Tuesday, April 27, 2010

A Thank You Letter to Rogue Brewery

The Beer Buddha(right) pre-beer enlightenment.  I have no idea who those other dudes are.

To Rogue Brewery,


All beer nerds have that one beer that started them on the road to beergeekdome. They can regale you with great stories about their discovery of a beer that put them on the current path to their beer enlightenment. We all have that story. But do we all have the original bottle of that one beer? I do and now I'm going to bore you with my story.

It was May 20th in 1996 and I had just turned 21. Like most people who turn 21 I felt that I was now a mature adult and I should start acting like one and drink better beer. Yes, I thought the road to maturity began with drinking better beer. Go figure.

Anyways, it was going to be no more Red Dog or Ice House for me, I was 21 now dammit! So I head to the grocery store near my house in Algiers with my new license which proclaimed I could indeed purchase alcohol legally now. I was ready!

So I head over to the beer aisle in all its macro glory and begin my search for something "different". Now I don't remember the beers that I looked at that day. The only thing I remember is the beer that caught my eye. It was a big 22oz bottle with a skeleton sitting on a barrel. Immediately I am drawn to this beer because the label is so much cooler than anything I've ever seen. And the name Rogue Dead Guy Ale. How frickin' cool is that name? I was hooked so I made my purchase and headed home.

That night as I drank my Dead Guy Ale(out of the bottle of course, oops)I kept thinking to myself how amazing this beer was. It was so good compared to what I had been drinking. It actually had....taste. From that moment on I was always on the prowl for something new and different and I have well over 1000 bottles in boxes to prove it. My path to beer enlightenment began that day. So thanks Rogue for helping me start my path. There will always be a place in my heart and room in my belly for Rogue.

Cheers!

The Beer Buddha


3 comments:

Butch said...

Nice. Can't recall mine, but I think it was probably some Pete's Wicked Ale.

Dave said...

I actually broke down a few weeks ago and purchased some of the Dead Guy Ale. At 12 dollars a six pack it took me awhile to get the nerve to try it. And to be quiet honest, I was disappointed. I didn't think the beer was all that special, very much on the norm, and not worth the money. I am glad that this beer brought you into the light for better beer though! Best of luck on your journey.

The Beer Buddha said...

Dave,

At $12 a 6 pack I'd have to agree with you. In 1996 the availability of craft beer was different and that 22 oz certainly didn't cost that much! I'm not sure $12 for a 6 pack of Dead Guy is a deal.

Cheers!

BB