mother Road in Flagstaff.

Not all heroes wear capes.

Oh **** yes!!!

We're heading out to Santa Fe again for spring break. I'm going to try to hit a couple of newer breweries there: Rowley Farmhouse Ales looks reall promising. Also Chili Line. I've had Santa Fe a bunch as well as Second Street. Love having La Cumbre while out there. We usually don't get down to ABQ on visits, but we may make a trip down there this time.

We stopped at Santa Fe mostly because it was right off the highway as we were passing through. I’d love to spend more time around the city someday.

La Cumbre is legit. They have a great spot with a really cool vibe in addition to their fantastic beers. Their staff knew their shit. Unfortunately I was a day early on an ipa release they’re doing today, but still grabbed bunch stuff to-go and went full fanboy on their merch. Their food truck was amazing as well.

Bow & Arrow has a unique space but was a little too artsy communal for me. I wasn’t really impressed with their IPAs but they had a Citra dry hopped lager that I would crush with regularity.

Marble is another one in ABQ that came highly recommended but we couldn’t squeeze it in.

Thanks for allowing the sun to come out today!

Semi on topic, PHX drinkers should not sleep on The Shop Beer Co in Tempe. Super dumb name, but their beers are legit and their outdoor space is on point. I may have heard some Coheed or some other emo stuff getting pumped through their speakers this afternoon. Took an ipa collab with Modern Times to-go and am loving it.