So, there are 11 days left in this month - and I have been thinking about what beer I may drink to break this "dry spell" this month... Just bought a 6 pk of Great Lakes Chillwave DIPA today, and bought some Sierra Nevada Springfest last week......have some BA'ed Narwhal staring at me as well, along with some others purchased in December. So, what say you? What "first beer" are you looking forward to in February??
If we're going to do Cellarurary (is that what it's called, it doesn't sound right?) I'll pull something from there. Probably a KBS.
I usually crave hops after an extended abstinence, but lately Guinness Extra has been haunting my thoughts. The new SN Springfest and 3 Floyd's ESB look interesting, too. But I have a bottle of Spaten Optimator bequeathed to me by my late brother that may get first attention.
On second thought, having something with a high abv might shock my liver, so I'll start a bit more slowly. I don't know which beer yet, but I keep all my lower abv stuff on the bottom shelf of the fridge, therefore I might go with @Squire 's plan and just reach in and take the first one.
My usual first beer is a 6.5-7.5% ABV west coast IPA...as close as possible to canning date (fresh). With the palate reset that comes along with Dry January and in this ABV range, the hops just explode on the palate! That along with a slightly dry, crisp finish just zaps the palate and makes you come back for more! Yum! Ha! Fondly reminds me of how my mind was blown having my first well done, piney bitter west coast IPA...
I am thinking I may just have to go "big barrel aged stout" on Sunday Feb 1....hmmmm Any suggestions from the hive mind?
I am soon running out of dark NA beers, maybe my last could be the first in February. Planning to start tasting whichever new NA beers and also radlers there are near me.
With just 3 days left in this month, I must say I am very much looking forward to a real beer Sunday....not sure why exactly, the shitty cold January weather, the unrest / chaos going on in this country, not being able to get outside as much as typical, or ? For those of you that have done dry January before, is this year easier, harder, or about the same as previous years? It has been much more difficult for me this year!
I'd say that it's about the same. When I commit to something I very seldomly do not follow through with it. Doesn't mean that I don't have some SERIOUS cravings in the evenings. Just gotta go to bed hungry and sober and when I wake up it'll be better.
I actually say you go the other direction. Find a sub 4% abv English bitter or mild. You’ll be able to perceive and appreciate the nuance more than most.
