Off-Topic For the Beer Lovers.....

The holy grail of IPAs is Russian River Pliny the Elder. They are only distributed in CA so my boss gets a friend of his to ship a case once in a while to NJ. A nice special treat to have every now and then.

I'm a big fan of a lot of the Vermont breweries. Lawson's Liquids, Von Trapp, Long Trail, Switchback...they all make good brews of every variety.

Surprisingly, one of the best beer selections in Miami is at the Stop n Snop convenience store on Ponce right down the street from campus, just a little past where new Miami's Best and Titanic is. Very unassuming since it is small, but they have an insane selection of international and US beer that rivals maybe only Total Wine. I'd walk down from the UV and grab something new every time I walked in.
I miss that place so much. Craft beer was starting to explode during my time at UM (06 to 2010), and I'd often walk over there and grab something new. I remember getting my first 6 pack of Bell's Two hearted there and that's when I realized there was a lot more to beer than Coors Light and PBR.
 
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The holy grail of IPAs is Russian River Pliny the Elder. They are only distributed in CA so my boss gets a friend of his to ship a case once in a while to NJ. A nice special treat to have every now and then.

I'm a big fan of a lot of the Vermont breweries. Lawson's Liquids, Von Trapp, Long Trail, Switchback...they all make good brews of every variety.

Surprisingly, one of the best beer selections in Miami is at the Stop n Snop convenience store on Ponce right down the street from campus, just a little past where new Miami's Best and Titanic is. Very unassuming since it is small, but they have an insane selection of international and US beer that rivals maybe only Total Wine. I'd walk down from the UV and grab something new every time I walked in.
Love Pliny...it's here quite frequently in Pa. Back in the day i even sampled the Younger...nowadays the line for that is ridiculous.

Lawson's is excellent. Have a can of their maple stout in the fridge.

Heady Topper used to be the cream of the crop 10 years ago..now i find many beers as good if not superior.

Of course Hill Farmstead is the benchmark up there, fortunate to have had quite a few on draft in this area, hope to make a pilgrimage to there soon.
 
I miss that place so much. Craft beer was starting to explode during my time at UM (06 to 2010), and I'd often walk over there and grab something new. I remember getting my first 6 pack of Bell's Two hearted there and that's when I realized there was a lot more to beer than Coors Light and PBR.
Lol. It's one of the strangest environments. You're either there to buy a rare Belgian sour or a 30 rack of Nattys.
 
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The holy grail of IPAs is Russian River Pliny the Elder. They are only distributed in CA so my boss gets a friend of his to ship a case once in a while to NJ. A nice special treat to have every now and then.

I'm a big fan of a lot of the Vermont breweries. Lawson's Liquids, Von Trapp, Long Trail, Switchback...they all make good brews of every variety.

Surprisingly, one of the best beer selections in Miami is at the Stop n Snop convenience store on Ponce right down the street from campus, just a little past where new Miami's Best and Titanic is. Very unassuming since it is small, but they have an insane selection of international and US beer that rivals maybe only Total Wine. I'd walk down from the UV and grab something new every time I walked in.
1) You are absolutely right about that Stop n Shop. That was my honey hole for Cigar City limited releases and others. Union on Calle Ocho also sells all of their bottles to go, less 30% the price marked to drink there.
2) Fun fact on Pliny, and perhaps pertinent to you or your boss depending on your part of NJ. They distribute to Pennsylvania. Only state west of the Rockies for years they distributed to. One of the brewers is from there, but you can generally find it at Monk's Cafe in Philly because of this.
3) VT has some killer breweries... Lawsons, Alchemist, HILL FARMSTEAD, Foam...
 
A bit further east, El Carajo is another sneaky spot for a randomly solid beer (and wine) selection. It's blown up in the last 15 years or so, but it's still a somewhat undercover down on 17th and just off US-1.
El Carajo the restaurant was great too. I used to stop in, grab a rioja and some croquetas to take home when I’d drive by. Place is an absolute gem.
It is true the majority of the Wynwood Breweries have been sold to macro brews in an ironic twist, though some of them still seem to have a bit of autonomy. It was particularly sad to see WBC get bought by CBA (which is just a sub of InBev) a couple of years ago. But as long as the beer remains solid and evolving, I can't get too upset over it. Unfortunately, getting bought up by some of these beer giants does tend to lend itself towards a certain staleness and unwillingness to experiment.

I used to love The Room back in the day. Definitely a more European vibe of beers, as well as soon neat wines. Had my first lambic there. Was a good spot for a date. They are closed now, but they were open since at least 2003 (I know I took a couple of DGs to The Room while I was still at UM and I am a 2004 grad). Titanic as another early Miami staple with micro brews on tap is a good call and one that I am ashamed to have forgotten to include.

You are definitely right that Lokal opened before Kush and Union. I think Union is owned by the same people as Kush and maybe some of the same people as Lokal. I am pretty sure the original Filling Station was earlier though (their move near Funky Buddah was definitely later), since I vaguely remember Lokal opening around the time I was graduating from law school.

