This last weekend was a very busy weekend for us. We went out to Amanda's home town - Boyceville. Saturday was her 15 year high school reunion and Sunday was her family reunion. Since both started in the afternoon or evening, I figured we'd have some down-time, but I was wrong.
We stayed with her mom, so Saturday morning we drove into Menomonie to go to the farmers market and take her shopping. While we were out, we stopped to pick up some things for the family reunion on Sunday. While I was window shopping beer, I saw that both the super Walmart and the Marketplace foods carried Budweiser Chelada. Brad, at work, doesn't really drink beer, but he loves Cheladas. I've never actually seen them sold, though. They are a mixture of Budweiser (or Bud light) and Clamato. I mentioned it and Tess, my mother in law, bought some. I was going to ask her if I could have one, but in the rush of the weekend, I never got around to it. Oh well, I know it's sold in my area, so I'll get my hands on some eventually.
The reason I had been window shopping beer was because I was looking for craft beers local to that area which I haven't seen at home. I settled on the Badger Porter from Sand Creek Brewing Company in Black River Falls, Wisconsin. It has a nice dense feel to it with a pleasant roasted coffee flavor and a smooth finish. I like it, but I don't know that I like it enough to go out of my way to get it. I'll enjoy the rest of the six pack, but when I find Sand Creek Beers again I'll try something else before going back to the Badger Porter.
That evening we had Amanda's highschool reunion at the Glen Hills Golf Club in Glenwood City. My experience in that area is that more common to find big name beers (Miller, Budweiser, Coors, etc.) than craft beers or imports. Which isn't a bad thing, but since I tend to prefer craft beers I tend to have a harder time deciding what to drink. Well, I made things easy and started with bourbon. When I finally decided to start in on beer, I went for a Leinenkugel's Original. Surprisingly enough it was the first time I had their original. There was nothing really special about it, but it tasted like a good old fashioned American beer. Not my favorite, but I had no complaints.
Sunday, while we were setting up for the Family reunion, I opened a Breckenridge Brewery Summerbright Ale. I loved it. It had a full flavor that wasn't heavy. It had a little sweet tartness without really being sweet, and finished with a hint of bitterness. It was great for a hot day outside.
Toward the end of the day I was thirsty, but didn't want anything too heavy. Amanda's aunt and uncle typically dring Milwaukee's Best (or the Beast as I like to call it), and I've never been interested in trying it. Amanda's cousin had brought a cooler of Milwaukee's Best Light, so I grabbed one. Not being a light beer drinker, I don't have much to go on, but it wasn't bad. It reminded me of those lightly fruit flavored bottles of water you can find. Except instead of a hint of fruit flavor, this had a hint of beer flavor. Not the kind of thing I'd like to drink with dinner or while watching TV, but it would go well with mowing the lawn or doing other yard work during the summer.
