Need advice about US Craft beers

[rifleman 61]

A national pub chain in the UK is holding it's annual beer festival and has invited 10 brewers from the US to contribute beers. Not knowing anything about the various craft brewers in the US, I thought I'd post a list of the breweries here along with the beer that's been included in the beer festival.

Anyone with experience of any of the brewers concerned please feel free to comment.

Elysian Brewing Co. Seattle, Washington - Avatar Jasmine IPA
Terrapin Beer Co. Georgia - Tree Hugger
Fat Head's Brewery, Ohio - Sunshine Daydream
Ninkasi Brewing Co., Oregon - Cream Ale
Abita Brewing Co., Louisiana - Restoration Pale Ale
Ballast Point Brewing, San Diego - Even Keel Session IPA
21st Amendment Brewery, California - American Bitter Red
Stone Brewing Co., California - Supremely Self-conscious Black Ale
Cambridge Brewing Co., Cambridge, Massachusetts - Sgt Pepper
Harpoon Brewery, Boston, Massachusetts - Harpoon IPA

Many thanks in advance.

Atheism is a Non-Prophet Organisation

[turtlespeed 212]

rifleman

A national pub chain in the UK is holding it's annual beer festival and has invited 10 brewers from the US to contribute beers. Not knowing anything about the various craft brewers in the US, I thought I'd post a list of the breweries here along with the beer that's been included in the beer festival.

Anyone with experience of any of the brewers concerned please feel free to comment.

Elysian Brewing Co. Seattle, Washington - Avatar Jasmine IPA
Terrapin Beer Co. Georgia - Tree Hugger
Fat Head's Brewery, Ohio - Sunshine Daydream
Ninkasi Brewing Co., Oregon - Cream Ale
Abita Brewing Co., Louisiana - Restoration Pale Ale
Ballast Point Brewing, San Diego - Even Keel Session IPA
21st Amendment Brewery, California - American Bitter Red
Stone Brewing Co., California - Supremely Self-conscious Black Ale
Cambridge Brewing Co., Cambridge, Massachusetts - Sgt Pepper
Harpoon Brewery, Boston, Massachusetts - Harpoon IPA

Many thanks in advance.

I enjoyed both of those.

The restoration gives a bit of money up toward the restoration of New Orleans after Katrina.

I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama
BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun

[billvon 2,400]

>Ninkasi Brewing Co., Oregon - Cream Ale

Has become well known in the brewing community for making a lot of "technically excellent" beers. They're not very adventurous but are very good at doing true-to-style pales, IPA's, blondes etc. If the beer you're referring to is "nupitale cream ale" it's a good beer, not one of their best IMO.

>Ballast Point Brewing, San Diego - Even Keel Session IPA

Ballast Point is doing some really innovative stuff lately - curry beers, a lot of barrel aging, a few sours etc. Their Sculpin IPA is one of the best (IMO) straight IPA's out there. Even Keel is a toned down version of that, closer to a standard pale than an IPA. Still a pretty good beer.

>21st Amendment Brewery, California - American Bitter Red

21st Amendment does some very good and very bad beers. Their watermelon wheat, a beer they advertise heavily and bring to seemingly every beerfest around, is awful. If this is their "Bitter American" then it's a good beer overall. (Note - the term "bitter" does not actually mean bitter, and it's less bitter than most IPA's and pales.)

>Stone Brewing Co., California - Supremely Self-conscious Black Ale

Had this once. It's a true Stone beer in that it is hoppy and very aggressive. Didn't much like it, but then I'm not much of a fan of Greg's approach to most of his brewing, which almost seems to be "let's piss people off."

>Cambridge Brewing Co., Cambridge, Massachusetts - Sgt Pepper

Only been there once and they had a very wide spectrum of beers available, from IPA's to belgians to fruit beers to imperial stouts. Most of them were done very well. Never had sgt pepper but they do saisons pretty well so it's likely to be good.

[Stumpy 256]

Just a general comment - Beer in the US has become much better than the "Sex in a canoe" crap it used to be. Or should I say, the craft breweries have become much more common and mainstream.

From memory I have tried the ballast point, the elysian and something from stone I think but not that one. I can't remember the individual beers but I do remember that I didn't have a bad one in 3 weeks of travelling down the west coast!

Never try to eat more than you can lift

[JohnnyMarko 1]

No love for Colorado beers?

