2008 February 24 archive at RunawayJim.org

As the wedding planning draws to an end (the wedding is in June), we are left with the details to deal with. This post is for anyone who knows something about beer I guess. The reception location offers the following for beer:

Bud
Bud Light
Heineken
Corona
Sam Adams (I assume Boston Lager)

After meeting with the guy from our reception location, he said he would get anything I wanted. So I began thinking and came up with this plan for beer we’ll offer:

Narragansett
Narragansett Light
Narragansett Bock
Corona
Sam Adams Boston Lager
Trinity IPA
Newport Storm Blueberry Ale

I would effectively replace all the macro lagers with local equivalents (though Narragansett is brewed in Rochester, NY, it’s a local company and the money is kept in RI). Corona would be left because I know too many people who actually enjoy it (I can’t understand why, though to cut down on the number of beers offered, I might remove that). Bud and Bud Light would be replaced with better equivalents (’Gansett and ‘Gansett Light are the same styles as Bud and Bud Light, respectively). Heineken would be replaced with the Bock (which is a Spring beer anyway, and since the wedding is in Spring… you get the idea). Trinity IPA and Newport Storm Blueberry would be added (though better IPA’s exist, we’re going with a local theme here, and I like Trinity’s IPA just fine, though Stone IPA or Great Divide Titan IPA would also be nice, and I suppose Harpoon IPA would be a more familiar one).

The only thing I’d be missing is a dark beer, like a stout. Given that the meal will be a 4 course meal, I doubt anyone will want to drink a stout anyway. Those looking for the roasted flavors can drink the Bock. This plan is dependent on me being able to do this. I have no idea what they’ll say. Since it’s open bar all night, I’m not worried about people paying for something they didn’t really want. It’s free, get over it. My worry is people wouldn’t be happy because they’d be offered beer that is unfamiliar. To deal with that, I’d have the bartenders instructed to tell the guests what the equivalent beer would be.

I’m curious what my readers think. Leave your thoughts in the comments. I’ll reply when necessary.

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As I mentioned previously, I found that Yankee Spirits in Attleboro still had some Stone 11th Anniversary Ale left. Susan and I split (sort of) the bottle tonight. Here are my thoughts.

Stone calls it a “dark IPA”. Well, it’s just that, a dark IPA. The beer pours a brown/black color with a small light colored head. It smells of hops, nothing but hops (a bit citrus and a bit piney). The flavor starts out entirely hops, oily, citrusy, piney. It lacks the aftertaste that most IPA’s have (which is probably why Susan actually likes this one). As it warms, you can taste a slight roasted malt character to it (which is necessary to make it dark in color), but the hops are still there. It’s a very good beer, one of the best “IPA’s” I’ve had (quotes are because it’s not really an IPA, but I don’t know how else I would classify it). I could easily drink this beer all night. It has a similar mouthfeel to a regular IPA, a little bit oily from the hops, but not too heavy and not as heavy as a double IPA (though a bit heavier than a regular IPA). This one is definitely recommended if you can find it. I’m thinking about picking up another bottle for myself.

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