Insidious Rex's Profile
Any good German food?
Ha ha! Well clearly you have never had deep dish in Cleveland! But never having visited Belgium I will certainly take your word for the cross over of the cuisine there. I guess it just goes against the notions of most Americans (like me) whose only notion of the two cuisines involve clean and clear differences between traditional Bavarian meat heavy dishes and the nuanced saucy franco preparations of Belgium. And yes it gets much worse than coriander unfortunately...
Any good German food?
But do the Germans make muscles and french fries (I said it), obsess about mayonnaise and put coriander in their beer? ;) By the way, thats no knock on Belgian cuisine. Ill take both thank you. And I freely admit I deserve all the accusations of "Idiot. Theres more to Belgian food then just..." that are right now building up in the minds of so many foodies as they read this. Although a couple weeks ago I did make a Belgian Carbonnade with a nice Gueuze.
Best Brewpub in America
And speaking of arbitrary its that time of the year for the annual BeerCity popularity contest again. http://polldaddy.com/poll/6132829/. Lets see if Grand Rapids or St. Louis can take the title away from upstart Asheville with the requisite vote bombing...
US Craft Beer influence on British Beer Styles.
I love it. So does that make BrewDog the Beatles?
Best Brewpub in America
As much as I love brackets these things are often dangerous when it comes to ranking businesses (Ive seen them for bars and restaurants too). That list seems somewhat random (and clearly should have had 64 or more contestants considering the sheer number of brewpubs in the US right now). It makes you wonder how did they pick the places in the first place. After many complaints in the comments section of certain obvious choices not being included, someone (staff?) mentioned that the list was "only for brewpubs that didn't start as a brewery first." Seems arbitrary. Why go through those gymnastics to carve out a strange subset of the full brewpub list? Are there aficionados of brewpub ONLY brewpubs out there in such numbers that they would demand their own tournament? The concept that places like Stone and Deschutes and Russian River and Three Floyds cant be considered seems ridiculous to me. Not that they are the best brewpubs out there but you are essentially eliminating them because their beer is too good (thus allowing them to get rich and build a brewpub).
I will say of those listed that Cambridge Brewing has a top notch brewpub/restaurant and makes some great product. Magnolia is a cool place with some interesting beers and eclectic food choices (and the clientele is at least as interesting...). Nodding Head is good. Grumpy Troll is ok (I give them bonus points for being across the street from the National Mustard Museum). and Appalachian Brewing I have to say is kind of weak although Ive only been to the Gettysburg location. Havent been to any others on the list I dont think although I have heard good things about Wynkoop and Pizza Port.
Tragedy at Redhook
By the way, they released this statement just recently: http://www.beerpulse.com/2012/04/redhook-ale-brewery-issues-follow-up-statement-on-fatal-keg-incident/
Tragedy at Redhook
Heard about this from many sources on facebook. Just so sad especially being a new father and all. It is good to see the brewing industry come together essentially as one to express their sadness though. I lost count of the number of breweries and industry folk I saw post their condolences for Ben and Redhook. I dare say you wouldnt see that in many other industries for the equivalent of a keg washer.
Bad beer trends.
I guess my problem is that for the longest time I didnt see any separation or personality in "beer journalism". It was simple filler with the purpose of alerting industry folks and craft beer aficionados of new releases and various goings on in the industry. But in the past 4 or 5 years or so Ive noticed a number of folks who have set themselves above that to the point of approaching beer (and craft beer in specific) in a more complete and interesting way that includes focusing on current issues, negative aspects and controversy and not simply repeating the brewer's own press releases. Guys like Lew Bryson and Andy Crouch spring to mind. And maybe its because those guys are largely the only beer stuff I read now (other than an occasional Brewing News which I dont expect too much from) it seems like things have gotten better. But maybe not.
Bad beer trends.
LStaff, your old beer guy curmudgeonly-ness is showing. As mine must be since I find I largely agree with most of your points. The only thing Id say is that the English and the Belgians have not really done what the Americans have done in the past 10 years of extreme beer envelope pushing experimentation. Theyve done other stuff certainly. But Americans have certainly established a fundamentally American approach to brewing in recent years that even the "traditionalists" over seas have been influenced by (as Josh notes as well). But to your point, whatever it is that the Americans have done has been done enough BY the Americans. Which I think is your point anyway, just not that its a repeat of the past but that its the present trends ad nauseam.
