The Beer Thread

[James Ford]

Considered going for some Westy, but their whole oddball system of distribution seemed kind of iffy. Did see that at least one bar and some bottle shops in Bruges sometime get it. And is it really that much better than St Bernardus 12 or De Struisse Pannepot?

My wife fell in love with the De Dolle trippel. And they are one of the few breweries in Belgium who give tours to those not part of a large group. And the 90-something year old mother of the brewers gives the tours (at least I think she still does, how cute is that?). And weill will be in Bruges on the day that the tours are given. And we will have a car to get there (45 mins) But the tours are at 2pm, so kind of would cut a day in half.

I'm also conflicted about how much beer to bring home. Will US Customs enforce the VA state law of only 128 ounces beer per person (64 in MD). Or will they not care? My wife will probably make me play it conservative and stick within limits. Though when I fly back from SAn Diego later in the summer and sont' have to go through customs, i'll bring back a shitload of hoppy stuff.

So we're (wife, four year old daughter, me)headed to Munich, Freiburg, Bruges/Gent, and Amsterdam for 13 days starting Saturday night. Thanks mileage program for the three free-ish tickets.

Chances are we've (read: I've) already researched it, but any recommendations regarding beers to try, places to drink/eat, non-beer places/things to visit, etc?

One thing I'm most looking forward to is hiking to the Andechs Monastary outside Munich and having some Andescher beer.

from gent, you're an hour away from Vleteren - home of the Abbey of Saint Sixtus of Westvleteren, makers of Westvleteren 12.  i realize that's quite a trek to drag your two ladies on just to try a beer.  then again, it's been rated "best beer in the world" several times so it might be worth it.  if you do go, please bring back a bottle for me.  i must have something you'd be interested in trading for!

[sweetcell]

if you can find westy elsewhere in belgium, then you are excused from having to go to the abbey.  you're not excused from bringing me a bottle, tho

that De Dolle tour sounds awesome.  does the grandmother speak english?  or do you speak flemish?

customs: you need to think about both state (where you land) and federal rules.  federal personal import limit is 1 liter (yeay metric!) duty-free.  you can bring back more than a liter, but you might be taxed on it.  according to what i've read, customs officials are often lax about taxing beer.  when they do decide to tax you, it's pennies per bottle.  i'd declare everything you bring back.  i'd cry if a customs official impounded my belgians...

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f5/belgium-trip-how-much-beer-can-i-bring-back-us-159351/

http://phoronix.com/forums/showthread.php?33930-Bringing-Beer-Through-US-Customs-In-The-United-States-Bringing-Augustiner-To-America


as for state limits, i've never seen or heard of them being enforced.

[James Ford]

Yes, the grandmother speaks English, if she is still alive.
I'm a monolingual dolt. And my wife's Spanish won't help for this trip!

I don't have a problem paying tax on whatever it is i bring back.


The state laws:


Virginia:

http://www.abc.virginia.gov/enforce/shippinginfo.html

Importing Alcoholic Beverages
No more than one gallon of alcoholic beverages (or the metric equivalent) may be brought into Virginia from outside the Commonwealth, excepting shipments to the commission or its licensees, or new residents under special permits.

Anyone who transports more than such quantity of alcoholic beverages per adult in possession of the bonafide owner may be arrested, fined up to $2,500, and sentenced to a year in jail. In addition, the vehicle involved may be impounded and confiscated.

Alcoholic beverages includes wine, beer, or distilled spirits. This restriction applies not only to those alcoholic beverages brought into Virginia from other states or the District of Columbia, but also from defense installations.



http://individuals.marylandtaxes.com/publications/taxtips/personal/tip37.asp


Maryland:

Am I allowed to bring alcoholic beverages into Maryland from another state or the District of Columbia?

You may personally bring into Maryland from another state one quart of legally manufactured alcoholic beverage at any one time, not to exceed two quarts per month. Beyond that level, you cannot import, transport, or possess in Maryland alcoholic beverages upon which Maryland taxes have not been paid. Also, you may not have alcoholic beverages sent to you by out-of-state mail order suppliers or the Internet.

[sweetcell]

This restriction applies not only to those alcoholic beverages brought into Virginia from other states or the District of Columbia, but also from defense installations.

looks like those rules are for inter-state commerce only.  there is no mention of arriving from another country.  maybe VA doesn't have an international personal limit?  one can hope!
 

You may personally bring into Maryland from another state one quart of legally manufactured alcoholic beverage at any one time, not to exceed two quarts per month. Beyond that level, you cannot import, transport, or possess in Maryland alcoholic beverages upon which Maryland taxes have not been paid.

so if you're landing at BWI, and you happen to fall upon a customs officer who wants to get all nitty-gritty, you'll have to pay taxes on anything over 64 oz. 
 
i wouldn't sweat it.  bring back as much as you like within reason (i.e. what can pass for personal consumption), declare it all, and be ready to pay 50 cents per bottle in tax.  then let me know when i can drop by to pick up a westie.

