Alternatives to Rare Beers

​

Don’t go chasing wite wales;​

please stick to the dolphins​

and the eels that you’re used to. ​

I know that you’re gonna have it​

your way or nothing at all​

but I think your ticking won't last.​

Little ticker has a natural obsession​

for Depuration but he just can't see​

it goes for prices that his wallet can't handle,​

but all he can say is, "Russian River is good for me."​

One day he goes and takes a glimpse in the mirror​

but he doesn't recognize his own face.​

His health is fading and he doesn't know why​

ten thousand ticks took him to his final resting place.​

Don’t go chasing wite wales;​

please stick to the porpoises​

and skates that you’re used to. ​

I know that you’re gonna have it​

your way or nothing at all​

but I think your tastings won't last.​

 

It depends on what you mean. I've tried a lot of BBA Stouts, but they've all been pretty different. There are similarities, but I think that aside from things like "BCBS vs Rare" or the Eclipse variants where they're all the same base beer the differences are noticeable.

Now, does that mean that they're really meaningful? I don't know. I really like Black Tuesday, but Parabola and BCBS are still really good. That I can tell them apart (well, that I THINK I can, I've never tried) doesn't really mean that I can't substitute one for another if one is easier to get for me, since they're all really good.

That said, I've yet to find a cheap-ish BBA Stout I like as much as one of those. I have some Central Waters BBS, but if it's like Peruvian Morning it'll definitely be "poor man's".


EDIT: There's a lot more parity in IPAs, though. I think you'd probably still be able to tell them apart on a gross level, but there really isn't anyone in any region who wants for a good IPA. A big one like Younger might be somewhat harder to replace, but I think that's getting less true too.

 

that's kind of it. i honestly doubt that, in a double-blind tasting, 90% of people would tell apart bcbs from rare.

in that sense, the substitution of something common for something rare is possible.

 

I think 90% is maybe a bit high, but I get what you're saying. Don't you think "practice" would also have a lot to do with it, and therefore that 90% that you put it at is ever shrinking? Definitely would be interesting to do a giant double-blind tasting and see how well some people are able to pick things out.

 

I am not sure I want to list a percentage but I agree with the general sentiment to a point. I also agree that practice and palate development does have a lot to do with it. Though there are plenty of people who practice daily I am not sure how many are diligent about honest palate development.

 

What the hell does this even mean? I feel like I have to use crib sheets to know all the acronyms on here sometimes. Weren't acronyms supposed to be dead?

To the OP - yes. There are a lot of crazy good brewers out there. These so-called "whales" that people seem to think must be drank before they die are typically exceptional beers, no doubt, but that doesn't mean there isn't something similar on shelves or at your local brewpub (hopefully there's a good local brewpub near you).

 

I'm still getting the hang of these new forums, otherwise i wouldn't have posted my last post. This is right on.

 

well, it's funny you mention that, because as pahn points out:

and yet he was fooled in a blind tasting! all that complaining about wretchedness and he gave it a c after being pranked by a fake bottle. one would think if it was truly the devil's tincture, he would have at least " realized " it sucked and given it an f. not that it's a bad beer, but some consistency would be nice.

in short, even people who have " practice " don't necessarily know what they are tasting.

 

I find it amazing that a great beer in St. Bernardus apt. 12 is available everywhere, not priced too high, and is #37 on the top 100 list.

 

99%

Exceptions are maybe those who drink one or both of them regularly. Also I'm talking double blind tasting.

 

The problem is that perception is as much mental as it is physical. Your sense organs turn information from the exterior world into electrical impulses, and this probably has a good amount of repeatability to it, but then the brain does stuff to the signals. And what it does depends on a lot of things. Things like the perceived value, expectations, your mood, even lighting and music can affect your brain's interpretation of the signals it's receiving. Does that make it less real? If you argue that it does then you go pretty quickly down the rabbit hole to solipsism.

While doing blind taste tests can be a fun exercise, I don't necessarily think it's meaningful as the gold standard of these things. Sure, if someone is making the claim "I can tell Rare apart from BCBS blind" then you'd need to test that. But if someone says "Rare is better than BCBS" then I just go "meh" if it turns out they pick BCBS blind. The other stuff going on counts.

 

no argument there, but that can be turned on its head: if any two reasonably comparable experiences can be turned into a night-day difference with a little thing like a label or the conviction that the Beer You Are Drinking Is Rare, why chase down the " true " rarity?

the fact that the pleasure isn't markedly different is what i'm getting at. most people don't benefit experentially from wale-chasing. they do it because they've been trained to think rare = better.

 

The fact that you didn't stop after the chorus says something. I'm not sure what, but it says something.

 

Shrug. Why do people kill each other for worshiping the wrong god? People do a lot of stupid shit, as far as it goes whale hunting is pretty benign (the metaphorical kind, the literal kind is really bad). To some extent it's a waste of time and money, but, again, so are most hobbies.

If people get all self-righteous about it then sure, they're being douchebags. But whatever, at least it's a good indicator of douchebaggery.

 

We are now officially off-topic

 

There's probably only a few beers that are irreplaceable and they aren't even that rare in my mind. For everything else I get comparable enjoyment by drinking stuff like Narragansett Porter.

 

This post is absolutely correct, yet I think it's missing the mark somewhat, or at least what I'm perceiving the mark to be.

The implication of OP's post -- and the situation of many of us on here -- is that we don't get our hands on many of these rare/highly-rated/expensive, etc., beers. So, we simply can't take advantage of the sensory "boost" we would get from the fact of a beer's rarity. Given that limitation on the pleasure derived from those beers, OP is looking to see how he can most closely approximate at least the taste (smell/appearance/mouthfeel) aspects; that's not "everything," as you most properly argue, but it's still extremely significant. At least that would get BAs like OP a good chunk of the way there, since it's near impossible to replicate those other benefits without the rare/highly-rated/expensive beer itself.

Also, I think a similar taster to a whale -- what OP is looking for -- may give an extra boost because you feel closer to the whale, like you're better approximating it.

 

It looks like this has gotten more philosophical than the OP intended. My two cents: bells expedition stout is fantastic and has similar depth and viscosity as some of the more highly sought after stouts, and Ill take white rajah over pliny anyday. Now there are some rarer beers that simply have almost no replacements, such as hunahpus. But generally I agree with the above sentiment that you can find something local or on the shelf that is about as satisfying as the whales if not more so.

 

True, but I wasn't replying to the OP. I did that earlier in the thread. I think my reply is perfectly on the mark as a reply to the guy I was replying to.

Incidentally, this thread made me drink a Central Waters BB Stout, and it's pretty good. I think it's a notch below a Parabola/BCBS type, but it's really good. So add that to the list. (I was not as impressed with their BBBW, which is too bad because I have a lot more of it.)