Farmhouse beers are now a sought after beer style for me. Living on the Eastern Shore of Maryland USA means steamed crabs in the summer, oysters and clams in the winter. And no other beer quite matches the delicate flavors of fresh seafood as a saison or other farmhouse. So, make mine a saison or Bière de Garde please and be sure to throw in a dozen crabs.
Read moreGerman Wheat Beer
I traveled to Bavaria in 2011 and was able to experience Germany's highest peak. The fact that there was a beer garden there serving white sausage and Franziskaner hefeweizen made the views and trip that much more memorable.
Read moreSepia Tones: Baltimore Beer Lost
There is nothing more iconic about beer and Baltimore than National Bohemian Beer and the one-eyed, handlebar-mustachioed Boh man.
Read moreBeer Gardens
Maybe, just maybe, if you buy Silvia a beer or schnapps she will serenade your table for a while. What could be better on a sunny day in the biergarten with a fine German beer in hand?
Read moreBook Review: Off-Centered Leadership
So, there I am, standing in line with hundreds of Dogfish minions waiting for the WOCAAW gates to open. And then here comes Sam, grinning with his characteristic huge smile, greeting his peeps as he goes, offering high fives all around. I hold out my book and ask him to sign it for me, and...
Read moreHometown Beer
My brother and I were standing in the back of the bar looking across the room when a young man with a hard hat walked through the brightness of the door and then up to the bar. The helmet on his head shined from the lamp above the brim. I told my brother, I don't know what, but that is a great scene for a joke.
Read moreBeer on the Road: Syracuse NY
The Blue Tusk is a place to go for some of the best beers from around the world. All About Beer included it in the 125 Places To Have A Beer Before You Die. It was also listed in the 2010 Beer Traveler issue, 150 Beer Bars.
Read moreHomebrewing: Why But Why Not
Homebrewing? Why would I when I have a fridge (plus several boxes in the cellar) full of excellent beer. But still, the call of the kettle is alluring.
Read moreBeer on the Road: Salisbury MD
They wanted dinner but I wanted to take them on a ride into history on the oldest continuously operating ferry in U.S. history. What we discovered was good food with lots of character and the beginnings of a new beer phenomenon.
Read moreBeer on the Road: Utah
I had learned already never to empty the well of my writing, but always to stop when there was still something there in the deep part of the well, and let it refill at night from the springs that fed it.
Read moreThree Beer Things In 2018
Three Things — three questions for you to ponder and consider extemporaneously from your perspective, as we look ahead to what this year, and beyond, will bring to the world of beer.
Read moreBeer Cellaring Journal
As a drinker of good beer I have had an interest in aging beer. While exploring the Untappd app, I discovered the Lists feature which proved as an excellent beer cellaring journal.
Read moreThe Year in Beer 2017
As beer years go, 2017 was a great one. There were many highlights for me during the year — new breweries visited, beery friends discovered, events and travels. Let me share some of my journal notes with you.
Read moreMaryland Oud Bruin
Oud bruin is an “old ale” tradition, indigenous to East Flanders, typified by the products of the Liefman brewery, which has roots back to the 1600s. Historically brewed as a “provision beer” that would develop some sourness as it aged.
Read moreBottle Travel Hack
Now that I've discovered that they not only can keep liquid from escaping into my suitcase but also from allowing liquid — melted ice — into the bag and ruining the labels, I keep them handy and ready at a moments notice.
Read moreThis is Not That Italian Brewery
I do not like the fact that I'm writing this, but feel I have little choice.
Read moreBottle Shops: The Round Up
This episode of The Session again takes us all around the world — Burma, Bend OR, San Francisco via Portland OR, Belgium, San Jose CA, into many ventures and experiences of the Bottle Shop: Good, Bad & The Ugly.
Read moreBeery Tee Shirts
You can now support the Deep Beer journey through the purchase of Ludic & Original tee shirts. We thought we'd take some of our beery awareness and put it on tee shirts.
Read moreTen Years in a Bottle Shop
As I read and study and practice all things beer, I've come to have a more keen awareness of bottle shops. Not only the one where I work but those that I've added to my network of stops along the way.
Read moreBottle Shops: Good, Bad & the Ugly
THE SESSION #128— BEER BLOGGING FRIDAY The Session, a.k.a. Beer Blogging Friday, is an opportunity once a month for beer bloggers from around the world to get together and write from their own unique perspective on a single topic. Each month, a different beer blogger hosts the Session, chooses a topic and creates a round-up listing all of the participants, along with a short pithy critique of each entry.
Deep Beer will be hosting The Session #128 — Beer Blogging Friday for October 2017. The theme chosen is Bottle Shops: Good, Bad & The Ugly. I find bottle shops interesting and would like to learn other perspectives on these places many of us purchase our favorite quaffs. We love our beer and have a variety of options in acquiring it. Some home brew, others like to visit their local pubs, beer tourism and beer destinations have become a trend, but the ever popular bottle shop is often the best and most reliable means for finding our next beer.
Of course, not all bottle shops are the same.
Themes to Consider
Below, I offer a few topics for your consideration and to perhaps spark your imagination, but of course, you can choose your own.
- What defines a great bottle shop —selection, knowledgeable staff, location, prices, other factors
- Iconic bottle shops — Like to share your favorite shops, surprising stories of discovery
- Discovering great bottle shops — have successful methods for finding great bottle shops
- Being a great bottle shop — If you own or work in a shop, do you have tips for success or precautions against failure
- Hacking the bottle shop — secrets to getting what you want or How to Win Friends and Influence People
- Bottle shop travel preparation — do you have a reconnaissance plan when you travel for finding good beer away from home or other beer travel tips
- Other topics of bottle shop curiosity — you choose
Round Up
Our deadline is October 6. Put a link to your post on our bottle shop theme in a comment to this announcement and shortly after our Friday rendezvous I will write a wrap up summary of all of the articles. I'm looking forward to reading your posts. Cheers!
First, I want to thank all of this month's contributors. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your bottle shop adventures. This episode of The Session again takes us all around the world — Burma, Bend OR, San Francisco via Portland OR, Belgium, San Jose CA, into many ventures and experiences of the Bottle Shop: Good, Bad & The Ugly.
