Bottle Conditioned

Sorry it’s been a bit since an update. I’m out of town on business, but wanted to at least comment on the beer selection where I’m at.

I arrived today in Greensboro, NC, and as is custom, I first figured out where the beer was. I got in around mid afternoon and settled on a place called Natty Greene’s for dinner. Natty Greene’s is a brewpub, and a great one at that. With 5 regular beers and 6 seasonals, selection was great. I chose to go for the hop portfolio and had an IPA and IIPA with dinner. Both were very nice. The IPA was an English style IPA with the hops being more subdued than you’d expect out of the American interpretation. Still, it was a great beer. The IIPA was also very good, however, it was a tad on the sweet side. Not quite cloying, but moving toward a bit too much sweetness for me. Malt and hop character was nice, but that sweet characteristic continued to get in the way. Oh well.

So, as I sit in the room and blog, I’m sipping on a Lost Coast Brewery 8 Ball Stout that I brought along with me. I brought some beer (really, an amalgamation of a ton of various beers) with me, because I didn’t know what to expect out of Greensboro’s beer scene. More on that scene in a moment.

The 8 Ball (or is it “Eight Ball”) Stout is a pretty good example of the style. By taste, I pin it as a Foreign Extra Stout. Beer Advocate puts it as an American Stout but i’m not sure it’s all the way there. I’ll call it as sitting in the middle between these two styles. The body is a bit thin for my tastes, with a bit too much astringent bitterness on the back. There is a nice roasty character that finishes with hints of dark chocolate and a tapering roasty cappuccino note. Not bad. Not great, but not bad. Overall, I’d recommend giving it a shot, but I doubt it’ll be a regular in your cellar.

So, back on to Greensboro and the beer selection here. So far, I’ve rooted out two places to check for beer tomorrow: The Pipe and Pint (where I can also get a cigar…a big plus), and Total Wine, which is within walking distance of my hotel. I’m excited to see what they’ve got. I’ve got a feeling I’ll be able to get a bunch of Duck Rabbit stuff, which is great beer. Also, Bells, Allagash, Brooklyn Brewery, Avery and Victory should all be present. If so, I’ll be quite happy.

I’ll post again tomorrow (so I say) to let ya’ll know what I ended up with.

Oh, by the way, if you’re driving through Asheville, stop at Bruisin’ Ales. It’s located downtown and has an awesome selection of beer. Not a huge place, but probably the best quality beer I’ve ever seen in one single location. Worth the trip…trust me.

That’s it for tonight. I’ll post again once I see what kind of beer I can get into over here.

Until then…

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