Locals over Hype!

Discussion in 'Beer Talk' started by RayOhioFelton, Apr 1, 2013.

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  1. RBassSFHOPit2ME

    RBassSFHOPit2ME Initiate (0) Mar 1, 2009 California
    Deactivated

    Yeeeeeeeah. The Avatar sealed the deal for me.
     
  2. ThatCracker

    ThatCracker Initiate (0) Nov 20, 2012 Virginia

    I had the White Rajah and Head Hunter shipped on a trade - thought the Head Hunter was better then the Rajah and Pliny I had previously. If I had them all locally available and fresh I would be in Hop Heaven as they are all great.
     
    miketd likes this.
  3. thenamestsam

    thenamestsam Initiate (0) Sep 13, 2012 New York

    It has been my experience that especially with IPAs and DIPAs there is very little separation between the highest quality "shelf" beers in the style and the rarer, less distributed ones people rave about. Heady and Pliny are both absolutely terrific beers, but between Hop Stoopid, Flower Power, Finest Kind, Ruination, Double Jack, Sculpin, etc. there are literally dozens of excellent hoppy beers on the shelves every time I walk into a bottle shop that when fresh are very comparable to those top dogs in my opinion.
     
    GetMeAnIPA likes this.
  4. GetMeAnIPA

    GetMeAnIPA Pooh-Bah (2,535) Mar 28, 2009 California
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Can it be truly be a blind taste test if you've had the beer numerous times? If I do a blind taste test with a beer I drink a lot I can pick that out of a lineup. Well, at least I hope I could. Might have to try this.
     
    ufmj likes this.
  5. Cvescalante

    Cvescalante Initiate (0) Dec 24, 2012 Texas

    I'd have to rate these in this order: Heady, Head Hunter, Sucks, Pliny, Palate Wrecker, Nugget Nectar, Hopslam.. That's just going off of memory. I've never had all of them in my posession at once, unfortunately
     
  6. dar482

    dar482 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,039) Mar 9, 2007 New York
    Pooh-Bah Society

    The silly thing is that local is hype. Hype is caused by high demand and low supply. What you're drinking, which is local, is also hype because most of us can't get it.
     
    LambicPentameter likes this.
  7. Reneejane

    Reneejane Initiate (0) Jan 15, 2004 Illinois

    I choose to support local because I want to be able to get a cask conditioned fresh beer when I feel like it. :-)
     
  8. Premo88

    Premo88 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,486) Jun 6, 2010 Texas
    Pooh-Bah Society

    As I've noticed ... if a beer is easily obtainable, it has no place in the Top 10 ... and it can struggle to get into the Top 250.

    If that's the formula BA uses, cool. But by definition that means being No. 1 on BA's list does not equal national acclaim. It equals incredible regional support.

    And to the point: RayOhioFelton's orginal point is one I'm every so slowly finding to be true. Granted, I've got a *lot* of different beers to try before I become any kind of expert, but I've had a handful of Texas-brewed beers that stand up very well against some of the more highly-acclaimed beers more well-known on this site.

    I don't want to bash the BA Top 250 to death. It serves a valuable purpose, and I'm glad I can use it as a reference. But it's a very regionally-biased list.
     
  9. Sarlacc83

    Sarlacc83 Initiate (0) Mar 2, 2008 Oregon

    The IPA flow chart

    Is my IPA better than Pliny?

    -> Yes.

    -> No -> Change answer to yes.
     
    Premo88 likes this.
  10. gpblackgt

    gpblackgt Pundit (761) Oct 14, 2009 Pennsylvania

    Never had the White Rajah, but I picked up a growler of IBUsive last Thursday on my way through Cleveland and I was blown away. Had a decently fresh Headhunter soon after and it paled in comparison.
     
