Arizona Beer Week Continues

My apologies to those of you that have no interest in beer, because I am aware that that is all that my last few posts have been about.  But honestly, that is kind of what a lot of us in Arizona are consumed with here this week.  Since the Strong Beer Festival last Saturday, there have been numerous events going on at bars, restaurants, and breweries around the Valley.  It has been a busy week.

Ricky and I headed out on Monday night to Four Peaks in Scottsdale, because we heard they had Sirius Black on tap!  It’s such a good beer, and one we can’t get very often.  I was definitely impressed after trying the barrel-aged version at their tap room in Tempe last week.  After Four Peaks, we decided to head over to the Whole Foods on Mayo.  They have a bar with 30 beer taps, and for Beer Week they were having $5 flight specials all week.  I was able to grab some NCAAle from Barrio Brewing in Tucson, Four Peaks Kilt Lifter, and even some Abominable from Mudshark.  Yum!

On Tuesday night, I headed out to hang out with the ladies from Arizona Girls Pint Out.  I have loved meeting other ladies that are into craft beer.  This event was at Papago Brewing, another common hangout for us.  We tried several great beers there as part of a flight, including Mudshark Morning Buzz and Four Peaks Baltic Porter aged in wine barrels.  I also got to try five of the Vertical Epics from Stone!  They had had a tasting of those the night before at Papago and still had all but the 09.09.09 left.  So I was able to sample the 07.07.07, 08.08.08, 10.10.10, 11.11.11, and the 12.12.12 on tap.  The 11.11.11 is still my favorite, but it’s interesting how they all have very different flavors and even different tastes.

I took a break on Wednesday night from going out for Beer Week, but last night I ended up at a beer class at Total Wine that Ricky was pouring for.  It was Belgian beers, and there were some good ones in the mix, including the St. Bernardus Abt 12 and a Lindemans Kriek, a cherry lambic.  Yummy!  We closed out the night by heading to Flanny’s in Tempe, where they were having a tap takeover with Colorado beers.  I got to try Great Divide‘s Curacao Chocolate Yeti as well as the Agave Wheat with oranges and cloves from Breckenridge.  Both were very interesting flavors.

I am nearing my “Legendary” badge on Untappd, obtained from checking into 500 unique brews.  Tonight we’re heading out to Chandler for a visit to the Bell’s Eccentric Cafe Party at Hungry Monk, which we’re excited to check out since we’ve never been there before.  Then, we’re heading over to the infamous Watering Hole at the Whole Food in Chandler to try some of the interesting beers they have on tap as well.  Should be a great way to close out a very fun Arizona Beer Week!  And hopefully I’ll get that Untappd badge…