The Beer Thread

[Spaniel with a Short Tail]

Pretty sure I had a Bernardus festbier the other day at Laschets Inn in Chicago. Better than the Weihenstaphaner. I'll have to go back to verify. 

[pbiflyer]

For the Asian beer crowd, brewed right here in Florida. https://brewsaki.com/
Advertised as the perfect saki bomb beer. 

O.P.s had a dollar import night too. Back then my go to beer was either lowenbrau or spaten.

Labatts sponsored the rugby team I played for, along with another MU alumni in Southern California.

[MuggsyB]

What's the overall consensus on the best Chimay?  I think I'd go Red.  The Green is just too much imo.  Rocherfort 10 and 8 is damn good btw. 

[pbiflyer]

Did some research with a fellow Marquette alum last night. Results? Beer is good.
But following the scientific method, we will repeat the experiment today to confirm the results.

[MU_B]

What's the overall consensus on the best Chimay?  I think I'd go Red.  The Green is just too much imo.  Rocherfort 10 and 8 is damn good btw.

My favorite is the Blue.  "Grande Reserve".  Our Costco seems to get them in every year and i always pick up a few.


The Belgian Beer i miss the most is De Koninck, which despite my constant pestering of their social media people, you can't get in the US.

[Strokin 3s]

My favorite is the Blue.  "Grande Reserve".  Our Costco seems to get them in every year and i always pick up a few.


The Belgian Beer i miss the most is De Koninck, which despite my constant pestering of their social media people, you can't get in the US.

Remember having that and nicknaming it "da chronic"

[MU82]

From Axios:

The craft brewing market is in the tank, Axios Denver's John Frank writes from new data released by the Brewers Association.



The once-thriving industry's struggles are driven by market saturation and shifts in alcohol consumption, particularly among younger drinkers.

Craft beer production hit 23.1 million barrels in 2024 — a 4% decline compared to the previous year and the largest drop in industry history outside the pandemic.

The number of small, independent breweries operating in the U.S. decreased for the first time in 20 years with 501 closures compared to 434 openings.

[swoopem]

Borgs > craft beer

[The Sultan]

Yeah this isn't suprising to me. There is a lot of bad beers out there - and really how many different IPAs can you really have? And I also think the craft spirits market is undercutting it as well.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

Yeah this isn't suprising to me. There is a lot of bad beers out there - and really how many different IPAs can you really have? And I also think the craft spirits market is undercutting it as well.

I agree to this.
My Gen Z kids complain that going out is expensive because mixed drinks are so expensive.  I ask them "Why don't you buy beer instead?" and in reply I get "I don't like beer."

[MU82]

I agree to this.
My Gen Z kids complain that going out is expensive because mixed drinks are so expensive.  I ask them "Why don't you buy beer instead?" and in reply I get "I don't like beer."

You must be so ashamed of those losers!

[TSmith34, Inc.]

I agree to this.
My Gen Z kids complain that going out is expensive because mixed drinks are so expensive.  I ask them "Why don't you buy beer instead?" and in reply I get "I don't like beer."

Disinherit them

[Jay Bee]

I'm not one for girly drinks but had a couple self-pours of Surly's Orange Whip and I liked it. #soft

https://surlybrewing.com/beer/mister-surlys-orange-whip/

[MU82]

This surprised me, given previous discussions:

Gen Z NOT the generation of moderation, survey reveals

https://www.theiwsr.com/insight/press-release/gen-z-not-the-generation-of-moderation-survey-reveals/

IWSR's latest Bevtrac survey of consumer sentiment, released today, shows that Gen Z is not shunning alcohol any more than older consumers – and in some cases may be pushing back against the moderation trend.

Across the fifteen markets covered by the Bevtrac survey, the proportion of Gen Z legal drinking age (LDA+) adults who claim to have consumed alcohol in the past 6 months has risen from 66% in March 2023 to 73% in March 2025.

The upward swing in participation is even more pronounced in specific key markets over the same timescale: from 46% to 70% in the United States, from 66% to 76% in the UK, and from 61% to 83% in Australia.

While the overall rate of 73% is still lower than the participation rate of all adults (78%) the survey found that that behaviour among Gen Z consumers who are drinkers is no longer significantly different from the behaviour of other generations.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

This surprised me, given previous discussions:

Gen Z NOT the generation of moderation, survey reveals

https://www.theiwsr.com/insight/press-release/gen-z-not-the-generation-of-moderation-survey-reveals/

IWSR's latest Bevtrac survey of consumer sentiment, released today, shows that Gen Z is not shunning alcohol any more than older consumers – and in some cases may be pushing back against the moderation trend.

Across the fifteen markets covered by the Bevtrac survey, the proportion of Gen Z legal drinking age (LDA+) adults who claim to have consumed alcohol in the past 6 months has risen from 66% in March 2023 to 73% in March 2025.

The upward swing in participation is even more pronounced in specific key markets over the same timescale: from 46% to 70% in the United States, from 66% to 76% in the UK, and from 61% to 83% in Australia.

