Toppling Goliath in Chicago (2018)

This is almost exactly how I think of the canned Sue; in terms of what comparable stuff I can get here. And I agree on your takeaway.

KS was actually brought up in the NE IPA thread as being similar to an NE IPA, and I get why. It's super hazy and full-bodied, and very hop-forward (at least what I've had on tap). It's actually more bitter than I'd expect from an NE IPA, but I'm no expert on the style.

Not saying I consider it that style; just saying I get why people brought it up.

For what it's worth, I've always preferred "super aggressive" to "balanced"; I consider ZD and Heady to be examples of balanced beers, and I prefer canned PS (a little more citra-forward and bitter) and Focal Banger (a little more bitter than Heady, better hop profile in my opinion). So I plead guilty here!

 

Sweet Ill plan on drinking some sometime in 2018 or 2019 after pople dont care about it anymore.

 

Well now that we gave you TG, how about you send over some NvU? You guys hold onto that stuff like it's your newborn.

 

Really? I always thought NvU was a shelf turd...guess I take it for granted it is always stocked and available in the stores I frequent....

 

A beer can be world-class and a shelf turd simultaneously, ya know...

 

Uh no, world class means "trades for whalez." Anything that doesn't is mediocre or at least "overrated."

 

I'll still drink Florida Sue, I just don't know that I would buy it any more than NvU, LK or Navaja. The other stuff I mentioned is another story. I'll be very happy when/if I can get those semi-regularly.

 

So basically what you're saying is, that you won't take my trade, and will instead take ALL the beer for yourself.

Very Chicago beer scene of you!

 

More that I don't expect to buy PS in bulk if it's from Florida. It's good, but I won't stab anyone for it. Now KS/Sosus/Decorah Sue, I can't make any promises. Those are some of my favorite hoppy beers.

 

I'd probably buy FL PS more than those others. LK, while good, just doesn't really do it for me. I wouldn't turn one down, but it's not part of my regular rotation. NvU is one of my all-time favorites, but it's getting harder and harder to drink anything above 7% on a weeknight. I still do it, of course, but it's becoming a real commitment, as in "might as well write off the rest of the evening." I honestly can't think of any other easily-obtainable* sub-6% APA that approaches PS, and I've only ever had the canned version. I guess I'd throw ZD into the mix based on total alcohol units. It's over 6%, but it's also 12oz vs 16, so it's slightly lower overall.

*assuming I'm already in Wisconsin.

 

Sue is great but, like everything else, watch the hype go down as distro goes up. IMO King Sue is VERY batch dependent - had some phenomenal and some that was nothing special. G-Nug really solid (but, as others have mentioned, there's so many options in Chicago already). Nug-Mo is even better if we could get that variant, which doesn't surprise me because I think their Mosaic hopped brews are their best stuff. I would give up a kidney if I could get Sosus and Pompeii regularly (although when I first had Navaja my initial comment was that it's as good as any TG brew). One of the beers that really gets overlooked in their lineup is Lightspeed.

 

I've rarely had Golden Nugget, because they places I go typically haven't had it very fresh. I wouldn't go out of my way for it, but it's the type of good, solid IPA that's always welcome in my fridge or on the shelves of a nearby beer shop. I'm not a big fan of Lightspeed, but I think that's down to the hops used.

I agree that their mosaic beers are great, but I feel like I've had more really good local mosaic beers recently than citra (Juice is Loose being the exception), so I'm much more interested in the Sues. It's interesting that you say KS is batch dependent; I'm curious where in those batches my one try fell!

 

I picked up a 4 pack when it was Decorah, probably the first batch. It was okay. Only one man's opinion, but if I had to put the hoppy TGB beers I've had in tiers (roughly in order within the tiers)...

Tier 1: King Sue, Sosus, Mosaic Golden Nugget, Decorah Sue
Tier 2: Pompei, Hopsmack, Florida Sue, Golden Nugget
Tier 3: Tsunami, Light Speed, Sol Hunter, Biter

Keep in mind that none of them were awful.

 

Yeah, pretty solid ranking. Looks about right outside of personal preference.

 

Seek out NugMo

 

Meaning no offense to the OP and simply making a point, but this is the "typical" Chicago craft beer fan comment. It's always a rush to get things, make sure they sell out here, buy up as much as you can so no one else can enjoy the "beer of the moment". Travel outside the metro area and these beers will be easy to find, but here they will be sold out instantly. Saw a whole bunch of Sosus in Milwaukee last time I was there. It's like Bourbon County. Can't find it here, but get away from the area and it's not as hard to get. Or the folks who follow Mikerphone around and pick up all the IPAs they drop before anyone can.

I gave up a few years ago in attempting to locate items like these and my life hasn't significantly dropped off in my level of enjoying good beers; there just so many out there.

Outside of the weather it's the second thing I dislike most about living here, then followed by the quantity of Italian Beef/Hot Dogs/Fries food restaurants in the area (why is there a need for so many??).

Enjoy the chase BA's!

 

One thing TG probably doesn't get enough credit for is that they create big flavors in lower ABV beers. Do they even make a DIPA over 8%?