Roundup: Lists of best beers of 2012

I’m a sucker for end of the year lists, especially when it comes to music. LargeheartedBoy.com has an exhaustive tally going of links to music lists by blogs, newspapers and other sites that’s worth checking out if you have some time to kill. For what it’s worth, my favorite album this year is, without question, Fear Fun by Father John Misty (click here to hear the whole album). They also put on my favorite show this year, along with Youth Lagoon.

Anyway, getting back to beer, I decided to try and compile links to lists of the best beers of 2012. If anyone wants to contribute, be it your own picks or picks from any other sites, email GrizGrowler@gmail.com. I personally don’t have a full list, but the best beer I had this year was Zombie Dust by Three Floyds Brewing Co. out of Munster, Ind. It lived up to its billing as a “gushing undead pale ale.” My sister’s boyfriend brought it back from Chicago over the Fourth of July and it definitely sticks out in my mind.

Here’s the list with links. The No. 1 beer from the site and the brewery are listed to the side:

• Rate Beer (top 50) Westvleteren 12 by Westvleteren Abdij St. Sixtus
• Homebrewers Association (top 50) Pliny the Elder by Russian River Brewing
• Beer Advocate (top 100) Pliny the Younger by Russian River Brewing
• First We Feast (best beer in each state) Montana: Ivan the Terrible by Big Sky Brewing
• Draft Magazine (best 25)
• Draft Magazine (100 best beer bars)
• Esquire (best 24)
• Wine Enthusiast (top 25) Saison Rue by The Bruery
• Beer Advocate community thread (best 5 new beers)
• Willamette Week (president of beers) Beaverbear Barleywine by Tom Roan and Nancy Bowser
• World Beer Awards Red Chair NWPA by Deschutes Brewery
• Great American Beer Awards
• World Beer Cup
• North American Brewers Association
• Montana Brewers Festival Red Ale by Lewis and Clark Brewing

- Matt Pritchard

Check out Willamette Week’s awesome President of Beers

Willamette Week, an alternative weekly in the Portland area that covers news and culture, has a great series going on right now on its website entitled the President of Beers. WW managed to acquire “flagship” beers from each state, meaning the signature beer from a given state’s biggest brewery, not necessarily the best, as it points out. And as writer Martin Cizmar says, probably broke some laws in the process. After laboring to get all those beers from all those states, the weekly rounded up 12 tasters to blindly try all the beers and rank them on a scale of 1-100.

The countdown began on Aug. 24 and the first 5 (meaning the worst 5) are as follows:

50. Pennsylvania: Yuengling Lager
49. Maine: Shipyard Export Ale
48. Louisiana: Abita Purple Haze
47. Texas: Shiner Bock
46. West Virginia: Bridge Brew Works Belgian-Style Tripel

The countdown goes until Oct. 3, when the top 10 and the winner will be revealed. I encourage you to go and check it out, it’s definitely a cool way to rank beers.

As for Montana, I can only guess that Moose Drool gets picked. It’s the signature beer from Big Sky Brewing Co., after all.

Update:: Montana comes in at No. 16 with Big Sky Brewing’s Moose Drool.

- Matt Pritchard

Like craft beer and baseball? Here’s a guide

If you’re like me, then you love baseball. And if you’re also like me, then you love drinking beer at baseball games. Problem is, usually what’s available is a Big Gulp-sized Bud Light for $14.

In Missoula, the Osprey have a pretty good selection of craft beer: Big Sky Brewing’s Summer Honey and IPA, Kettlehouse Brewing’s Cold Smoke, Eddy Out or Double Haul (it rotates) and Bayern Brewing’s Dump Truck and Dragon’s Breath. At least those were the beers available last week.

Unfortunately, while we do have the Osprey, there isn’t a major league team within about 500 miles. But if you find yourself catching a game at some point over the rest of the summer, check out CraftBeer.com’s Major League Baseball craft beer guide. It lists most of the craft beers available at major league parks. I say most because the comments seem to show the list isn’t complete. Plus, the Cubs and the Blue Jays are missing.

Judging by the list, it looks the the Pirates have about the best beer selection in majors. Surprising? Maybe. But not anymore than their season this year.

- Matt Pritchard

Missoula Independent’s Best of Missoula 2012 beer results

The Missoula Independent’s 18th annual Best of Missoula results are in and as always what I’m interested in and I’m sure what you’re interested in are the beer results. The pertinent categories this year include Best Brew, Best Microbrewery, Best Beer Selection, Best Retail Beer Selection and Best Bar:

Best Brew
1. Kettlehouse Brewing Co. Cold Smoke
2. Kettlehouse Brewing Co. Double Haul
3. Big Sky Brewing Co. Summer Honey

Best Microbrewery
1. Kettlehouse Brewing Co.
2. Bayern Brewing Co.
3. Draught Works

Best Beer Selection
1. Rhino
2. Missoula Tamarack 
3. Kettlehouse Brewing Co.

