Metro DC Brewery Discussion Thread

Got some clarification on tomorrow's deceiver variant. Coffee almond biscotti. Sounds good!

 

i guess they sold a shitload more growlers of orange starfish on Friday than Neutrino last friday, because they are saying no growler fills of starfish on saturday. I was able to get a fill of Neutrino last saturday. fuck that

 

They basically had a line/people ready to come in at the brewery at 230/3 and were consistently busy until I left around 5:30. They also had a growler limit, but it was flying off. You shouldn't hate because you can't get any, it's just the nature of the beast.

They will be putting out more IPAs so it should get better on growler fills.

 

I'm happy for them. But I will not be able to get growler fills if they stop doing fills in Saturday.

 

^ Same thing happened to me with Small Town. Rode my bike 25 miles out there, only to find out they weren't doing growler fills because they were on their last keg - even though they had tapped it less than 48 hours prior. (As an aside, I was really underwhelmed with every other beer they were serving that day.) I can't blame them for having a small system and running through their IPAs quickly - which are admittedly quite good - but it certainly lessens the appeal for me quite significantly, particularly given their remote location. Let me know when they're consistently pumping out good beer at a scale that can keep up with demand.

Agreed that the prices are steep as well, especially the big mark-up on 32 oz growlers. If they can't keep up with demand, why would they incentivize larger growler fills?

 

They either need to be already looking for a new location and a larger brewing system, or they need to kill most of the other beers they brew and start making 90% IPAs. I hate the way that sounds, because I'm not one of those people who only drinks IPAs, but their IPAs are so much better than the other beers they make. Everything else I've had by them tastes like mediocre homebrew.

This batch of Orange Starfish is better than the last. If they dialed the bitterness down a little bit, it would be right on the mark for my personal taste preference. It is an outstanding beer by any measure though. Bringing Sexy Back should be back in about 2 weeks as well.

 

I thought their scotch ale was really good...much better than the Ocelot scotch ale.

 

Thought their stouts were nice too. On Weds I went and had Neutrino and it was correctly carved BTW.

 

aslin is absurd. this beer is all amazing. also no starfish growlers today. the RIS, the biscotti, the milk stout, the starfish---all amazing.

 

Here at the brewery. I agree - the Orange Starfish is delicious this batch.

 

Just got back from Aslin, Orange Starfish is legit, as is the Buongiorno (biscotti).

 

say hi guys. I'm with the albino girl with white hair.

 

They post what's in their fermenters and 4 of their 6 fermenters were IPAs so hopefully they're starting to focus on that. I think their stouts are legit too.

 

Mediocre home brew? Either you have had some amazing home brew, if so please share, or you haven't had home brew.

My question to the group is when does this Metro DC area become fully supportive of the beers their local breweries are putting out (i.e. Ocelot, Aslin, Right Proper, etc.) instead of beating them down every chance you get?

 

I wonder this. And I also wonder why people seem so eager to compare Ocelot vs. Aslin. It's okay to have two breweries within 10 miles of each other making really good beer.

 

I think its important to be honest and objective. It doesn't help anyone to say something is good when its not, just for the sake of being supportive. My expericence so far at Aslin has been great IPAs, weak everything else. I am not beating anyone down, just giving an honest account of what I have experienced. And I have had plenty of homebrew, from bad to great. Did anyone try Animal (Farm) House? It tastes like an amateur stab at a saison. They did have a hoppy saison on a few weeks ago when the first batch of Orange Starfish was on, I thought that was very good. They certainly seem to know what to do with hops. I don't see why you would think anyone was looking to trash their local breweries, I think most people on this site would love to have a great brewery nearby.

 

I mean you also have posts in the last month saying they are on par with Tree House and Hill Farmstead. As with anything I think you kind of have to take the low-end and high-end takes with a grain of salt and sort of focus on the "median" opinion, if you will.

and the median opinion is pretty clear that Ocelot, Aslin (and Right Proper) are making good (sometimes great) beer and are set up to do even better things going forward.

While I'm grateful to the first generation DC area breweries for getting things started, I'm also grateful that the 2nd generation has sprung up and pushed things to the next level. Doesn't mean there wont be misses. But think how much more intereesting things are now than 3-4 years ago.

 

agree on animal farm house. but there were also two stouts on today that were legitimately amazing and one that was very very good.

 

I agree it is good to be honest about beer quality and what a brewery is producing. This wasn't meant to be point fingers are people on this forum, but....

I just moved from the west coast and recently joined BA and have noticed that this area is not as loyal to their local breweries as say San Diego, Portland, or even as close as Richmond. I also believe that there are a handful of breweries that are on par with if not better than the best of them in regards they styles. Will their be a point when craft beer lovers in DC accept that a handful of local breweries have great products and help them build their brand to regional or maybe even national recognition? If they are into trading it will help them out getting other good stuff. Or will this area continue to lack brand loyalty and always be on to the next best thing? My opinion is the latter.

 

I am a recent transplant, as well, and I don't think this area lacks local brewery support. In fact, there are a few breweries in the area with unwarranted support, it would seem to me. However, I think there is a distinction between support and loyalty. Loyalty is earned. It would seem whether overly negative, positive or somewhere in between, Aslin is receiving a lot of support from the area. Even the naysayers are trying each new beer. I'd argue just as with any area, the DMV area is all too eager for there to be a local brewery worthy of national attention. You will not have to worry about local brewery support, if a local brewery produces great beer. However, I don't see the logic in supporting something local just because it's local. I support great beer, if it happens to be local, great.