[James Ford]

What about beverages brought from outside the United States?

You may bring into Maryland for your personal use no more than one gallon of alcoholic beverage purchased outside the continental limits of the U.S., including Canada and Mexico. One quart of this is tax-free in Maryland, but you must pay tax on the remaining three quarts. In the case of the Virgin Islands, American Samoa or Guam, you may bring back one gallon of alcoholic beverage tax-free.

http://individuals.marylandtaxes.com/publications/taxtips/personal/tip37.asp

[James Ford]

Also:


http://traveloasis.com/uscustravin.html


Alcoholic Beverages: One liter (33.8 fl. oz.) of alcoholic beverages may be included in your exemption if:



?
     You are 21 years old. 
?
     It is for your own use or as a gift. 


 ?
     It does not violate the laws of the state in which you arrive. 





        Federal regulations allow you to bring back more than one liter of alcoholic beverage for
        personal use, but, as with extra tobacco, you will have to pay duty and Internal Revenue
        Service tax.

        While federal regulations do not specify a limit on the amount of alcohol you may bring back
        for personal use, unusual quantities are liable to raise suspicions that you are importing the alcohol       for other purposes, such as for resale. Customs officers are authorized by Alcohol Tobacco and    Firearms (ATF) make on-the-spot determinations that an importation is for commercial purposes, and may require you to obtain a permit to import the alcohol before leasing to you. If you intend to bring back a substantial quantity of alcohol for your personal use you should contact the Customs port you will be re-entering the country through, and make prior arrangements for entering the alcohol into the U.S.

Having said that, you should be aware that State laws may limit the amount of alcohol you can bring in without a license. If you arrive in a state that has limitations on the amount of alcohol you may bring in without a license, that state law will be enforced by Customs, even though it may be more restrictive then Federal regulations. We recommend that you check with the state government before you go abroad about their limitations on quantities allowed for personal importation and additional state taxes that might apply.

[James Ford]

I had two amazing, limited one time production beers from Denmark yesterday. Half price at happy hour at Pizza Paradiso in Georgetown.

Started with the

To ØL/Mikkelker Overall IIPA
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24299/63868


and finished with
Evil Twin Imperial Biscotti Break
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24300/80291

Both blew me away!

[grateful]

Yeah, I had Evil Twin in Atlanta a couple of weeks ago.  Crazy good 

I had two amazing, limited one time production beers from Denmark yesterday. Half price at happy hour at Pizza Paradiso in Georgetown.

Started with the

To ØL/Mikkelker Overall IIPA
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24299/63868


and finished with
Evil Twin Imperial Biscotti Break
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24300/80291

Both blew me away!

[i am gay and i like cats]

while i was dc last week or so . . . i checked out some dirty nasty bum on the corner liquor store.  their beer selection blew me away.  i was like, really . . . all this and thirty differnet flavors of mad dog 20/20?

[Yada]

while i was dc last week or so . . . i checked out some dirty nasty bum on the corner liquor store.  their beer selection blew me away.  i was like, really . . . all this and thirty differnet flavors of mad dog 20/20?

Anyone watch Survivor? This guy reminded me of walky, even though I've never met walky.

[James Ford]

I'm going to say that Walky is heavier, and older.


Not that there's anything wrong with that.

while i was dc last week or so . . . i checked out some dirty nasty bum on the corner liquor store.  their beer selection blew me away.  i was like, really . . . all this and thirty differnet flavors of mad dog 20/20?

Anyone watch Survivor? This guy reminded me of walky, even though I've never met walky.

[i am gay and i like cats]

never watched survivor . . . is that guy "bad"?

my stats are -  thirty-eight / six foot four / two o seven lbs.

oh and i forgot . . . super cute.   

[sweetcell]

so this is what my weekend is going to look like:


 
in case the above pic doesn't come through: https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/9wd5kJ-ZnEHNqOO4929Tk6CBesnamw2UU71IOs51TRo?feat=directlink (and if the image does show up, sorry for making you scroll to the right... didn't realize the image was that big)

i won't be drinking all of those (i want to cellar the stone IRS), but it's nice to know i have such great options.  the boulevard tripel, rahr's and the cali-belgique were dragged back from texas (thanks for losing my luggage, American Airlines).  the southern tier and the celebrator (!!!) were bought at the rockville pike World Market this evening - what a delightful surprise!  all that crap behind the beers is ingredients that i'll be using to brew a few batches this weekend (a breakfast stout, a belgian blond and a single malt/single hop experimental brew.  the glass on the far left contains my rye IPA - the official sponsor of this weekend's brew-a-thon.

it's gonna be an awesome weekend

[James Ford]

Hmmm...should i hop the plane to Germany or just hop on over to sweetcell's?

As nice as that collection looks, I'm still getting on the plane. Enjoy those brews though!

[i am gay and i like cats]

speaking of germany . . . my good friend just got back and brought me this.  hope it is good.