Since today is both a holiday and the unofficial end of summer, I thought I'd do something a little different and answer an email that isn't finance related but might come in handy for a bunch of you. I received the following email from In The Flesh last week:
Morning Eddie,Louisiana related question--I was in my local liquor shop (also known as "my pharmacy" I suppose), and saw case after case of brews from Abita Brewery.
I know how much you love your booze (or used to, I guess, considering you gave it up); any recommendations on what's good from these guys? Looks like they have quite a selection. Ever actually been there?
I'll take the last question first.
I have not only been there, I probably could've been considered a temporary resident for awhile about five years ago. You see, I used to live about 15 minutes from the Abita Brewpub (and brewery) and they had the best burger on the Northshore at the time (with Times Grill running a close second). Needless to say, I was in there a couple of nights a week at least.
In addition to the truly sublime burgers, the rest of the menu was stellar as well. They had a deep fried artichoke heart appetizer that was phenomenal, their bayou crawfish pasta was to die for, and their roast beef po-boy was every bit as good as Monster's.
But if you really wanted to go off the reservation into gourmet heaven, you had to order the boudin quail. This was a dish so decadent that even I only ordered it once a month or so. It was quail breast stuffed and smothered in boudin (it's a cajun thing: pork, rice, spices, and God only knows what else in a sausage casing) with a blueberry glaze. It was sweet and savory and spicy all at the same time. Out of this world.
Now to the most important thing: what to wash it all down with.
Abita Beer is really phenomenal. I'm just gonna hit the high points, starting with my favorites:
- Jockamo IPA - Jockamo is a relatively new entry to the Abita family and was introduced shortly before I left for France. India Pale Ales have always been my favorite microbrews, and Jockamo is one of the best I've ever had. I think it was introduced as one of their rotational beers, so I'm glad to see that it's now being produced permanently. This is a truly great beer.
- Turbodog - Turbodog is basically a nut brown ale. It's clean and delicious, and packs a bit of a wallop. This is one of the beers that made Abita famous.
- Andygator - I'm not proud of this, but if your aim is to just get annihilated look no further. Andygator is a mix between a double bock and a barleywine, and it'll fuck you up like polio. Proceed with caution.
- Purple Haze - No list of Abita beers would be complete without at least mentioning Purple Haze. It's basically the beer that put Abita on the map. I'm not a big fan of fruit beers, but as fruit beers go this one is pretty quaffable. The raspberry isn't overpowering and it's a pretty refreshing brew. Plus the chicks really dig it.
In short, if you're not drinking Abita beers you probably should be. They're a unique taste of Louisiana and, even though I might get my NOLA ticket punched for saying this, they're a damn sight better than Dixie. That said, you should try Blackened Voodoo if you get the chance.
Hope you're all out enjoying this final day of summer. I think I'll go have a beer.
Eddie,
Good call on the Blackened Voodoo. Any time I can find it, I order it without question. It's a hell of a Schwarzbeir and makes me happy every time I can find it. It's much better than the Dixie Lager. I still have yet to find the Crimson Voodoo Ale. That's one that I am looking forward to eventually finding and trying.
I will vouch for all the beer listed here. Given my live of the sauce and unusually good familiarity with it, I would have included something on the Amber - I think it's the most approachable and drinkable of the Abita beer. It's also the most sessionable. I'm not a big fan of the Andygator. I think it's a little too big without enough bite to back it up. Then again, I loved the Double Dog which was an overkilled Turbodog. For the seasonals, I would seriously recommend checking out the Satsuna. It's a wonderful harvest wit that's not too heavy and very mellow with a nice flavor profile to it. I think Purple Haze, Jockomo and Turbodog are spot on though.
Have you had anything by New Orleans Lager and Ale Brewing Co. or Bayou Teche? Those are both on my list if I make it down there.
I knew your response to anything alcohol-related would be very thorough! Thanks Eddie, Happy Labor Day to you as well.
I think I'm seriously starting to become a bit of a hipster (gack) with my emerging love of craft brews...
Liking craft beer doesn't make you a hipster. Claiming you like craft beer before craft beer was popular and being snobbish about all things craft can make you a hipster but doesn't entirely do so if you have an open mind and don't exclusively drink Dogfish.
Absolutely nobody we know fits that description...
I'm a big fan of the Pecan Harvest, and my wife loves the Strawberry Harvest. The Amber isn't bad either.
Okay, let me explain why I didn't mention the Amber. Abita Amber is probably the one beer Abita makes that gets exported everywhere. I figured by now everyone has had it at some point, so I didn't mention it. My mistake. Abita Amber is really, really good beer. It's the only beer on tap at my yacht club, if that tells you anything. So if you haven't had it, you can't go wrong with Abita Amber.
I haven't had the Double Dog, that came out after I left. Both the Satsuma and the Strawberry Harvest are as local and regional as you can get. The satsumas (a variety of orange) are sourced right there in Abita and the strawberries are harvested up the road in Ponchatoula. Pretty much everything Abita makes comes from a 20-mile radius of the brewery, so you know it's fresh.
You're making me thirsty, Eddie.
Speaking of which, the Labor Day party I was at yesterday was IPA heaven--like you literally opened the cooler and there was nothing but IPAs in it. Lagunitas, Harpoon, Saranac Lake White IPA, Southampton Publick House IPA....
Jesus, I've never even heard of any of those. France is a complete no man's land for beer. I can't get IPA, I can't get Trappist, all I can get in a bar here is the national swill 1664 and maybe Heineken. Sucks ass.
That said, an enterprising young lady (that's right, a chick) opened a joint in the Mouffetard that is more a beer store than a bar. But her schtick is that you can go in and pick any bottle off her shelves (and she's got a HUGE selection, even of American microbrews) and she'll flash chill it in nitrogen for you so it's ready to drink ten minutes later. She's also one of the cheapest places in town. Win win.
Frieds,
The Andygator is the one beer they will not serve in a pint glass at the brewpub. They serve it to you in this pseudo-Frenchie wine goblet like the kind they use to serve Affligem and other high-alcohol content beers over here. Kind of annoying, really, as I could probably order a pint of whiskey anywhere in Louisiana if I wanted to. But I guess it adds to the ambiance, and I really have had a few (non-)memorable nights on the Andygator at the pub.
I'm partial to a Maibock/Helles Bock being served in a pint glass and not a chalice. Then again, I think the glassware should suit the style of the beer and not the alcohol content.
At the risk of outing myself, my [relationship changed to protect the innocent] cousin used to be Abita's senior brewer way back in the day. They've run through a few head brewers, but I think she was the one that really put the place on the map. She developed some (obviously not all) of the tasty beverages you mention.
I appreciate the shout-out. A lot of blood, sweat and tears goes into the process, and her shit is undeniably brilliant. Maybe I live a sexier life than she does, but at least she makes something that people love.
You don't make something people love?
Depends on how you look at it. In my current (secret) life, I do make decisions that affect things that people love, and that puts me closer to stuff people love than most on Wall Street. And I did once almost accept a baller corp dev job in the booze business. They were like, "Go build us a business in Asia," and I was like, "Fuck yeah, just drop me off in Hong Kong with $600 mil and I'll call you when I'm done," and they were like, "Sounds good, go for it." But then that offer got trumped a couple of times so it didn't work out. (Hah, douching harder than usual today. Got it coming out my ears over here.)
But this chick, she carries 50 pound sacks of hops up gigantic ladders and shit. Her face is permanently reddened and her forearms are the size of my calves. She spends her weekends scrubbing valves and hoses with toothbrushes. When I say, "I got my hands dirty on that one," she's over there on her end of the phone making jackoff motions.
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