295754 Fri Jan 16 01:11:21 -0800 2004 19 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1626692 Hope its ok to post a beer question here and not in "not about food." Beer is food, right? Anyway, if you were trying to find an unusual microbrew that can be purchased bottled (not just on tap) to send someone in the midwest...something that she (a microbrew lover) had never tasted but would surely enjoy...what would you choose? The more obscure, the better!! (Include a source where I can buy it. If its only in SF, let me know before I go there this weekend!!) Thanks! Fri Jan 16 01:11:21 -0800 2004 0 janet 1 1626694 Look here. Link: http://beerme.com/breweries/ Fri Jan 16 02:10:52 -0800 2004 1626692 0 Chino Wayne 2 1626695 And this will take you to a list of micro-breweries in northern California. Link: http://www.beerpage.com/cbp7.html Fri Jan 16 02:13:56 -0800 2004 1626694 0 Chino Wayne 3 1626877 wow, what a couple of fantastic beer data bases! hats off to the beer nuts who keep them up to date. i'll never travel again without checking these first. Sat Jan 17 11:00:43 -0800 2004 1626695 0 mrnyc 4 1626890 They are nice, aren't they... gurgle, gurgle. Sat Jan 17 13:44:20 -0800 2004 1626877 0 Chino Wayne 4 1626913 Tons of reviews of beers and beer places at ratebeer.com and beeradvocate.com. They tend to keep up to date due to the enormous number of people involved. Sat Jan 17 21:40:44 -0800 2004 1626877 0 Jim Dorsch 1 1626700 Rather than send you to a long list, let me make a specific recommendation: Trout River Brewing 58 Broad Street Lyndonville VT 05851 802-626-9396 They bottle two or three of their brews and they're all luscious. (Rainbow Red is particularly wonderful.) And sending a midwesterner beer from Vermont's Northeast Kingdom will be quite special. Call them to see how you can get it there...I think their distribution is limited to New England right now. Fri Jan 16 06:31:54 -0800 2004 1626692 0 Steve 2 1626702 I second the recommendation. I'm also fond of Magic Hat in Vermont which has a little wider distribution. I hope your friend will, in return, send you some Bell's Oberon or some Summit Pale Ale. The first practically a reason to move back to the midwest, to me. The second my husband's favorite MN beer. Link: http://www.magichat.net Fri Jan 16 07:28:48 -0800 2004 1626700 0 LisaLou 1 1626701 While in SF, see if you can find a bottle of AleSmith beer from San Diego. Alaskan Smoked Porter is always sought by those that can't get it, which is most of the country. If you need to mail-order, take a look at the web sites of the Vintage Cellar in Blacksburg, VA and Belmont Station in Portland, OR. Fri Jan 16 06:38:40 -0800 2004 1626692 0 Jim Dorsch 2 1626710 Alaskan Smoked Porter is well worth going through hoops to get. I live in the NYC area and have ordered through Belmont station. They're wonderful and knowledgable people, but they ship via freight which can be costly if you order a small amount (fixed rate for the first three cases), just fyi. Then again every beer geek should try ASP at least once in their life. I usually place a large order and get my Pacific Northwest fix at once. If you're on the west coast you should be able to get Deschutes easily. Anybody east of the rockies should love that as well. Their Obsidian Stout is amazing, as is their Bachelor ESB. Fri Jan 16 09:19:55 -0800 2004 1626701 0 Tongo Rad 1 1626703 Depends on where in the Midwest. In Iowa we don't get anything from New Belgium in Fort Collins Co., but you can get it in Omaha. We drive over and pick some up once in a while. They make excellent beer. Here is the page from the website that was in an earlier post. Thanks for that. Link: http://beerme.com/breweries/us/co/2911.shtml Fri Jan 16 08:33:34 -0800 2004 1626692 0 Bobfrmia 2 1626732 Well, I wasn't going to ship a case of beer, only a few bottles as part of a gift basket. If I pack up everything and say its a food basket, will I be ok? (I'll be shipping from Nevada, but if they have weird stuff about shipping I can always drive over to Truckee, CA and ship it from there...). As for the state its going to, I'd rather not say on the off chance that the recipient reads this (it is part of a total surprise...). OTOH, I will tell you that the state is home to a major sports professional hall of fame....(my friend doesn't follow sports...).... Fri Jan 16 11:54:47 -0800 2004 1626703 0 Janet 3 1626758 I won't advocate breaking the law or bending the rules, but I will just state that shippers don't look kindly on shipments of alcohol, and one would do best to skirt the issue. For example, many of us would agree that beer is food, if you know what I mean ... Fri Jan 16 13:32:48 -0800 2004 1626732 0 Jim Dorsch 1 1626717 I am interested if anyone has been successful shipping beer in the last year or so. I have a friend in CO who said he tried to send me some beer for Christmas in 2002, he said he was not able to. He tried UPS. I discussed this with a co-worker. While he was in New Orleans he found a beer (ale?) he thought some of his friends would enjoy. He purchased a case and tried to UPS it home. UPS would not ship it for him. My co-worker said a friend of his tried to ship a case of wine (I believe it was wine), out of state and UPS would not do it. My co-worker said something about UPS and Fed-X x-raying packages and shipping alcohol is not allowed. Any positive experiences, anyone us the US Mail to do this ? Fri Jan 16 10:19:27 -0800 2004 1626692 0 Alan408 2 1626724 Have not tried shipping beer yet. I just had a case of wine shipped to me last week. The winery tells me that certain states prohibit the shipment of alcohol, California (where I and the winery is) does not. I have also ordered and received soda via interstate UPS, so it doesn't seem to be a concerned about shipping carbonated beverages. Probably depends on what state you live in and what state the brewery is in. Fri Jan 16 11:22:29 -0800 2004 1626717 0 Chino Wayne 3 1626730 I am in California. My co-worker's friend also lives in CA and tried to ship wine out of state and could not via UPS. My co-worker tried to ship beer or ale from LA to CA, he said UPS would not ship it. I have received wine shipped from CA winerys via UPS. So, to rephrase my question, has anyone shipped alcohol from CA to another state, or from another state to CA using UPS, Fed-X or US Mail with the carrier's knowledge ? Fri Jan 16 11:50:52 -0800 2004 1626724 0 Alan408 2 1626729 You will increase your chances exponentially if you pack the goods in a plain box and, if asked, reply that you are shipping yeast samples. Fri Jan 16 11:47:04 -0800 2004 1626717 0 Jim Dorsch 3 1626731 Co-worker's friend tried something similar, he said he was shipping "gifts". The package was returned to him, evidence that it had been opened, with a nasty letter. I did not see the nasty letter, I am getting this information second hand (from my co-worker). I will try to ask the UPS driver at work. Fri Jan 16 11:53:51 -0800 2004 1626729 0 Alan408 1 1626851 How about a beer made by Unibroue? Unique and obscure. Check it out on the list of breweries from the link posted by Chino Wayne. In San Francisco it's available at Whole Foods and Beverages and More. Fri Jan 16 22:58:30 -0800 2004 1626692 0 Chantiman 1 1627081 It was my impression that it was illegal to mail alchohol unless you had some special federal license, which makes it very expensive. A friend of mine who owns his own company here in oregon spends an enourmous amount (like 80 bucks a case) to send local microbrews to customers... Mon Jan 19 20:59:53 -0800 2004 1626692 0 jake-o