And the winner is ... the Dundee Craft Pack. When it comes to variety packs, I am all in. I love beer in all its permutations and am also easily bored, so there's nothing like a good variety pack to give you options. Because really, thats what makes good booze. Say what you want about single malt whiskey (love it), but why is vodka so damn popular? Options. There aren't many things you should put into a single malt (besides ice cubes), but with vodka, the possibilities are endless. Its the same with beer. Who wants to drink a Stout all night (besides the Irish)?
Now, the reason why I ultimately chose Dundee over Magic Hat (my favorite mid-range brewery, other than Flying Dog- more on that later...) as the best in variety packs is two fold. The first is that it is local (brewed and bottled in Rochester, NY... on the 'other side of the tracks' from Genny Cream Ale!). The other is its Wheat Beer. I don't like Wheat Beer, and the Circus Boy Heffeweisen in Magic Hat's variety pack is just too much. The Wheat Beer is Dundee's craft pack plays more towards the center, and that way I can handle it. They still end up being the stragglers in the fridge, but at least they don't become permanent residents like the Circus Boy.
The art on the bottles is also whimsical and engaging, and the pithy blurbs on the back are fun to read. So ... THINK GLOBALLY & DRINK LOCALLY!
2 comments:
Another good pack you should check out is the Leinenkugel tackle box. There is a pretty nice selection in there, and it also has some great box-art. And why shouldn't beer have good artwork? There have been many studies linking perceived taste to visual cues.
I think maybe we need to build the beer-drinker's version of the ultimate mix tape. If you were to make your own variety pack of 12 beers what would you put in the box? Obviously the options are wide open because you needn't stick to the same brewery to build your pack.
Ok, I've got it. My ultimate MixTape (now this is assuming these are all for me, I didnt learn the part in kindergarten about sharing beer):
Magic Hat
2x #9's - great taste, high drinkability (HD)
2x Jinx - great seasonal brew, HD
Flying Dog -
2x Snake Dog IPA - love the hops
2X Gonzo Imperial Porter - 9%, these are the bruisers, the "4th line," if you will
Dogfish Head - 2x 90 min. IPA, no further explanation necessary. the best.
1x PBR - this is the time of the evening where you extol the virtues of "fuckin pabst blue ribbon!"
1x 16 oz. Red Dog (can) - some say why, others say why not?
your serve.
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