[FlyingRhenquest 1]

Left Hand Brewery in Colorado did a version of their "Fade To Black" a couple years ago that is my favorite beer EVER. It was a smoked chili porter with just a hint of peppery bite in the back of the throat. Sadly each year they change the Fade to Black recipe and last year's version was an underwhelming porter that I couldn't distinguish from their regular porter.

If this year's Fade to Black is even close to what they did with it a couple of years ago, that's all I'll be taking to the DZ, on the thinnest of excuses, until they stop making it in the spring.

I'm trying to teach myself how to set things on fire with my mind. Hey... is it hot in here?

[JohnMitchell 14]

JohnnyMarko

No love for Colorado beers?

I had a Coors Banquet Monday after jumping in the hot sun. Tasted great!

[JohnMitchell 14]

billvon

>Ninkasi Brewing Co., Oregon - Cream Ale

Has become well known in the brewing community for making a lot of "technically excellent" beers. They're not very adventurous but are very good at doing true-to-style pales, IPA's, blondes etc.

I enjoy their IPA on tap at many places up in Seattle. Like you say, not innovative, but well done.

Gilgamesh Brewery in Salem, OR is trying some cool brews, such as a hopless pilsner that substitutes citrus and a chai tea stout. Actually those were a bit too far out for my palate, but I enjoyed many of their beers while sampling there the other day. They are a pretty new brewery but I see a bright future for them.

[Trafficdiver 8]

Cambridge Brewing Co. is quite good. Harpoon sucks.

Go with Allagash out of Portland, Maine or Pretty Things out of Cambridge Ma for a better selection.

[Trafficdiver 8]

Stumpy

Just a general comment - Beer in the US has become much better than the "Sex in a canoe" crap it used to be. Or should I say, the craft breweries have become much more common and mainstream.

From memory I have tried the ballast point, the elysian and something from stone I think but not that one. I can't remember the individual beers but I do remember that I didn't have a bad one in 3 weeks of travelling down the west coast!

Thanks for being the first Aussie who I have ever heard compliment US craft brews!

We have come a long way!

[cpoxon 0]

I'm guessing this is Wetherspoons Richard? I've always wanted to try an Abita since I saw the Japanese jazz fan buy one for himself and Antoine in a Season 1 episode of Treme and I looked it up.

Skydiving Fatalities - Cease not to learn 'til thou cease to live

[cpoxon 0]

Trafficdiver

***Just a general comment - Beer in the US has become much better than the "Sex in a canoe" crap it used to be. Or should I say, the craft breweries have become much more common and mainstream.

From memory I have tried the ballast point, the elysian and something from stone I think but not that one. I can't remember the individual beers but I do remember that I didn't have a bad one in 3 weeks of travelling down the west coast!

Thanks for being the first Aussie who I have ever heard compliment US craft brews!

We have come a long way!

Ha ha! Stumpy is a Brit living in New Zealand!

Skydiving Fatalities - Cease not to learn 'til thou cease to live

[rifleman 61]

Yes it's wetherspoons but my nearest one is 40 miles away and I figure I'm safe to have one pint and still drive (realistically, this means 3 nips (nip = 1/3 pint)) so I was trying to get an idea of which ones would be the best to try.

Atheism is a Non-Prophet Organisation

[Southern_Man 0]

Personally I am not a fan of Abita beers. I know a lot of people who really like them but I don't.

I am a big fan of Terrapin. They make some excellent IPAs that are very hoppy. I have had their treehugger and it is pretty good, although much milder than my preferred style.

I like the stone Black Ale--I like Stone in general and the Black Ale is somewhat distinctive in my opinion.

Had the Sunshine Daydream, pretty good, a bit citrusy. Medium body.

I either haven't had the others or they didn't make enough of an impression to warrant comment.

"What if there were no hypothetical questions?"

[Stumpy 256]

cpoxon

******Just a general comment - Beer in the US has become much better than the "Sex in a canoe" crap it used to be. Or should I say, the craft breweries have become much more common and mainstream.

From memory I have tried the ballast point, the elysian and something from stone I think but not that one. I can't remember the individual beers but I do remember that I didn't have a bad one in 3 weeks of travelling down the west coast!

Thanks for being the first Aussie who I have ever heard compliment US craft brews!

We have come a long way!

Ha ha! Stumpy is a Brit living in New Zealand!


Yep obviously havent come far enough to distinguish between Australia and NZ! (I'm just messing - the flags are pretty similar)
(And Aussie beer still sucks)

Never try to eat more than you can lift