Also, as much as we like to malign the poor beer press for being babbling mouth pieces for the very things you are griping about (star struckness, promotion of silly beer, etc.) some have been speaking out (writing out) about how things have gotten a bit over the top and supporting the resurgence of session beer. Not all of them of course but enough that I notice it now whenever I read over a blog or pick up an industry mag or Brewing News even.
But on the whole, good points sir and thanks for speaking for many of us.
Bad beer trends.
Ive never heard of a white IPA either. But from your description it seems like Three Floyds had already been doing that for over a decade with their sublime Gumballhead which is technically a hoppy wheat ale.
Fish place near Clinton MD?
Your choices are pretty limited when it comes to finding a "fresh fish restaurant" in PG county or surroundings of the kind your describe. Most of the seafood places in that area are more geared toward fried food and such and dont really do a full sit down situation. That being said, they do have some of THE best fried seafood/soul food restaurants in the are (Mid-Atlantic Seafood in District Heights is one of my favorite) and if you want some fantastic crab cakes and decent fish check out Camerons in Oxon Hill (or other locations). Its a pay and carry place so you cant eat there but they often have specials and the food is very good.
Abbreviated NC BBQ Tour
Well we did pretty well on our limited time in NC. At most of the places we hit we tried to get the combo plate of chicken and pork. Now I never realized that what most places call BBQ chicken in North Carolina is as much a stewed dish as it is anything else. I guess I was expecting more of a true smoked chicken type dish. Nevertheless, we enjoyed everything we got our hands on and hope to repeat this adventure again with much more time to devote to the many many great BBQ spots we could not get to.
We started at Blackbeards where the owner very nicely opened up just for us 15 minutes before the regular opening time and we enjoyed some great chicken and pork with some slaw and potato salad. Whats interesting is that this place features more seafood dishes than BBQ dishes. But didnt want to risk upsetting my BBQ mojo for the day by sampling the clearly tempting "fresh herring" that they advertised on a sign next to the shark in front of their restaurant.
Next stop was B's which was the only place on our whole tour where we had a hard time parking and where the line was out the door. Turns out most of those people were waiting for chicken as they had had a late delivery (the poultry truck was blocking me in when I tried to leave in fact). So we gave up on the combo plate and focused solely on pork which was outstanding here. Probably the best of the whole trip.
Skylight Inn was next and their pork was great and their cornbread was very nice if you like doughy and corny corn bread but their chicken was especially wet and stewey which threw me a little bit. Plus their sides were minimal (slaw only?) The sauce was the best of the trip and we got a bottle of it to go which Im trying very hard not to use in a week.
From there we drove to Grady's where we were spoiled by the multiple sides options (had some nice collards and some very fresh snappy black eyed peas) and some truly nice banana pudding in addition to the A+ pulled pork and again somewhat stewey but good chicken.
After Grady's we took a BBQ break and went to some pharmacy in Raleigh where we had heard they had fantastic milkshakes and they certainly did. From there we went straight to Alan & Sons where we enjoyed everything they had to offer including the more familiar BBQ chicken and of course the great pulled pork. The potato salad was very nice and peppery with lots of poppy seeds in it which was a first for me but it worked well. The slaw was solid and the baked beans were about what youd expect.
After Alan & Son we drove back to Durham and Chapel Hill where we took the girls on a tour of Duke and UNC (which was a main feature of our trip and thus the time limit). That took a few hours so by the time we got to Lexington we could only rush into one place before they closed and we ended up at Bar-B-Q Center for that last stop. Nice coarse pork chunks were a good change of pace after a day of finely chopped pulled pork. The chicken was good there as well. The cole slaw I could have done without. Is cole slaw with tomato paste a normal thing in central NC?? The baked beans were nice and sweat and smokey.
So thanks one and all for the recommendations. I intend to return within the next year to do a more leisurely and complete BBQ tour finishing in Ashville and then turning it into a beer tour. So Ill be back for more recommendations soon!
Rustico to Rustico West End?
Yes which also has two locations. A new one and an old one. I was very confused...
Abbreviated NC BBQ Tour
Thanks for the recommendations all. I feel like a kid in a giant candy store trying to figure out which 3 or 4 candies he wants to get...
What about Wilburs and/or Gradys? Is it worth it to continue south west to Goldsboro to hit those two places rather than up to Jack Cobbs or Blackbeards?
And in Lexington, Lexington BBQ is definitely on the list. But what about Smileys or Barbecue Center? And is it worth going 10 miles south to hit Cooks if we are heading north?
