Louisville Restaurants Forum

Well, one for (the first) six selections comes to a .167 average, and folks, that's not high enough to stay in the majors. Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout? Are they serious?

Roger A. Baylor wrote:Well, one for (the first) six selections comes to a .167 average, and folks, that's not high enough to stay in the majors. Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout? Are they serious?

Roger,

Since you are the resident beer guru, how about your list? Preferablly beers that can be bought in the Louisville retail market.

I'll mull that over. Although ... if I grok the whole "bucket list" notion, it's possible for it to be a challenge, right? Like in that bad movie with Jack Nicholson.

For instance, I could say that Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen is one, and also available locally. But in keeping with the spirit of a bucket list, shouldn't it be this: Drink Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen as accompaniment to Schweinehaxe, in Bamberg, at the historic Schlenkerla tavern?

Roger A. Baylor wrote:I'll mull that over. Although ... if I grok the whole "bucket list" notion, it's possible for it to be a challenge, right? Like in that bad movie with Jack Nicholson.

For instance, I could say that Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen is one, and also available locally. But in keeping with the spirit of a bucket list, shouldn't it be this: Drink Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen as accompaniment to Schweinehaxe, in Bamberg, at the historic Schlenkerla tavern?

50 beers before you die seems to be a silly (to me) bucket list.

I like your idea better... The beer is a central part of the experience, but it's not just a beverage.

Granted, that list should be different for everyone (even if we aren't all unique and beautiful snowflakes)... I'd still enjoy seeing your wishlist for 10 beer drinking experiences. (and I don't drink beer)

Hmm. This might make a good column for LEO.

I'd prefer the beer to stand on its own. Hell, I'll drink a Corona if I'm laying on a beach in Mexico, but it doesn't really make the beer taste better.

Most of the time, I'd agree. This time, not as much, only because of the "bucket list" concept. 50 beers to try before you die is one thing. Almost every beer worth trying comes to America these days, anyway, along with a few thousand not worth trying.

But: Beer is about history, geography and culture. Drinking a Schlenkerla here is great. Drinking it in the town where it's made, German being spoken, platters groaning with pork before you ... now THAT's really a worthy beer (and setting) to try before you die.

Besides, in most instances, the beer is better close to where it's made. I'll give you another one: Orval, at the taproom outside the monastery in Belgium. Peaceful valley, verdant setting, almost spiritual if I were the type. With Trappist cheese. Never better than right there.

JustinHammond wrote:I'd prefer the beer to stand on its own. Hell, I'll drink a Corona if I'm laying on a beach in Mexico, but it doesn't really make the beer taste better.

I disagree on the taste front... taste is more than the physical components hitting your tongue... your brain has a certain "say" in how things taste... I have an unnatural love for my grandmother's fried chicken. I'm willing to bet others could make it "better", but the experience and memories surrounding the food enhance the taste.

Think about a mint julep... imagine drinking a perfectly mixed one on the beach at sunset, the waves crashing in as the sun crests the ocean.

Now compare that to drinking the same beverage in a suite at Churchill Downs, wearing a seersucker suit, and holding a silver glass filled with a perfectly made mint julep. The sound of horses thundering past and the smell of dirt and heat wafting through the air.

The drinks would be identical, but most people would prefer the derby experience. (Although I'm sure no one would turn down a magnificent sunset on the beach).

Setting matters. It might not change the beverage in question, but it will enhance the experience, which is ultimately linked to the enjoyment of the drink.

Will Terry wrote:
I disagree on the taste front... taste is more than the physical components hitting your tongue... your brain has a certain "say" in how things taste... I have an unnatural love for my grandmother's fried chicken. I'm willing to bet others could make it "better", but the experience and memories surrounding the food enhance the taste.

I see both your and Rogers points, but it would take more than a lifetime and a ton of money to have the experiences you both speak of. People have "experiences" through a beer and food. I can't afford to travel to Belgium, but I can buy some Belgian beer and cheese and pretend a little. I'm sure Roger's beer experiences list would be a great read, but not possible for most folks.

Roger A. Baylor wrote:I'll mull that over. Although ... if I grok the whole "bucket list" notion, it's possible for it to be a challenge, right? Like in that bad movie with Jack Nicholson.

For instance, I could say that Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen is one, and also available locally. But in keeping with the spirit of a bucket list, shouldn't it be this: Drink Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen as accompaniment to Schweinehaxe, in Bamberg, at the historic Schlenkerla tavern?

JustinHammond wrote:

Will Terry wrote:
I disagree on the taste front... taste is more than the physical components hitting your tongue... your brain has a certain "say" in how things taste... I have an unnatural love for my grandmother's fried chicken. I'm willing to bet others could make it "better", but the experience and memories surrounding the food enhance the taste.

I see both your and Rogers points, but it would take more than a lifetime and a ton of money to have the experiences you both speak of. People have "experiences" through a beer and food. I can't afford to travel to Belgium, but I can buy some Belgian beer and cheese and pretend a little. I'm sure Roger's beer experiences list would be a great read, but not possible for most folks.

Does a bucket list have a budget? Seems like Roger's tossed the budget out the window, which, seems only appropriate if these are "things to do before you die" ideas. There's no logic allowed in death, only possibility!

Matthew D wrote:Does a bucket list have a budget? Seems like Roger's tossed the budget out the window, which, seems only appropriate if these are "things to do before you die" ideas. There's no logic allowed in death, only possibility!

Exactly! That's my point. You want a list of 50 great beers to seek out, that's one thing, an fairly easily done these days.

Call it a "bucket list," and we've entered entirely different territory.

You wanna try great beers? Then one must include festival attendance on the Bucket List: Go to the Great American and Great British beer fests, Great Taste of the Midwest, Zythos (sic) in Belgium.

Wanna try them in the places where they're best? Schlenkerla in Bamberg, Trappists at the monastery, IPA from the barrel on board a boat to India.

With food? Numerous possibilities.

Roger A. Baylor wrote:IPA from the barrel on board a boat to India.

I'm guessing that if any of the crew was tapping the East India Company's product en route, they'd be up for a few lashes at the whuppin' post. Now, sipping an IPA on the veranda at Raffles or the British Embassy in Delhi, maybe ...

Robin Garr wrote:

Roger A. Baylor wrote:IPA from the barrel on board a boat to India.

I'm guessing that if any of the crew was tapping the East India Company's product en route, they'd be up for a few lashes at the whuppin' post. Now, sipping an IPA on the veranda at Raffles or the British Embassy in Delhi, maybe ...

I could go for that. Perhaps we save the shipboard sampling for Imperial Stouts somewhere in the Baltic.

So I shared the list with my two sons. The younger one, the family comedian who is stationed in Japan, replied, "I've only tried 3 of those and can only get Anchor Steam on base. That's a pretty good looking list though. I didn't see PBR (Pabst Blue Ribbon) on that list, it did win a blue ribbon after all."

Any list without Siberian Night and Old Engine Oil on it are , in my opinion , not complete.