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Al_4_ISU

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Posts posted by Al_4_ISU

  1. 8 minutes ago, Dark Horse said:

    I did really enjoy Rayon Vert, but as BC mentioned, they haven’t made it in years.

    I do think the large national craft brands are going to continue to struggle; too much local competition.

    I think this pretty much nails it:

    In 2017, 60 percent of the craft category’s total growth was from microbreweries and another 16 percent was from brewpubs, according to the Brewers Association. About 6,300 breweries are now operating across the country.

     National brands that maintain excellent quality will be fine.

    I live in an area pretty inundated with excellent local craft beer and Sierra Nevada and Lagunitas remain fixtures in my fridge.

    GF/Alpine have been a major step down for awhile to my palate 

     

  2. 3 hours ago, AnotherUTFan said:



    ISU, I think I did send you some Alpine when it was still Alpine and you weren't nuts for it. That was a head scratcher for me, but Ive never gotten the hype behind Surly, or LP's Yellow Rose for that matter, so guess we all have out expectations. I still fondly recall that Toppling Golliath you sent.
     

    The beers that stick most in my mind from our trades were the RR sours and the Pizza Port IPAs.  Those were all spectacular.

    Honestly, I can see where someone would be underwhelmed with Surly.  I think the quality of their distro products has slipped a little since they built the new mega brewhouse too.

    We'll maybe have to fire the ol' trade machine up again.  TG has built a new brewhouse and making better hops than ever on that system.

  3. Pretty sure I'll be seeing them with Old 97's, Shooter Jennings, and the Bottle Rockets in Mankato, MN this summer.  Fucking stoked for that show!

    "A Long Ways From Your Heart" was my favorite album of 2017.  "Turnpike Troubadours" was my favorite of 2015.  They're maybe my favorite band going these days.  Certainly my favorite band whose members are under the age of 40.

    I've seen them live 6-7 times.  Always a blast.  Because they do 80% of their shows in Texas or the Midwest, it's easy to make a couple shows a year, even living in the boonies.

    Interesting sidenote/tidbit:  I'm a member of a Facebook closed group that functions as a Turnpike message board.  Last Saturday, someone posted a link from an OKC paper that shows an Evan D. Felker being named as a respondent in a divorce.  The post was then deleted.  If this is indeed the same Evan Felker, I have a feeling their best work is yet to come.

    • Like 1
  4. 47 minutes ago, mdleast said:

    https://thefullpint.com/beer-news/green-flash-brewing-inc-foreclosed-sells-green-flash-and-alpine-assets/

    San Diego, CA) – As a conclusion to Green Flash Brewing ending their national expansion strategy, closing Virginia Beach and Cellar 3, we have just learned that Green Flash Brewing, Inc.’s largest shareholder, Comerica Bank has foreclosed on it’s loans due to outstanding debt and poor business health and that Green Flash and Alpine assets have been sold to a risk management company in Michigan named WCIPA, LLC. We are still trying to learn more about this company. Here is the official memo that Green Flash President and CEO Mike Hinkley sent to over 100 shareholders this morning.

    “Dear GFBC, Inc. Shareholders,

    On behalf of myself and the Board of Directors of GFBC, Inc. (the “Company”), I am truly sorry to report that the Company’s senior lender, Comerica Bank, has foreclosed on its loans and sold the assets of the Company (other than the Virginia Beach brewery) to WC IPA LLC through a foreclosure sale which closed on March 30, 2018. As such, the Company no longer owns the Green Flash and Alpine businesses. Comerica Bank is currently conducting a separate process to sell the Virginia Beach brewery.

    After a general slowdown in the craft beer industry, coupled with intense competition and a slowdown of our business, we could not service the debt that we took on to build the Virginia Beach brewery — and in early 2018, the Company defaulted on its loans with Comerica Bank. While we took substantial efforts to recapitalize the Company over the past several months, both before and after the bank default, we were ultimately unable to close a transaction.

    While the Green Flash and Alpine brands will continue, they will do so under new ownership — and GFBC, Inc. and Alpine Beer Company, Inc. will be wound down and dissolved. I sincerely thank you for your support over the years.

    Sincerely,
    Mike Hinkley
    CEO
    GFBC, Inc.”

    I have never understood the hype around Green Flash or Alpine.  I couldn't care less if I drank another beer from them ever again.

  5. On 3/30/2018 at 10:55 AM, MNLonghornFUKM said:

    Winter storms in the beginning of April...followed by a week of temps around 30 so zero melting happens. 

    This.  We'll be 40 degrees Thursday (and not getting as much snow as you), so that should help, but still.  This is absurd.

    The improper use of the word "literally"

    Vocal fry

    People who beat you to a 4 way stop, and then insist you go first

    People who go to breweries and order beer not made there

     

  6. New distillery called Rockfilter opened about 30 minutes down the road from me in Spring Grove, MN last fall.  Making some really great stuff.  The distiller also grows all the grain used (corn, oats, sorghum, rye) within a 10 mile radius of the distillery.  If you ever find yourself at the nexus of Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin, it's worth your stop.

