Just got home from Martin City Brewing Company, where we met friends for dinner. It seems that they have all local micro brews on special for 3 dollars a draw on Saturdays. Boulevard, Free State, Tallgrass included.

And get this, they include all of their Smoke Stack series from Boulevard. That's right, Tank 7 for $3 a draw.

I had that on nitro yesterday. Quite tasty...

Someone gave me a bunch of random beer, and this has easily been my favorite so far... great caramel malt flavor... :drool:

http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r...703_215544.jpg

Martin City Brewing Company...top of my NEXT visit to K.C., suddenly. Heh.

:drool:

Because of the alcohol content, Tank 7 is never ever on special. You lucky bastard....

About to try to knock this list off (Please give your thoughts on these if you've tried them [Expand, if you feel so inclined]):

Top Ten IPA's found in USA:

Russian River Pliny the Elder, 8% ABV

Three Floyds Dreadnaught IPA, 9.5% ABV

Ballast Point Sculpin IPA, 7% ABV

Cigar City Jai Alai IPA, 7.5% ABV

Green Flash West Coast IPA, 7% ABV

Bell’s The Oracle, 10.4% ABV

Port Brewing Wipeout IPA, 7% ABV

Weyerbacher Double Simcoe IPA, 9% ABV

Alpine Nelson, 7% ABV

Bear Republic Racer 5, 7.5% ABV

I am currently hooked on Sierra Nevada Torpedo and Dogfish Head 90 min Imperial IPA.

That's weird that they put IPAs and Double/Imperial IPAs on the same list. I've had all of those but Bell's Oracle. I'd rank them like this:

IPAs:
1.) Sculpin
2.) Nelson
3.) West Coast IPA
4.) Wipeout IPA
5.) Jai Alai
6.) Racer 5

Double/Imperial IPAs:
1.) Pliny the Elder
2.) Dreadnaught
3.) Double Simcoe

Thanks, just getting into IPAs. At risk of sounding dumb, what is the difference between and IPA and Imperial/ Double?

Imperial/Double IPAs are hopped to an extreme amount. The amount of hops used are significantly higher than even in an IPA (which is already, as you know, a hop-forward beer style). Oftentimes this also means that the beer has a greatly increased malt bill to balance all the extra hops, which means more alcohol. Basically, 7% ABV is the tops for IPAs. Typically.

What's remarkable about Pliny the Elder is that it is hopped like a Double IPA, but doesn't bombard the beer with a bunch of caramel malts to balance it. It achieves tremendous hop flavor without much malt flavor. Compare that to Three Floyds Dreadnaught, though, and the experience is much different. Dreadnaught is incredibly hoppy, but it's also boozy and sweet.

Shitty double IPAs, usually from the East Coast or Midwest, will use too much malt, so the beer loses that juicy hop character.

:drool: Sounds good. I think I am going to go with Pliny the Elder and Ballast Point Sculpin to start and see which style I prefer more IPA or Double. Thanks, rep.

Another thing: freshness is paramount with these styles of beer, as hop flavor dies off very quickly. Check the bottling dates. Pliny the Elder is a beer that literally gets less good by the week. Ideally you'd drink a double IPA within a month of bottling. You can get a bit more mileage about of regular IPAs.

Now I just need to find a liquor store in MD that sells it. It looks like the nearest distributor is located in PA, all the rest are on the West Coast. With the comment quoted above, I worry if it will be available here. I just need to find a liquor store that has an extended selection, but that's like finding a needle in a haystack.

Yeah... most of the beers on that list aren't distributed to Maryland. You're gonna' have to trade for beers like Pliny, Sculpin, Dreadnaught, Nelson. The forums on BeerAdvocate.com and RateBeer.com are good for setting up beer trades.

Alternatively, you can try to find a beer tasting/homebrew club in your local community. People that are into beer trading often find others like them and set up big tasting events.

Those bastards. They had to have stolen that from us (though we do Thursday nights). Our owner goes over there all the time. What size on the Tank? Ours is a pint size draw.

I actually almost went over there for a bite and a brew when I got off work last night.