For the first time in hundreds of #beersaturday weeks, I missed a couple in a row because of vacation. Let's get back on track!
Beer blogging came naturally to me due to years spent brewing for myself and restaurants, working with breweries on their technology & marketing, and the decades spent imbibing. Hence, the self-decreed title of the #Blockchain #Beerologist doing my best to consume, report and even brew to do that title justice.
This week, I throw it back to a Caribbean week of tropical vacation beers.
Pints of the Week
After an afternoon of flight delays and a late arrival, we met up with the welcoming committee who were ready to start the party a day early. For those just tuning in, I had the privilege of joining Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioners from across the world for a week of cruising the high seas and fighting each other every day. An added bonus is this is vacation and we have Brazilians who like to party as much as we do! We gathered to reunite poolside for a few beers to kick things off in style.
FOSTERS!
For years, one of the party rally cries from Braulio https://www.bjjheroes.com/bjj-fighters/braulio-estima-facts-and-bio has been "FOSTERS!" This guy is full of energy and brings the party with him everywhere he goes. Makes sense I snapped this moments after we boarded the ship and he is ready to party.
There was an abject lack of good IPAs and my favourite kind of beer is LOTS so I followed suit occasionally. Foster's https://www.fostersbeer.com/ is definitely one of Australia's most definitive brands but fans of this #beerologist will note I have never featured it on this blog. Not the worst beer I had this trip and I would have another under these circumstances.
Kirin!
During our trip, we transported ourselves back in time and enjoyed a nice Japanese dining experience. Having spent time in Osaka a decade or so ago, it was nice to find some nice Kirin to have with our sushi. Saporo may be the beer you associate with Japan but spending some time there buying from restaurants, corner stores and vending machines, Kirin is my choice.
Red Stripe
I mentioned this one in my #marketfriday post yesterday @zekepickleman/marketfriday-in-the-bahamas but this was my first Red Stripe. I have seen this brand so many times from people's vacations and know that Jamaica and Red Stripe go well together. Well I had a chance to quaff a couple of these on a beach in the Bahamas and it wasn't the best. Watery and almost tasteless (compared to my IPA obsession almost all beer is) but refreshing nonetheless when in the tropics under the sun.
Brasa
If we go from worst to best, this is where I introduce you to Brasa. This was served to me as the local Caribbean goldon a beach in Curacao. They look pleasingly like a Corona with the lime and light hue but this one is definitely better. They were not only refreshing, you could actually detect a little malt character which gave it more disti9nct and full taste. A few of these under the palm trees in the sand is about as perfect as life can get!
Bravo Curacao and thanks for the hospitality!
IPA!
It may have taken us 10 days and thousands of miles but we FINALLY latched onto some IPAs in the airport in Orlando. Truth be told we were high as hell after trying to finish the vape cartridge of goodness but it didn't impact our enjoyment of hoppy American IPA. Lagunitas is not the best by any means but is pretty good and widely available. While I will opt for another craft IPA before this one side by side, I can't count how many times I have been rescued by a long list of watery piss that mercifully ended in Lagunitas rescuing me.
If you are still on smooth and light, a nice Hawaiian Kona Big Wave https://konabrewinghawaii.com/our-beers might fit the bill. The namesake originates from the winter waves at destinations like Makaha that attract surfers from around the globe. "The waves in Hawaii are legendary. In the winter months, the island鈥檚 north and west coasts see big waves that often climb to 40 feet, with huge curls of white water breaking off shore. This is just one reason why surfers, body boarders, paddlers, and those of us just willing to watch from the beach make this pilgrimage." We may have been in Florida for a stopover but a Big Wave went perfectly with an order of Scambini.
#BEERSaturday!
If you can't enjoy a breakfast beer on vacation, when can you? This week, you can join
@detlev, myself and all the other beer bloggers at @detlev/beersaturday-315 for this week's edition.
This week for #BeerSaturday, I would like to invite new friend 