suds series vol 5

Readers of SCBC know that I love me a good microbrew. What better way to continue our series than with some old fashioned head-to-head (or maybe crown-to-crown) action via microbrews from our respective cities?

Schlafly and Six Row, I'm pitting you against Sprecher and Lakefront.

I have written about Sprecher here, here and here. Clearly they are a popular topic of conversation in the Lauren Walles household. They have a crap-ton of different types of bottle caps that are excellent for collecting. And did I mention that their root beer is delicious, so creamy and smooth. My only complaint is that it's rare to find Sprecher in my neighborhood.

Schlafly, you are harder to find in NYC than Fitz's, and that's tough to do. I have not been to your brewery, but according to your website, you have a BBQ Shrimp Po Boy, which I can only imagine is delicious and goes well with beer. My friends in St. Louis swear by Schlafly and have turned me on to the tastiness of their beer. Thanks to them, I have a lovely collection of Schlafly bottle caps, and I'm hoping to tour the brewery the next time I visit St. Louis in December.

Lakefront, oh man. I had a delicious Lakefront brew in Milwaukee in the Public Market, and I'm still thinking about it. Such a great experience: beautiful Germanic architecture, amazing food stands in the market, tons of Wisconsin cheese, and a full-bodied Lakefront. Heaven. The bottle cap rocks, too -- it comes complete with a frosty beer mug! Really, it doesn't get better than that.

And finally, Six Row, your beers are tasty, your logo is really clever, and your menu looks amazing.  Can I come have some mac n' cheese? I admit that I have not seen your bottle cap. What gives? Do you have one? Is it the 6 with the wheat? This could tip the scales one way or another.

Hmmm, this is the toughest of them all. Honestly, this should be a tie; I'm a fan of all these microbrews. But if I were forced to choose, I'd go with Schlafly. The brews are varied and interesting, folks in St. Louis seem to love it, and, most importantly, the bottle caps are way cool, which is an important criteria here at Super Cool Bottle Caps. 

So let's say that this was an extra inning contest that St. Louis barely squeaks out.

And so, with that, I announce the winner of the best-of-5 Suds Series 2011......

ST LOUIS!!!!!!! 

St Louis 3

Miller 2

I hope you enjoyed this little experiment, and next week, we will be back to our regularly scheduled bottle cap posts. Have a great weekend everyone. Watch some baseball, and of course, drink something tasty. 

new glarus and lakefront brewery

Friends, I was definitely busy in Milwaukee. It is officially week two of Milwaukee coverage here at super cool bottle caps.

Last Sunday, Michael and I decided to have lunch at the Public Market in the Historic Third Ward. With tons of food, beverages and free parking on the weekends (!!), it seemed like the perfect place to explore on a rainy afternoon. We had soup in bread bowls from The Soup and Stock Market (you don't even know how much I love a bread bowl) and beer purchased from the Thief Wine Shop and Bar. Michael had a New Glarus Spotted Cow and I had a Lakefront Brewery Klisch Pilsner.

Both beers hail from Wisconsin. Michael and I had discussed going to Lakefront -- we really wanted to try their Friday Night Fish Fry.  But as you recall from last week, we had a difficult time actually GETTING to Milwaukee on Friday night, and Saturday was already booked with brewery tours and baseball games. Alas, on Sunday Lakefront Brewery wasn't open. So we had to settle for beers at the Public Market. I love the Lakefront Brewery bottle cap: LB with a frosty mug along with a clear indication that it's a local Milwaukee brew.

The Spotted Cow was equally tasty, in its own way, of course! And the bottle cap also proves to be great. The state of Wisconsin with a fingerprint in it. And it tells us boldly: Drink Indigenous.  Indeed.  Local brew = good times.

Procuring just two bottle caps at lunch didn't seem to be enough for us, so we went back for more...Stay tuned!