    ZNZVcQc.jpg

    Went up last Friday, as my wife's boss plays in a blues band that was doing a show there.  Good stuff as usual.  Due to the crowd volume, they were doing cocktails.  I ordered a smoked Bloody Mary, which was ridiculously good.  Had never tried that with bourbon.

    A9B6Cwe.jpg

    The food truck was damn good too.  A Spring Grove native had been living and working in Austin for the past decade, and had learned the Centex BBQ style.  He's taken the methods he learned there and applied it to proper cornfed Midwestern pork and beef.  A stellar match.  The good stuff was sold out by the time I got hungry, but the chopped brisket and pulled pork sandwiches were solid as hell.

    xR1QUIE.jpg

    • Like 1
  7. 40 minutes ago, mdleast said:

    The time I was able to have a fresh Surly Xtra, I thought it was tremendous.

     

    However, I’m also a guy who looks forward to getting to have a Celis Raspberry again so weigh what I say accordingly.

     

    It's a damn fine beer when fresh.

    Problem for me is that when that came out, I still felt Surly was the brewery that set the bar in the Upper Midwest and made some of the best beers I'd drank.  As they expanded, the product hitting distro seems a little less adventurous than it used to, and just not at the same level.  A big part of that is that the way the beer scene has exploded in the same area with a high level of excellent small breweries that have the flexibility to put out small batches of riskier beers.  This beer seemed like a sign of Surly becoming a staid monolith, and I resented it for that.

    So I had unreasonable expectations, basically, and didn't give it a fair shake.  While I don't see Surly as the pinnacle any more, they still make really good beer that I still drink plenty of.

  8. On 4/1/2018 at 10:29 AM, jimmyjazz said:

    I had a good breakfast at Hell's Kitchen.  We stayed around the corner though, so I'm not sure a trip downtown just for breakfast is justified.

    Gotta check out the CC Club for a proper midwestern local bar.

    CC Club is a great bar.

    Also, I completely forgot Town Hall Brewing.  A Minneapolis tradition.

  9. On 3/30/2018 at 12:01 PM, TexasHooch said:

    The only rail that matters is the light rail, and Fridley is NOT close to it.  It's a reasonable Suburb to Uber from though if you aren't getting a car.

    Food: 

    Get a Ju(i)cy Lucy.  Matt's is (arguably) the original, but other good ones include 5/8, Blue Door, and The Nook.

    Bar La Grassa- This really is a must.  Others will undoubtedly chime in here.

    Travail Kitchen and Amusements- Fun spot.  Young and hip. 

    Manny's- The high end steak place.  Expensive.

     

    Drinks:

    Depends on your style. If you give me an idea of what you like I'll be more specific but in general I'll point you towards the Breweries.  Given your office location, Northeast Minneapolis makes the most sense.  There are a ton of good breweries there, Here's a few.

    Things to do:

    Eat and Drink.  Need to know your interests to give you anything else.

     

     

     

     

    I haven't been yet, but my cousin lives like 3 blocks from there and raves about it constantly.  I generally trust his taste in things, so it seems like a good rec.

  10. Psycho Suzi's for breakfast and Bloodies.  Al's Diner in Dinkeytown is a good breakfast spot as well (no booze).

    Steel Toe is underrated as far as breweries go.  Fair State makes great beer.  Surly is Surly.  Barrel Theory in St. Paul is my favorite Twin Cities brewery right now.  Fulton is doing really good things as well.

    Go to a show at First Ave/7th Street Entry.  Houndmouth is there 4/17.

    Juicy Lucy's are a must, all the best ones have been mentioned already.  For my money, it's tough to beat a Lucy, fries, and Grain Belt at Matt's.

    1029 is a great dive bar.  Gluek's Party Bar downtown is always a fun time.

    Target Field kicks ass.  Good luck with the weather.  It could be 80+ degrees and gorgeous, or it could be a freak blizzard.  Anything in between is on the table, and my guess is you'll see a lot of variation in that 10 day window.  Pack for both cold and nice.

  11. On 3/30/2018 at 11:08 AM, TexasHooch said:

    Might as well get my first post out of the way here with my current daily drinker.  Seems apropos. 

     

    surly-xtra-citra-pale-ale-4pk-1.jpg

    I didn't care for this at all at first, but have come around to it.

  12. 1 hour ago, Not a cat said:

    I'm using lows, you're using highs.  I think that explains our disagreement.  I use highs when bitching about heat, lows when bitching about cold.  

    Makes sense.

    Yeah, I use highs because that occurs in the hours when one would generally be outside.  

    If you use the high to low swing, Minneapolis has seen a 150 degree swing in recorded temp.  That's nuts.

  13. 26 minutes ago, Not a cat said:

    By your definition, Minneapolis gets 3 months of cold as fuck and another 1-2 of cold.  Source- I live in this ice encrusted place.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minneapolis

    Go to the weather section.  There are 3 months (December-February) where the average daily high is below 40 degrees.  By my definition of "cold", I was right on the money.  Your definition likely differs.

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