Nights I Can't Remember, With Beers I'll Never Forget

This past weekend I visited my alma mater (Cornell) for my fraternity's (Pi Kappa Phi) initiation weekend. One of my good friends and fraternity brother came up with his fiance as well, and the three of us shared some awesome beers on Saturday night. Yes, we were "pre-gaming" for a fraternity formal, but as alumni, we classed it up a bit with an incredible craft beer lineup. Some of the freshman didn't even know you could get beer in "wine bottles" as one of them put it. One freshman girl tried a sip of the Harpoon Catamount Maple Wheat (from their 100 Barrel Series) and commented, "it kind of tastes like Budweiser." Needless to say, I cringed a bit and a little piece of me died inside.

So, here was the night's lineup. As this post's title alludes, I don't remember much of the night, but these beers all left a lasting impression! In order of drinking, we had:
Harpoon's Catamount Maple Wheat
Lagunitas' Hop Stoopid
Brooklyn Brewery's Brooklyn Local 1
Ithaca Beer Company's TEN

My favorite was probably the TEN, a hearty brew weighing in at 10% ABV. It's described as an "Imperial American Extra Strong and Special Double Red Ale," which is a mouthful. Basically, it was big in all dimensions: malt, hops, and alcohol. Amazingly though, the alcohol was very well-balanced, and although the beer was certainly warming, it was not overwhelming. It kind of sneaks up on you and hits you later. The TEN was definitely the highlight of drinking that evening. It goes without saying that the formal did not have a stellar beer lineup, but I got the bartender to bring out a case of Sam Adams, which improved the menu tremendously (my previous choices were Bud Light, Coors Light, or Labatt).

I hope everyone had a good weekend, and as a not-so-important person once told me, "Drink Your Beer!"