DC/MD/NoVA Beer Updates (2020)

Welp, whatever they decide to do I’m sure it’s for the best. They’ve been nothing but stellar during this whole thing. Big shout outs to the DTC crew

 

WF H St has Solace cans on sale

 

Perfect for the penny pincher in your life.

 

Ha! Reminds me of the "deal" I saw at the outlets in Williamsburg once:

 

Did anyone watch or hear about Other Halfs Instagram live stream from Friday night?
They were supposed to provide an update on the DC location but I don’t see any info online summarizing it.

 

I didn't watch it, but this is the summary someone posted in a Facebook beer group:

 

I did.

It’s all dependent on when local government functions get up and running. They currently need a health inspector to look at the facility, and estimate it’ll be about 2 months after that when they can open. On the stream, Matt guesstimated this would happen in June and immediately regretted it.

He also mentioned this would be their biggest facility, it’ll have actual food (not just snacks), and they’ll have a train car inside for the “crispy boiz.”

They briefly mentioned there are some smaller systems at this location that would allow them to release smaller batches of things like lager, pils, etc without having to use the main system.

June sounds optimistic.

 

This thread kind of died so:

1. How is everyone doing?
2. Anyone been taking advantage of delivery/shipping by breweries?
3. Best beer had during lock down (local)
4. Beer beer had during lock down (overall including cellared)
5. What brewery are you most looking forward to having a beer at after lock down ends?

 

1) Pretty much settled in. Managing a toddler and working at the same time isn't ideal, but hes really talking now, so nice to see that so up close
2) Got shipping from the Veil twice, and Ocelot once. Both went great, but ya the Veil is expensive to ship. Curbside pickup from Dominion Wine and Beer could not have been simpler
3) Ocelot Nebulous was really great
4) The Veil This World Is Not Real was something special
5) Maybe not brewery, but the ability to go into a bottle shop and just browse.

 

Got shipping from Triple Crossing and home delivery from Wheatland Spring — both well worth it, fantastic breweries. Hope options like these are here to stay. Also have done curbside pickup from The Brew Shop and Dominion Wine and Beer.

 

Glad you're getting to spend more time with your kid.

Ocelot was super easy delivery even in the first week they did it.

Can confirm. This was far and away the best thing from that "haul."

I miss spending unnecessary amounts of time at the bottle shop too.

I really haven't checked out enough of the area's beer stores and now feels like a weird time to start. Went to a grocery store I hadn't been to before and I felt out of place.

Heard good things about Wheatland Spring. What would you recommend from them?

 

Working at home, glad to have a job. I've made a couple of curbside pickups from Dominion and it was great. Favorite beer so far is probably Alpine Duet. I think Alpine's back on track. Green Flash West Coast IPA is quite good too. Best local is Solace Curly Dubs IPA. That one was a birthday gift from my neighbor.

 

Everything I’ve had from Wheatland has been excellent — I’d feel comfortable ordering whatever they have in stock. I especially like their Corn Crib lager and Found Artifacts pilsner.

 

Happy belated birthday

Given how full my fridge is right now and how much stuff I'd want to get there, it might be best for me to hold off. They have a ton of stuff that I'd be interested in (lagers, saisons), but it's a pricey and I can't justify it at the moment.

 

1. Grateful to have a job at the moment
2. It's not cheap but have gotten The Veil, Aslin, and Triple Crossing shipped. I figure since I'm stuck at home and not going out to bars I can afford it.
3. Citra Triangles by far, probably best beer I've had all year
4. Besides above? Probably the ice cold Modelos I've been drinking in the shower.
5. Not a brewery but I can't wait to plop down on a barstool at Churchkey and just go crazy

 

1. Doing well. Working from home means I can sleep in for the portion of my day I would otherwise spend commuting. Having a 4 year old around while working hasn't done any favors to my productivity, but I'm willing to work a bit longer to get the job done.
2. I took advantage of shipping from Jackie O's, curbside at Dominion and Norm's, and drive-through for barrel-aged bottles at Aslin. I'm also coordinating with a DC-guy for an upcoming Equilibrium release. I thought I'd be crushing my cellar while stuck at home, but, honestly, my cup runeth over right now.
3. Aslin Orlando, hands down. I was going to say it was a tie between Aslin Anaheim and Aslin Chantilly, but I just finished my first Orlando, and it clearly stole the show.
4. See above.
5. When it's safe to travel again, I may have to take a special trip just to enjoy a brewery I've never hit before. I'd say the leading candidate is Bissell Brothers. I could take the fam to experience Acadia, get some great Maine hops, and possibly sneak into Vermont to snag cans to bring home. Sleeper candidate is Monkish, since I haven't been to Cali since the 90s.

 

I am missing going to bars a lot too. Churchkey is high on the places I miss right now.

Portland is definitely high on the list of places I want to get back to. Mostly to eat. I've been settling for getting my coffee beans shipped from there (Tandem). Portland was my weekend escape when I lived in Boston. I miss it very much. Being able to snag some Vermont cans would be great, but I would say it isn't worth it to do all that extra driving. Maine has more than enough great beer.

 

My wife and I took a trip to Acadia at this time last year and it was amazing. Spent the night in Portland the first and last days of the trip and I have to say Bissel Bros. (for me) was quite underwhelming. If you're into hazy IPAs I would instead go for Austin Street or Battery Steele - both of those places surprised me with the quality of their beers (IPA and otherwise). The overall quality of Maine Brewing can't be overstated, although it's about 45 mins outside of Portland. On our final night of the trip we Uber'd to Allagash (which is a must visit as well) and from there you can simply walk to 4-5 different breweries, Battery Steele being one of them.

 

1. Alright, a bit stir crazy.
2. No as they all seem expensive af and there have been all the recent special releases at Dtc/dominion
3. Crooked crab a raspberry and peach walk into a bar fruited sour
4. All citra everything or Mylar bags
5. None as I don’t really drink at breweries but I guess burley oak if I had to pick

 

There are stacks of Aslin at Safeway on Lee Hwy. Did a double take when I saw that.