beer.

People say they enjoy Kansas City. Find out why.
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smh
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Re: beer.

Post by smh »

pash wrote:Wow, lots of has changed since I last posted in this thread. ...

Distribution is the theme of the past year-plus: Martin City Brewing, Cinder Block, Torn Label, and KC Bier Co. all now are selling their beers in standard cans or bottles, and Crane has several beers available in 750mL bottles. (Did I miss any?)

Brewery Emperial is set to open soon at 19th & Oak. In a bid to help North Kansas City keep pace in its escalating brewing arms race with the East Crossroads, Colony, a café and bar on Armour Road, recently successfully raised some cash on Kickstarter to start brewing their own beer. 75th Street Brewery is gone, but BKS Artisan Ales is looking to open on East 63rd Street next year to revive the brewing scene south of the Plaza.

Any other news?
Calibration opened around the corner from Cinder Block.
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Re: beer.

Post by brewcrew1000 »

I don't understand why KC Bier is so popular, its decent beer but its not something that wows me or something I seek out. They don't really get to creative since they stick to the German Purity laws I believe. Is it popular because it says KC in it? Or do the masses just like somewhat boring beer?
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Re: beer.

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brewcrew1000 wrote:I don't understand why KC Bier is so popular, its decent beer but its not something that wows me or something I seek out. They don't really get to creative since they stick to the German Purity laws I believe. Is it popular because it says KC in it? Or do the masses just like somewhat boring beer?
I've always thought they were just very well capitalized and focused on distribution from day one. Thus they were able to become ubiquitous despite german styles not being all that popular (IMO).
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Re: beer.

Post by pash »

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Re: beer.

Post by smh »

Eh, I don't have any problem appreciating KC Bier's products. I still think their popularity is due to their ability to insinuate themselves into every bar in town.
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Re: beer.

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Re: beer.

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rxlexi
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Re: beer.

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RE: KC Bier Co. success - they nailed distribution early, at least with the Dunkel (of which I am not a fan), and they created the perfect family friendly environment at their Waldo brewery/beer garden, which is essentially non-existent elsewhere. I do love their Helles, and I'm happy to see it in bottles!

Has anyone been to Crane tasting room? I love their beers, some of my favorites in KC, but don't know how well developed the facility is at this time.

I also think BLVD deserves credit for absolutely nailing the new Visitor's Center/tasting room. If only it were open later (even 10pm versus 7pm), it would be one of the more popular spots downtown, easily. I asked someone there about this and they responded that the tasting room is more marketing facility than bar; they don't want to take business away from the many KC area bars and 'rants that serve their beer. Whatever, I really guess. Nonetheless happy to see the confident transition to a true large-scale brewery with the facilities and public face to match.
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Re: beer.

Post by rxlexi »

scooterj mentioned it on the previous page. I still haven't seen any of their beers anywhere, or made it to their tasting room. Worth a visit?
Every brewery is "worth a visit"!

That said, I've been to Calibration once and didn't find it to be anything special, at this time. Generic "brewpub" decor, albeit with a very nice covered patio overlooking Paul & Jacks. Food average, fairly limited menu consisting of burgers and the like. Beer had some interesting selections (I tried the Strawberry Blonde, Coconut Brown, and Milk Stout) but the only one that really stood out to me was the Coconut Brown, enjoyed it quite a bit.

Definitely give it a try but IMO it's closer to a 75th Brewery brewpub kind of vibe than a true microbrewery at this time. And with Cinder Block around the corner...
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Re: beer.

Post by rxlexi »

And one more really interesting new "brewery" incoming - Miami Creek out of Drexel, MO.

The idea of a 100% local beer is intriguing, as are some of the ingredients/combinations.

http://www.flatlandkc.org/eats-drinks/m ... arm-drink/
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Re: beer.

Post by droopy »

rxlexi wrote:
scooterj mentioned it on the previous page. I still haven't seen any of their beers anywhere, or made it to their tasting room. Worth a visit?
Every brewery is "worth a visit"!