Good Bottle Shops for Beer in DC area
Well there will be a keg of this stuff tapped at Rustico in Ballston tonight at 6PM. They are also tapping kegs of HopSlam, Nugget Nectar & Sculpin. Dont expect any of them to last the night...
Abbreviated NC BBQ Tour
I will be in eastern and middle North Carolina in a few weeks and I would love to hit some of the best BBQ places along my journey. I have a list of about 20 places I would love to get to but unfortunately there will just be no way to get them all in during this 36 hour car trip (from roughly the Greenville/Ayden area to Lexington/Winston-Salem). If you were forced to choose a couple places in Greenville/Ayden that best represent Eastern NC BBQ which would they be? Skylight Inn and Bum's? What about B's? What about Jack Cobb's? My thinking is Skylight and Bums since they are very close to each other and it would minimize time but I want to hit the best one or two.
Same question for the Raleigh Durham/Chapel Hill area. Im told if you go ANYWHERE you MUST go to Allen & Son. Is it that good? Anywhere else? Best two or three in that area.
And finally Lexington where I can better concentrate visits because of the density of the Lexington BBQ places. Best 2 or 3 there that best represents the native Cue. Thanks for your help!
Guinness in Manhattan
Oh woops and heres a more recent one: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/691989
Guinness in Manhattan
There was some discussion about it here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/257233. The top posts are ancient but the most recent replies are less than 3 years old and I would think thats safe for this kind of question.
Session Beer Day
Good to see Lews efforts getting noticed on this. Theres a pretty good list of American session beers here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/53551065215/doc/10150598001295216/ but there needs to be a lot more out there in my opinion. I was a little surprised to find that the Full Sail Session lagers were all above 5% ABV but then my session limit is probably about 5.5%. Still a far cry from the comparably over produced extreme beers where that number doubles or more. Not that I dislike high octane beers in the LEAST. Just would like to see more good tasting session stuff out there and this notion that if it doesnt punch you in the face then its not worth drinking vanish from the current craft beer scene.
BBQ--looking for the best
And the Dubliner a few days later for some pints of Guinness.
http://dc.eater.com/archives/2012/03/19/barack-obama-celebrated-st-patricks-day-at-the-dubliner.php
Good Bottle Shops for Beer in DC area
Thought you might find this interesting if not unfortunate: http://www.mlive.com/business/west-michigan/index.ssf/2012/03/founders_kentucky_breakfast_st.html
Beer Tasting
Where the "Like" button when you need one? I like to think of myself as a beer geek thats tried everything under the sun. I love good stouts and IPA's but my styles of choice tend to be good lagers and milds. My wife was drinking bud lights when I was exploring complex Belgians in the 90's. She now loves Imperial Stouts and double IPA's and (especially) lip puckering sours. Now you may say she is the exception that proves the rule but at least in this household its the woman that digs the big caliber stuff and the man that likes the subtler cleaner lagers. On the other hand she prefers white to red and I prefer red to white...
Schlitz goes back to 1960s formula
So is there such a thing as a "Beer Lineage" book out there that takes into account all known pre-80's beer brands and traces them back through their formula evolutions and changes of ownership to perhaps the end of prohibition? And if not, when are you going to write it Jess? I want something encyclopedic with a nice section in color that cleanly depicts labels along a date line as they change hands and change formulas and change names and go extinct.
Good Bottle Shops for Beer in DC area
Norm's in Vienna, Virginia and Rick's Gourmet in Alexandria are two good places to start. Might also call up any of the local Total Wine warehouses to see if they are carrying it. Chevy Chase Wine & Spirits near the Friendship Heights metro is a possibility too.
Beer-centered lunch on Saturday?
Birch & Barley and Pizzeria Paradiso are probably the only two places that have reliable cask conditioned beers available most of the time. Theres a PP at Dupont Circle that usually has a fine tap list and a cask available and you can always go around the corner to Bier Barron for more good beer after.
As far as brewpubs. theres a District Chophouse a couple blocks south of the Gallery Place stop (or a couple blocks north of the Archives stop). They have some decent house beers available and once in a while a barrel aged beauty but rarely a cask. Plus the food is pretty good including Saturday brunch. And once you are in the China Town area you can always make your way over to Gordon Biersch if you fancy some decent German lagers or even RFD which always has some interesting choices on tap (and Bras. Beck is not too far from there either as many people have suggested but honestly it wouldnt be the first thing I would think of when someone is specifically asking for a brewpub or gastropub unless you are specifically looking to nosh on high end Belgian food with your beer).
dcbeer.com might have some other recommendations that Im not thinking of that might have a cask available as well.
