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You'd be surprised how little difference age makes with kegs. I had a half-barrel for probably a couple months and was enjoying it just as much at the end as I did at the beginning.

Also, I think one big difference between me and most people is that I think of this in terms of "enjoyment", not "flavor". Is Drake's 1500 anywhere close to those Alvarado beers in terms of flavors? Well, no, of course not. But are you really sitting back and savoring those flavors as you down a pint after work or with dinner? I doubt it! The vast majority of the regular drinking we do is perfectly well served with "good enough" beer, whatever that threshold may be.
That's not a bad idea, really. I have what I call my "weekday" beers which are whatever Trader Joe's has that I can grab single cans of. I generally go for variety (I don't really even buy six packs), so even if it is one I'm not paying too much attention to, I do like to try new things. That's really the only thing unappealing about the kegerator idea.
 
That's not a bad idea, really. I have what I call my "weekday" beers which are whatever Trader Joe's has that I can grab single cans of. I generally go for variety (I don't really even buy six packs), so even if it is one I'm not paying too much attention to, I do like to try new things. That's really the only thing unappealing about the kegerator idea.
I used to be that way too, but then I got over it. That's what tastings and bars are for.
 
Can't figure out exactly why, but assume it has something to do with the yeast.

Oddly, my beer allergy (which has spread to hoppy beers) flares up more on certain hazy IPAs. Goblin Cock being a recent example. I'm so cheap that my body is allergic to expensive IPAs, apparently.


This is a bummer. I liked Old Guardian back in the day -- it along with Younger has my "I've drank this for ___ years in a row" record, but it hasn't been that great in the past few years.
 
But is the 17 keeping the cans from being delivered around the Bay? That's the hard hitting question.

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In a stroke of fortune, I was already in the South Bay for work today. I ended up heading down to Salinas for the release. Got there right about 3:00 and was probably at worst the 10th person in the door. Lots of cans were being loaded up for delivery. Plenty left when I rolled out, too.
 
Oddly, my beer allergy (which has spread to hoppy beers) flares up more on certain hazy IPAs. Goblin Cock being a recent example. I'm so cheap that my body is allergic to expensive IPAs, apparently.



This is a bummer. I liked Old Guardian back in the day -- it along with Younger has my "I've drank this for ___ years in a row" record, but it hasn't been that great in the past few years.

The same thing has been happening to me sometimes. Certain hazy IPA's will really make my nose run. Sort of sucks but also makes the decision of waiting in lines for haze craze very easy.
 
Is there a bay area beer travel guide? I know the bars pretty decently but gonna be out for a week in early march and trying to make a hitlist of potential brewery options. Staying in Oakland- offhand, Cellarmaker and Fieldwork are relatively high on the list due to ease of access, Russian River and SARA are of course desirable but may not be feasible for me. Trying to figure out what else I should target.
 
Is there a bay area beer travel guide? I know the bars pretty decently but gonna be out for a week in early march and trying to make a hitlist of potential brewery options. Staying in Oakland- offhand, Cellarmaker and Fieldwork are relatively high on the list due to ease of access, Russian River and SARA are of course desirable but may not be feasible for me. Trying to figure out what else I should target.
Beerbybart.com is a reasonable resource.
 
Is there a bay area beer travel guide? I know the bars pretty decently but gonna be out for a week in early march and trying to make a hitlist of potential brewery options. Staying in Oakland- offhand, Cellarmaker and Fieldwork are relatively high on the list due to ease of access, Russian River and SARA are of course desirable but may not be feasible for me. Trying to figure out what else I should target.
Well hello stranger
 
Well hello stranger

Hey I forgot you were in Berkeley now! I was out a couple weeks ago for work but was completely tied up. A little more open this trip, maybe we can grab a beer at some point! Any particular recommendations for my east coast ass?
 
I was thinking more of a TalkBeer curated list... Maybe one doesn't exist.

EDIT: Lol I'm a moron, just found Stu's. Carry on.
This one?: https://www.talkbeer.com/community/threads/visiting-the-san-francisco-bay-area.1393/ That ****'s way out of date - kinda crazy how much has changed in 3 1/2 years.

I'd say Fieldwork, Sierra Nevada (it's literally a block out of the way) and Rare Barrel are a good excursion. The Rare Barrel is open at just about the worst hours ever, so keep an eye on that.

The East Bay crew has been singing the praises of Temescal as well, but I think they're largely homers given what I've tried. Faction is worth hitting up for the view, if the weather ever clears up (or maybe not, bet it's still a nice view and probably less crowded). I'll defer on the East Bay bars, never go that away.
 
This one?: https://www.talkbeer.com/community/threads/visiting-the-san-francisco-bay-area.1393/ That ****'s way out of date - kinda crazy how much has changed in 3 1/2 years.

I'd say Fieldwork, Sierra Nevada (it's literally a block out of the way) and Rare Barrel are a good excursion. The Rare Barrel is open at just about the worst hours ever, so keep an eye on that.

The East Bay crew has been singing the praises of Temescal as well, but I think they're largely homers given what I've tried. Faction is worth hitting up for the view, if the weather ever clears up (or maybe not, bet it's still a nice view and probably less crowded). I'll defer on the East Bay bars, never go that away.
Yeah the idea was to keep those updated but with forums its hard. I think I can edit the OP but man, that takes effort.
 
I gotta say, that canned Pilsner they just did was pretty great but it's a Pilsner so no one cares.
Yeah but I can get fresh trumer at a fraction of the cost pretty much whenever I want (which is never).

I forget who, but someone on here was singing the praises of Speakeasy's canned Pilsner, so I thought, you know what ol Jack Burton says in a time like this? What the hell. Bought one, and it was the definition of meh.
 
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Yeah but I can get fresh trumer at a fraction of the cost pretty much whenever I want (which is never).

I forget who, but someone on here was singing the praises of Speakeasy's canned Pilsner, so I thought, you know what ol Jack Burton says in a time like this? What the hell. Bought one, and it was the definition of meh.
Found your problem
 
Does anyone know when Alpine Nelson bottles will show up again around the bay?
I remember it being around quite a bit last winter and am craving it!
 
Does anyone know when Alpine Nelson bottles will show up again around the bay?
I remember it being around quite a bit last winter and am craving it!
I haven't seen them in what feels like over a year. During that time, I've seen plenty of other Alpine bottles I have little to no interest in. Might be a better question for the SD thread. Feels like it just hasn't been bottled as opposed to it being bottled and the Bay Area getting the shaft.
 
Random question, but does anyone have a place that they get pork belly from in the east bay? I want to make some bacon, and have heard that Chinese butchers will often have it super cheap, but haven't been to any of them. Last time I got it from some fancy place in Berkeley and it was like $14/lb or something that's more expensive than good-quality pre-made bacon. Of course no one has any prices listed online, so I don't know if Taylor's or something similar would be reasonable.

And yes, I realize this isn't talkpork.com.
 
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