Union is a pretty cool spot, though. Only been there about twice in the last 4 years because it's a pain in the a$$ if you live in NW Dade, especially with so many solid options in Doral.
My thing with the macros (really AB and Coors more than Constellation) is they do some SHADY practices both with shelf space/taps and with raw materials. It honestly has nothing to do with quality or scarcity or being less hip. It is entirely **** like this: https://www.foodandwine.com/news/ab-inbev-cuts-south-african-hops-craft-brewers?amp=true
 
1) You are absolutely right about that Stop n Shop. That was my honey hole for Cigar City limited releases and others. Union on Calle Ocho also sells all of their bottles to go, less 30% the price marked to drink there.
2) Fun fact on Pliny, and perhaps pertinent to you or your boss depending on your part of NJ. They distribute to Pennsylvania. Only state west of the Rockies for years they distributed to. One of the brewers is from there, but you can generally find it at Monk's Cafe in Philly because of this.
3) VT has some killer breweries... Lawsons, Alchemist, HILL FARMSTEAD, Foam...
I have heard they distribute to the Philly area. My dad might be getting a kegerator in, so I was looking at the distributors that Russian River sells to in hopes that I could surprise him with a sixtel. Unfortunately it seems that they haven't gotten RR in for a couple months, probably because of COVID. I'll have to circle back in a couple months on that when things are hopefully more normal.
 
1) You are absolutely right about that Stop n Shop. That was my honey hole for Cigar City limited releases and others. Union on Calle Ocho also sells all of their bottles to go, less 30% the price marked to drink there.
2) Fun fact on Pliny, and perhaps pertinent to you or your boss depending on your part of NJ. They distribute to Pennsylvania. Only state west of the Rockies for years they distributed to. One of the brewers is from there, but you can generally find it at Monk's Cafe in Philly because of this.
3) VT has some killer breweries... Lawsons, Alchemist, HILL FARMSTEAD, Foam...
Sunset Corners has a nice selection of beer. For some, like large formats, better than Total Wine.
 
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Love Pliny...it's here quite frequently in Pa. Back in the day i even sampled the Younger...nowadays the line for that is ridiculous.

Lawson's is excellent. Have a can of their maple stout in the fridge.

Heady Topper used to be the cream of the crop 10 years ago..now i find many beers as good if not superior.

Of course Hill Farmstead is the benchmark up there, fortunate to have had quite a few on draft in this area, hope to make a pilgrimage to there soon.
I remember Heady and Sip of Sunshine were the beers to find at Phish shows years back and are classics of the haze style. We had the Shelton Festival here a few years back and was able to drink Trillium, Other Half, Tired Hands, Monkish, and Bearded Iris IPAs in the same afternoon, among countless others. It was a good day.

Funny thing about Heady Topper is their cans used to say drink from the can and do not pour into a glass because people thought the haze was a ****ed up batch.
 
I have heard they distribute to the Philly area. My dad might be getting a kegerator in, so I was looking at the distributors that Russian River sells to in hopes that I could surprise him with a sixtel. Unfortunately it seems that they haven't gotten RR in for a couple months, probably because of COVID. I'll have to circle back in a couple months on that when things are hopefully more normal.
Maybe in this Covid era it's possible, but as far as I know RR only goes to bars, and I believe Pliny the Elder only comes in 1/2's, the Younger comes in sixtels
 
I remember Heady and Sip of Sunshine were the beers to find at Phish shows years back and are classics of the haze style. We had the Shelton Festival here a few years back and was able to drink Trillium, Other Half, Tired Hands, Monkish, and Bearded Iris IPAs in the same afternoon, among countless others. It was a good day.

Funny thing about Heady Topper is their cans used to say drink from the can and do not pour into a glass because people thought the haze was a ****ed up batch.

first time i ever had Heady i was like ' what?' drink from the can?

It's funny how when i was young beer in bottles was thought to be ' better' ...who knew cans were actually the way to go lol.

That Shelton Festival sounds amazing....what a lineup of breweries!
 
El Carajo the restaurant was great too. I used to stop in, grab a rioja and some croquetas to take home when I’d drive by. Place is an absolute gem.

My thing with the macros (really AB and Coors more than Constellation) is they do some SHADY practices both with shelf space/taps and with raw materials. It honestly has nothing to do with quality or scarcity or being less hip. It is entirely **** like this: https://www.foodandwine.com/news/ab-inbev-cuts-south-african-hops-craft-brewers?amp=true

I hear you. I know a lot of people hate Veza Sur because it is admittedly a more insidious InBev gimmick (instead of buying up another craft micro-brewery, InBev started opening up places like Veza Sur from scratch through subsidiaries and single-purpose business entities in an effort to hide InBev's involvement with the beer). They aren't at the levels of Monsanto, but InBev is not at all consumer or competition friendly (or even tolerant).
 
