The Legend

The Legend

Monday, February 20, 2017

A New Kind of Trade

When you constantly talk to other bloggers you begin to learn about other interests beyond cardboard.  Just off the top of my head I know we have artists, music lovers, literature lovers and outdoor enthusiasts. While we all can talk about the intricacies of 90 Donruss with ease, it is easy to see we are all much more than just cards.

Beyond cards and live sporting events it is travel and craft beer for yours truly these days.  Before my daughter was born I was knocking out books and hunting new music all the time, but certain hobbies had to be prioritized. Today if I'm not talking sports, I'm talking travel and beer. To me nothing beats exploring a new area and the food and drink it offers.  When I travel I often accumulate local beers for my tasting group in Morgantown.  It has been a fun venture that has yielded some great brews.  We call it beer evangelism.

A couple weeks back I was having two separate conversations with fellow bloggers Oscar of All Trade Bait, All the Time and Peter from Baseball Every Night. Oscar and I have talked beer for a couple of years now.  Recently he was at his local brewery and sent me a picture of the tap list. He told me to pick a couple and he would send some samples my way.  I was so excited.  It reminded me of looking at the old JCPenney catalog to make my Christmas list.  Here is what arrived at my door a few days later.

The picture is probably not doing the size of these cans justice.  The brewery calls these bad boys Grumblers. They are 32 ounces of adult beverage goodness.

 The first one up to bat was a gose named Santa Muerte.  For those not familiar with gose beers they are best described as crisp and a tad bit salty.  While it sounds weird they are often very refreshing and make for great summer beers.  This one was outstanding!

 I was most excited for this beer as "Fat Henry" is a barrel aged imperial stout.  This one was aged in a Jack Daniels barrel. The bourbon taste was prominent but not overpowering. The finish was quite smooth.

Thanks so much for the beer trade Oscar.  I look forward to sending you a well curated selection!

Next up is my pal Peter.  Both Peter and I are frequent users of the Untappd phone app that tracks all the different beer you consume. We often comment on each others beer choices.   A couple weeks back Peter and I were emailing back and forth discussing some breweries.  One such brewery was Trillium that happens to be in Peters backyard. Long story short Peter volunteered to send me a sample.



 Here is the haul from Peter!

My daughter appreciated all the bubble wrap.

 Trillium's specialty is the NE style ipa that is super hazy and utilizes a ton of hops.  The taste was very citrus forward.  It was delicious.
 Scaled up kind of looks like urine, but it tastes delicious.

Saison's are a unique in that they taste a tad bit peppery.  I like them, but they are very much an acquired taste.

The only one I have left to try is a Boston style stout.  Looking forward to it!

Big thanks to Oscar and Peter for sending me a taste of LA and Boston.  Such a fun treat to sample these small local breweries.  Keep an eye guys because I have some fun stuff in store for each of you.

Thanks for reading!













20 comments:

  1. Preach it Bro'! I'm what many consider a light weight. My tastes are narrow with Amstel Light being my fave beer. I also like Stella Artois, and ahem...Mich Ultra when the others aren't available. Pray for me.

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    1. I'm not that much of a beer snob :) Drink what you like!

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  2. For some reason I thought you couldn't sent beer in the mail. I'm not sure what made me think that, but I'm glad to now know that it's an option.

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    1. I also thought there would be restrictions on beer through the mail. Regardless, how does one package beer through the mail?

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    2. Two ways to do it. First you just tell Fed Ex or UPS that the package contains alcohol. They then put a special label on it and the receiver has to show proof of being 21 years old when delivered and must sign. I think a handful of states still prohibit alcohol through the mail.

      The other way is just pack them up like you would anything else, stick a label on them and hope for the best. By not declaring the package as alcohol you are taking an extra risk but as long as you have them packaged well you will be fine 95% of the time. This is the preferred method of many people who trade beer on a regular basis. One you avoid the hassle of the receiver having to sign it and two it tends to be a little cheaper.

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  3. What's your username on untappd? I don't drink as much beer as I used to, but always happy to add a friend trade partner on the app! NJ has a burgeoning craft beer scene. Some of my local favorites are Carton and Twin Elephant.

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    1. I have a close friend that is originally from NJ and he is good about bring back some beer to the area. Haven't got to try Carton yet. He has brought back some Kane and Magnify.

      My name is Bobwalktheplank on Untappd

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  4. Okay. I might need to man up and give beer another shot. I'm tired of being the nerdy guy sipping green tea while every one else is drinking Indian pale ales and barrel aged imperial stouts.

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    1. You might be surprised. If you like coffee you may like a nice coffee stout. Lambic's also hide the normal beer taste too as many of them are similar to a glass of wine.

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    2. When you make it out to the Bay Area, I'll take you to a local brewery and you can help me break down what's what.

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    3. I would love that. You live in such a great area for craft beer too!

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  5. I had no idea you could mail beer. Learned something new today! I'm not an alcohol person- addiction tends to run in the family and I don't like carbonation at all in any form- but I like seeing the advertising used on the cans/bottles. (And race cars, of course!)

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    1. Many people collect old beer advertising. Lots of interesting stuff out there.

      The shipping beer thing is a tad bit complicated but very legal.

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  6. Lots to choose from in the twin cities. Any you'd like to try (that you know of)?

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    1. Surly is one I've heard wonderful things about. A friend told me that Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery was good too.

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    2. surly is one of my faves. they make a good variety of brews. i'll see what i can do.

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    3. Thanks! I just put a package in the mail for you today by the way.

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  7. Late to the comments, but we've been talking, sooo...
    I'm glad out trade worked out.
    I was momentarily proud of my accomplishment to send those humble crawlers, but then I saw the incredible amount you received from the other guy. Ha ~ pardon me while I crawl back into my hole :P

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    1. Those grumblers are big my friend. You ship too many of those bad boys and the box will weigh 500lbs.

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