Categories

Missoula Events

Battle of the West Coast IPAs

It wasn’t really an Oscar-night thing, but Beau brought over some Stone Brewing Company IPA and some Deschutes Brewing Company Hop Henge IPA round about the third quarter of the big show. Can’t fault him though, he’s a volunteer for Big Brothers & Sisters of Missoula, and he spent most of Sunday afternoon hanging out [...]

New Belgium Brewing Company’s Ranger IPA, as only Bubba can tell it

I tried New Belgium Brewing Company’s Ranger IPA a couple of weeks ago during Super Bowl, and I was pleasantly surprised. This is not a Northwest-style volcanic IPA, but it’s something I’d definitely drink on a regular basis. I think the evolution from Fat Tire to the wide release of an IPA is interesting. Companies [...]

Seen, heard and consumed

The proverbial question in Missoula, Montana these days is: When will the Kettlehouse Brewing Co.’s Northside taproom open?
There is no good answer for that, as evidenced by brewery owner Tim O’Leary’s cryptic post on Facebook recently.

Tim O’Leary I’m thinking a reasonable opening date of June 2osomething is not out of the question for the Northside. [...]

Das boot

I’m not going to assume all of you have seen the movie “Beer Fest,” but if you have, then you know what I mean. I’ve always wanted to drink from a boot, and thanks to beer buddy Beau, I can now say I have.

Oh, by they way, that boot is filled with Bent Nail IPA [...]

Damn the Torpedo

Anybody seen this in Missoula? It hasn’t crossed my radar yet, though I know it was released widely back in January.

Apparently this is Sierra Nevada’s first mainline release in 28 years.
Prost,
GG

An Inversion in Libby

We drove into Libby at 10:40 a.m. The inversion was thick like pea soup, and the air was moist and the biting cold pierced my my three layers of clothing. It’s difficult to spend time in this town without thinking about what you’re breathing in the air or kicking up with your heals, though a [...]

Kingfisher – King of Indian Beers

Finally got to try a Kingfisher. Remember how I said alcohol is a bit of sensitive subject here in India, well, I’ve tried to treat it that way and be as discreet as possible, especially around Muslim and Hindu friends who do not partake and who look down on those who do.
Some good friends of [...]

In the land of a legend

I’ve had the great privilege of visiting many of the renowned brewing states that can truly say they fathered a certain style of beer. Perhaps no other place is so romantically connected to beer as India.
The men and women of the East India Company whose thirst for a tasty brew lead to the creation of [...]

Cheating on your beer

The term probably has more significance for brewery workers than your average beer-drinking Joe, but I’d like to expound upon it from an everyman’s point of view.
The thought of cheating on your brewery or favorite beer crossed my mind last night as I stood sipping an IPA at the Big Sky Brewing Co. taproom chatting [...]

What’s in a name?

According to Avery Brewing Co.’s website, Maharaja comes from two Sanskrit words, Mahat, meaning great and Rajan, meaning king. You have to love powerful and thought-provoking names for beers. Me, I love names like Old Rasputin, Arrogant Bastard, Skull Splitter or Gonzo Imperial Porter.
They all leave a great aftertaste.

What I liked: Maharaja Imperial India Pale [...]