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@Canada Ibis ,

@wspcane is right regarding RR, although i think they also are in DC. Origlio handles RR and it's all over Philly in beer bars, especially during Philly Beer Week in June( if it happens this year). I even see it in the suburbs NW of Philly sometimes. I was going to a Union Jacks near me in May and getting growlers of it lol.
 
So what's everyone drinking for the game? I went on a search for the Hershey Porter and came up empty at 4 liquor stores that are usually clutch when I'm looking for something in particular. Looks like I'll be a basic ***** and stick to Lager tonight.
 
went to Detroit a couple summer again for a Tigers game. Had a great time. Cool bars, strip clubs, casino, Greek town etc... one of the better trips I have taken.

me and a group of friends go to random baseball stadiums whenever we get a chance. Harder now with all them having kids and stuff.
Tigers games are a lot of fun in the summer and greek town is close its a fun time for a weekends. That's also cool hitting different stadiums i bet thats a fun time with your buddies
 
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I hear you. I know a lot of people hate Veza Sur because it is admittedly a more insidious InBev gimmick (instead of buying up another craft micro-brewery, InBev started opening up places like Veza Sur from scratch through subsidiaries and single-purpose business entities in an effort to hide InBev's involvement with the beer). They aren't at the levels of Monsanto, but InBev is not at all consumer or competition friendly (or even tolerant).
I had no idea Veza Sur was an AB company until my buddy who bartends told me that the salesman was the same guy who sold them Bud products. Same thing with Kona Brewing. It’s one thing for a mega corp to buy a brand like Constellation did with Funky Buddha. The owners at FB made a killing and retained control over day to day operations. It’s something else to create a fake independent brewery to try to kill competition with your favorable distribution networks.

AB/InBev and Miller/Coors were dead to me when they started sponsoring bills in Florida to make tap rooms illegal. They wanted all beer sales anywhere to have to run through a distributor first. Meaning breweries would have to sell to a distributor and buy their own beer back from a distributor before they could sell it in house. The kicker is that all the distributors are owned by the two major brewing conglomerates. The tap rooms got around the law by, ironically, by using a rule that allowed Anheiser Busch to sell beers at Busch Gardens. As long as a brewery offers occasional free tours of their brewing facility, it’s considered a tourist locale and thus doesn’t have to buy their beers through a distributor.
 
Nah, my issue was solely that mid-December weather. Five days, zero sunlight... snowed about 20% of the time, and even when it wasn't snowing it was overcast so bad it looked like twilight most of the day. But midtown and corktown were pretty cool and walkable (when it wasn't snowing). Apart from Motor City Brewing, I went to a ****tail bar called Sugar House that served some pretty elite level drinks. I could see a trip there being more fun in April/May.
Ya absolutely cant blame ya there. The weather is rough in the winter especially if you're not used to it, i wouldn't want to come mid December either lmao. Summer time in Detroit and west Michigan lake shore is hard to beat.
 
first time i ever had Heady i was like ' what?' drink from the can?

It's funny how when i was young beer in bottles was thought to be ' better' ...who knew cans were actually the way to go lol.

That Shelton Festival sounds amazing....what a lineup of breweries!
It was incredible, and each brewery brought their best stuff to try to one up the others. Cantillon magnums next to Drie Fontainen. I wish I could find the full list of who was there. The cans are great for IPAs. Even better for brewers... less shipping issues and charge the same or more for 64 oz instead of 72.
@Canada Ibis ,

@wspcane is right regarding RR, although i think they also are in DC. Origlio handles RR and it's all over Philly in beer bars, especially during Philly Beer Week in June( if it happens this year). I even see it in the suburbs NW of Philly sometimes. I was going to a Union Jacks near me in May and getting growlers of it lol.
They probably are in DC too. They have some weird laws there where if a beer magically shows up, feel free to sell it. I honestly don’t even fully understand them. But in theory, as I understand it, a store or bar owner could drive a UHaul to Philly, buy out a bunch of Russian River, drive it back and sell it at their spot.
 
I had no idea Veza Sur was an AB company until my buddy who bartends told me that the salesman was the same guy who sold them Bud products. Same thing with Kona Brewing. It’s one thing for a mega corp to buy a brand like Constellation did with Funky Buddha. The owners at FB made a killing and retained control over day to day operations. It’s something else to create a fake independent brewery to try to kill competition with your favorable distribution networks.

AB/InBev and Miller/Coors were dead to me when they started sponsoring bills in Florida to make tap rooms illegal. They wanted all beer sales anywhere to have to run through a distributor first. Meaning breweries would have to sell to a distributor and buy their own beer back from a distributor before they could sell it in house. The kicker is that all the distributors are owned by the two major brewing conglomerates. The tap rooms got around the law by, ironically, by using a rule that allowed Anheiser Busch to sell beers at Busch Gardens. As long as a brewery offers occasional free tours of their brewing facility, it’s considered a tourist locale and thus doesn’t have to buy their beers through a distributor.
Ya I hate shady crap like that. Some breweries take the big time money and retain a lot of the stakes. It just helps them expand and pay off some of their debts. There are others that sell out completely that I try not to go to.
 
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