Best Retail Beer Selection
1. Worden’s Market
2. Orange Street Food Farm
3. Pattee Creek Market

Best Bar
1. Charlie B’s
2. James Bar
3. Rhino

Not too many surprises here. Well, frankly, there are no surprises. But still, it’s worth checking out all the results. Plus, if you’re looking for something to do Thursday night, there’s a Best of Missoula party at Caras Park beginning at 5:30.

- Matt Pritchard

Montana ranks 3rd in beer consumption per capita

In recently updated statistics by the Beer Institute, Montana now ranks third in the U.S. in beer consumption per capita behind only New Hampshire and North Dakota.

In 2011, Montana switched spots with North Dakota, which now ranks second. According to the data, Montana has an estimated 730,259 legal beer drinkers who on average drink 40.6 gallons each. To put it in perspective, that’s a little more than 81 growlers per person. That’s down from 2010′s figure of 41.7 gallons of beer (more than 83 growlers) for each legal drinker. New Hampshire in 2011 boasted 43 gallons of beer per capita and North Dakota registered 42.2 gallons per capita.

I’m not completely sure on how the Beer Institute estimates the per capita figure, but I assume it takes the amount of beer sold and divides it by the amount of legal drinkers. In which case you can be sure that the per capita figure is likely less because it’s not just those who are over 21 that are drinking beer.

The Beer Institute also keeps track of beer shipments. In 2011, Montana actually shipped less beer than it did in 2010. The Treasure State ranked 43rd with 956,133 31 gallon barrels of beer (about 1,912,000 kegs) shipped, down from 971,947 barrels (about 1,944,000 kegs) in 2010. California shipped the most with 21,805,539 31 gallon barrels of beer in 2011.

Check out the stats from 2003-2011 here.

- Matt Pritchard

Missoula finishes middle of pack in BeerCity USA 2012 poll

Missoula finished in 18th place out of a total of 31 cities in the annual BeerCity USA poll, while Asheville, N.C., and Grand Rapids, Mich., shared the title this year. In total, Missoula had 402 out of the 55,926 votes cast, according to Charlie Papazian’s article. Not bad. Not good, but not bad.

Here’s this year’s top 5:

1.  Asheville, N.C., 17,849

1.  Grand Rapids, Mich., 17,849

3.  St. Louis, Mo., 3,451

4.  Bend, Ore., 2,270

5.  Portland, Ore., 2,014

- Matt Pritchard

Report ranks Montana one of the top 10 states for beer

Here’s yet another article giving Montana credit as one of the best states for beer, and rightfully so.

The Street.com, an online financial newsite, recently came out with its list of 10 Best Beer States for 2011. Rounding out the top 10 is our very own Treasure State.

At 30.5 gallons of beer per year, the average Montana resident’s beer consumption is second-highest in the nation, almost a full gallon ahead of third-place North Dakota and a whopping three gallons ahead of South Dakota … There are some hard winters in Big Sky Country, but there’s plenty of beer to warm those cold nights.

The top 10:

10. Montana
9. Delaware
8. New Hampshire
7. Wisconsin
6. New York
5. Washington
4.  Colorado
3. Oregon
2. Vermont
1. California

- Matt Pritchard

Rhino makes list of best beer bars in U.S.

DraftMag.com recently came out with its 100 best beers bars for 2011 and new to the list Missoula’s very own Rhino. It’s the only spot in Montana to make the cut and certainly deserves the praise. The Rhino, of course, has a giant selection of draft beers, many of which you can’t find anywhere else in Missoula. My girlfriend’s mom went in there for the first time a while back and asked, “What’s on tap?” without looking around to see the long wall of handles. The bartender was not amused.

On a side note, we have a new SpeakUpMissoula poll about the best taproom, pub or beer bar in Missoula. You can vote and see the results on the right side of the screen.

- Matt Pritchard

Black Star Double Hopped Golden Lager on ‘Beers to Give’ list

Black Star Double Hopped Golden Lager

Wondering what beers would make a good gift this year?

Draftmag.com recently came out with The 18 Best Beers to Give This Season and it includes Minott’s Black Star Double Hopped Golden Lager, which has connections to Whitefish.

“FOR THE CRAFT-BEER NEWBIE: Reintroduced this spring after a seven-year hiatus, Black Star Double Hopped Golden Lager (a Euro-style, dry-hopped pilsner) zings virgin palates with Saaz and Mittelfruh hops.”

There’s been some talk in the past if canned Black Star really counts as a Montana craft beer. I’m not going to get into all of that. If you like it and want to pass it along as a gift, here’s a store locater.

- Matt Pritchard