That said, I've been to Calibration once and didn't find it to be anything special, at this time. Generic "brewpub" decor, albeit with a very nice covered patio overlooking Paul & Jacks. Food average, fairly limited menu consisting of burgers and the like. Beer had some interesting selections (I tried the Strawberry Blonde, Coconut Brown, and Milk Stout) but the only one that really stood out to me was the Coconut Brown, enjoyed it quite a bit.

Definitely give it a try but IMO it's closer to a 75th Brewery brewpub kind of vibe than a true microbrewery at this time. And with Cinder Block around the corner...
I've been to Calibration a couple times and would recommend giving it a try. Beers are decent, nothing out of the ordinary but good representations for what you're ordering. I got a hotdog that was good but perhaps pricey. Service was oddly slow and inefficient on both visits which is probably the biggest thing to stand out to me about the place. Sat at the bar both visits. Not sure I agree on the 75th St comparison, not that it matters, but this place seems closer to Double Shift, Stockyards and Cinder Block vibe (with a kitchen) than the old-school brewpub/restauranct that was 75th St.
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Re: beer.

Post by brewcrew1000 »

rxlexi wrote:And one more really interesting new "brewery" incoming - Miami Creek out of Drexel, MO.

The idea of a 100% local beer is intriguing, as are some of the ingredients/combinations.

http://www.flatlandkc.org/eats-drinks/m ... arm-drink/
I plan on going to the opening day on Sunday, it seems very interesting, it just looks like its at a guys house in the middle of nowhere.
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Re: beer.

Post by brewcrew1000 »

pash wrote: I also think it's a bit bizarre that a lot of craft-beer aficionados can't appreciate a well-made Pilsner. It's like the immature American wine scene of fifteen years ago, when critics and collectors and the wine-tasting crowd wouldn't drink anything but huge, tannic, high-alcohol fruit bombs. I guess American beer-drinkers are still awaiting their analogue of the Sideways-inspired breakout of Pinot noir, when it will become socially acceptable to appreciate subtler styles.
Yeah, I almost think if a craft beer maker started making only pilsner to begin with they would have been pretty much ignored. I'm seeing a lot more Pilsner's coming out from the Craft guys in the last few years. Just had one the other day by Unita. Firestone Walker makes a pretty decent Pilsner also.
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Re: beer.

Post by chingon »

pash wrote: I guess American beer-drinkers are still awaiting their analogue of the Sideways-inspired breakout of Pinot noir, when it will become socially acceptable to appreciate subtler styles.
Wait...wasn't Sideways basically a protracted running gag about how much pinots suck? Because, obviously, they pretty much taste like air.
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Re: beer.

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chingon wrote:
pash wrote: I guess American beer-drinkers are still awaiting their analogue of the Sideways-inspired breakout of Pinot noir, when it will become socially acceptable to appreciate subtler styles.
Wait...wasn't Sideways basically a protracted running gag about how much pinots suck? Because, obviously, they pretty much taste like air.
The main character was a pinot fanatic. The joke was about Merlot.
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Re: beer.

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Re: beer.

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pash wrote:chingon is just trying to pick a fight with the pinot-drinkers among us. ...

The real running gag was that what's-his-name spent the whole movie shitting on merlot while rhapsodizing about his bottle of '61 Cheval Blanc, which was half merlot.
Ha. I've had some amazing pinots, but probably 85% of the time, it reminds me of boring alcoholic, watered-down Welch's grape juice. I definitely haven't been exposed to much of the good stuff, but you are frequently in the $40+/bottle range which wasn't historically something I could afford. That bias has stuck with me.

I must say that the movie soured me against merlots as it was released early in my exposure to more sophisticated wines. Definitely a good idea to stay away from merlot in my mind if all you have available is uber budget wine, but all rules are made to be broken. I also had a hard time accepting rosè since I always associated it with white zinfandel, but there are all sorts of things lately that are making me rethink what can be good. Sparkling red wine is pretty fantastic, and I didn't even know about it until recently.
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Re: beer.

Post by taxi »

Fercryinoutloud, enough already. This thread is about beer, so take your wine prejudices and put a cork in it. Or start another thread.
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Re: beer.

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Re: beer.

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sour grapes
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