Fat Tire..........

[NickleDimer]

So, blue moon is a gateway craft beer?

There's so many varieties of craft beer available now- don't even remember if I've had fat tire or not. Sounds familiar. might have had it while out west a few years back.

 

[Jerseyjoe027]

Miller is the one family I absolutely loathe

--wcburrs

 

[Greg Woodward]

Bgranc, have you had Heady Topper (brewed and distributed in Burlington, I think) yet? I haven't had the chance but it has created a huge buzz and demand in VT. I spend a lot of time in South Central VT but I can never get it. I am a big Long Trail Ale guy but I've been dying to get my hands on this Heady Topper.

 

[bgranc02]

Bgranc, have you had Heady Topper (brewed and distributed in Burlington, I think) yet? I haven't had the chance but it has created a huge buzz and demand in VT. I spend a lot of time in South Central VT but I can never get it. I am a big Long Trail Ale guy but I've been dying to get my hands on this Heady Topper.

Yes.. Heady is brewed by the Alchemist out of Waterbury they are opening (soon I think) a new store/brewery in Stowe. The lines and traffic when they allowed purchasing at the brewery was too much for the town of Waterbury to handle so they stopped two years ago or so. They don't distribute much out of that northern VT area... and people have been known to follow the delivery trucks. Its a DIPA and very good... the east coast version of Pliny.

If you are a beer lover Waterbury should be on the list.. great restaurants and its at the crossroads of some fantastic breweries with Lawsons, Hill Farmstead, Alchemist, Fiddle Head all reasonable drives. Von Trapp in stowe makes some nice german beers as well. Prohibition Pig in Waterbury regularly has a beer list that is hard to match anywhere in the country because of its location and makes some fine beers themselves... not to mention great food. Beyond the beer Ben & Jerry's is up there and you have outdoor activities all year long from skiing, to mountain biking to rafting. Great area.. Ill be heading up probably a week or so before thanksgiving (depending upon snow) and again for new years.

 

[tomdudes]

Mpwalsh, were you stationed at rota? My son is based out of there now.

 

[CarDashian]

southern Spain (my dad was a Marine)
Embassy duty?

 

[spg109876ers]

nm

 

[mpwalsh8]

Mpwalsh, were you stationed at rota? My son is based out of there now.

Yep, we lived in Rota. 952 Huelva Drive to be exact. According to Google Earth, the house is still there and looks pretty much like it did when we lived there. My dad was the CO of the Marine Communications Station from Oct. 75 to Oct. 78. The primary purpose of the base when we lived there was the submarine tender which took care of the subs going in and out of the Med. There was a lot of controversy about the nuclear subs (Los Angeles class?) the US was building and Spain didn't want them in the port. I think the sub-tender ended up leaving not long after we moved back to the US.

I don't know what Rota is like now but when I lived there we had no television and only one AFRS radio station. The NFL consisted of week old highlight reels courtesy of NFL films that were show in the Officer's Club on Sunday afternoons. We went to the movies a lot although new movies were always 3-4 months behind the US release. For kids in school, hanging out in the bleachers at the drive in was a major part of our social life with double features every Friday and Saturday night. Even though there was 15,000 Americans on the base, we were pretty isolated. I think there was a total of 700-800 kids in school K-12. Needless to say, coming back to the US as a freshmen in high school was a bit of a wake up call.

I would love to go back, I have a lot of good memories of Rota and the surrounding area, particularly Puerto de Santa Maria and Jerez.

On the basketball side Rota hosted a major armed forces basketball tournament (essentially Military intramural basketball). It was a pretty big deal as Army and Air Force base teams would show up from Germany and there would usually be 2-3 aircraft carriers out in the bay of Cadiz for a couple days. Each base in Spain and Italy would usually have a team. It was a big deal for the commander of a ship or base to have his team win the tournament. I can remember a team from the USS America absolutely crushing all of the other teams. Lots of accusations of the Captain stacking his team from players from other ships.

 

[bgranc02]

That trip has been on the list for a while.

It's a very easy visit to Santa Rosa if you're ever in Nappa, which is who...everybody?

Spg it's worth a trip. In Waterbury you have a few spots that get kegs from all three and on your way up you pass fiddlehead in south Burlington which makes a great series of Bret fermented beer and some real nice IPAs.

Despite Dimers hate on Cali wine country I paired vineyard visits up with stops at lagunitas, Russian river, bear republic and a few smaller spots last time out there. Pliny gets all the love but they also make some Gr8 sours. They were champagne guys after all.

 

[tomdudes]

Mpwalsh, with the U.S. Putting 4 destroyers there permanently, there is a good sized presence. Have no idea what it would be like to be growing up there, but for young navy officers in their 20's, it seems like they can find fun when they are in port. My son rents this 7 BR house with a few others, and it is beautiful. The surrounding area is nice and the climate is top notch.

 

[SnottieDrippen]

Yep, we lived in Rota. 952 Huelva Drive to be exact. According to Google Earth, the house is still there and looks pretty much like it did when we lived there. My dad was the CO of the Marine Communications Station from Oct. 75 to Oct. 78. The primary purpose of the base when we lived there was the submarine tender which took care of the subs going in and out of the Med. There was a lot of controversy about the nuclear subs (Los Angeles class?) the US was building and Spain didn't want them in the port. I think the sub-tender ended up leaving not long after we moved back to the US.