While the overall rate of 73% is still lower than the participation rate of all adults (78%) the survey found that that behaviour among Gen Z consumers who are drinkers is no longer significantly different from the behaviour of other generations.

Reading this makes sense looking at my own Gen Z kids.  They just don't really drink beer.

[Billy Hoyle]

This surprised me, given previous discussions:

Gen Z NOT the generation of moderation, survey reveals

https://www.theiwsr.com/insight/press-release/gen-z-not-the-generation-of-moderation-survey-reveals/

IWSR's latest Bevtrac survey of consumer sentiment, released today, shows that Gen Z is not shunning alcohol any more than older consumers – and in some cases may be pushing back against the moderation trend.

Across the fifteen markets covered by the Bevtrac survey, the proportion of Gen Z legal drinking age (LDA+) adults who claim to have consumed alcohol in the past 6 months has risen from 66% in March 2023 to 73% in March 2025.

The upward swing in participation is even more pronounced in specific key markets over the same timescale: from 46% to 70% in the United States, from 66% to 76% in the UK, and from 61% to 83% in Australia.

While the overall rate of 73% is still lower than the participation rate of all adults (78%) the survey found that that behaviour among Gen Z consumers who are drinkers is no longer significantly different from the behaviour of other generations.

It's likely due to the proliferation of seltzers, canned cocktails, and other non-beer alcoholic drinks. There are so many more options for alcohol than we had at that age. Sometimes I prefer a mule over a beer; I make my own but there are some good canned options out there.

[MU82]

Reading this makes sense looking at my own Gen Z kids.  They just don't really drink beer.

They might not be drinking beer, but the report says they ARE imbibing - which runs counter to the previously stated narrative that Gen-Z drinks significantly less than older generations.

[Uncle Rico]

They might not be drinking beer, but the report says they ARE imbibing - which runs counter to the previously stated narrative that Gen-Z drinks significantly less than older generations.

Like all things, it's cyclical

[pbiflyer]

It's likely due to the proliferation of seltzers, canned cocktails, and other non-beer alcoholic drinks. There are so many more options for alcohol than we had at that age. Sometimes I prefer a mule over a beer; I make my own but there are some good canned options out there.

This. I was at a trendy sports bar on Saturday afternoon. Almost every young person was drinking a seltzer.
 Only oldsters were drinking beers.

[21Jumpstreet]

Spent the day recently at The Alchemist in Stowe, VT. Had some amazing sours, some up to three years old, and a hand-pulled heady topper double IPA. I love sours, so I was in heaven (for $28 per 375mL I should be), and the double IPA was so smooth. I haven't don't serious IPAs in years, but I love bitter flavors. The beers were tremendous.

[MU82]

From Yahoo Sports:

There is a mini-fridge, stocked with beer, tucked away under a counter inside the Mets' home clubhouse.

More often than not, a metal laundry cart obstructs the cooler from view and from use. Not that it gets much action, anyway.

After most games, those rows of Millers and Coors are left untouched. Every once in a while, a particularly thirsty Met will wander over and scoop out a cold one ... but generally, the box of suds is a vestige of an era gone by.

It is much more common these days to see a half-dressed ballplayer downing a cherry juice, a smoothie or a protein shake than it is to see one nursing a lager, an ale or a fifth of whiskey. Such is professional baseball in 2025.

Conversations with more than 30 major-league players, coaches and front-office personnel point toward a definitive trend: Ballplayers are drinking less than ever before.

Nearly all the figures interviewed for this story pointed to a combination of factors behind the downtick in boozing. Some emphasized the omnipresence of social media and the unease of being intoxicated in public as a public figure. Others focused on the increasing legality and availability of marijuana, preferred by many as an alternative to drinking.

One throughline for everybody was the heightened level of competition in the big leagues. Pitchers have never thrown harder, hitters have never swung faster; sacrificing any edge for a hard night out is simply not worth the trade-off. ...

But just because postgame activities have become less rambunctious doesn't mean players have cut out vice altogether.

One big-league manager, when asked why he thought players were drinking less, leaned back in his chair and chuckled before pinching his thumb and pointer finger together at his lips to mime the puffing of a joint.

"I don't think guys drink as much because now they smoke and play video games," an All-Star pitcher opined. As one National League reliever explained it: "Once my weed consumption went up, my ERA went down."

[Hards Alumni]

Spent the day recently at The Alchemist in Stowe, VT. Had some amazing sours, some up to three years old, and a hand-pulled heady topper double IPA. I love sours, so I was in heaven (for $28 per 375mL I should be), and the double IPA was so smooth. I haven't don't serious IPAs in years, but I love bitter flavors. The beers were tremendous.

That place is awesome, congrats on getting there!

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

Spent the day recently at The Alchemist in Stowe, VT. Had some amazing sours, some up to three years old, and a hand-pulled heady topper double IPA. I love sours, so I was in heaven (for $28 per 375mL I should be), and the double IPA was so smooth. I haven't don't serious IPAs in years, but I love bitter flavors. The beers were tremendous.

My daughter graduated U of Vermont this past May and having visited often over the last 4 years there is a large number of excellent breweries in Greater Burlington including this one.