Good call on VaS. The coffee flavor on this was not bashful, which I appreciated as a coffee fiend. Particularly when many other 'coffee' porters/stouts seemed to have been lacking the level of coffee I was interested in having (looking at you, Founders Breakfast Stout). Plus, it was available in sixers and a solid value to boot.
I am not sure if this applies but I remember back in the early 80's,when I would see my dad for the weekend,he would send me to the store to get him beer and cigarettes( I was 12,lol,different times),I wouldn't say a brand,just "beer and cigarettes" as they knew him.. Anyway,the beer was in a plain white can that just said 'Beer'.. I don't remember any other text on the can.. It stuck in my memory because of it just saying beer.. Does this ring a bell for anyone? Do ya'll remember anything like that or did some odd false memory get stuck up there somehow..
The beers (there were a number of them from a handful of breweries, as well as numerous other grocery products) were referred to as "Generic Beer" . When Beer Was BEER: The Forgotten, Generic Brands That Ruled the 1970s
When I was living in Santa Cruz, back in the early 80s I think, the local Longs drug store had a version of this. 99 cents a 6 pack as I recall, so pretty cheap. I assume that was the allure. It wasn't poisonous, but it was no great shakes. I didn't have a lot of money back then, so I would buy it on occasion... I don't remember being particularly overjoyed with my purchase.
My dad told me about it in the context of "After I was discharged and was going to college, I was so poor I had to drink Beer beer", and then he described exactly what you are talking about. Also, heavily featured in the movie Repo Man.
Top of the list in UC/CSU mascots. Anteaters and Tritons (honoring the motor oil?) get honorable mention.
Here's a crazy one: The OG Sculpin. I know it's technically available in Southern California, but Ballast Point once used to be as common as Sierra Nevada around here. Haven't seen them in at least 3 (?) years. Drank Ballast Point like crazy in my early craft days and still drank Sculpin once in a while up until they left our market. Would love to revisit that one for old time sake.
@moodenba I am a Triton too. Sadly this was just before the craft beer scene exploded in the San Diego area.
I was a student in the early 70s, way before the craft beer scene exploded. Ballantine Ale and so-so homebrew at home. So the AALs were imbibed when out on the town. The U has gone backwards by emphasizing sports?
By all accounts UCSD's academics are as stellar as ever. I was surprised to find out that they are playing Division 1 basketball these days.
A fellow student was on the rugby club team. The women's rugby team startled some of their opponents by their ferocity.
I miss O’Keefe Extra Old Stock. It was one of the first beers that taught me that all beer didn’t taste the same. It was similar to Brador, but better to my very young palate. I also liked that I could bring it to a party as a 17-18 year old, throw it in the fridge and no one would touch it. Id love a chance to step back in time and revisit that beer.
That's worked for me. But there's been other times (a sixpack of Victory HopDevil was involved in one instance) when I went for my second beer and 3 others were missing. THOUGHT BALLOON: "Hmmm...maybe the host won't force me to bring the rest of my beer home as often happens..." Walking around the various rooms in the party's house, I eventually see 3 abandoned bottles of HopDevil with what looks like approx. one to two mouthfuls missing
I remember a friend of mine’s dad would also get that generic “beer” Back in the 80s.For some reason, I thought it was pretty cool. More recently, I’ve had this “House” beer at some live music shows in LA that brought back memories: https://www.housebeer.us/items/true-blue:-house-beer-x-ncd
That was even worse than simply finding the beer has gone missing. I’ll never forget the time I brought a couple bottles of Labatt’s Velvet Cream Porter to party when I was still really young. At a lull in the music, there was a loud ‘what the ?!$& is this!’ from the kitchen. I peaked around the corner and a friend of mine was holding a bottle and spitting into the sink. I was amused and disappointed at the same time!