I don't know what Rota is like now but when I lived there we had no television and only one AFRS radio station. The NFL consisted of week old highlight reels courtesy of NFL films that were show in the Officer's Club on Sunday afternoons. We went to the movies a lot although new movies were always 3-4 months behind the US release. For kids in school, hanging out in the bleachers at the drive in was a major part of our social life with double features every Friday and Saturday night. Even though there was 15,000 Americans on the base, we were pretty isolated. I think there was a total of 700-800 kids in school K-12. Needless to say, coming back to the US as a freshmen in high school was a bit of a wake up call.

I would love to go back, I have a lot of good memories of Rota and the surrounding area, particularly Puerto de Santa Maria and Jerez.

On the basketball side Rota hosted a major armed forces basketball tournament (essentially Military intramural basketball). It was a pretty big deal as Army and Air Force base teams would show up from Germany and there would usually be 2-3 aircraft carriers out in the bay of Cadiz for a couple days. Each base in Spain and Italy would usually have a team. It was a big deal for the commander of a ship or base to have his team win the tournament. I can remember a team from the USS America absolutely crushing all of the other teams. Lots of accusations of the Captain stacking his team from players from other ships.

I have to say I was pretty enthralled for this entire post. Cap tip - military kids are an interesting lot

 

[NickleDimer]

Bear republic is top notch. Heady is very good. Lot of scarcity hype.

 

[spg109876ers]

nm

 

[nardibynature123]

Miller is the one beer I absolutely loathe

+1, cannot drink Miller Lite or MGD. However, I can drink High Life's for days.

 

[Chimpat]

I've had Heady Topper. My buddy works for a beer distributor in CT and gets his hands on some rare stuff. Saved me a couple cans last summer, enjoyed it quite a bit. Also liked the Ghandi-Bot which from what I understand is kind of rare as well.

A beer that I've been drinking often when I can find it is Racer 5, anyone like that? Bear Republic has been mentioned in the thread so assuming some of you guys have tried it. I don't know most of their other stuff but like that beer.

 

[nardibynature123]

I've had Heady Topper. My buddy works for a beer distributor in CT and gets his hands on some rare stuff. Saved me a couple cans last summer, enjoyed it quite a bit. Also liked the Ghandi-Bot which from what I understand is kind of rare as well.

A beer that I've been drinking often when I can find it is Racer 9, anyone like that? Bear Republic has been mentioned in the thread so assuming some of you guys have tried it. I don't know most of their other stuff but like that beer.

I have had it, my company gets it on beer Fridays. Lot's of high end beers that CoP'ers would know nothing about.

 

[Mainliner II]

Definitely not a beer aficionado, as long at the beer is not heavy and is ice cold. Have been drinking Yuengling Lite Lager mostly. But, when we

were in San Juan a few years ago for the hoops tournament, the hotel served this beer.............and thought it was very good. When we returned home, tried to get it locally, but, was told it isn't available in the States.....seems strange. Talked to the manager at Canal's and he said they have been trying to get it for years......

 

[HereComeTheCats]

You can buy 22 oz Racer 5 bottles at a lot of bodegas and grocery stores in CoDB. It's a good, drinkable IPA kind of like Lagunitas.

 

[NickleDimer]

Where/when did you try it?

Cans in CoP at three bars last year. With all the twittering, mob forms well in advance. I went to Good Dog with a newfound take it/leave it attitude. Was supposed to start at 5:00 until they said it was 6:30. I left it.

If I was forced to pick the 4.6er least likely to endure those shennanigans for a beverage, it would be you, sir (hence the "curiosity").

A friend brought some to a BBQ. Had just been up in VT and he brought it back. You are right that I would not put up with beer nerd flash mob wait line crap. Almost did it a few months ago for PTE or PTY, but just slept in when my buddy caled me to go.

 

[nardibynature123]

I am waiting for the Root Beer flavored beers to be outlawed for kids drinking it.

 

[lowry99]

Fat Tire amber is decent but agree overrated, liked it when I had it out west, then bought a couple sixes when it came to DC a few years ago also with much fanfare. I realized that for some reason it gave me horrible smelling gas whenever I had it, stopped buying it.

I really mainly just buy German lagers these days, enjoy Paulaner, Spaten, Hofbrau, St. Pauli Girl also underrated. Occasional microbrews, have been enjoying Troegs offerings lately, their Pale Ale and Pils are good. Also like some Victory and Yards brews at times.

 

[NickleDimer]

I'm with nbn - High Life is the most crushable macro beer.
Coors Light is my choice when I have to drink but don't feel like drinking.

 

[tomdudes]

Despite my willingness to try all kinds of craft beers, if I'm at a tailgate for an extended time period, my line is "any beer I can read through", which leaves any of the light beers or mass produced domestics (but no Mich Ultra or MGD). But despite what's been said about the"champagne of beers", no High Life for me, would rather have Lite (of the Miller family). Maybe because it used to be my go-to beer in high school (8 pack of pony bottles), but I'm not a fan of it.

 

[spg109876ers]

nm