217. Flying Dog – Raging Bitch Belgian IPA Draft
A coworker who works remotely – Bettywriter – was in town for the week, so several of us decided to go out to happy hour and catch up. We stopped at Medici in Uptown Normal, a place I’ve mentioned before that has some pretty good beers on tap. I arrived before anyone else, I didn’t have to be shy when I announced proudly to the bartender that I’d like a Raging Bitch. It was a hazy orange-golden color...
Oktoberfest Challenge – Completed
Well, the Oktoberfest Challenge is complete, and it’s been a great month. There were only 2 days during the month when I didn’t have an Oktoberfest or Pumpkin beer (or even a beer that day). I know this sounds a bit cheesy, but I actually learned a lot during this month-long challenge. First, I gained much more respect for folks like Dave Selden of the 999 beers blog and Beer Drinker Rob of the Daily Beer Review. It...
216. Shmaltz Brewing – Coney Island Freaktoberfest
I had two days left for my Oktoberfest Challenge and only one beer left, so I decided to hold onto this one and enjoy it on Halloween. It’s been a fun Halloween evening – my son is dressed as Indiana Jones and my daughter dressed as a princess. I took them out trick-or-treating while my wife stayed home handing out candy. I enjoyed one of my Russian Imperial Pumpkin beers in a coffee mug while taking the kids around,...
215. Blue Moon / Miller Coors – Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale
It’s a nice fall friday evening and I took off work just a bit early to enjoy the afternoon. So, of course, when I got home, I grabbed a beer for my Oktoberfest Challenge out of the fridge. Although Halloween is just a couple of days away and I realized that I’ve only got 2 beers for my challenge to make it through the next 3 days… I need to find another beer to qualify for my challenge quickly. The label says,...
214. Brauerei Beck & Co – Beck’s Oktoberfest
I’m down to the last couple of beers in the beer fridge for my Oktoberfest Challenge, and I think I still need one or two more. I remember covering Oktoberfest beers during one of our ABNormal Brewers club meetings last year, and remember being somewhat surprised at how much I liked Beck’s Oktoberfest in comparison to the others we tried. So now in the spirit of reviewing it, I thought I’d give it another go around....
213. New Holland Brewing – Charkoota Rye Smoked Doppelbock Lager Draft
After our ABNormal Brewers steering meeting, I stopped at Medici for a quick drink to get a beer which would meet my goal toward my Oktoberfest Challenge, and get another punch on my Wednesday Warriors card. While I’m now only 2 Wednesdays away from becoming a Wednesday Warrior, I was not able to find a beer to meet my challenge for today. While I’m again bummed about falling short in my quest, I did enjoy stumbling...
212. Anderson Valley Brewing – Brother David’s Belgian-style Double Ale Draft
It’s time for our monthly ABNormal Homebrewers steering meeting, so we met at Fat Jack’s to discuss the business of our next monthly meeting. Fat Jack’s normally has one of the better beer selections in town, so I was hoping to get a new Oktoberfest, seasonal, or pumpkin beer for my Oktoberfest Challenge. Unfortunately, with October being almost over, they didn’t have either, so I went for this one since I...
211. Capital Brewery – Fest Seasonal Beer
When I went to Friar Tuck to find more pumpkin beers and Oktoberfests, I managed to find this one. I assume that since it was out this time of year, and is simply called “Fest Seasonal Beer,” that it is an Oktoberfest beer. As you can tell, I’m starting to struggle to find beers that qualify for my Oktoberfest Challenge, so if anyone here in town sees anything that would qualify, please let me know. The bottle...
210. SABMiller / Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing – Leinenkugel’s Oktoberfest German-Style Märzen
It’s starting to get pretty difficult to find Oktoberfest beers for my Oktoberfest Challenge. However, a trip to Friar Tuck after work netted a few new options. I still need a few more, but I’ll worry about that later this week. I was familiar with Leinenkugel’s, as it seems to be a brand some locals try when they’re looking for a microbrew. I tried one of their beers once and wasn’t a fan, but I made...
209. Erdinger Weissbräu – Erdinger Oktoberfest
We had an incredible weekend in Columbia, MO, back at Mizzou for homecoming. With ESPN Gameday, homecoming activities, and a huge upset over #1 Oklahoma, we had a tremendous time. The only bad thing about the day was that I couldn’t find an Oktoberfest seasonal to drink for my Oktoberfest Challenge. I’m bummed, but I’m going to continue to try to finish off the month strong. The bottle says “Erdinger is...
208. Flatbranch Pub & Brewing – Cherry Brown Draft
We had a great time checking out the ESPN College Gameday set on the quad at Mizzou homecoming, but we stopped at Flatbranch Pub & Brewing for an early lunch before heading over to the homecoming parade. I had their ESB to start my meal and decided to have another to finish off my meal. I looked up at the board, and unfortunately, there was nothing that qualified for my Oktoberfest Challenge. So, unfortunately, I’ll have...
207. Flatbranch Pub & Brewing – Hudsons E.S.B. Cask Beer
As I mentioned in my previous post, we’re in my old college town of Columbia, MO, for homecoming at Mizzou. It’s also the first time that ESPN College Gameday has come to Columbia. This morning we took the kids down to enjoy the atmosphere (we helped set a new attendance record at ESPN Gameday with over 18,000 fans) and see the set. Before the show ended, we headed over to Flatbranch to grab an early lunch before the...