    HopCraverDave likes this.
  11. FriarTuckInLuck

    FriarTuckInLuck Initiate (0) Dec 15, 2011 Arizona

    Fresh Hop Knot blows the Goose Island IPA out of the water my friend. And you know this, man!:wink:
     
  12. yemenmocha

    yemenmocha Grand Pooh-Bah (4,092) Jun 18, 2002 Arizona
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Fresh vs Fresh... Not to me and now that i think about it theyre different styles so I should have left it out. HK's salient flaw is the thin & weak body. Do it blindly and see for yourself. And even if you squabble with that particular one, the list I gave is pretty darn extensive and I left out a few that I was unsure if they fresh date. We're blessed by a great distribution system.
     
    FriarTuckInLuck likes this.
  13. riemster

    riemster Initiate (0) Mar 17, 2011 Ohio

    I find myself gravitating towards beer I have to hunt to obtain. I think the hunt is what makes it fun. Finally obtaining that bottle after weeks of calling and visiting stores or making trade arrangements gives me a raging renob. More recently, I think I've been too obsessed with out-of-state or hard-to-get beer. Thank you for creating this thread and grounding me once again. I love The Brew Kettle... notice my avatar? It's a picture of the beer I brewed at BK little over 2 years ago, Riemenstouter :] Also, I'll have to check out Fat Heads again. Cheers.
     
  14. kbuzz

    kbuzz Initiate (0) Jan 22, 2011 North Carolina

    To me, IPAs perfectly exemplify what is most appealing about craft beer. When local, they taste better are fresher and are more affordable.

    In my opinion, there really is no need at all to trade for any hop-forward beer.
     
    Beerontwowheels likes this.
  15. merc7186

    merc7186 Initiate (0) Dec 5, 2010 New York

    Everyone knows that Pliny falls off after 37 min....er....ah......36 minutes after bottling.
     
  16. mendonjoebeer

    mendonjoebeer Zealot (711) Nov 9, 2010 North Carolina

    So when I get "local" Ipa's I am almost always disappointed,even when "fresh". When I get "fresh" Ipa's from well known craft breweries that make good Ipa's, I wish the local breweries made beers like this. When I drink "fresh" Pliny, I see why it is considered a great DIPA. When I drink "fresh" Heady I think wow this is fantastic and Pliny is boring. When I drink "fresh" Lawson's I think wow this is as good as Heady. When I drink "fresh" Hill Farmstead Ipa's I think this stuff is freaking amazing!!!. No "blind" tasting, just enjoying the beer. Just my opinion.
     
  17. Premo88

    Premo88 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,486) Jun 6, 2010 Texas
    Pooh-Bah Society

    bwwwahahahahaha ... i think so much of BA, but I also don't live on the East Coast. it's hard not to want to rebel against the East Coast-bias on BA.

    bottom line: we're all natually loyal when it comes to defending our local breweries.
     
  18. yemenmocha

    yemenmocha Grand Pooh-Bah (4,092) Jun 18, 2002 Arizona
    Pooh-Bah Society

    I agree it should be that way but often it isn't because many local brewers don't use freshness dating, and you don't know how long it has sat on the shelf - and distributors do send out old stuff to new retail shelves. Plus, many brewers that are strong in a region have incredibly fresh offerings. I've had Bell's Two Hearted that was about one week after bottling, and the same for Odell IPA. STONE is great in AZ where I shop.

    So yes, theoretically the local stuff on retail shelves ought to be fresher because it was made closer, but for many of us it is not.
     
  19. yemenmocha

    yemenmocha Grand Pooh-Bah (4,092) Jun 18, 2002 Arizona
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Most are local defenders but certainly not all. :wink:
     
  20. JackofBlades

    JackofBlades Initiate (0) Apr 1, 2013 Texas

    I'd take a good local brew from Deep Ellum, Live Oak, or Saint Arnold any day over, say, a PTE simply due to the locals being much fresher and also very good (IMO Texas beers are pretty underrated, I wish they were distributed a little more). I'd much rather have a Pliny at Russian River than drinking it a few months old if they ever hit the shelves around here.
     
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