At least ideas to better track and prevent loss.

I’ve always felt that bars are something like a classroom, minus the grumpy teacher. I learn something – a joke, some trivia and something about beer – practically every time I stop for a drink.  A recent stop at a local bar got me to thinking about beer and kegs; specifically, how to identify the beer in the keg.

I went to The Grey Lodge Pub to meet some friends. The tap list included the “MicroStar Mystery Keg”. My initial reaction was to Google the brewery. Then I remembered the last newsletter, The Log, mentioned the “mystery” keg. This keg was at a local wholesaler but the label was gone. All kegs look similar making the type of beer and the brewery unknown.  At $4 a pint, taking a chance on this beer was a no-brainer. I bought “several” pints and was quite happy with my choice; but now I have a dilemma. How do you find a beer without knowing the brewery or name?  Well, I’ll tell you. I don’t know, but I have some ideas.  The inspiration was my EZ Pass transponder.

How to get the hard to reach brews.

When I’m packing my suitcase, I make sure to pack bubble wrap, freezer or zip lock bags and padded envelopes. Yes, I pack the normal stuff but I want to make sure the beer I pack doesn’t get damaged. Why do I pack beer? Simply because most craft beers are only available regionally. One of my favorite beers is New Belgium’s 1554, a dark, chocolaty, black ale that is not currently available in the Philadelphia area. I also like Dark Lord, The Abyss and Darkness; these are only available at the brewery. If I try to score these beers, I’m not only going to use up some sick days but also do a fair amount of driving. I have two ways of getting beers that I want: 1) Drive to another state or 2) Do a beer trade.