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Beer is a hobby for me. It intervenes in my daily life, whether I’m talking about it, drinking it or window-shopping at a store with an awesome selection. Since spring break, here’s where my hobby has taken me.
I drank a couple pints in Irish Haven, the Brooklyn bar that was remodeled to emulate Boston for its use in “The Departed.” The cranberry juice scene with Leo DiCaprio? I drank right at that spot. The bartender was a friendly woman from Watford, outside London, and she busted out some signed on-set photos with Martin Scorsese, Jack Nicholson and DiCaprio between takes. Wicked cool. Also, smoking is apparently no big deal in Irish Haven – the bartender and some regulars lit up without pause.
I finally tried a few bottles of Brooklyn Brewery, the Sam Adams of New York City. As with many solid microbrews, there was a through-line of taste and quality in both styles I tried. It’s a solid brewery. Their East India Pale Ale is high on my to-drink list.
I was also pumped to meet an Associated Press writer and University of Maine grad in New York who said he stocks up on Sea Dog brews whenever he visits home. Imagining a post-Maine existence where I don’t have easy access to the state’s brilliant breweries gives me shudders.
Beer’s just about decimated my wallet a few times lately. The sagely Burby & Bates staff – seriously, if you ever want to dip your toe deeper into the hoppy waters of good beer, consult them – advised me to try one of their new favorite beers, the Brother Adam’s Bragget Ale, a honey concoction crafted at the Atlantic Brewery in Bar Harbor. It was something like $7 for this hefty bottle, but the attention to detail and magnificent product made it a beer to enjoy for an entire evening – seriously terrific.
The next wallet-destroyer came from a friend’s strong recommendation to try Sam Adams’ new Imperial Line. Quoted by Sam Adams as “an intense version of some of their favorite traditional beer styles by boosting the ingredients and testing the limits of each traditional style,” four-packs run at $10, in accordance with similar upper-echelon four-packs debuting lately, like Harpoon’s Leviathan IPA. I tried the Imperial White, the Double Bock and the Imperial Stout. While they were all superior quality, I think the dollars-per-beer would have been better spent otherwise.
Some of my friends failed to deliver on the legend of Shiner Bock, a Texan brew they promised to bring back from their spring break in the Lone Star State. Guess I’ll have to keep hearing the tales of its perfection until I make it to Texas.
I drank my first green beer on St. Patrick’s Day. It tasted like regular beer.
In the spirit of March Madness basketball, Shipyard Brewing Co. is holding a Sweet 16 of beer at shipyard.com. A funny concept, but cool to try if you’ve had even a few Maine beers. I’m not going overboard and making final four picks, but I’m psyched to see who wins the duel of Old Thumper vs. Pumpkinhead.
Enjoy the spring brews coming out. I won’t be putting together a round-up of the selections for this season, but I can recommend Magic Hat’s HIPA and give Sam Adams’ White Ale a pass.
Cheers!
Bangor Daily News